Talk:Kṛṣṇa

Kṛṣṇa (also, Śrīkṛṣṇa)

Śrīkṛṣṇa

The philosophy of the Upaniṣads which is applicable to the world can be classified into three major aspects. They are:

1. Philosophy characterized by a rational temper
2. Philosophy through passion for the welfare of the human beings
3. Philosophy of spirit of harmony as applied to the whole world

Rāma and Kṛṣṇa are the best examples of the 2nd category of philosophy. They have a huge influence over the development of history over many centuries. Both are highly emulated models even today. Among both of them, Kṛṣṇa is believed by many to have influenced thought, life and culture in a more profound manner.

Kṛṣṇa claims a significant place in:

1. Religion
2. Philosophy
3. Mysticism
4. Poetry
5. Painting
6. Sculpture
7. Music
8. Dancing

Other Kṛṣṇas in History

There has been a mention of several Kṛṣṇas in the scriptures. They can be noted as follows:

• Ṛgveda mentions a Kṛṣṇa, the father of Viśvakāya.
• The last maṇḍala or section of the Ṛgveda attributes two suktas or hymns to the sage Kṛṣṇa.
• There is mention of one Kṛṣṇa Āṅgirasa in the Kausitaki Brāhmana.
• One Kṛṣṇa Hārīta has been denoted in the Aitareya Āranyaka.
• Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana Vyāsa, also known simply as Vyāsa, is the reputed author of the epic Mahābhārata.

None of the above mentioned Kṛṣṇa is the topic of the study in this article.

Kṛṣṇa's Guru

The Chāndogya Upaniṣad mentions Kṛṣṇa-Devakīputra as a disciple of Ghora Āṅgirasa and he taught Kṛṣṇa the science of Puruṣayajña. It is very likely that this is the same Kṛṣṇa, the son of Vasudeva and Devakī. Other texts mention that Sāndīpani was the guru of Kṛṣṇa.

Kṛṣṇa, Combination of Deities

Some scholars opine that the Kṛṣṇa is a combined deity of four personalities mentioned below:

1. Viṣṇu, a solar deity
2. Nārāyaṇa of some theistic philosophical systems
3. Vāsudeva of the Bhāgavata sect
4. Gopāla, a cowherd king of Ābhīra

Right from the times of Mahābhārata, Kṛṣṇa was well-known not only as a very great person but also as the manifestation of the divine who claims worship.

Kṛṣṇa Era

The dating of Kṛṣṇa is highly disputed. Traditional scholars sometimes accept the period 3200 to 3100 B.C. on the basis of archaeoastronomy and assumptions of a "no-earlier-than date". Others believe that the dates must be significantly older based on the loss of sciences described in the Mahabharata and lack of archeological evidence.

Scriptural references to dating are hard to use because they refer to the current age in relation to the time of Kṛṣṇa.

Sources of information on Kṛṣṇa

There are four primary sources on Kṛṣṇa:

1. The Mahābhārata - In the Mahābhārata, Kṛṣṇa appears for the first time during the marriage of Draupadī with the Pāṇḍavas. Though there are casual references to his earlier life yet no details have been given here.
2. The Harivaṅśa - To make up for the lacuna in Mahābhārata, the Harivaṅśa was added as an adjunct later on to this epic. It is a fairly long work of over 16,000 verses. It deals with the story of Kṛṣṇa in greater details in the section called Viṣṇuparva.
3. The Viṣṇupurāṇa - The Viṣṇupurāṇa belongs to A. D. 300. It has total 6000 verses. It is one of the earliest purāṇas. It deals with the story of Kṛṣṇa in the fifth section known as pañcamārhśa.
4. The Bhāgavata - The Bhāgavata belongs to A. D. 600. It has total 18,000 verses. It seems to be an expanded version of the Viṣṇupurāṇa. In this scripture it practically deals with the same topics, but in much greater detail.

Secondary references include

1. The Brahmapurāna
2. The Padmapurāna
3. The Brahmavaivarta-purāna

Story of Kṛṣṇa in brief

The story of Kṛṣṇa has been briefed here, following the accounts given in the Mahābhārata and the Bhāgavata.

Tyranny of Kaṅsa

The tyrannical sins were committed by many kings and rulers among whom Kaṅsa of Mathurā and Jarāsandha of Magadha were the worst. Mother Earth, when unable to bear the burden of these sins, appealed to Brahmā, the Creator, for help. Brahmā prayed to the Supreme Lord Nārāyaṇa who assured him that He would take birth to eliminate all the evil doers.

Ugrasena of the Yādava race was the king of Mathurā. It's capital was also in the city of Mathurā. His crown prince, Kaṅsa, was a tyrant dreaded by all. Practically he only ruled the kingdom. Devaka was the cousin of Ugrasena. Devakī, the daughter of Devaka, was married to Vasudeva, the son of Surasena. Surasena was another Yādava chieftain.

