Why The Peacock Feather And Not The Snake

“One friend challenged Krishna thus: ‘My dear friend Damodara, You are an expert only in eating. You have defeated Subala only because he is weak and You adopted cheating means. Don't advertise Yourself to be a great fighter by such action. You have advertised Yourself as a serpent, and I am the peacock who will now defeat You.’ The peacock is the ablest enemy of the serpent.” (The Nectar of Devotion, Ch 46)