Expressions researched:
"powerful king"
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Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Canto 1
Exceptionally qualified daughters of powerful kings were allowed to make a choice of their own bridegrooms in open competition, and such ceremonies were called svayaṁvara, or selection of the bridegroom.
SB 1.10.29, Translation and Purport: The children of these ladies are Pradyumna, Sāmba, Amba, etc: Ladies like Rukmiṇī, Satyabhāmā and Jāmbavatī were forcibly taken away by Him from their svayaṁvara ceremonies after He defeated many powerful kings, headed by Śiśupāla. And other ladies were also forcibly taken away by Him after He killed Bhaumāsura and thousands of his assistants. All of these ladies are glorious.
Exceptionally qualified daughters of powerful kings were allowed to make a choice of their own bridegrooms in open competition, and such ceremonies were called svayaṁvara, or selection of the bridegroom. Because the svayaṁvara was an open competition between the rival and valiant princes, such princes were invited by the father of the princess, and usually there were regular fights between the invited princely order in a sporting spirit. But it so happened that sometimes the belligerent princes were killed in such marriage-fighting, and the victorious prince was offered the trophy princess for whom so many princes died. Rukmiṇī, the principal queen of Lord Kṛṣṇa, was the daughter of the King of Vidarbha, who wished that his qualified and beautiful daughter be given away to Lord Kṛṣṇa. But her eldest brother wanted her to be given away to King Śiśupāla, who happened to be a cousin of Kṛṣṇa. So there was open competition, and as usual Lord Kṛṣṇa emerged successful, after harassing Śiśupāla and other princes by His unrivalled prowess. Rukmiṇī had ten sons, like Pradyumna.
Ugrasena: One of the powerful kings of the Vṛṣṇi dynasty and cousin of Mahārāja Kuntibhoja. His other name is Ahūka. His minister was Vasudeva, and his son was the powerful Kaṁsa.
SB 1.11.16-17, Purport: Akrūra: The commander in chief of the Vṛṣṇi dynasty and a great devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Akrūra attained success in devotional service to the Lord by the one single process of offering prayers. He was the husband of Sūtanī, daughter of Ahūka. He supported Arjuna when Arjuna took Subhadrā forcibly away by the will of Kṛṣṇa. Both Kṛṣṇa and Akrūra went to see Arjuna after his successful kidnapping of Subhadrā. Both of them presented dowries to Arjuna after this incidence. Akrūra was present also when Abhimanyu, the son of Subhadrā, was married with Uttarā, mother of Mahārāja Parīkṣit. Ahūka, the father-in-law of Akrūra, was not on good terms with Akrūra. But both of them were devotees of the Lord.
Ugrasena: One of the powerful kings of the Vṛṣṇi dynasty and cousin of Mahārāja Kuntibhoja. His other name is Ahūka. His minister was Vasudeva, and his son was the powerful Kaṁsa. This Kaṁsa imprisoned his father and became the King of Mathurā. By the grace of Lord Kṛṣṇa and His brother, Lord Baladeva, Kaṁsa was killed, and Ugrasena was reinstalled on the throne. When Śālva attacked the city of Dvārakā, Ugrasena fought very valiantly and repulsed the enemy. Ugrasena inquired from Nāradajī about the divinity of Lord Kṛṣṇa. When the Yadu dynasty was to be vanquished, Ugrasena was entrusted with the iron lump produced from the womb of Sāmba. He cut the iron lump into pieces and then pasted it and mixed it up with the sea water on the coast of Dvārakā. After this, he ordered complete prohibition within the city of Dvārakā and the kingdom. He got salvation after his death.
There have been so many big empires in different parts of the world, there have been so many powerful kings all over the world, and there have been so many fortunate men, but all of them have been liquidated gradually.