Kaṅsa loved his sister Devakī very much. Wherefore, he took the couple out for a ride on a royal chariot driven by himself. A voice from the void warned him that the eighth issue of the couple would destroy him.

Enraged and unnerved by this quirk of fate, Kaṅsa was about to kill Devaki. Vasudeva intervened then and averted the tragedy to his wife by promising to hand over all the children born from her. Though Kaṅsa spared Devakī’s life, he did not want to take any chances. Hence, he put the couple into the prison.

Birth of Kṛṣṇa

Vasudeva kept up his word. Kaṅsa mercilessly slaughtered the first six sons of Devakī. The seventh foetus was mysteriously transferred into the womb of Rohiṇī, the elder wife of Vasudeva. She presently lived at Gokula. Gokula was a cowherd settlement across the river Yamunā. She gave birth to a hefty boy.

Then Devakī conceived the Lord in her eighth pregnancy. She shone with a brilliance that was matchless but soothing. When Kaṅsa got the news, he started living in mortal fear. On the blessed day when nature was at its best to welcome the Lord, He appeared to the couple in all His glory and instructed Vasudeva to exchange him for the baby-girl just born to Yaśodā, wife of the cowherd chief Nanda at Gokula. Then He assumed the form of an extremely charming human baby. The instructions were carried out faithfully. Under the divine spell, the gates of the prison opened up, the guards went to sleep and the river Yamunā made the way for transportation of the divine infant.

On hearing the news of eighth baby, when Kaṅsa arrived to the prison next morning, he found a baby-girl in his sister’s lap. Since fear of death had dehumanized him, he dashed the baby against a boulder. But it escaped, flew up into the sky and assumed the fierce form of Yogamāyā and prophesied that his enemy was living elsewhere and would soon kill him.

The divine child started growing at Gokula giving the greatest joy to everyone by his bewitching beauty and supremely charming pranks. All the attempts of Kaṅsa to kill the child were in vain. He dispatched each demon sent by Kaṅsa to the abode of death. Garga, the family priest of the Yādavas, arrived at Gokula and secretly performed the nāmakaraṇa ritual for the two children.

Rohiṇī’s son was christened as Rāma or Balarāma and Yaśodā’s son was named as Kṛṣṇa. The elders of the village decided to abandon Gokula and migrate to Vṛndāvana, a nearby place which offered better facilities for a new settlement. It proved to be very fruitful for both the brothers Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa.

Maneuvers of Child Kṛṣṇa

The exploits of Kṛṣṇa at the cowherd settlement included the following:

• Revealing the whole universe in his little mouth to his mother Yaśodā
• Felling the twin trees by dragging the grinding stone to which he had been tied in between
• Extirpating all the emissaries of death dispatched by Kaṅsa
• Subduing and driving away the serpent Kāliya from the river to the sea
• Lifting the Govardhana hill up with his little finger and holding it like an umbrella to protect the people of Vṛndāvana from the torrential rain caused by Indra who had been annoyed by Kṛṣṇa’s stopping of worship to him
• The Rāsa dance with the gopīs on the banks of Yamunā
• Rescuing his foster father Nanda from drowning

Extermination of Kaṅsa

On finding that all his efforts to assassinate the two children were in vain, Kaṅsa decided to get them to his capital on the pretext of royal invitation and contrived to kill them there. Wherefore, he sent Akrura, a Yādava chief, with a chariot to Vṛndāvana to bring the two brothers. Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa seized this opportunity and went there gladly. After few more bouts of adventure in the capital and palace, Kṛṣṇa killed Kaṅsa. He freed his parents Vasudeva and Devakī and his grandfather Ugrasena. Then Ugrasena was throned as the king once again.

Vasudeva then arranged for the upanayana and education of the boys under the preceptor Sāndīpani living at Avantīpura. Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa were born geniuses. They mastered the well-known sixty-four sciences and arts in just sixty-four days. They returned to Mathurā after restoring the dead son of the preceptor at his request as gurudakṣiṇā.

Extermination of Jarāsandha

Jarāsandha of Magadha was a mighty king and a tyrant. He started invading Mathurā with his huge army. Though being defeated again and again, he returned after every defeat. Kṛṣṇa built an impregnable capital Dvārakā in an island and shifted the people there. He had to be conquered first as a part of the victory expedition. Kṛṣṇa, along with Arjuna and the mighty Bhīma, went to the capital of Jarāsandha in disguise and challenged him to a dual with Bhīma. He got him killed through this dual. He then crowned Jarāsandha’s son Sahadeva as the king of Magadha. He also released the large number of princes and kings held captive by Jarāsandha in the prison.

