The Poisoned River
The serpent Kaliya had a hundred and ten hoods and venom so potent that the very water of the Yamuna boiled and foamed near his pool. Trees on the banks had withered. Birds that flew overhead fell dead.
The people of Vrindavana were in distress. No one could approach the river.
Krishna Dives In
Krishna, still a boy, climbed a great Kadamba tree on the bank of the Yamuna and dove into the dark, poisonous waters.
Kaliya rose from the depths in fury — his hooded heads swaying, his eyes spitting fire. He and his wives and companions coiled around Krishna, crushing him in their embrace.
For a moment, it seemed as if Krishna had been caught.
Then Krishna grew. His body expanded within Kaliya's coils until the serpent was forced to release him, gasping. Krishna leaped onto Kaliya's hoods and began to dance.
The Dance
He danced with the full weight of the cosmos, pressing Kaliya's pride and violence down with every step. The hundred and ten hoods rose and fell. Each time a hood rose in defiance, Krishna stepped on it and flattened it. The serpent's bodies thrashed. His jewelled crowns cracked and fell into the water.
Kaliya's wives, seeing their husband near death, came forward in submission and prayed to Krishna for mercy.
Krishna stopped. He stepped back off the serpent's hood.
The Exile
"You cannot remain here," Krishna said to Kaliya. "You have polluted the Yamuna. Go to your island home in the ocean. You shall not be harmed — the eagle Garuda, who hunts all serpents, will not come near you, because my footprint is on your head."
Kaliya bowed in gratitude and left the Yamuna with his family. The river ran clear again. The trees on the banks bloomed overnight.