A cow demon, Vatsasura, tries to mingle with the herd.  The calves sense its presence and as it sidles up, Krishna seizes it by the hind leg, whirls it round his head and dashes it to death.  A crane demon, Bakasura, then approaches.  The cowherds recognize it, but while they are wondering how to escape, the crane opens its beak and engulfs Krishna.  Krishna, however, becomes so hot that the crane cannot retain him.  It lets him go.  Krishna then tears its beak in two, rounds up the calves and taking the cowherd boys with him, returns home.

Another day Krishna is out in the forest with the cowherds and the calves, when a snake demon, Ugrasura, sucks them into its mouth.  Krishna expands his body to such an extent that the snake bursts.  The calves and cowherd children come tumbling out and all praise Krishna for saving them.  On the way back, Krishna suggests that they should have a picnic and choosing a great kadam tree, they sweep the place clean, set out their food and proceed to enjoy it.  As they eat, the gods look down, noting how handsome the young Krishna has grown.  Among the gods is Brahma, who decides to tease Krishna by hiding the calves while the cowherd children are eating.[19] He takes them to a cave and when Krishna goes in search of them, hides the cowherd children as well.  Krishna, however, is not to be deterred.  Creating duplicates of every calf and boy he brings them home.  No one detects that anything is wrong and for a year they live as if nothing has happened.  Brahma has meanwhile sunk himself in meditation, but suddenly recalls his prank and hurries out to set matters right.  He is astonished to find the original calves and children still sleeping in the cave, while their counterparts roam the forest.  He humbly worships Krishna, restores the original calves and children and returns to his abode.  When the cowherd children awake, Krishna shows them the calves.  No one realizes what has happened.  The picnic continues and laughing and playing they go home.

We now enter the third phase of Krishna’s childhood.  He is eight years old and is therefore competent to graze not merely the calves but the cows as well.[20] Nanda accordingly performs the necessary ritual and Krishna goes with the cowherds to the forest.

An idyllic phase in Krishna’s life now starts.  ’At this time Krishna and Balarama, accompanied by the cow-boys, traversed the forests, that echoed with the hum of bees and the peacock’s cry.  Sometimes they sang in chorus or danced together; sometimes they sought shelter from the cold beneath the trees; sometimes they decorated themselves with flowery garlands, sometimes with peacocks’ feathers; sometimes they stained themselves of various hues with the minerals of the mountain; sometimes weary they reposed on beds of leaves, and sometimes imitated in mirth the muttering of the thundercloud; sometimes they excited their juvenile associates to sing, and sometimes they mimicked the cry of the peacock with