Marriages of Kṛṣṇa

Soon after this dual, Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa married Revatī and Rukmiṇī. They were the daughters of Revata and Bhīṣmaka. Kṛṣṇa also married Jāmbavatī and Satyabhāmā

Narakāsura, the demon king of Prāgjyotiṣapura had abducted and imprisoned 160 princesses. Kṛṣṇa invaded his kingdom and killed him in the battle. He released all the princesses and married them since they had no other shelter.

Kṛṣṇa's Descent to Final Abode

After few years, the Yādavas, the kinsmen of Kṛṣṇa fell into evil ways of life. They got engrossed in exterminating one another in mutual fight at Prabhāsa. It is a place near Dvārakā. Kṛṣṇa taught spiritual wisdom to Uddhava, his friend and disciple. After his preachings, he ascended to his abode. He casted off his body which was shot by a hunter named Jara.

Role of Kṛṣṇa in Pāṇḍavas Lives

Aid During Svayamvara

Vasudeva had a sister named Pṛthā who was more well-known as Kuntī. She had married to prince named Pāṇḍu, the ruler of Hastināpura. He died early, leaving five young sons to the care of Kunti. She took refuge in Bhīṣma, the grandsire of the Kuru race. Bhīṣma brought them up along with the hundred Kauravas, sons of the blind king Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Dhṛtarāṣṭra was the elder brother of Pāṇḍu.

Jealousy and enmity of the Kauravas towards the Pāṇḍavas forced the latter to go to exile. After many travails they reached Kāmpilya, the capital of southern Pāñcāla kingdom ruled by Drupada. They reached just at the time of the svayamvara of his daughter Draupadī. Disguised as brāhmaṇas, they also sat in the assembly. Kṛṣṇa also had come there along with Balarāma. He immediately recognized the Pāṇḍavas.

After the failure of all the princes, Arjuna, the third Pāṇḍava, succeeded in piercing the fish fixed on a special contrivance called matsya-yantra. He thus passed the prescribed test. When the beggarly brāhmaṇa succeeded after surpassing the mighty princes, it roused the wrath of the kings assembled there. When they started a fight with the Pāṇḍavas, Kṛṣṇa intervened reminding all of them that Arjuna had won the hand of Draupadī according to dharma or righteous and just way. This cooled their frayed tempers and an ugly situation was averted.

Aid in Building Indraprastha

Once, while on a pilgrimage, Arjuna came to Dvārakā and fell in love with Subhadrā, the sister of Kṛṣṇa. Since the love was mutual and as Arjuna was the best match for her, Kṛṣṇa successfully contrived to get them married. When the Pāṇḍavas got their share of half the kingdom and wanted to build the capital, Kṛṣṇa helped them to clear the Khāṇḍava forest and establish their capital there. It came to be known as Indraprastha or Khāṇḍavaprastha.

Aid in Rājasuya Sacrifice

Yudhiṣṭhira, the eldest of the Pāṇḍavas wanted to perform the Rājasuya sacrifice. Kṛṣṇa encouraged him to undertake this ambitious venture. Since the performer of the Rājasuya sacrifice would be proclaimed as the emperor, all the oppositions had to be banished before taking it up.

The Rājasuya went off on a grand scale. Then the question arose as to who should be offered the ‘agrapujā’, worship offered to the best of the assembled men. The votes for the highest honor bestowed on such occasion unanimously favored Kṛṣṇa. The lone dissenter was Śiśupāla, the king of Cedi, who did so due to old enmity. Since he abused Kṛṣṇa, Bhīma and others in that august assembly and even challenged them to fight with him, Kṛṣṇa was obliged to kill him using his celebrated discus, the Sudarśana.

Aid to Draupadī

Unable to bear the prosperity of the Pāṇḍavas, Duryodhana, the eldest of the Kauravas challenged Yudhiṣṭhira, the eldest of the Pāṇḍavas, to gambling through a game of dice. Yudhiṣṭhira who had a weakness for this game, succumbed; but was defeated by the wily Śakuni, uncle of the Kauravas, who played as Duryodhana’s substitute. Yudhiṣṭhira lost everything including his brothers, wife Draupadī and himself.

Then Duryodhana forcibly brought Draupadī to the assembly hall and an attempt was made by Duśśāsana, the second of the Kaurava brothers to disrobe her. Her fervent prayers to Kṛṣṇa brought him there in an invisible form, who protected her modesty by multi-plying her robes to infinite length. Then Dhṛtarāṣṭra, the blind king, got Draupadī released and restored their lost wealth and kingdom to the Pāṇḍavas. They returned to Indraprastha and resumed their rule.

Advice and Support During Exile

However, prodded by the evil counsels of Śakuni, his uncle, Duryodhana succeeded once again in extracting a promise from the blind king Dhṛtarāṣṭra to challenge the Pāṇḍavas for a second round of the game of dice. Yudhiṣthira, with his proverbial weakness for the same, succumbed to it and lost his kingdom. As per the stakes he was banished to the forest. Kṛṣṇa came to know that the Pāṇḍavas were living in the forest and undergoing great hardships. He arrived there to console and advise them.

