Vaishampāyana said:—Krishna, seated on Garuda’s back, saw the city of
Dwārakā, resembling the abode of the celestials, filled with echoes on
all sides, the mount Mani, sporting-houses, gardens, forests, turrets
and court-yards, (1-2). After the arrival of Devaki’s son Krishna at the
city (of Dwārakā), the king of gods sent for the celestial Architect and
said:—"O foremost of artizans, if you wish to do what pleases me, do
you, for satisfying Krishna, make his beautiful city more exquisite. O
foremost of gods, encircling it with hundreds of gardens do you build
the city of Dwārakā after that of the celestials (3-5). Adorn the city
of Dwāravati with all the jems that you will see in the three worlds,
for the highly powerful Krishna, rising up for all the works of the
gods, always plunges into the dreadful ocean of war". Thereupon
repairing to the city of Dwāravati at the words of Indra Vishwakarmā
adorned it after Amarāvati. Beholding the city of Dwārakā adorned by
Viswakarma with all celestial materials and having accomplished all his
objects the Lord Nārāyana Hari, the master of Dāshārhas and ever riding
on a bird, entered there. While he entered the city of Dwārakā
embellished by Vishwakarmā he saw beautiful trees (6-10). He saw that
the city was encircled by ditches filled with lotus-stalks resembling
the rivers Gangā (Ganges) and Sindhu (Indus), and in which were sporting
the swans (11). As the sky is covered with gold-hued clouds so that city
looked beautiful with sunny walls made of gold set on (the roofs of) the
houses (12). Encircled with gardens resembling Nandana and Chaitraratha
Dwarakā appeared beautiful like the sky stricken with clouds (13). On
its eastern side shone a beautiful gate made of gold and jems and the
picturesque hill Raivataka with its charming table-land, caves and
yards. On the south were bushes adorned with creepers of five colours
and on the west was one of the colour of a rain-bow. O king, the yellow
mountain Venumān, resembling Mandara, was beautifying the north. The
forests of Chitrak, Panchavarna, Pānchajanya and Sarvartuka were
enhancing the beauty of the mount Raivataka (14-17). There were also the
beautiful forests of Bhārgava and Pushpaka huge like the mount Meru,
which were covered with creepers extending to the roots of the trees
(18). There were also the forests of Shatavarta and Karavirakarambhi
beautified by the trees of Ashoka, Veejaka and Mandāra. The huge forests
of Chaitra, Nandana, Ramana, Bhāvana and Venumat were extending their
beauty on all sides. O descendant of Bharata, on the east were the great
river Mandākini adorned with Vaidurja and lotus leaves and a charming
tank. Requested by Vishwakarma numberless gods and Gandharvas, for
pleasing Keshava, had adorned the table-lands there. With fifty mouths,
the sacred river Mandākini entered into the city of Dwārakā and
gladdened the inhabitants thereof. Looking at the city of Dwārakā of
incomparable beauty, encircled by ditches and walls, painted with yellow
paints and embellished with sharpened Shataghnis and iron discuses
Krishna saw that eight thousand cars, adorned with net-works of bells
and flying banners, had made the city look beautiful like that of the
celestials (19–26). He saw the firmly established city Dwārakā eight
_yojanas_ in length and twelve in breadth with double the number of
colonies. That city, consisting of eight highways and sixteen crossings,
was as if so made by Ushanā himself with one road, that even the women,
what to speak of the Vrishnis, could easily fight there. Viswakarmā had
laid out seven high roads for the arrangement of soldiers (27–29).