SB 1.11.33, Purport: Conditioned living beings are always after the favor of the goddess of fortune, although by nature she is moving from one place to another. In the material world no one is permanently fortunate, however clever one may be. There have been so many big empires in different parts of the world, there have been so many powerful kings all over the world, and there have been so many fortunate men, but all of them have been liquidated gradually. This is the law of material nature. But spiritually it is different. According to Brahma-saṁhitā, the Lord is served very respectfully by hundreds and thousands of goddesses of fortune. They are always in a lonely place also with the Lord. But still the association of the Lord is so inspiringly newer and newer that they cannot quit the Lord for a moment, even though they are by nature very restless and are moving about. The spiritual relation with the Lord is so enlivening and resourceful that no one can leave the company of the Lord, once having taken shelter of Him.
Because He was near me, it was possible for me to conquer with great dexterity the powerful King of heaven, Indradeva, along with his demigod associates and thus enable the fire-god to devastate the Khāṇḍava Forest.
SB 1.15.8, Translation and Purport: Because He was near me, it was possible for me to conquer with great dexterity the powerful King of heaven, Indradeva, along with his demigod associates and thus enable the fire-god to devastate the Khāṇḍava Forest. And only by His grace was the demon named Maya saved from the blazing Khāṇḍava Forest, and thus we could build our assembly house of wonderful architectural workmanship, where all the princes assembled during the performance of Rājasūya-yajña and paid you tributes.
The demon Maya Dānava was an inhabitant of the forest Khāṇḍava, and when the Khāṇḍava Forest was set on fire, he asked protection from Arjuna. Arjuna saved his life, and as a result of this the demon felt obliged. He reciprocated by building a wonderful assembly house for the Pāṇḍavas, which attracted the extraordinary attention of all state princes. They felt the supernatural power of the Pāṇḍavas, and thus without grudge all of them submitted and paid tributes to the Emperor. The demons possess wonderful and supernatural powers to create material wonders. But they are always disturbing elements of the society. The modern demons are the harmful material scientists who create some material wonders for disturbance in the society. For example, the creation of nuclear weapons has caused some panic in human society.
Jarāsandha was a very powerful king of Magadha, and the history of his birth and activities is also very interesting. His father, King Bṛhadratha, was also a very prosperous and powerful king of Magadha, but he had no son, although he married two daughters of the King of Kāśī.
SB 1.15.9, Purport: Jarāsandha was a very powerful king of Magadha, and the history of his birth and activities is also very interesting. His father, King Bṛhadratha, was also a very prosperous and powerful king of Magadha, but he had no son, although he married two daughters of the King of Kāśī. Being disappointed in not getting a son from either of the two queens, the King, along with his wives, left home to live in the forest for austerities, but in the forest he was blessed by one great ṛṣi to have a son, and he gave him one mango to be eaten by the queens. The queens did so and were very soon pregnant. The King was very happy to see the queens bearing children, but when the ripe time approached, the queens delivered one child in two parts, one from each of the queens' wombs. The two parts were thrown in the forest, where a great she-demon used to live, and she was glad to have some delicate flesh and blood from the newly born child. Out of curiosity she joined the two parts, and the child became complete and regained life. The she-demon was known as Jarā, and being compassionate on the childless King, she went to the King and presented him with the nice child, The King was very pleased with the she-demon and wanted to reward her according to her desire. The she-demon expressed her desire that the child be named after her, and thus the child was surnamed Jarāsandha, or one who was joined by Jarā, the she-demon. In fact, this Jarāsandha was born as one of the parts and parcels of the demon Vipracitti. The saint by whose benedictions the queens bore the child was called Candra Kauśika, who foretold of the child before his father Bṛhadratha.
Gādhi-suta, or Viśvāmitra: A great sage of austerity and mystic power. He is famous as Gādhi-suta because his father was Gādhi, a powerful king of the province of Kanyākubja (part of Uttara Pradesh).