Kṛṣṇa told Yudhiṣṭhira that if he were at Hastināpura, the capital of the Kauravas, he would have left no stone unturned to prevent the game by impressing upon all the evils of such gambling.

After successfully completing the period of banishment, the Pāṇḍavas, who had gathered in Virāṭanagara, the capital of the country Matsya, celebrated the marriage of Abhimanyu with Uttarā. Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma also attended the same. While discussing the future plans of the Pāṇḍavas in the assembly that had gathered there, Kṛṣṇa advised all of them to think of any course that will bring good for both the Pāṇḍavas and the Kauravas.

Role of Kṛṣṇa in Mahābhārata War

After the exile of the Pāṇḍavas was over, Duryodhana was obdurate in refusing to part with even the minutest part of his kingdom for the sake of the Pāṇḍavas. Kṛṣṇa decided to make a last attempt to restore peace between them. He gave sincere efforts but in vain.

When it was finally decided that war was the only way out for the Pāṇḍavas to get back to their kingdom, Kṛṣṇa was wooed by both the parties. When he offered the choice of the mighty Yādava army on one side or himself, but unarmed, on the other, Arjuna chose him. Duryodhana was happy to get the army.

Before the commencement of the war at Kurukṣetra, Kṛṣṇa tried to win over Karṇa, the king of Aṅgadeśa and a warrior of exceptional valor, to the side of the Pāṇḍavas but without success. At the request of Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna consented to be his charioteer. The war lasted for eighteen days. At the very outset, he had to deliver the great sermon now well-known as the Bhagavadgītā. He preached it to rouse Arjuna who suddenly declined to fight. He was overcome by a moral stupor.

This worked and Arjuna fought valiantly. Kṛṣṇa also played many important roles but always in defense of dharma. The Pāṇḍavas emerged victorious at the end and the Kauravas were decimated. After the coronation of Yudhiṣṭhira as the king of Hastināpura, Kṛṣṇa retired to Dvārakā.

Personality of Kṛṣṇa

As an Avatāra

Whether Kṛṣṇa-Vāsudeva was a human being or God-incarnate, he has ruled over the hearts of millions of the people over centuries. He is a person who exercises a profound impact on the community affecting the psyche, ethos and all the other aspects of life for ages. People believe him as an avatāra, God Himself, who came to save mankind.

The primary purpose of an avatāra, as Kṛṣṇa has stated in the Gītā, is to re-establish dharma or righteousness on a firm foundation. This can be done by protecting and strengthening good people who protect dharma. Subduing and eliminating the evil ones who destroy the dharma is also a part of this mission. To achieve it, he uses all the powers and resources at his command. But, in the process, he must not give up his human character. Sometimes he may transcend it just to exhibit the human beings, the possibility of rising to superhuman levels if they exert themselves sufficiently.

As a Patron of Weak People

A study of Kṛṣṇa’s character and personality from this angle isl not only useful but also inspiring. Throughout his life, Kṛṣṇa’s sole concern was dharma. He has always uphold, protect and reassert dharma to its supremacy. He has always unraveled the mystery of dharma whenever it became inscrutable.

Dharma becomes just an ethereal concept unless it lives in the minds and hearts of the human beings and gets expressed through their actions. Hence, Kṛṣṇa was highly concerned about the human beings, especially the underprivileged or the weaker sections of the society and women. This is revealed by his action like:

• The care he bestowed on the cowherds of Vṛndāvana
• His curing Kubjā of her deformity
• His protecting the honor of Draupadī at highly critical moment
• His bestowal of wealth to the poor Kucela

As a Dignified Warrior

Kṛṣṇa, though possessed a heart ‘softer than a flower,’ could exercise a staunch will and terrific valor whenever necessary in defense of dharma and dhārmic people. In fact, he was the strongest man and the greatest warrior of his times. He knew no fear, nor tasted defeat in his life. The demons he killed, the tyrants he subdued were legion. He was an expert in the martial arts. At the same time he was not a warmonger. He was a master statesman, skilled in the art of peace also. He first priority was to prevail peace but not at the cost of dharma.

As a Profound Litterateur

It is a common belief that brain and brawn cannot go hand in hand. But Kṛṣṇa was an extraordinary exception. His scholarship in the Vedic lore, secular sciences and arts was renowned. His three Gītās, the Bhagavadgītā, the Anugītā and the Uddhavagitā are outstanding works which speaks volumes about his learning and wisdom.

