When Akrura arrived in Hastināpura, the illustrious city of the Paurava kings, he found gathered there the son of Ambikā—Dhṛtarāṣṭra—alongside Bhīṣma, Vidura, and Pṛthā, the noble Kuntī. He also encountered Bāhlīka with his son, the sages Bhāradvāja and Gautama, as well as Karṇa, Suyodhana, Aśvatthāmā, the Pāṇḍavas, and many other friends and relatives. As was proper, Akrura, son of Gāndinī, greeted each of his kinsmen, exchanging inquiries about the welfare of their families and friends. He remained in Hastināpura for several months, intent on observing the king’s conduct. Akrura soon saw that Dhṛtarāṣṭra, poorly advised and swayed by the wicked, showed no appreciation for the virtues, strength, valor, and humility of the sons of Pṛthā, nor for the people’s love toward them. Both Kuntī and Vidura confided in Akrura, recounting in detail all the wrongs and injustices suffered by the Pāṇḍavas at the hands of Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, including their attempted poisoning and other misdeeds. When Kuntī saw her brother Akrura, tears filled her eyes as she remembered her childhood home. She approached him and spoke with sorrow: “O gentle one, do our parents, brothers, sisters, nephews, sisters-in-law, and friends still remember us? Does the illustrious Krishna, my cousin and the beloved refuge of His devotees, and also Rama, the lotus-eyed, remember their maternal aunt’s children? Amidst my co-wives, I grieve like a doe among wolves; yet Krishna will surely console me with His words and comfort my children, who are bereft of their father. Krishna, Krishna, great yogi and soul of the universe, O Govinda, I have taken refuge in You—protect me, for I am sinking together with my children. I see no other refuge but Your lotus feet, Lord, deliverer from the fearful ocean of birth and death. Salutations to Krishna, the pure, the Supreme Spirit, the Lord of yoga; I surrender myself to You.” Thus, Kuntī, your great-grandmother, remembering her family and Krishna, the Lord of the universe, began to pray with a heart full of sorrow. The noble Vidura, impartial through happiness and distress, and the illustrious Akrura, comforted her with words of reason, reminding her of the divine origin of her sons. As Akrura prepared to depart, he approached King Dhṛtarāṣṭra—who favored his own sons even among friends and relatives—and addressed him with goodwill: “O descendant of Vicitravīrya, you who increase the fame of the Kurus, now that your brother Pāṇḍu has passed, you have assumed the throne. Rule the earth righteously, delight the people with virtue, and remain impartial to your own kin, and you will attain prosperity and fame. Otherwise, if you act differently, you will be condemned and fall into darkness. Be impartial toward both the Pāṇḍavas and your own sons. “In this world, O King, no one has perpetual companionship—not even with one’s own body, let alone wife, sons, and others. Each soul is born alone and dies alone; alone one enjoys the fruits of good deeds, and alone bears the results of evil. Wealth acquired unrighteously is taken by others of little intelligence, just as leeches draw water under the pretext of friendship. One who, lacking wisdom, supports others unrighteously finds that his life, wealth, and family abandon him unfulfilled. Bearing the burden of sin, forsaken by those for whom he was unwise, he falls into darkness, having turned from his own duty. “Therefore, O King, see this world as a dream, an illusion, a fantasy. Know yourself by yourself, and be equal-minded and at peace.” Dhṛtarāṣṭra replied, “O lord of charity, your words are auspicious, yet I am never satisfied by them, as a mortal is never satisfied even when given nectar. Still, gentle one, though your words are sweet, they do not remain steady in my heart, which is restless with the poison of attachment to my sons—just as lightning does not linger in the sky. Who can overturn the will of the Lord, who has descended in the Yadu dynasty to relieve the earth’s burden? He, by His inscrutable power, creates the world, divides the qualities, and enters into it. To that Supreme Lord, whose play is beyond comprehension, I offer my respects.” Understanding the king’s heart, Akrura, with the permission of his friends, returned to the city of the Yadus. There, he reported to Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa all that Dhṛtarāṣṭra had done concerning the Pāṇḍavas, fulfilling the purpose for which he had been sent. Meanwhile, in Magadha, Asti and Prāpti, the widowed wives of Kaṃsa, overcome by grief, returned to their father’s house. They recounted to their father, Jarāsandha, king of Magadha, all that had led to their widowhood. Hearing this grievous news, Jarāsandha, filled with both sorrow and anger, resolved to destroy the Yādava clan. Gathering a vast force of twenty-three akṣauhiṇīs, he besieged Mathurā, the capital of the Yadus, on every side. Seeing the city surrounded by an army as vast as the swelling ocean, and his people filled with fear, Kṛṣṇa thoughtfully considered the situation. The Lord, Hari, reflecting on the purpose of His descent, took into account the time, place, and circumstances. He resolved: “I will destroy this force, which has gathered as a burden upon the earth, brought together by the king of Magadha from all the subjugated rulers.