Kamsa, the king tormented by fear of Krishna, spoke with confidence to his confidant, "My friend, soon this earth will be free of all thorns. Jarasandha is my mentor, Dvivida my dear companion and friend. Shambara, Naraka, and Bana are bound to me in friendship. With their aid, I shall destroy the kings allied with the gods and enjoy the earth without rival." Knowing the power of Krishna and Balarama, Kamsa gave a command: "Go swiftly, bring Rama and Krishna, those lovers of play, to witness the grand bow-sacrifice and behold the splendor of the Yadu city." Akrura, the wise minister, bowed and replied, "O King, your command is just, and the removal of your enemies is your own duty. Yet, know that success or failure rests equally on destiny, for destiny alone shapes the outcome. People strive for their desires, facing both hindrance and fate; joy and sorrow come to all. Still, I will carry out your order." Thus instructed, Akrura departed for his home, and Kamsa, having dismissed his ministers, returned to his palace. Meanwhile, Kamsa sent the mighty horse-demon Kesi to Gokula. Kesi, as swift as thought, thundered across the earth, his hooves shaking the ground, his mane tossing the sky, and his neighing so fierce that all trembled in terror. With wild eyes, a monstrous mouth, and a neck thick as a pillar, his dark form resembled a storm cloud. Harboring evil intent, he entered Nanda’s Vraja, making it quake with fear. As the horse’s neighing shook Krishna’s own village and the clouds swirled from his tail, Krishna, the leader of the cowherds, called out to the demon, his voice resounding like a lion’s roar. Kesi, enraged, charged at Krishna, as if to swallow the sky, and struck the lotus-eyed Lord with his powerful hooves. Yet, Krishna, the Unmanifest Lord, deceived the demon in his wrath. Seizing Kesi by the legs, Krishna whirled him round and hurled him a hundred bows’ length away, just as Garuda tosses a serpent. Stunned, Kesi rose again, wild with fury, and charged at Krishna with open jaws. Smiling, Krishna thrust his arm into Kesi’s gaping mouth, as a serpent enters its hole. At the touch of the Lord’s arm, Kesi’s teeth shattered like iron heated in fire. Krishna’s arm, swelling and unyielding, filled the demon’s body, blocking his breath. Kesi, his limbs flailing, drenched in sweat, eyes rolling, collapsed to the ground, vomiting blood and lifeless. From the demon’s corpse, which looked like a crushed crab-apple, Krishna calmly withdrew his arm, unastonished and unboastful at this effortless victory. The gods, witnessing this, showered flowers upon him in reverence. At that moment, the foremost devotee and divine sage approached Krishna and spoke a secret prayer to him, whose actions are ever pure: "Krishna, Krishna! O unfathomable Self, Lord of yoga, Lord of the universe, O Vasudeva, abode of all, foremost of the Sātvatas, O Master! You are the Self of all beings, the one light among the wise, hidden in the heart’s cave, the witness, the Great Person, the Lord. By your own Self you are your own refuge; at the beginning, by your māyā, you created the guṇas. With them, O Lord of true resolve, you create, maintain, and dissolve this world. Therefore, you have descended to destroy the earth’s burdens—demons, tormentors, and Rākṣasas—and to protect the virtuous. "By good fortune, you have slain this horse-demon in sport, whose neighing terrified even the gods and drove the sleepless from heaven. Soon, I shall see you slay Cāṇūra, Muṣṭika, the other wrestlers, the great elephant, and Kaṃsa himself. After that, you will defeat Śaṅkha, Yavana, Mura, Naraka, steal the Pārijāta tree, and humble Indra. You will win the hands of heroic maidens by your valor, liberate King Nṛga from his curse in Dvārakā, obtain the Syamantaka jewel and its wife, and restore a Brahmin’s dead son from your own abode. You will slay Pauṇḍraka, burn Kāśī city, destroy Dantavakra, and bring about Śiśupāla’s end at the great sacrifice. Whatever other heroic deeds you perform in Dvārakā, O Lord, I shall witness them, as poets sing your glory on earth. "Now, I shall see you destroy these armies as Time personified, with Arjuna as your charioteer. We meditate on you, the Lord, filled with pure knowledge, established in your own nature, whose every purpose is fulfilled, whose desires never fail, who, by your own splendor, is free from illusion and is the source of all qualities. I bow to you, the refuge of all, who by your power of illusion created all distinctions, who, for the sake of play, has assumed a human form, foremost among the Yadus, Vṛṣṇis, and Sātvatas." Having bowed to Krishna, the sage, blessed by this vision, departed joyfully. Krishna, having slain Kesi, tended the cows with his joyful companions, bringing delight to the land of Vraja. One day, as the cowherds grazed their cattle on the mountain slopes, they played a lively game, dividing themselves into thieves, protectors, and sheep. They played together, carefree and fearless. Among them, Vyoma, the son of Maya and master of illusion, disguised himself as a cowherd. Taking the role of the sheep’s leader, he led away many who played as thieves. The great demon then cast them into a mountain cave, closing the entrance with a massive rock, leaving only four or five outside. Krishna, perceiving Vyoma’s wicked deed, seized him as he tried to lead away more cowherds, just as a lion seizes a wolf. Vyoma, revealing his true, mountainous form, struggled fiercely, but Krishna’s grip was unbreakable. The Lord subdued him with his arms, threw him to the ground, and, as the gods watched from the heavens, slew the cattle-thief demon. With effort, Krishna broke open the cave’s entrance and released the trapped cowherds. Praised by the gods and his companions, Krishna returned to his beloved Vraja, the joy and refuge of all.