Jarasandh united with his friends and again made a plan to attack Mathura. There, Akroor came to know from his spies that Jarasandh was going to attack.
He arranged for the security of Mathura and confidentially hid his army in the caves. Jarasandh’s army left to attack Mathura.
On the way, the army halted for rest and just then Akroor’s army attacked them. Jarasandh’s army was shaken up but recovered fast and started fighting.
Jarasandh used illusive weapons and Akroor’s men kept dying.Then Krishna and Balram took leadership in the battle and in return of Jarasandh’s illusive weapons they also used illusive weapons.
A fierce battle was fought and in the end Jarasandh is defeated. This way Jarasandh attacked seventeen times and every time he was defeated.
But he was not disappointed. He again planned to attack Mathura.
Shri Krishna thought, “Till I am in Mathura, Jarasandh will keep attacking. To protect the people of Mathura, I must move to some other place.”
Akroor and Balram said that Jarasandh had become weak by and he would not have the courage to attack again.
Shri Krishna said, “Jarasandh will keep attacking. He is a strange person and he is not going to be killed by our hands.”
Krishna told the story of Jarasandh’s birth, “Jarasandh’s father Bradhrath had two wives but he was childless. He served the sages to bear a child.
The sages were pleased with his service and gave him a fruit and asked him to give it to his wife to eat with which he will be a father to a child.
Bradhrath’s both wives ate half of the fruit each. Both of them gave birth to a son but both of them were with half body.
On seeing sons with half the bodies, Bradhrath was very sad and asked his servants to go and throw them in the jungle. The servant went and threw both the half bodies.
In the jungle, there was a giantess named Jaraa, she joined both the parts with her mystic power and returns it to Bradhrath and tells him that until he is not cut into two pieces, he will not be killed.”
Here Jarasandh planned to attack Mathura again. His friend Shalya suggested him to take help from Kalyavan as he was immortal. Shalya told the story of Kalyavan,
“Kalyavan is the son of a priest who gave him to king Malechh.King Malechh was Sage Sheshirayan in previous life. His brother-in-law had insulted him calling him impotent.
Sheshirayan was very unhappy and he worshipped Shiva and asked for an immortal son as a boon. Shiva gave him the boon and made him a king.
From King Sheshirayan and heavenly nymph Rambha’s coition, Kalyavan was born.
He is unconquerable and immortal and can kill Krishna. We must take his help.” Jarasandh asked Kalyavan for help and agreed to that and attacked Mathura.
Shri Krishna said that Muchkand only could help to kill Kalyavan. During the war between deities and demons, Muchhkand had helped the deities, so Indra told him to ask for a boon.
Muchhkand said that he was tired of fighting with the demons and wanted to take a deep sleep and take rest. Indra sent him to sleep in a cave near Mathura and said, “He one which will disturb you in your sleep, the moment your eyes will be set on him; he will be reduced to ashes.”
Muchhkand went and slept in that cave. Kalyavan attacked Mathura and challenged Krishna to either get ready for war or surrender.
Krishna accepted his challenge and got ready for the war and told Kalyavan that it was of no use killing the soldiers of both the armies, rather both of them alone should go to a place where no army existed and fight in between them and decide who won or lost. Kalyavan agreed to this. Shri Krishna and Kalyavan left for the battle.