SB 1.19.9-10, Purport: Gādhi-suta, or Viśvāmitra: A great sage of austerity and mystic power. He is famous as Gādhi-suta because his father was Gādhi, a powerful king of the province of Kanyākubja (part of Uttara Pradesh). Although he was a kṣatriya by birth, he became a brāhmaṇa in the very same body by the power of his spiritual achievements. He picked a quarrel with Vasiṣṭha Muni when he was a kṣatriya king and performed a great sacrifice in cooperation with Maṭaṅga Muni and thus was able to vanquish the sons of Vasiṣṭha. He became a great yogī, and yet he failed to check his senses and thus was obliged to become the father of Śakuntalā, the beauty queen of world history. Once, when he was a kṣatriya king, he visited the hermitage of Vasiṣṭha Muni, and he was given a royal reception. Viśvāmitra wanted from Vasiṣṭha a cow named Nandinī, and the Muni refused to deliver it. Viśvāmitra stole the cow, and thus there was a quarrel between the sage and the King. Viśvāmitra was defeated by the spiritual strength of Vasiṣṭha, and thus the King decided to become a brāhmaṇa. Before becoming a brāhmaṇa he underwent severe austerity on the bank of the Kauśika. He was also one who tried to stop the Kurukṣetra war.
SB Canto 2
Mahārāja Pratāparudra's subordination before Lord Jagannātha made him a powerful king, so much so that even the great Pathan in his time could not enter into Orissa on account of the powerful Mahārāja Pratāparudra.
SB 2.3.21, Purport: The common man, if he has no time to worship the Lord, may at least engage his hands for a few seconds in washing or sweeping the Lord's temple. Mahārāja Pratāparudra, the greatly powerful king of Orissa, was always very busy with heavy state responsibilities, yet he made it a point to sweep the temple of Lord Jagannātha at Purī once a year during the festival of the Lord. The idea is that however important a man one may be he must accept the supremacy of the Supreme Lord. This God consciousness will help a man even in his material prosperity. Mahārāja Pratāparudra's subordination before Lord Jagannātha made him a powerful king, so much so that even the great Pathan in his time could not enter into Orissa on account of the powerful Mahārāja Pratāparudra. And at last Mahārāja Pratāparudra was graced by Lord Śrī Caitanya on the very grounds of his acceptance of subordination to the Lord of the universe. So even though a rich man's wife has glittering bangles made of gold on her hands, she must engage herself in rendering service to the Lord.
There are many powerful kings, leaders, learned scholars, scientists, artists, engineers, inventors, excavators, archaeologists, industrialists, politicians, economists, business magnates, and many more powerful deities or demigods like Brahmā, Śiva, Indra, Candra, Sūrya, Varuṇa and Marut, who are all protecting the interest of the universal affairs of maintenance, in different positions, and all of them are different powerful parts and parcels of the Supreme Lord.
SB 2.6.6, Purport: There are many powerful kings, leaders, learned scholars, scientists, artists, engineers, inventors, excavators, archaeologists, industrialists, politicians, economists, business magnates, and many more powerful deities or demigods like Brahmā, Śiva, Indra, Candra, Sūrya, Varuṇa and Marut, who are all protecting the interest of the universal affairs of maintenance, in different positions, and all of them are different powerful parts and parcels of the Supreme Lord. The Supreme Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the father of all living entities, who are placed in different high and low positions according to their desires or aspirations. Some of them, as particularly mentioned above, are specifically endowed with powers by the will of the Lord. A sane person must know for certain that a living being, however powerful he may be, is neither absolute nor independent. All living beings must accept the origin of their specific power as mentioned in this verse. And if they act accordingly, then simply by discharging their respective occupational duties they can achieve the highest perfection of life, namely eternal life, complete knowledge and inexhaustible blessings. As long as the powerful men of the world do not accept the origin of their respective powers, namely the Personality of Godhead, the actions of māyā (illusion) will continue to act. The actions of māyā are such that a powerful person, misled by the illusory, material energy, wrongly accepts himself as all in all and does not develop God consciousness. As such, the false sense of egoism (namely myself and mine) has become overly prominent in the world, and there is a hard struggle for existence in human society. The intelligent class of men, therefore, must admit the Lord as the ultimate source of all energies and thus pay tribute to the Lord for His good blessings. Simply by accepting the Lord as the supreme proprietor of everything, since He is actually so, one can achieve the highest perfection of life.
