Shree Shookdeo Jee said,--O great king! Shree Krishnù Chund
constantly dwelt in the city of Dwarka, where increase and plenty
flourished in the houses of all the descendants of Judoo; the men and
women were decorated with jewels and ornaments, and had a lively
appearance; they applied scents, sandal and perfumes to their bodies;
the mahajuns had places cleanly swept and sprinkled with water in the
markets, roads and cross-roads, where traders of different countries
brought all kinds of articles of merchandize for sale. Here and there
the inhabitants of the city amused themselves. In different places
brahmins read the Vedas, and in every house persons recited the
Pooranùs; holy and virtuous men sung the praises of Huri during the
eight watches. Charioteers brought chariots, horses and bullocks,
harnessed to the royal gate. Brave, bold, resolute, powerful
descendants of Judoo in chariots and carriages, and mounted on
elephants and horses came to pay their respects to the Raja. Persons
of skill amused him by dancing, singing and playing upon musical
instruments. Bards and panegyrists received elephants, horses,
dresses, arms, grain, money and golden ornaments, studded with jewels,
for celebrating his renown.
Having narrated thus much, Shree Shookdeo Jee said to the Raja, O
great king! whilst Raja Oogursen engaged thus in various diversions in
the metropolis of his empire, Shree Krishnù Chund, the root of joy,
constantly amused himself with his sixteen thousand one hundred and
eight wives. Sometimes the wives being overcome by their passion, made
a figure in the likeness of Krishnù; and sometimes Huri, powerless
from love, dressed his wives; and the sports and diversions they
carried on together cannot be described. I cannot speak of them, they
required to be seen. Shookdeo Jee after this said,--O great king! one
night Shree Krishnù Chund was amusing himself with his women, when
the celestial musicians and choristers, having beheld the various
pastimes and diversions of Krishnù, played upon lutes, timbrels,
pipes and kettle-drums, and sang of his excellent attributes; there
was an harmonious concert, when, upon a thought occurring to Krishnù,
whilst engaged in diversion, he took them all with him, and went to
the banks of a tank, and going into the water began to sport and carry
on pastimes in it; after this, his wives, whilst thus amusing
themselves in the water, were overjoyed with love for Krishnù, and
forgetting every thing, said, on seeing a ruddy goose and its mate,
calling out to each other from opposite sides of the tank, “O Chukwee!
why do you call out mournfully, and not sleep during the night, whilst
separated from your mate? You call upon him in a very troubled and
restless manner, you discourse of your beloved to us, we have become
Krishnù’s slave girls.” Having thus spoken they went on. They then
began to say to the sea, “O sea! thou who heavest deep sighs and
remainest awake day and night, art thou afflicted at being separated
from any one or grieved for the loss of thy fourteen jewels?” They
then addressed the moon, “O moon! why dost thou continue emaciated and
in low spirits, what! hast thou consumption, that thy form diminishes
and increases daily, and thy body and mind are fascinated, as ours are
on beholding Shree Krishnù Chund.”
Having recited thus much Shree Shookdeo Jee said to the Raja,--O great
king! the women, in like manner, addressed all kinds of speeches to
the air, clouds, cuckoos, hills, rivers and geese. Afterwards all his
wives diverted themselves with Shree Krishnù Chund, and constantly
attended upon him and sang of his excellences, and obtained whatever
they desired and Krishnù carried on his domestic affairs in the
manner prescribed for all virtuous house-keeper.
O great king! the sixteen thousand one hundred and eight wives of
Shree Krishnù Chund whom I mentioned before, had each ten sons and
one daughter, and their progeny was numberless, I have not the power
to describe it; but I know so much, that there were three crores,
eighty-eight thousand one hundred schools for instructing the
offspring of Shree Krishnù Chund and the same number of schoolmasters.
None of Shree Krishnù Chund’s sons or grandsons was deficient in
beauty, strength, physical power, wealth or moral and religious merit,
each one excelled and surpassed the other, how shall I attempt to
describe them? The sage proceeded to say, O great king! I have sung of
the games of Bruj and Dwarka, which confer pleasure upon all. Whoever
shall sing of them with affection, shall undoubtedly obtain supreme
and eternal happiness, and salvation. Whatever benefit is derived from
religious penance, sacrifice, gifts, fasting, pilgrimage and bathing
at holy places, the same benefit is derived from hearing, and reciting
the history of Huri.
THE END.
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES II.
The _Prem Sagur_ (“Ocean of Love”) is Lallu Lal’s Hindi translation
of Chaturbhuja Misra’s Braj Bhasa translation of the tenth chapter
of the Sanskrit _Bhagavata Purana_. It recounts the legends of
Krishna, the hero identified as an incarnation of Vishnu.