As a thorough Philosopher

He possessed tremendous intellect and intuitive insight coupled with immense common sense. He often solved knotty problems or nasty situations quite easily, eluding them in the best interest of whosoever concerned. The situations which bespeaks of this perspective side of him are:

• His going to Hastināpura as a peace emissary
• His trying to win over Karṇa to the side of the Pāṇḍavas
• His apparently questionable strategies during the Kurukṣetra war

As a Staunch Tranquil

Intelligence and learning do not necessarily lead to culture and refinement. Arrogance or craftiness is more common result of these attributes. But Kṛṣṇa was a perfect gentleman. When he killed Kañsa or got Jarāsandha eliminated, he put Ugrasena and Sahadeva on the thrones though he could have easily usurped these kingdoms. He was the first to honor elders, brāhmaṇas, sages and others. He showed respect wherever it was due. Even during the grave provocation, he could be calm and nonchalant. The case which proves this point is the remarkable tolerance that he exhibited towards the cantankerous Siśupāla.

As an Esoteric Yogi

Kṛṣṇa was not only a philosopher but an accomplished yogi or mystic as well. Hence the epithet ‘Yogeśvara’ promptly applies to him. The Bhāgavata narrates several incidents wherein he had displayed yogic powers. Some of the instances to point out are:

• Giving vision of Viṣṇu to Akrura, the Yādava emissary who had come to Vṛndāvana
• Curing Kubjā-Trivakrā of her physical handicapped condition

As Philanthropic

Mysticism and activism rarely go together; but they did in the case of Kṛṣṇa. He was ever active and ever busy in the best interest of the world. His life was one continuum of dynamic activities for the betterment of others. He never used these powers for himself. He was the personification of selflessness. He perpetually lived for others.

As a Resolute Revolutionary

Kṛṣṇa followed old customs and kept up time-honored traditions. He did not make a fetish of the same. According to his judgement, if any such custom needed to be altered or given up or even replaced with another, he would unhesitatingly do so. Some of the instances to cite are:

• He stopped the worship of god Indra by the cowherds at Vṛndāvana and substituted it with the worship of the cows and the Govardhana Hill which were the backbone of their agrarian society.
• He acceded to Arjuna’s request to be his charioteer, though such a job was considered to be menial. Being a charioteer was reserved for the lowborn ones. He agreed to be Arjuna's charioteer because he knew that any help rendered to the Pāṇḍavas would help the cause of dharma.

As a Nonpareil Human

Kṛṣṇa was intensely humane. He responded to every human emotion in an appropriate way, making the concerned persons feel at home with him. He even made them feel important. Each person who came in touch with him was affected by his magic touch of their hearts. People being blessed by his company were:

• Parents Devakī and Vasudeva
• Foster parents Yaśodā and Nanda
• Mates at Gokula and Vṛndāvana
• Gopīs
• Wives like Rukmiṇī and Satyabhāmā
• Yādava chieftains
• Pāṇḍavas
• Elders at Hastināpura
• Animals like cows, monkeys or horses

His bewitching beauty, enchanting music of his flute, honey-sweet words and irrefutable logic behind them could enslave even the gods. Wherefore he is entitled as ‘Puruṣottama,’ the best of human beings.

In Defence of Kṛṣṇa

Kṛṣṇa who staked his life to defend and protect the weak people does not need any defense. It is just the explanation of the misunderstandings heaped upon him by some of the people. The criticisms leveled against Kṛṣṇa are based on the story depicted in the Mahābhārata and the Bhāgavata. These two works have declared the greatness and the divinity of Kṛṣṇa. They have depicted him as the Supreme Lord Himself.

Points of Assessment

Keeping the differences apart, it is possible to offer satisfactory explanations to the objections and criticisms raised against Kṛṣṇa. These criticisms fall under two broad categories:

1. Those pertaining to his relationship with the gopīs of Vṛndāvana
2. Those related to the various stratagems he adopted to get victory for the Pāṇḍavas

Justifications Related to Gopis

This vindication is related to two well-known incidents given in the Bhāgavata Gopīvastrāpaharaṇa and Rāsalīlā. Neither the Viṣṇpurāṇa nor the Harivamśa refers to the first episode. The second episode is dealt with in all the three works.

The Harivamśa is considered as an adjunct scripture to the epic. It is the complete story of Kṛṣṇa. It also deals with the Rāsalīlā episode, an earnest attempt to meet the objections squarely. Since the objection itself is based on the Bhāgavata, the rebuttal also should be based on the same.

An allegorical interpretation is also explained for the love of the gopis towards Kṛṣṇa. The gopīs represent the jīvas or the individual souls pining for reunion with the Paramātman or the Supreme Soul who is Krsna, from whom they have been separated.

The gopīs were not ignorant of Kṛṣṇa’s greatness and divinity. They had been captivated by the bewitching beauty of the Kṛṣṇa just like others in the Vraja (Vṛndāvana). All women approached him as their lover. This type of love or approach is not unknown to human history. The whole world is a witness to many mystics cultivated by this type of love towards the Divine. Āñḍāl, Akka Mahādevī and Mīrā are the well-known mystics who prove this point.

