Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.1.49-50

pradāya mṛtyave putrān

mocaye kṛpaṇām imām

sutā me yadi jāyeran

mṛtyur vā na mriyeta cet

viparyayo vā kiḿ na syād

gatir dhātur duratyayā

upasthito nivarteta

nivṛttaḥ punar āpatet

SYNONYMS

pradāya — promising to deliver; mṛtyave — unto Kaḿsa, who is death personified for Devakī; putrān — my sons; mocaye — I am releasing her from imminent danger; kṛpaṇām — innocent; imām — Devakī; sutāḥ — sons; me — my; yadi — whether; jāyeran — should take birth; mṛtyuḥ — Kaḿsa; vā — or; na — not; mriyeta — should die; cet — if; viparyayaḥ — just the opposite; vā — or; kim — whether; na — not; syāt — it may happen; gatiḥ — the movement; dhātuḥ — of providence; duratyayā — very difficult to understand; upasthitaḥ — that which is presently obtained; nivarteta — may stop; nivṛttaḥ — Devakī's death being stopped; punaḥ āpatet — in the future it may happen again (but what can I do).

TRANSLATION

Vasudeva considered: By delivering all my sons to Kaḿsa, who is death personified, I shall save the life of Devakī. Perhaps Kaḿsa will die before my sons take birth, or, since he is already destined to die at the hands of my son, one of my sons may kill him. For the time being, let me promise to hand over my sons so that Kaḿsa will give up this immediate threat, and if in due course of time Kaḿsa dies, I shall have nothing to fear.

PURPORT

Vasudeva wanted to save the life of Devakī by promising to deliver his sons to Kaḿsa. "In the future," he thought, "Kaḿsa may die, or I may not beget any sons. Even if a son is born and I deliver him to Kaḿsa, Kaḿsa may die at his hands, for by providence anything could happen. It is very difficult to understand how things are managed by providence." Thus Vasudeva decided that he would promise to deliver his sons to the hands of Kaḿsa in order to save Devakī from the imminent danger of death.

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