The D’Rozario & Co. reprint (Calcutta, 1863), the Edward Eastwick
translation (Stephen Austin, London, 1851), and Pincott/Eastwick
edition (Archibald Constable & Co., London, 1897) were consulted for
some of the changes listed below.
Minor spelling inconsistencies (coss/koss, ecstacy/ecstasy, etc.),
obsolete spellings (noctural (nocturnal), staid (stayed), etc.), and
phonetic variants of names (Krishnù/Krishnu/Krishnú, etc.) have been
preserved.
Also, the number of Krishna’s wives varies between 16,100, 16,108, and
16,800.
Alterations to the text:
Add TOC.
Fix some quotation mark pairings and nestings. Note: the narrator’s
dialogue is often _not_ inside quotation marks.
[Chapter I]
“4. Whilst the Raja Pureechit was drowned in this sea of” delete _4._.
(“O son! what is this thou hast done why have you pronounced a curse
on the Raja, under whose government we lived at ease; not a bird, nor
a beast even was afflicted.) Add question mark after _done_ and change
the semicolon to a question mark.
(to say, “O abode of compassion you have shown great mercy in) add
exclamation mark after _compassion_.
Change “how their pride brought _Kawun and Koonbhkurun_ to such
destruction” to _Rawun and Koombhkurun_.
“you destroyed the great demon, _Kawun_: and whenever devils” to
_Rawun_.
[Chapter II]
“On the hearing this, the Raja Pureechit said to Shookdeo” delete the
first _the_.
[Chapter III]
“joining its hands, came before him Vishnù said to it” add period
after _him_.
[Chapter VI]
“the lucky moment, and exact, ray of light, and having considered”
delete the comma after _exact_.
“on their foreheads, and given them pawn, (_betle_ leaf,) dismissed”
to _betel_.
“the lines of fate cannot _he_ effaced by one. For this reason” to
_be_.
[Chapter X]
“went and saved the milk; _Whilst_ Krishnù, having broken the vessels”
to _whilst_.
[Chapter XII]
“of the trees falling, exactly as they had _occured_” to _occurred_.
[Chapter XIII]
“Brother! this is some very _frighful_ cave, do not let us go inside”
to _frightful_.
[Chapter XIV]
“Brothers! this is a nice place, why need _We_ go farther?” to _we_.
[Chapter XVI]
“Shree _Shoodeo_ said,--O great king! when Shree Krishnù” to
_Shookdeo_.
“of a kudum tree, placing, his head on the thigh of a companion.”
Delete the second comma.
[Chapter XXIV]
(where the wives were cooking, and _said them_, “Shree Krishnù has) to
_said to them_.
[Chapter XXXI]
(began to say,--“Tell me friend! where has Mohun gone) add comma after
_me_.
[Chapter XXXVII]
(touch other persons.” _Krihsnù_ replied, “I will summon all the) to
_Krishnù_.
“and the _cowherdessess_ and cowherds, to celebrate with songs” to
_cowherdesses_.
[Chapter XLVI]
“We will accomplish, whatever you may order us to perform.” Delete the
comma.
“First of all send an invitation to all their _brethen_” to _brethren_.
“there is a demon, named _Sunkasoor_, in the form of a shell” to
_Sunkhasoor_.
[Chapter XLVII]
“I will give an account now how Shree _Kishnù_ Chund brought” to
_Krishnù_.
(whether they still continued to love him Nund added, “Give me) add
period after _him_.
“although other bees _buz_ over it during the whole night” to _buzz_.
[Chapter L]
“O lord of the earth! when Shree _Khrishnù_ Jee heard these words” to
_Krishnù_.
[Chapter LI]
“the descendants of Judoo with you, _proctect_ the fort.” to _protect_.
[Chapter LII]
(be released from it.” Shree Krishnù Jee; said, “Listen,) delete the
semicolon.
[Chapter LIII]
“There is a saying, that it most fitting to contract marriages” add
_is_ after _it_.
“Raja _Rheekmuk_ was at first very sad, when he heard these” to
_Bheekmuk_.
“Rookum has given thee to Sissoopal; and now Rookmunee, you have
become a queen.” add comma after _now_.
“pillars formed of sprouting _plaintain_ were fixed in the earth” to
_plantain_.
[Chapter LIV]
“Shree _Kishnù_ Chund, having thus inspired the brahmin” to _Krishnù_.
“to receive them: and having, met the bridegroom with great honour”
delete the comma.
“for the reception of the _bridegroon_ and his train, entertained” to
_bridegroom_.
[Chapter LV]
(performing the ceremony “Arta,” _showerd_ down flowers) to _showered_.
“where Rajas _Oorgursen_, Soorsen, Basoodeo and all the grandees” to
_Oogursen_.
[Chapter LVII]
“conferring happiness and wealth; _Worship_ it continually,” to
_worship_.