Gopīvastrāpaharaṇa

Kṛṣṇa snatches away the robes of the bathing gopīs and perches himself atop a nearby tree along with his friends. When the gopīs plead to return their robes, he asks them to come out from water and stand with uplifted arms to receive them from him. This is the gist of the episode as given in the Bhāgavata. The gopīs were kumārikās, girls in the pre puberty age group. Kṛṣṇa was just seven years old then. Hence it is absurd to attribute any sexual motives of Kṛṣṇa here.

Actually, the girls were undergoing a religious vow called Kātyāyanī-vrata to get Kṛṣṇa as their husband. Gopis themselves were the witness of all the superhuman acts of Kṛṣṇa from babyhood. Hence, they were convinced of his greatness and divinity. Factually, they had cherished conjugal love towards him mentally.

This attitude of a soul towards the Divine is well-known as kāntabhāva or madhurabhāva in the works on devotion and mysticism. This notion is mentioned in the Christianity and Sufism also. One who wants to approach God should eschew aṣṭapāśas or eight infirmities that binds a soul like:

1. Ghṛṇā - hatred
2. Śaṅkā - doubts
3. Bhaya - fear
4. Lajjā - shame
5. Etc.

The love of gopis towards Kṛṣṇa is symbolic of this notion. It is explained by their total surrender of the jīvas or souls to God by giving up all the bonds of life. Hence it should be studied in the proper perspective.

Rāsalīlā

The five chapters, 29 to 33 of the tenth skandha or book of the Bhāgavata, are called Rāsapañcādhyāyī. They exclusively deal with Kṛṣṇa’s play with the gopīs. One moonlit night Kṛṣṇa plays tantalizing tunes on his flute sitting on the bank of the river Yamunā. On hearing it, the gopīs rush to the spot unable to control them.

Kṛṣṇa non-chalantly asks them the purpose of their coming to him at that hour. He even advises them to return home. They refuse expressing their desire to enjoy his company and beg him for the same. Kṛṣṇa obliges them with the amorous sports, seeing that they have totally given up everything for his sake. After some time, conceit creeps into their minds and hearts thinking that the Lord of the universe is their mate.

Sensing it and to teach them a lesson, Kṛṣṇa suddenly vanishes from their midst. Stricken with remorse, the gopīs pray to him. After chastising them thus, Kṛṣṇa reappears to their great delight and dances the Rāsa dance with them. He does this by multiplying himself so that each gopī has an individual Kṛṣṇa with her. All the while, the people at the homes of the gopīs, have not missed them at all. They even continue to ‘exist’ there. This is the summary of this section.

Now, the main question is: By sporting with the wives of other people, did not Kṛṣṇa behave like an ordinary paramour? If so, was it not against even the primary norms of dharma?

In fact, such a question was raised by the king Parīkṣit himself. Even during the Rājasuya sacrifice performed by the king Yudhiṣṭhira, Kṛṣṇa was chosen for the ‘agrapujā’ or ‘first worship’ by the people gathered there. Siśupāla, the ruler of the Cedi kingdom, who was an inveterate enemy of Kṛṣṇa, vehemently opposed it and rained abominable abuses upon him. He even mentioned Kṛṣṇa’s illicit relationship with the gopīs of Vṛndāvana. Since the Mahābhārata is the earliest of the works on Kṛṣṇa, we say that the gopī-episodes are the poetical fancies of the later writers who were eager to propagate the sect of Kṛṣṇabhakti or devotion towards Kṛṣṇa.

Kṛṣṇa was not a libertine, nor a paramour. It is the gopis that approached him with love tainted by sex-passion. Considering it more as a disease that vitiates pure love, he treated them with sympathy and responding to their love, but without himself being affected by it. It is more like the parents or teachers responding to the whims of children in a healthy and dignified way, gradually leading them to wisdom. This worked and the gopīs were put back on the road of rectitude. The gopīs were not unchaste. They remained faithful to their husbands. The only person whom they loved, apart from their husbands, was Kṛṣṇa and none else. They did this knowing that he was the Lord Himself.

It is a wonder that the men-folk of Vraja never felt that they had been separated from their wives. All this is from the subjective standpoint of Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs. From the objective standpoint, did not Kṛṣṇa transgress dharma? If yes, has he not set a bad example to the world for centuries? This is exactly the question that the king Parīkṣit put to the sage Suka, the narrator of the Bhāgavata. Suka in his reply classifies men into three groups:

1. The īśvaras - Lords, Incarnations
2. The jīvanmuktas - the liberated ones
3. The ordinary people

Those who realize God in this very life are called jīvanmuktas. According to the scriptures like the Upaniṣads, they have transcended even dharma and hence are not bound by the dos and don’ts of this world. Nor are they tainted even by grave sins. The jīvanmuktas get that power by meditating on the lotus feet of God.

