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Yudhiṣṭhira said.
O grandfather, greatly wise and truly valiant in battle, I wish to hear in full about Kṛṣṇa, the imperishable Lord.
O best of the Bharatas, tell me all about his very great splendor and ancient actions as they truly are.
O Grandfather, tell me how Hari (Viṣṇu) assumed the form that entered the womb of an animal, and by what act of creation he did so.
Bhīṣma said.
Once, I went hunting and stayed at the hermitage of Markandeya. There, I saw thousands of sages seated together.
Then they performed the worship with madhuparka; after receiving that worship for me, I welcomed the sages.
This story, which delights the mind and is divine, was narrated there by the great sage Kaśyapa; now, listen to it here with full attention.
In ancient times, the chiefs of the Dānavas, such as Naraka and others, who were filled with anger and greed and intoxicated by their strength, numbered in the hundreds among the great Asuras.
Likewise, many other Dānavas, intoxicated by battle, could not bear the unsurpassed prosperity of the gods.
O king, the gods and divine sages, oppressed by the Dānavas, wandered here and there and found no peace.
The gods beheld the earth, overwhelmed by powerful and terrifying Dānavas, weighed down by suffering, dragged away, and sinking in distress.
Then, the frightened sons of Aditi said to Brahmā, "O Brahmā, how can we withstand the oppression of the Dānavas?"
Brahmā, the self-born, said to them: 'Dispatched here by me, they have been fully empowered by boon, strength, and pride.'
The completely deluded will not understand Viṣṇu, whose form is unmanifest, who is the god in the form of a boar, unperceivable even by the immortals.
He will quickly go to where those vile Dānavas, thousands of terrible ones dwelling beneath the earth, are, and subdue them. Hearing this, the best of the gods rejoiced.
Then Viṣṇu, resplendent, took the form of a boar, entered the earth, and proceeded towards the demons, the sons of Diti.
Seeing this, all the Daityas together, perceiving the non-human nature, suddenly and forcibly stood still, deluded by Time.
All of them, having rushed together, seized the boar together. Enraged, they dragged the boar on all sides.
O lord, at that time, the lords of the Dānavas, who were of great bodies, great strength, and exalted power, were not able to do even a little against him.
Then, the lords of the Dānavas, struck by fear, became astonished; by the thousands, they thought themselves lost in doubt.
Then, O best of the Bharatas, the blessed Lord, the supreme among gods, himself the soul of yoga and the charioteer of yoga, having resorted to yoga at that time.
He let out a mighty roar that shook the Daityas and Dānavas; by that roar, all the worlds and the ten directions resounded.
By that reverberating sound, the worlds were agitated; all directions and the gods led by Śakra became disturbed.
At that time, the entire world became utterly motionless; both the immobile and the moving beings were bewildered by that sound.
Then all the Dānavas, terrified by that sound, fell dead, bewildered by the energy of Viṣṇu.
The boar, with his hooves, tore apart the heap of flesh, fat, and bone of the enemies of the gods who had gone to the netherworld.
Because of that great sound, he is known as the eternal one. Padmanabha, the great yogi and teacher of beings, is the lord of all beings.
Then all the gods approached Brahmā and said: "O god, what is this sound? O mighty one, we do not know it. Who is that, or whose sound is this by which the world has been disturbed?"
Meanwhile, Viṣṇu assumed the form of a boar; the great god arose, praised by the great sages.
The paternal grandfather said.
Having slain the lords of the Dānavas, this god of great stature and strength, the great yogi, whose self is all beings and who is the creator of beings.
Kṛṣṇa, the lord of all beings, the yogi, the origin and the self, who is also the self of all, becomes steady; this Kṛṣṇa is the destroyer of all sins.
Having accomplished this impossible deed most excellently, the one of immeasurable radiance, greatly fortunate and of great splendor, returned to his true self.
He is the lotus-naveled, the great yogi, whose self is all beings, and the creator of all beings.
O best among the gods, do not give in to affliction, fear, or grief. This is fate, power, and time, which bring about destruction.
By this act of sustaining the worlds, the great soul released the sound.
He is indeed the greatly fortunate one, honored by all worlds, the infallible and lotus-eyed, the origin of all beings.