SB Canto 4
SB 4.1.9, Translation: Svāyambhuva Manu's two sons, Priyavrata and Uttānapāda, became very powerful kings, and their sons and grandsons spread all over the three worlds during that period.
SB 4.15.21, Translation: Thus when the greatly powerful King Pṛthu, the son of Vena, saw the professionals before him, to congratulate them he smiled, and with the gravity of the vibrating sounds of clouds he spoke as follows.
It is very appropriate to compare a powerful king like Pṛthu to a lion. In India, kṣatriya kings are still called siṅgh, which means "lion."
SB 4.16.23, Translation and Purport: When the lion travels in the forest with its tail turned upward, all menial animals hide themselves. Similarly, when King Pṛthu will travel over his kingdom and vibrate the string of his bow, which is made of the horns of goats and bulls and is irresistible in battle, all demoniac rogues and thieves will hide themselves in all directions.
It is very appropriate to compare a powerful king like Pṛthu to a lion. In India, kṣatriya kings are still called siṅgh, which means "lion." Unless rogues, thieves and other demoniac people in a state are afraid of the executive head, who rules the kingdom with a strong hand, there cannot be peace or prosperity in the state. Thus it is most regrettable when a woman becomes the executive head instead of a lionlike king. In such a situation the people are considered very unfortunate.
SB 4.22.1, Translation: The great sage Maitreya said: While the citizens were thus praying to the most powerful King Pṛthu, the four Kumāras, who were as bright as the sun, arrived on the spot.
If you are some woman of this planet, you can, like the goddess of fortune, who, accompanied by Lord Viṣṇu, increases the beauty of the Vaikuṇṭha planets, also increase the beauty of this city by associating with me. You should understand that I am a great hero and a very powerful king on this planet.
SB 4.25.29, Translation and Purport: O greatly fortunate one, it appears that you are none of the women I have mentioned because I see that your feet are touching the ground. But if you are some woman of this planet, you can, like the goddess of fortune, who, accompanied by Lord Viṣṇu, increases the beauty of the Vaikuṇṭha planets, also increase the beauty of this city by associating with me. You should understand that I am a great hero and a very powerful king on this planet.
There is a difference between demoniac mentality and devotional mentality. Devotees know perfectly well that the goddess of fortune, who is the constant companion of Viṣṇu, or Nārāyaṇa, cannot be enjoyed by a living entity. This higher sense of understanding is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Nonetheless, everyone wants to become happy by imitating the prosperity of Nārāyaṇa. In this verse Purañjana states that the girl appears to be an ordinary woman. However, since he is attracted by her, he requests that she become as happy as the goddess of fortune by associating with him. Thus he introduces himself as a great king with great influence so that she might accept him as her husband and be as happy as the goddess of fortune. To desire to enjoy this material world as a subordinate of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is godly. The demons, however, want to enjoy this material world without considering the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is the difference between a demon and a demigod.
Although King Purañjana was overly attached to his wife, he nonetheless performed many pious fruitive activities. Consequently, although he took the form of a woman, he was given a chance to be the daughter of a powerful king.
SB 4.28.28, Purport: When a living entity is accustomed to think of a particular subject matter or become absorbed in a certain type of thought, he will think of that subject at the time of death. At the time of death, one will think of the subject that has occupied his life while he was awake, lightly sleeping or dreaming, or while he was deeply sleeping. After falling from the association of the Supreme Lord, the living entity thus transmigrates from one bodily form to another according to nature's course, until he finally attains the human form. If he is absorbed in material thoughts and ignorant of spiritual life, and if he does not take shelter under the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda, who solves all questions of birth and death, he will become a woman in the next life, especially if he thinks of his wife. As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (3.31.1): karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa. A living entity acts piously and impiously, and sometimes in both ways. All actions are taken into account, and the living entity is offered a new body by his superiors. Although King Purañjana was overly attached to his wife, he nonetheless performed many pious fruitive activities. Consequently, although he took the form of a woman, he was given a chance to be the daughter of a powerful king.
