On the fierce battlefield, Pradyumna, the subduer of enemies and son of Krishna, was struck down by a crushing blow to his chest from a mace. His charioteer, the righteous son of Dāruka, seeing his master grievously wounded and unconscious, quickly carried him away from the raging conflict. After a short while, Pradyumna regained his senses. With a sense of shame and indignation, he rebuked his charioteer: “Alas, charioteer, how improper it is that you have withdrawn me from the battle! Never has it been heard that one born in the Yadu dynasty has abandoned the field—except, perhaps, for a charioteer whose mind is unmanly and who has incurred sin. What will I say when I stand before my fathers, Rāma and Keśava, having retreated? When questioned, what answer could I possibly give? Surely, my brothers’ wives will mock me, laughing: ‘How, O hero, did your cowardice become known to others in battle?’” The charioteer replied with humility and respect: “O lord, knowing righteousness, I acted thus. It is the duty of a charioteer to protect his warrior when he is in distress, just as it is the warrior’s duty to protect his charioteer. Knowing this, my lord, I withdrew you from the battle, for you had fallen unconscious, struck by the enemy’s mace.” Thus ends the seventy-sixth chapter, “The Battle with Śālva,” in the tenth book, second half, of the Śrīmad Bhāgavata Mahāpurāṇa, the scripture for the paramahaṃsas. The story continues as Śrī Śuka narrates: Purifying himself with water and taking up his bow, Pradyumna addressed his charioteer, “Take me to the side of Dyumān, the hero.” Smiling, Rukmiṇī’s son struck down Dyumān, who was attacking his own troops, with eight iron-tipped arrows. With four arrows he felled Dyumān’s horses, with one he wounded the charioteer, with two he shattered the bow and the banner, and with another he struck the head. Meanwhile, Gada, Sātyaki, Sāmba, and others joined the fray, slaying the forces of the lord of Saubha. The warriors of Saubha, their necks severed, fell into the sea. The battle between the Yadus and Śālva’s army was fierce and tumultuous, lasting for twenty-seven days and nights. At this time, Krishna had been invited to Indraprastha by the son of Dharma. There, after the completion of the Rājasūya sacrifice and the slaying of Shishupāla, Krishna took leave of the elders of the Kuru dynasty, the sages, and Pritha with her sons. Observing terrible omens, he returned to Dvaraka. He declared, “I have come here, joined by noble friends; the kings allied with the Chedi are surely about to attack my city.” Seeing his people being slaughtered and preparing the city’s defenses, Keshava spoke to Daruka about Saubha and King Shalva: “Charioteer, quickly bring my chariot to Shalva’s presence. Do not be alarmed, for this king of Saubha is a master of illusion.” Thus instructed, Daruka mounted the chariot and drove forth. All present, both friend and foe, saw Krishna, Arjuna’s younger brother, entering the fray. Shalva, whose forces were nearly destroyed, saw Krishna and, with a terrible roar, hurled a spear at Krishna’s charioteer. That weapon blazed through the sky like a great meteor, illuminating all directions, but Shauri’s arrows shattered it into a hundred pieces. Krishna then pierced Shalva with sixteen arrows and struck the moving city of Saubha in the sky with showers of arrows, as the sun strikes with its rays. Shalva retaliated, striking Krishna’s left arm and breaking the Sharnga bow from his hand—a wondrous sight that caused a great outcry among all who witnessed it. Roaring loudly, Shalva addressed Janardana: “Fool! Because of you, our friend—my brother-in-law—was slain in the assembly, and his wife was abducted while you acted recklessly. Today, if you dare stand before me, I will send you, who think yourself invincible, on a path of no return.” The Blessed Lord replied, “In vain you boast, dull-witted one; you do not see Death standing near. True heroes show their valor in deeds, not in many words.” So saying, Krishna struck Shalva’s chest with his terrible mace. Shalva trembled and vomited blood. But when the mace was repelled, Shalva vanished. Suddenly, a man approached Krishna, bowed, and, weeping, spoke: “I am sent by Devaki. Krishna, Krishna, mighty-armed one, your father, who loves you dearly, has been bound and carried away by Shalva and his men, like a beast.” Hearing this grievous news, Krishna, overcome by affection, for a moment assumed a human disposition, filled with sorrow and compassion, and spoke as an ordinary man might: “How could my father, mighty and unconcerned Balarāma—unconquered by gods and demons—be carried away by Shalva, a mere lesser man? Such is the power of fate.” As Govinda spoke thus, the lord of Saubha appeared, and, bringing forth a figure as Vasudeva had been brought, said, “Here is your father, the one for whom you live in this world. I will kill him before your eyes. If you are the Lord, protect him, O foolish one.” Thus taunting him, the deceiver drew his sword, seized Anakadundubhi’s head, and, taking it, entered the Saubha fortress in the sky. For a moment, Krishna was overcome by his natural affection, surrounded by his people. But soon he realized that this was a demonic illusion, conjured by Shalva at Maya’s instruction. Awakened on the battlefield, Achyuta saw neither the messenger nor his father’s body. Like a man waking from a dream, he beheld his enemy in the sky, stationed on Saubha, ready to strike. Thus, some sages speak, O royal sage, but if their words contradict one another, surely they do not truly remember. Where are grief and delusion, affection or fear—born of ignorance—and where is your unbroken wisdom, your undiminished knowledge and lordship? By serving the Lord’s feet and gaining self-knowledge, the wise destroy the beginningless grip of self-delusion. They attain their own infinite lordship—how could confusion touch one who has reached the Supreme?