Balarāma in Vraja

Balarāma wished to see his childhood friends, so he travelled from Dvārakā to Nanda’s Gokula in Vraja. This account retells his stay there: the welcome from the gopas and gopīs, the wine of Varuṇa, and how he drew the river Yamunā with his plough. It ends with the account in the Vishṇu Mahā Purāṇa.

Arrival at Gokula

Bhagavān Balarāma was moved by love for his childhood friends. He mounted a chariot and went to Nanda’s Gokula. The gopas and gopīs had long waited for him with great eagerness, and they embraced him with deep love. He bowed at the feet of Yaśodā and Nanda, who had raised him. They blessed him and embraced him, and their tears of love wet him. He bowed to the elders among the gopas, and the younger ones bowed to him according to their relation and standing.

He went among the gopas, took their hands in his, and shared jokes, embraces and cheerful words. He sat among them at ease, and they gathered round him with questions. These gopas had given up all comforts for the sake of the lotus-eyed Kṛshṇa. With a voice hoarse with feeling, Balarāma asked after each of their kinsmen.

The gopas asked:

“Are your families all well? Do you remember us, busy as you are with wife and children?”

They said that Kṛshṇa had killed Kaṃsa and freed his kin, had conquered his enemies, and had made his home in the unbreakable city of Dvārakā.

The gopīs’ lament

The gopīs were overjoyed to see Balarāma. With a laugh they asked whether Kṛshṇa, who was dear to the women of the city of Dvārakā, was well:

“Does he remember his parents and us? Will he come even once to see his mother? Does the broad-armed one remember the service we gave him?”

“For his sake we left our parents, brothers, sisters, husbands, children and all dear relations. Then he cut the cord of love and left us at once and went away. How could any woman trust his honeyed words?”

“The city women are clever. They know his fickle heart and would not trust such words. But when he looks at them with that sideways smile full of beauty, desire overcomes them, and in the end they believe him too.”

So the gopīs wept as they remembered Kṛshṇa’s laughter, his speech, his lovely glances, his walk and his embraces. Balarāma was skilled in many kinds of comfort. He consoled them with Kṛshṇa’s charming messages and gentle words.

Balarāma stayed in Vraja through the whole of the months Caitra and Vaiśākha. Every night he delighted the gopīs and deepened their love for Kṛshṇa. The nights passed for him like a single night.

The wine of Varuṇa and the forest revels

On the bank of the Yamunā there was a garden that glowed in the light of the full moon. Breezes heavy with the scent of lotuses from the pools drifted through its trees. In that garden Balarāma played with the company of gopīs. Varuṇa sent the devī of wine, who flowed out of the hollow of a tree. Her fragrance filled the whole garden. Balarāma and the gopīs caught the scent on the breeze, went to the spot, and drank freely.

Balarāma wandered in the garden, drunk with the wine. His lotus face was adorned with a single earring and dewy drops of sweat. A garland of flowers set with gems hung at his neck, and a gentle smile was on his lips. His red eyes moved unsteadily with the wine. The gopīs sang his praises as he played with them.

Dragging the Yamunā

In this state Balarāma wished to play in the water and called to the Yamunā to come near. The river thought he was drunk and ignored his order, and did not come. Balarāma’s eyes grew red with anger. He took up his plough (hala) and said:

“O wicked one! I called you, but you ignored me and did not come. I will split you into a hundred channels with my ploughshare!”

The Yamunā shook with fear. She fell at his feet on the bank and said:

“O Balarāma, O Rāma! You are Jagannātha, the support of all worlds. By a single aṃśa (part) of yours this earth is held up. I did not know your greatness. O Bhagavān Balarāma! You are the essence of all existence, and your love for your devotees has no limit. I did not know your true nature. Forgive me. I take refuge in you.”

Balarāma was pleased with this prayer and let her go. He then played in the waters of the Yamunā with the gopīs around him, like a great bull elephant with its cows. After the play, as he came out of the water, Lakshmī gave him a pair of dark garments, precious ornaments and an auspicious garland. Balarāma put on the dark garments and a golden garland, and applied sandalwood paste. He shone like Airāvata, the great elephant of Indra.

To this day the Yamunā can be seen flowing in the channel cut by the ploughshare. It stands as proof of Balarāma’s boundless power.

The Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa tells this in the tenth skanda, chapter 65.

The Vishṇu Purāṇa account

The Vishṇu Mahā Purāṇa tells the episode of Balarāma and the Yamunā in the fifth aṃśa (part), chapter 25, with some details not found in the Bhāgavatam.

Vāruṇī and Revatī. The Vishṇu Purāṇa sets the episode of Vāruṇī, the divine wine, while Balarāma was enjoying himself with his wife Revatī in the Raivataka hills. By Varuṇa’s grace the Vāruṇī flowed out of a hollow tree. Balarāma drank and became drunk. Revatī was with him throughout. The episode of the Yamunā that follows is set in this scene.

Balarāma pulls the Yamunā. Balarāma was drunk with Vāruṇī and wished to play in the water. He ordered the Yamunā to come near. The river saw that he seemed to be drunk and did not obey. His anger came quickly. He took his plough and drove it into the bank of the Yamunā, and the river was dragged from her course. The Yamunā was terrified and gave in with a prayer. Balarāma let her go and played with Revatī in the waters.

Balarāma and Revatī. In chapter 25 the Vishṇu Purāṇa says that Balarāma’s wife Revatī was the daughter of Raivatarāja, the king of the Raivata line. Kakudmi is also called Raivata Kakudmi.

The sons Niśita and Ulkuka. The Vishṇu Purāṇa says that two sons were born to Balarāma and Revatī: Niśita and Ulkuka.

Sources

• Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 10th Skanda, Chapter 65
• Vishṇu Mahā Purāṇa, Pañcamāṃśa (5th Aṃśa), Chapter 25