The wrestler Cāṇūra addressed Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma with the following words: "O Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, You two are well respected by courageous men and are both skillful at wrestling. Having heard of Your prowess, the king has called You here, wanting to see for himself. You, Kṛṣṇa, aren't really a child or even a young man, and neither is Balarāma, the strongest of the strong. Therefore You two should fight powerful wrestlers like us."
Accepting the challenge, Kṛṣṇa paired off with Cāṇūra, and Balarāma fought with Mustika. Seizing each other's hands and locking legs with each other, the opponents struggled powerfully, eager for victory. They each struck fists against fists, knees against knees, head against head, and chest against chest. Each fighter contended with his opponent by dragging him about in circles, shoving and crushing him, throwing him down, and running before and behind him. Forcefully lifting and carrying each other, pushing each other away, and holding each other down, the fighters appeared to be hurting even their own bodies in their great eagerness for victory.
As Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma fought the huge wrestlers, the women present gazed upon the two Lords and became enthralled by Their beauty. The ladies said, "Just see the lotus face of Kṛṣṇa as He darts around His foe! That face, covered with drops of perspiration brought on by the strenuous fight, resembles the whorl of a lotus covered with dew. What austerities the gopīs must have performed to be able to always see His beautiful form!
"Don't you see the face of Lord Balarāma, with its eyes copper-red from His anger toward Mustika and its beauty enhanced by His laughter and His absorption in the fight?"
As the women spoke, Kṛṣṇa powerfully struck Cāṇūra and began to break every part of his body. Furious, Cāṇūra violently pounded the Lord's chest with both fists. No more shaken by the demon's mighty blows than an elephant struck with a flower garland, Lord Kṛṣṇa grabbed Cāṇūra by his arms, swung him around several times, and hurled him onto the ground with great force. His clothes, hair, and garland scattering, the wrestler fell down dead like a huge festival column collapsing.