Divine Sankalpa

The Lord’s Sankalpa governs the lives of people at all times and keeps track of their karma and its consequences. Jarasandha’s repeated attacks on Mathura to avenge Kamsa’s killing and the series of events that follow in its wake highlight this truth, pointed out Sri Aravindalochanan in a discourse. When Jarasandha besieges Mathura for the eighteenth time, Krishna manoeuvres a ploy by which He puts an end to further such attacks. First of all, by His divine Sankalpa, Krishna shifts His kingdom to Dwaraka, a city situated in the midst of the ocean and brought into existence overnight by Viswakarma. As Jarasandha lays siege to Mathura on one side, another warrior Kaalayavanan is prompted by Narada to fight against Krishna. So he too surrounds Mathura on another side. Krishna turns His back on Jarasandha and evades battle with him. He then meets Kaalayavanan who gears up to a fight. But again Krishna starts to run towards a forest and Kaalayavanan begins to chase Him. Krishna leads him to a dark cave where Muchukunda, who had been the commander in chief of the celestial army during Krita Yuga, is in deep sleep. He had served for many thousands of years without any rest. When Subramanya rose to become the Deva Senapati, Indra granted Muchukunda a boon to sleep through the Krita and Treta yugas until Dwapara Yuga when he would wake up and see the Lord and get salvation. Indra also granted that the person whom he sees first on waking up would be reduced to ashes. So now Krishna pinches him hard enough to wake him up and He quickly hides. As Kaalayavanan enters the cave, he is killed by Muchukunda’s angry gaze. Krishna then sets fire to the forest and makes Jarasandha believe that Mathura is no more.