Beholding the palaces of the illustrious Dāshārhas, in that best of
cities, delightful to men, containing golden and jewelled stairs, filled
with dreadful echoes and abounding in courtyards Devaki’s son was highly
pleased. The turrets of those palaces were adorned with flags, leaves
and trees. Those palaces were adorned with golden domes resembling the
summits of the mount Meru. The tops of the houses, as if covered with
golden flowers and others of five colours, imitated the beauty of
mountains with charming summits and caves. Filled with noise like unto
the muttering of clouds and burning like forest-fire those houses, built
by Viswakarmā, were looking like so many mountains and filled the sky
with effulgence like the sun and moon. The city was embellished with
forest trees and the noble Dāshārhas. The city of Dwārakā, adorned with
cloud-like houses and the gods Vāsudeva and Indra, looked like the
welkin stricken with variegated clouds. The house, built by Vishwakarma
for the Divine Vāsudeva, was four _yojanas_ in length and the same in
breadth. The house of the incomparable and the greatly rich Vāsudeva was
adorned with palaces and false mountains. The great Vishwakarmā built
that house under Vasava’s orders (3-40). Vishwakarmā made a highly
beautiful golden palace huge like the highest summit of the mount Sumeru
for Rukshmini. It was named Kānchana. Satyabhāmā had a yellow-coloured
house adorned with flags effulgent like the clear sun and having stairs
set with jewels. It was celebrated by the name of Bhagavān. That
well-furnished and best of palaces, which had huge flags all around it,
and which used to put on a new appearance every moment, was built for
Jāmvavati. Vishwakarmā built another palace by the name of Meru, which
was effulgent like burning fire and gold, and huge like the summit of
the mount Kailāsha and the ocean. Keshava accomodated the accomplished
daughter of the king of Gāndhāra in that house (41-48). For Bhaima was
built a house by the name of Padmakula. It was of the hue of a lotus,
highly effulgent and had a high and picturesque turret. O foremost of
kings, Keshava, the holder of Shrānga bow, had for Lakshmanā built a
house by name, _Suryaprabhā_ in which were available all objects of
desire (49-50). O descendant of Bharata, the green palace, the
effulgence of which imitated the lustre of Vaidurya and which was known
all over the world by the name of Para, that ornament of palaces where
the great Rishis used to resort, was set apart for Vāsudeva’s queen
Mitravindā (51-52). That best of palaces, built by Viswakarmā like a
mountain, which was spoken high of even by the gods and which was
celebrated by the name of Ketumān, was intended for Keshava’s queen
Suvārtā (53-54). Amongst those palaces, the most beautiful and lustrous,
by name Virajā, which the celestial Architect Viswakarmā built with his
own hands, and which extended over a _Yojana_ and contained jems of
every description, was the court of the high-souled Keshava. In that
palace of Vasudeva’s were placed flags with golden standards and pennons
marking the roads. Keshava, the foremost of the Yadu race, had brought
there the great mountain Vaijayanta and diverse other celestial jewels
(55-58). The highly powerful Viswakarmā, with the help of the Kinnaras
and the great Nāgas, had brought and placed there, before the very eyes
of the creatures, the well-known summit of the mount Hansakuta near the
lake Indra dyumna which was sixty Tālas high and extended over half a
_Yojana_. Viswakarmā had uprooted and brought for Krishna the golden
chariot of Sumeru lying in the path of the sun and the most excellent
golden summit with hundreds of lotuses known all over the three worlds
(59–62). In compliance with Indra’s request and in the interest of a
great work Twastā had brought that highly beautiful summit containing
all sorts of herbs (63). Keshava himself had carried away the Pārijāta
tree and kept it in Dwaraka. While bringing it Krishna, of wonderful
deeds, had to fight with the gods guarding that tree, Rafts made of gold
and jems, lotuses and fragrant jewelled lotuses used to float on the
water of the lakes and tanks which were dug for Krishna and adorned with
trees covered with jewelled flowers and fruits and hundreds of golden
lotuses. The huge Shāla, Tāla and Kadamva trees, with hundreds of
branches, beautified the picturesque bank of those lakes. Vishwakarmā,
for Krishna, the best of the Yadu race, had brought and planted at
Dwārakā all the trees that grow on the mountains Sumeru and Himalaya. At
all the boundary lines of the gardens were planted trees that yeild
fruits in all the seasons and those crested with white, yellow, red,
green and pink flowers. The edges and water of the delightful streams
and lakes, which were in that best of cities, was on the same level. And
the sandal there was like green sugar. In some of the rivers flowers
used to float always; their banks were adorned with various trees and
creepers and the sand was of the colour of golden sugar. The trees of
the city, resorted to by maddened peacocks and coels, used to look
highly beautiful. The herds of elephants, cows, buffaloes, boars, deer
and birds used to live happily in that city. In this way Vishwakarmā had
made in that beautiful city high golden palaces with hundreds of
turrets, huge mountains, rivers, lakes, forests and gardens (64-76).