Vaidarbhī, the daughter of Vidarbha, was offered to a great devotee and powerful king. Since King Malayadhvaja was both a powerful king and great devotee, he fulfilled all the requirements.
SB 4.28.29, Purport: It is customary among kṣatriyas for a princess to be offered under certain conditions. For instance, Draupadī was offered in marriage to one who could pierce a fish with an arrow simply by seeing the reflection of that fish. Kṛṣṇa married one of His queens after conquering seven strong bulls. The Vedic system is for a daughter of a king to be offered under certain conditions. Vaidarbhī, the daughter of Vidarbha, was offered to a great devotee and powerful king. Since King Malayadhvaja was both a powerful king and great devotee, he fulfilled all the requirements. The name Malayadhvaja signifies a great devotee who stands as firm as Malaya Hill and, through his propaganda, makes other devotees similarly as firm. Such a mahā-bhāgavata can prevail over the opinions of all others. A strong devotee makes propaganda against all other spiritual conceptions—namely jñāna, karma and yoga. With his devotional flag unfurled, he always stands fast to conquer other conceptions of transcendental realization. Whenever there is an argument between a devotee and a nondevotee, the pure, strong devotee comes out victorious.
SB Canto 6
SB 6.6.32, Translation: The daughter of Svarbhānu named Suprabhā was married by Namuci. The daughter of Vṛṣaparvā named Śarmiṣṭhā was given to the powerful King Yayāti, the son of Nahuṣa.
SB Canto 8
Agastya Muni thought it wise to curse the King to become an elephant because the powerful King did not receive Agastya Muni as one is obliged to receive a brāhmaṇa.
SB 8.4.10, Purport: An elephant is very strong, it has a very big body, and it can work very hard and eat a large quantity of food, but its intelligence is not at all commensurate with its size and strength. Thus in spite of so much bodily strength, the elephant works as a menial servant for a human being. Agastya Muni thought it wise to curse the King to become an elephant because the powerful King did not receive Agastya Muni as one is obliged to receive a brāhmaṇa. Yet although Agastya Muni cursed Mahārāja Indradyumna to become an elephant, the curse was indirectly a benediction, for by undergoing one life as an elephant, Indradyumna Mahārāja ended the reactions for all the sins of his previous life. Immediately after the expiry of the elephant's life, he was promoted to Vaikuṇṭhaloka to become a personal associate of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa, in a body exactly like that of the Lord. This is called sārūpya-mukti.
SB 8.19.23, Translation: We have heard that although powerful kings like Mahārāja Pṛthu and Mahārāja Gaya achieved proprietorship over the seven dvīpas, they could not achieve satisfaction or find the end of their ambitions.
SB Canto 9
Thieves and rogues were very much afraid of this powerful king, and therefore the king was known as Trasaddasyu, meaning "one who is very fearful to rogues and thieves."
SB 9.6 Summary: Yuvanāśva married one hundred wives, but he had no sons, and therefore he entered the forest. In the forest, the sages performed a sacrifice known as Indra-yajña on his behalf. Once, however, the King became so thirsty in the forest that he drank the water kept for performing yajña. Consequently, after some time, a son came forth from the right side of his abdomen. The son, who was very beautiful, was crying to drink breast milk, and Indra gave the child his index finger to suck. Thus the son became known as Māndhātā. In due course of time, Yuvanāśva achieved perfection by performing austerities.
Thereafter, Māndhātā became the emperor and ruled the earth, which consists of seven islands. Thieves and rogues were very much afraid of this powerful king, and therefore the king was known as Trasaddasyu, meaning "one who is very fearful to rogues and thieves." Māndhātā begot sons in the womb of his wife, Bindumatī. These sons were Purukutsa, Ambarīṣa and Mucukunda. These three sons had fifty sisters, all of whom became wives of the great sage known as Saubhari.
