the most delightful examples of Sanskrit verbal wit! Krishna, the Lord of the Universe, stands outside his own beloved Satyabhama’s door and must defend his identity against a lady who refuses to recognise him. Every name he offers becomes an opportunity for her to tease him.
The beautiful Sanskrit verse is traditionally associated with Śrī Kṛṣṇa Karṇāmṛtam of Līlāśuka (Bilvamaṅgala). It is a compact dramatic exchange in which divine names are turned into riddles.
1. The Sanskrit verse
श्रीकृष्णकर्णामृतम् — लीलाशुकः
अङ्गुल्या कः कपाटं प्रहरति कुटिले माधवः किं वसन्तः ।
नो चक्री किं कुलालो नहि धरणिधरः किं द्विजिह्वः फणीन्द्रः ।
नाहं घोराहिमर्दी किमुत खगपतिः नो हरिः किं कपीन्द्रः ।
इत्येवं सत्यभामाप्रतिजितवचनः पातु वश्चक्रपाणिः ॥
Transliteration
Aṅgulyā kaḥ kapāṭaṃ praharati kuṭile Mādhavaḥ kiṃ vasantaḥ?
No cakrī kiṃ kulālo nahi dharaṇidharaḥ kiṃ dvijihvaḥ phaṇīndraḥ?
Nāhaṃ ghorāhimardī kim uta khagapatiḥ no Hariḥ kiṃ kapīndraḥ?
Ityevaṃ Satyabhāmā-pratijita-vacanaḥ pātu vaś Cakrapāṇiḥ.
The exchange works because Sanskrit names often have several meanings. Krishna supplies a name; Satyabhama deliberately chooses a different meaning of the same word. He tries another name, and she finds another way to misunderstand him!
The first exchange: Madhava and spring
Satyabhama asks:
अङ्गुल्या कः कपाटं प्रहरति कुटिले?
Aṅgulyā kaḥ kapāṭaṃ praharati, kuṭile?
“Who is knocking at the door with his finger, O lady of playful ways?”
The opening addresses Satyabhama as kuṭile — literally, one who is crooked or curved, but here a teasing way of referring to her clever, mischievous nature.
Krishna replies:
माधवः।
Mādhavaḥ.
“It is Madhava!”
Madhava is a beloved name of Krishna, associated with Lakshmi and with the Lord's divine identity.
Satyabhama counters:
किं वसन्तः?
Kiṃ vasantaḥ?
“Is it the spring season?”
The word Mādhava can also refer to the spring season. Satyabhama pretends that Krishna has announced the season rather than his own name!
Imagine Krishna standing outside, waiting patiently, while she refuses to acknowledge him.
The second exchange: Chakri and the potter
Krishna tries again:
नो, चक्री।
No, cakrī.
“No! I am Chakri — the bearer of the discus.”
He is the wielder of the Sudarshana Chakra, the divine discus.
But Satyabhama is not ready to surrender.
किं कुलालः?
Kiṃ kulālaḥ?
“Is it a potter?”
A potter works with a wheel, the chakra. The wordplay shifts the divine discus into an ordinary potter's wheel. Instead of recognising the Lord of the Universe, she imagines a craftsman arriving at her door!
The third exchange: Dharanidhara and the serpent king
Krishna now declares:
नहि, धरणिधरः।
Nahi, dharaṇidharaḥ.
“No! I am Dharanidhara, the bearer or supporter of the Earth.”
The name conveys the idea of one who sustains the world.
Satyabhama immediately finds another interpretation:
किं द्विजिह्वः फणीन्द्रः?
Kiṃ dvijihvaḥ phaṇīndraḥ?
“Then are you the two-tongued king of serpents?”
Here, dvijihva means “two-tongued,” and phaṇīndra means the lord of serpents. The reference is to the cosmic serpent Śeṣa, traditionally depicted as supporting the Earth.
Krishna's grand divine title has once again been transformed into a teasing question.
The fourth exchange: The destroyer of serpents and Garuda
Krishna responds:
नाहं घोराहिमर्दी।
Nāhaṃ ghorāhimardī.
“No, I am the destroyer of the terrible serpent!”
This points to Krishna's celebrated subjugation of Kāliya, the poisonous serpent of the Yamuna.
But Satyabhama has another answer ready:
किमुत खगपतिः?
Kim uta khagapatiḥ?
“Then perhaps you are the lord of birds?”
Khagapati is a name of Garuda, the mighty divine eagle and vehicle of Vishnu, who is associated with serpents as prey.
Krishna has moved from a serpent-destroying hero to a possible bird king in the space of a few words!
The final exchange: Hari and the monkey king
Krishna tries one last time:
नो, हरिः।
No, Hariḥ.
“No! I am Hari!”
Hari is a sacred name of Vishnu and Krishna. It is also used in other contexts, including for a monkey.
Satyabhama delivers her final tease:
किं कपीन्द्रः?
Kiṃ kapīndraḥ?
“Then are you the king of monkeys?”
The divine Hari is now being mistaken for a monkey king!
And so the Lord who bears the Sudarshana Chakra finds himself defeated—not in battle, but in a battle of words with his own beloved.
The concluding benediction
इत्येवं सत्यभामाप्रतिजितवचनः पातु वश्चक्रपाणिः ॥
Ityevaṃ Satyabhāmā-pratijita-vacanaḥ pātu vaś Cakrapāṇiḥ.
“May Chakrapani, the bearer of the discus, who has been outwitted in words by Satyabhama in this way, protect us all!”
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