“and suffering great _afflction_, they began to weep and lament” to
_affliction_.
(explained all his anxieties to his wife His wife said, “O husband!)
add period after the first _wife_.
[Chapter LVIII]
“went thence to Akroor, joining his hands bowing his head,” add comma
after _hands_.
“and came to Shree Krishnù Chund, the _extirpater_ of grief” to
_extirpator_.
“and there was abundance All the distress and want that had been” add
period after _abundance_.
[Chapter LX]
“Tell me what answer I am to take back from you to this _requst_” to
_request_.
“he ate up all the _sweatmeats_ and other confections” to _sweetmeats_.
[Chapter LXI]
“abandoning your worship, _medidation_, prayers, penance and guidance”
to _meditation_.
[Chapter LXIII]
(at hearing Banasoor, thus address him, and began to say himself, “I
granted) delete the first comma and add _to_ after _say_.
“Shree _Krishuù_, will descend upon the earth in the family of Judoo”
to _Krishnù_.
(Chitrekha replied, “How shall he escape me?” _Chitreka_ proceeded to)
to _Chitrekha_.
[Chapter LXIV]
“Banasoor worshipping calling to mind, and meditating upon Shree
Muhadeo Jee” add comma after _worshipping_.
[Chapter LXV]
“as to reckon the number of cows Raja _Narug_ gave away” to _Nurug_.
[Chapter LXVI]
“all the cowherds’ _chidren_ came running out, when they saw the flag”
to _children_.
“all the materials, necessary for the festival were immediately
produced.” Delete the comma.
[Chapter LXIX]
“and all the _Kuoruvùs_ rose haughtily and went to their homes” to
_Kouruvùs_.
[Chapter LXXII]
“came Shree Krishnù Chund Jee; _Wherever_ they encamped, a handsome”
to _wherever_.
[Chapter LXXIII]
(I have still one desire.” Krishnù enquired, “What _it is_?”) to _is
it_.
“the world has been deceived by your delusive power you behave towards
us as a mortal” add exclamation mark after _power_.
“the money you have given me to whom shall I go now, and ask for
more?” add comma after _me_.
“my business is to keep watch in a _cemetry_, and to receive a tax” to
_cemetery_.
“and died from excess of the hunger _het hen_ endured, and afterwards”
to _he then_.
[Chapter LXXV]
“Do not use your _amrs_ against him, stand here and look on” to _arms_.
[Chapter LXXVI]
“clearing away what food was left, and the _treachers_, formed of
leaves” to _trenchers_.
“on the contrary, their character was _enchanced_” to _enhanced_.
[Chapter LXXVII]
“when Shree Krishnù Chund and Bulram Jee were at _hustinapoor_” to
_Hustinapoor_.
“he constantly rose up and _eat_ a handful of sand; and performed
difficult penance” to _ate_.
[Chapter LXXVIII]
“this man is without good _qualites_, avaricious and proud” to
_qualities_.
[Chapter LXXIX]
“O great king! when Sounuk and all the saints, and sages having
received Bulram Jee’s order” delete the comma after _saints_.
[Chapter LXXX]
“and he had nothing to eat, One day Soodama’s wife being” change the
comma to a period.
[Chapter LXXXII]
“and Renooka _came stood_ near her husband’s body, she rolled upon the
ground” to _came and stood_.
“I have had no _controul_ in these matters, the condition or” to
_control_.
[Chapter LXXXIII]
“O great king! listen, whilst I _gave_ an account of the
conversations” to _give_.
[Chapter LXXXV]
(Krishnù enquired, “_What it was_?” Dewukee Jee replied, “Son! grief)
to _What is that_.
“when the _inhabitatns_ heard this, there was joy throughout the city”
to _inhabitants_.
[Chapter LXXXVI]
“explained to Buldeo all the _secreets_ connected with the carrying
off Soobhudra” to _secrets_.
“having beheld the sincere faith of of those two worshippers” delete
one _of_.
[Chapter LXXXVII]
“for this reason, that one _diety_ is both without, and with passions”
to _deity_.
“when fourteen worlds became the _semblence_ of water” to _semblance_.
“and that on what _sidesoever_ we look, there you are presented” to
_side soever_.
[Chapter LXXXIX]
“prepared to be burnt upon it with his bow and _arows_ having then” to
_arrows_.
“upon the head of the king of the serpent _face_ was an ornamented
throne” to _race_.
“flowers reaching to his feet, and a _pearl of necklace_” to _necklace
of pearls_.
[Chapter XC]
“holy and virtuous men sung, the praises of Huri during the eight
watches” delete the comma.
“surpassed the other, how shall I attempt to describe them.” change
period to question mark.
“Whatever benefit is derived from, religious penance, sacrifice,
gifts, fasting, pilgrimage” delete comma after _from_.
[End of text]