In this connection, Śukadeva Gosvāmī described the history of Saubhari Muni, who, because of sensual agitation caused by fish, fell from his yoga and wanted to marry all the daughters of Māndhātā for sexual pleasure. Later, Saubhari Muni became very regretful. Thus he accepted the order of vānaprastha, performed very severe austerities, and thus attained perfection. In this regard, Śukadeva Gosvāmī described how Saubhari Muni's wives also became perfect.
SB 9.6.30, Translation: Thereafter, in due course of time, a son with all the good symptoms of a powerful king came forth from the lower right side of King Yuvanāśva's abdomen.
SB Cantos 10.14 to 12 (Translations Only)
SB 10.58.50-51, Translation: As the dowry, powerful King Nagnajit gave ten thousand cows, three thousand young maidservants wearing golden ornaments on their necks and bedecked in fine clothing, nine thousand elephants, a hundred times as many chariots as elephants, a hundred times as many horses as chariots, and a hundred times as many manservants as horses.
SB 11.7.24, Translation: In this regard, sages cite a historical narration concerning the conversation between the greatly powerful King Yadu and an avadhūta.
SB 12.1.10, Translation: He will have eight sons, headed by Sumālya, who will control the earth as powerful kings for one hundred years.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Madhya-lila
(8) Narahari Tīrtha was a very religious and powerful king. (9) He died in the Śaka Era 1203, in the month of Vaiśākha, in the fortnight of the moon's waxing period, on the day of Ekādaśī, after the temple was constructed and dedicated to the holy name of Yogānanda Nṛsiṁhadeva.
CC Madhya 7.113, Purport: Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura explains those inscriptions as follows: (1) Śrī Puruṣottama Yati appeared as the instructor of many learned men. He was a very favorite devotee of Lord Viṣṇu. (2) His preaching was accepted throughout the world with great respect, and by his power he liberated many nondevotees with strong reason and logic. (3) He initiated Ānanda Tīrtha and converted many foolish men to accept sannyāsa and punished them with his rod. (4) All his writings and words are very potent. He gave people devotional service to Lord Viṣṇu so they could be elevated to liberation in the spiritual world. (5) His instructions in devotional service were able to elevate any man to the lotus feet of the Lord. (6) Narahari Tīrtha was also initiated by him and became the ruler of Kaliṅga Province. (7) Narahari Tīrtha fought with the Śabaras, who were caṇḍālas, or hunters, and thus saved the temple of Kūrma. (8) Narahari Tīrtha was a very religious and powerful king. (9) He died in the Śaka Era 1203, in the month of Vaiśākha, in the fortnight of the moon's waxing period, on the day of Ekādaśī, after the temple was constructed and dedicated to the holy name of Yogānanda Nṛsiṁhadeva. The tablet is dated 1281 A.D., 29 March, Saturday.
Citraketu was a very powerful king and a devotee, and he could certainly retaliate even against Lord Śiva, but when Pārvatī cursed him, he immediately accepted the curse with a bowed head.
CC Madhya 9.270, Translation and Purport: “"A person who is a devotee of Lord Nārāyaṇa is not afraid of a hellish condition, because he considers it the same as elevation to the heavenly planets or liberation. The devotees of Lord Nārāyaṇa are accustomed to seeing all these things on the same level."
This is a verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (6.17.28) regarding the personality Citraketu. Once when Citraketu saw the goddess Pārvatī sitting on the lap of Lord Śambhu (Śiva), he criticized Lord Śiva for being shameless and sitting just like an ordinary man with his wife on his lap. For this reason Citraketu was cursed by Pārvatī. Later he became a demon named Vṛtrāsura. Citraketu was a very powerful king and a devotee, and he could certainly retaliate even against Lord Śiva, but when Pārvatī cursed him, he immediately accepted the curse with a bowed head. When he agreed to accept this curse, Lord Śiva praised him and told Pārvatī that a devotee of Lord Nārāyaṇa is never afraid of accepting any position provided there is a chance to serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is the purport of nārāyaṇa-parāḥ sarve na kutaścana bibhyati.
