“He has claimed my throne, my elephant, my parasol, even my mother’s jewels. I complained to Brahma who directed me to Vishnu. So I went to Vaikuntha but was told to seek you out on earth. I went to Vrindavana, but you weren’t there. I went to Mathura, but you weren’t there either. Now I find you here, in the middle of the sea. Help me! Save me, Shyam, as you once saved the cowherds from my raging rain,’ pleaded Indra.
Shyam promised to do what he could. He armed himself with his mace, Kaumodaki, his bow, Saranga, his conch shell, Panchajanya, and his sword, Nandaka, and summoned Garuda, king of birds, to take him to Naraka’s fortified kingdom of Pragjyotisha.
‘Let me come with you,’ said Satyabhama, who longed to see her husband in battle.
They rode through the clouds until they reached the fortified kingdom with high walls and wide moats full of monsters. Within this citadel sat Naraka, lord of the earth, conqueror of the heavens. Shyam challenged him to a duel and Naraka emerged, on a mighty chariot pulled by elephants, bearing mighty weapons.
The battle was magnificent. Shyam shot arrows from the sky, and Naraka flung maces from the earth. Missile struck missile. Weapon clashed with weapon. The sky was set aflame by the confrontation. The devas watched from the horizon. Indra remained anxious, wondering if Shyam was indeed Vishnu who would defeat Naraka.
Eventually frustration set in, for no matter what Shyam did, Naraka remained undefeated. Then, quite accidentally, one of Naraka’s spears aimed at Shyam struck Satyabhama instead. Hurt, she took the same weapon and hurled it back at Naraka. It pierced the asura king’s heart and he fell down dead.
It was then revealed that Naraka was destined to die at the hands of his mother. He was the son of Bhudevi, the earth goddess, conceived when Vishnu, in the form of Varaha, the boar, had lifted her from the bottom of the sea. He was therefore called Bhauma. This made Shyam, a form of Vishnu, his father, and Satyabhama, a form of Bhudevi, his mother.
Here are some little known aspects of the asura king Narakasura:
● The idea that Naraka is the son of Vishnu is first found in the Harivamsa and later expanded in the Vishnu and Bhagavata puranas.
● God’s son being imperfect is a recurring theme in Krishna lore. Besides Naraka, the son of Varaha, we learn later of the imperfection of Krishna’s son by Jambavati, Samba.