Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.18.25
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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aviṣahyam
—
invincible
A+vi+√sah — that which cannot be borne, withstood. The asura recognises Kṛṣṇa's invincibility but mis-locates Balarāma's. Gauḍīyas read this as the failure-mode of all demon-intelligence — partial recognition without full surrender.
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manyamānaḥ
—
considering
Present middle participle of √man — thinking, reckoning. Pralamba's mistake is in the manana, the inner reckoning. Demonic intelligence stops at calculation; bhakti goes one step further into surrender.
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dānava-puṅgavaḥ
—
that foremost demon
Dānava (descendant of Danu, demon-race) + puṅgava (bull, foremost). The verse credits him as foremost among demons — Pralamba is not a minor monster. His failure thus carries the weight of his species.
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druta-taram
—
very quickly
Comparative of druta (fast). The increase in speed is the increase in his confidence — and the seed of his unraveling. Gauḍīyas read the asura's haste as a structural failure mode opposed to the devotee's dhīratā.
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avarohaṇataḥ param
—
beyond the place marked for climbing down
Avarohaṇa (descent, get-off-point) + param (beyond). He crosses the agreed boundary. Demonic action is defined by its transgression of līlā's small rules — the boundary-crossing is the diagnostic.
Pralamba wanted to carry Balarāma out of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s sight so that he could cruelly attack Him.
Thinking that Krsna would be difficult to conquer, Pralambha went on Krsna’s side in order to take Balarama away. Pralambah carried Balarama in a different direction from the place he was supposed to carry him. He went somewhere else to escape from the sight of Krsna.
“Why did Pralamba not try to kill Kṛṣṇa, the main enemy of Kaṁsa?” Pralamba considered him invincible. In order that Balarāma could kill the demon, Kṛṣṇa covered Balarāma’s power and made his own power more prominent. Thus Pralamba went on Kṛṣṇa’s side and carried Balarāma. He did this because he was the foremost among the demons (dānava-puṅgavaḥ), superior in strength. He carried him far away from the place in order to put Balarāma down far from Bhāṇḍīra. te vāhayantas tv anyonyaṁ bhāṇḍīraṁ vaṭam etya vai punar nivavṛtuḥ sarve ye ye tatra parijitāḥ saṁkarṣaṇaṁ tu skandhena śīghram utkṣipya dānavaḥ na tasthau prajagāmāśu sacandra iva vāridaḥ Those who were defeated carried the victors on their shoulders to Bhāṇḍīra banyan tree and then back again. Pralamba however quickly up Balarāma on his shoulders and, not staying there, quickly went off, like a cloud with the moon. Viṣṇu Purāṇa 5.9.15-16
“Why did Pralamba not try to kill Kṛṣṇa, the main enemy of Kaṁsa?” Pralamba considered him invincible. In order that Balarāma could kill the demon, Kṛṣṇa covered Balarāma’s power and made his own power more prominent. Thus Pralamba went on Kṛṣṇa’s side and carried Balarāma. He did this because he was the foremost among the demons (dānava-puṅgavaḥ), superior in strength. He carried him, in a very irregular manner (pra-agāt) far away from the place in order to put Balarāma down far from Bhāṇḍīra. te vāhayantas tv anyonyaṁ bhāṇḍīraṁ vaṭam etya vai punar nivavṛtuḥ sarve ye ye tatra parijitāḥ saṁkarṣaṇaṁ tu skandhena śīghram utkṣipya dānavaḥ na tasthau prajagāmāśu sacandra iva vāridaḥ Those who were defeated carried the victors on their shoulders to Bhāṇḍīra banyan tree and then back again. Pralamba however quickly up Balarāma on his shoulders and, not staying there, quickly went off, like a cloud with the moon. Viṣṇu Purāṇa 5.9.15-16 Why did he carry him far away? He thought he could not do anything in the presence of Kṛṣṇa (avisahyam). Though he was the best of demons, though he wanted to kill them both, he concluded he would kill only Balarāma.
- What pull in my life is currently trying to take me past the agreed limit?
- Where might keeping Balarāma in sight — community, structure — be the simple defense?
Pralamba calculates: Kṛṣṇa is the one I cannot beat — so I will take the elder brother. The asura's reasoning is correct in its premise and catastrophic in its conclusion, because he does not know that Balarāma is Bhagavān too.
My note
Source: vedabase.io