Other Books by Srila Prabhupada
Nectar of Devotion
The continuous ecstasy of love can remain like a powerful king, subduing all temporary manifestations of love as well as any opposing elements of anger.
Nectar of Devotion 32: The continuous ecstasy of love can remain like a powerful king, subduing all temporary manifestations of love as well as any opposing elements of anger. It can be exhibited directly or indirectly, and thus ecstatic love can be described as direct or indirect. These symptoms of ecstatic love are possible only when one is fully situated in a transcendental position. Direct ecstatic love can be divided into two groups—namely, selfish and selfless.
When noncontradictory symptoms of ecstatic love are distinctly manifest, any contradictory symptoms create a sense of abomination. Contradictory ecstatic love is called selfish. That ecstatic love which can adjust all contradictory or noncontradictory symptoms is called direct selfless love. These selfless symptoms can again be divided into five groups: neutrality, servitude, fraternity, parenthood and conjugal love. Such ecstatic love assumes a particular mode in contact with different objects of love.
Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead
There is a long list of the kings of the Yadu-vaṁśa in the Ninth Canto, Twenty-fourth Chapter, of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. All of them were great, powerful kings.
Krsna Book Introduction: The family in which Kṛṣṇa appeared is called the Yadu dynasty. This Yadu dynasty belongs to the family descending from Soma, the god in the moon planet. There are two different kṣatriya families of the royal order, one descending from the king of the moon planet and the other descending from the king of the sun planet. When the Supreme Personality of Godhead appears, He generally appears in a kṣatriya family because He has to establish religious principles, or the life of righteousness. The kṣatriya family is the protector of the human race, according to the Vedic system. When the Supreme Personality of Godhead appeared as Lord Rāmacandra, He appeared in the family descending from the sun-god, known as the Raghu-vaṁśa; and when He appeared as Lord Kṛṣṇa, He did so in the family known as the Yadu-vaṁśa. There is a long list of the kings of the Yadu-vaṁśa in the Ninth Canto, Twenty-fourth Chapter, of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. All of them were great, powerful kings. Kṛṣṇa's father's name was Vasudeva, son of Śūrasena, descending from the Yadu dynasty. Actually, the Supreme Personality of Godhead does not belong to any dynasty of this material world, but the family in which the Supreme Personality of Godhead appears becomes famous, by His grace. For example, sandalwood is produced in the states of Malaya.
This Kālayavana inquired from Nārada, "Who are the most powerful kings in the world?" Nārada informed him that the Yadus were the most powerful.
Krsna Book 50: While Jarāsandha was attempting his eighteenth attack, a Yavana king somewhere to the south of Mathurā became attracted by the opulence of the Yadu dynasty and also attacked the city. It is said that the King of the Yavanas, known as Kālayavana, was induced to attack by Nārada. This story is narrated in the Viṣṇu Purāṇa. Once, Garga Muni, the priest of the Yadu dynasty, was taunted by his brother-in-law. When the kings of the Yadu dynasty heard the taunt they laughed at him, and Garga Muni became angry at the Yadu kings. He decided that he would produce someone who would be very fearful to the Yadu dynasty, so he pleased Lord Śiva and received from him the benediction of a son. He begot this son, Kālayavana, in the wife of a Yavana king. This Kālayavana inquired from Nārada, "Who are the most powerful kings in the world?" Nārada informed him that the Yadus were the most powerful. Thus informed, Kālayavana attacked the city of Mathurā at the same time that Jarāsandha tried to attack it for the eighteenth time. Kālayavana was very eager to declare war on a king of the world who would be a suitable combatant for him, but he had not found any. However, being informed about Mathurā by Nārada, he thought it wise to attack this city with thirty million Yavana soldiers.
For example, I may be a powerful king, and yet when I come home after conquering the world I become subjected to many material conditions.
Krsna Book 51: “My dear Lord, we come under the full control of this inevitable time not only after death but also, in a different way, while living. For example, I may be a powerful king, and yet when I come home after conquering the world I become subjected to many material conditions. When I come back victorious, all subordinate kings may come and offer their respects, but as soon as I enter the inner section of my palace, I myself become an instrument in the hands of the queens, and for sense gratification I have to fall down at the feet of women. The material way of life is so complicated that before taking the enjoyment of material life one has to work so hard that there is scarcely an opportunity for peacefully enjoying. And to attain all material facilities one has to undergo severe austerities and penances and be elevated to the heavenly planets. If one gets the opportunity to take birth in a very rich or royal family, even then he is always anxious to maintain the status quo and prepare for the next life by performing various sacrifices and distributing charity. Even in royal life one is full of anxieties, not only because of political administration but also in regard to being elevated to the heavenly planets.
In this case, because Kṛṣṇa could not find any fault with Rukmiṇī, for she was very grave and always engaged in His service, He smilingly, in great love, began to speak to her just to provoke her loving anger. Rukmiṇī was the daughter of King Bhīṣmaka, a powerful king.
Krsna Book 60: And Kṛṣṇa actually fulfilled His promise: He brought the tree down to the earth planet from the heavenly kingdom. After this episode, Kṛṣṇa expected that because Satyabhāmā had been rewarded with a full tree of pārijāta, Rukmiṇī would also demand something. Rukmiṇī did not mention anything of the incident, however, for she was grave and simply satisfied in her service. Kṛṣṇa wanted to see her a bit irritated, and therefore He schemed to see the beautiful face of Rukmiṇī in an irritated condition. Although Kṛṣṇa had more than 16,100 wives, He used to behave with each of them with familial affection; He would create a particular situation between Himself and His wife in which the wife would criticize Him in the irritation of love, and Kṛṣṇa would enjoy this. In this case, because Kṛṣṇa could not find any fault with Rukmiṇī, for she was very grave and always engaged in His service, He smilingly, in great love, began to speak to her just to provoke her loving anger. Rukmiṇī was the daughter of King Bhīṣmaka, a powerful king. Thus Kṛṣṇa did not address her as Rukmiṇī; He addressed her this time as the princess. “My dear princess, it is very surprising. Many great personalities in the royal order wanted to marry you. Although not all of them were kings, all possessed the opulence and riches of the kingly order; they were well behaved, learned, famous among kings, beautiful in their bodily features and personal qualifications, liberal, very powerful in strength and advanced in every respect.
"My dear friends, this time I have come to you as a messenger with the order of the all-powerful King Ugrasena. Please, therefore, hear the order with attention and great care."
Krsna Book 68: In order to properly receive Lord Balarāma, they all took in their hands auspicious paraphernalia for His reception and went to see Him outside the city gate. According to their respective positions, they welcomed Lord Balarāma by giving Him in charity nice cows and arghya (a mixture of ārati water and an assortment of items such as honey, butter, flowers and sandalwood pulp). Because all of them knew the exalted position of Lord Balarāma as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they bowed their heads before the Lord with great respect. They all exchanged words of reception by asking one another about their welfare, and when such formalities were finished, Lord Balarāma, in a great voice and very patiently, submitted before them the following words for their consideration: "My dear friends, this time I have come to you as a messenger with the order of the all-powerful King Ugrasena. Please, therefore, hear the order with attention and great care. Without wasting a single moment, please try to carry out the order. King Ugrasena knows very well that you warriors of the Kuru dynasty improperly fought with the pious Sāmba, who was alone, and that with great difficulty and unrighteous tactics you have arrested him. We have all heard this news, but we are not very much agitated because we are most intimately related to one another. I do not think we should disturb our good relationship; we should continue our friendship without any unnecessary fighting. Please, therefore, immediately release Sāmba and bring him, along with his wife, Lakṣmaṇā, before Me."