Wherefore Kṛṣṇa, who is God Himself, can transgress the ordinary norms of dharma for extraordinary ends in life which are always for the good of others. The acts of such īśvaras cannot be and should not be emulated by the ordinary beings. It can be exemplified by the instances like Śiva drank the deadly poison hālāhala. Fire can destroy everything it touches but ordinary mortals can never do it.

Kṛṣṇa responded to the love of the gopīs for their sake and not for his sake. In doing so, he even multiplied himself out of his māyā power to be with all of them simultaneously. At the same time he was also present as gopīs in their houses doing their normal work. Hence, the supra-dhārmic doings of īśvara like Kṛṣna should not be emulated by the ordinary run of mankind. If someone can do all that Kṛṣṇa did, then he is an īśvara and can take liberties with dharma.

Statement by Swami Vivekananda

Swami Vivekānanda, whose life was unsullied and whose criticism spared none who was not above board, has spoken of Kṛṣṇa at Vṛndāvana in these glorious terms:

‘Ah! that most marvelous passage of his life, the most difficult to understand, and which none ought to attempt to understand until he has become perfectly chaste and pure, that most marvelous expansion of love, allegorized and expressed in that beautiful play at Vrindaban, which none can understand but he who has become mad with love, drunk deep of the cup of love! Who can understand the throes of the love of the Gopis ,the very ideal of love, love that wants nothing, love that even does not care for heaven, love that does not care for anything in this world or the world to come?... A great landmark in the history of religion is here, the ideal of love for love’s sake, duty for duty’s sake, and it for the first time fell from the lips of the greatest of Incarnations, Krishna, and for the first time, in the history of humans, upon the soil of India.’

Marriages of Kṛṣṇa

There is a wide scale criticism regarding that Kṛṣṇa had married 16,008 wives. It is a staggering number by any standards. The ‘aṣṭamahiṣīs’ were the eight queens, chief among them being Rukmiṇī and Satyabhāmā. The other 16,000 were the princesses he had saved from the prison of the demon Naraka. Since they had been practically deserted by their relatives, Kṛṣṇa gave them shelter for which ceremonial marriage was a necessity.

Polygamy was quite common among kings and princes during those days. Out of curiosity of the divine sage Nārada, he visited the houses of all the wives of Kṛṣṇa and found him there.

Sometimes an esoteric interpretation is given to this. The number 16,000 really represents 16, the zeros being the reflection of poetic fancies. Number 16 actually represents the 16 parts of the human personality with which the jīvātman, the individual soul, is associated. They are:

1. Five organs of perception
2. Five organs of action
3. Five vital airs
4. The mind

The jīvātman is the lord of all the 16 parts. Hence they are allegorically represented as his wives. Since, in the ultimate analysis the jīvātman is identical with Paramātman or God, Kṛṣṇa is depicted as having 16(000) wives.

Justifications Related to Pāṇḍavas

The second category of objections pertain to Kṛṣṇa’s way of handling the various problems that arose during the Kurukṣetra war. They are explained below. Kṛṣṇa is accused of political perfidy and Machiavellian methods in his dealings with the Kauravas. Therefore it is therefore necessary to examine the various episodes and incidents of the Mahābhārata and know the truth. They may be listed and justified as follows:

• Kṛṣṇa tried to break the friendship of Karṇa with Duryodhana and wean him away from the Kauravas. Kṛṣṇa never wanted the fratricidal war of Kurukṣetra to take place. Having failed in his peace mission due to the recalcitrance of Duryodhana, he made a final attempt to stop the war anyhow by revealing the secret to Karṇa that he was the first son born to Kuntī. If Karṇa had agreed to defect to the Pāṇḍava side, on knowing the truth Duryodhana might have agreed to his being the king of half the kingdom. Hence both the groups could have lived in peace. Karṇa was the best friend and the main source of strength of Duryodhana. His loss would certainly have had a demoralizing effect on Duryodhana. It might even force him for a compromise. Thus bloodshed would have been avoided and dharma could have kept up. Hence these attempts of Kṛṣṇa were really a master stroke of statesmanship.
• Though Kṛṣṇa had taken the vow of renouncing weapons and not fight during the war, he broke the same and attacked Bhīsma. When Bhīṣma was fighting very fiercely that the Pāṇḍava forces were being mercilessly destroyed, Kṛṣṇa found that Arjuna was not putting forth his best against Bhiṣma due to an inherent softness towards him. Then Kṛṣṇa decided to take up his discus and attack Bhīṣma himself. He was stopped by Arjuna halfway with the promise of doing his best. Then, Kṛṣṇa returned to the chariot. The act of Kṛṣṇa was more to induce and inspire Arjuna than himself fight with Bhīṣma. The primary purpose of Kṛṣṇa’s life was to uphold and protect dharma. For him no sacrifice was too great compared to this task. Even transgressing a vow, when needed, was a part of the same. It is necessary to mention here that the Bhīṣma also had vowed that he would force Kṛṣṇa to take to arms and Kṛṣṇa, pleased by his intense devotion, obliged him by breaking his own vow. This piece of information is not found in the Mahābhārata.
• Kṛṣṇa induced Yudhisthira to tell a lie that ‘aśvatthāmā hatah’ which means Aśvatthāmā has been killed. He said it by camouflaging it like truth by adding the words ‘kuñjarah’ which means ‘elephant’. This forced the invincible Drona to retire from the battle. The original verse in the Mahābhārata attributed to Yudhiṣṭhira is:

  Tamatathyabhaye magno jaye sakto yudhisthirah I aśvatthāmā hata iti śabda- muccaiścacāra ha I avyaktamabravīd rājan hatah kuñjara ityuta II

  It can be translated as

  Yudhiṣṭhira, O king, afraid of telling an untruth, but interested in victory, address Droṇa thus in a loud voice: “Aśvatthāmā is dead.”

• But he also added the words, “The elephant is dead” in an inaudible voice’. If we accept this version as a part of the original text and not as an interpolation, then we will be obliged to concede that Yudhiṣṭhira told a blatant lie at the instance of Kṛṣṇa to discomfit Droṇa. Droṇa was unaware of the fact that Bhīma had just then killed an elephant of the same name, Aśvatthāmā. But fortunately, there are strong reasons to believe that this is an interpolation carelessly added by a raw hand at a later period.
• The actual scenario is contrary to the common belief. Droṇa did not lay down arms even on hearing this shocking news but continued to fight routing Dhṛṣṭadyumna and others. Thus, the very purpose of telling that lie has been nullified.
• It is implausible that Bhīma, who is personified to be fearlessness, dared to face even the Nārāyaṇāstra discharged by Aśvatthāmā against the advice and persuasion of even Kṛṣṇa. He would stoop to such mean levels as killing an elephant by name ‘Aśvatthāmā’ and give grist to the mill of falsehood. Along the same lines, it is absurd to think that Yudhiṣṭhira, the Dharmarāja, would have allowed himself to utter a falsehood that too against his preceptor. It is inconvincible that Kṛṣṇa whose purpose of life was to establish dharma, could be the originator of such a heinous plan.
• Since Droṇa was killing innocent warriors on the battlefield by using formidable weapons like the Brahmāstra, against the norms prescribed to use it, several sages like Viśvāmitra, Jamadagni, Bharadvāja, Gautama, Atri, Vasiṣṭha, Bhṛgu and others arrived there and remonstrated with him. They urged him to renounce his weapons and return to the spiritual path which he had given up out of delusion. They also reminded him that his time was over and death was imminent. This ultimately made Droṇa retire from the battle and sit in meditation. While he was meditating, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, son of king Drupada, beheaded him. Hence, we can safely conclude from this that part of the story that maligns Yudhiṣṭhira and Kṛṣṇa is a clumsy interpolation which serves no purpose.
• There is one more incident in Mahābhārata which brilliantly brings out Kṛṣṇa’s character and wisdom. Arjuna, in a moment of impulse, had taken a vow that he would decapitate anyone that would speak disparagingly of his celebrated bow, Gāṇḍīva. Once, on the battlefield, Yudhiṣṭhira was routed by Karṇa and barely managed to escape with his life. When Arjuna came to enquire about his welfare, Yudhiṣṭhira abused him and taunted him to part with his Gāṇḍīva as he was unsuccessful in killing Karṇa. As per his vow, Arjuna was about to attack Yudhiṣṭhira when Kṛṣṇa intervened. After learning of his vow, Kṛṣṇa brought wisdom to his mind through a wonderful discourse on dharma (righteousness) and satya (truth). The gist of his discourse is:

  Satya is that which is sanctioned by dharma and asatya (untruth) is that which is not. Dharma is that which brings about lokahita or good to the world. Hence, the test of satya is that whether it will give good results to the world. Looked at from this angle, an asatya which brings about good to the world is satya; and a satya which harms the world is asatya!

• Kṛṣṇa tricked Jayadratha by creating an artificial darkness through hiding the orb of the sun by his disc Sudarśana and got him killed by Arjuna. Jayadratha, the king of Sindhu country, was the brother-in-law of the Kauravas. He was fighting on their side. Once he had abducted Draupadī, when the Pāṇḍavas were living in the forest. He was however caught and punished. Draupadī was rescued from his clutches. Jayadratha was primarily responsible in preventing the four Pāṇḍavas, except for Arjuna, from coming to the rescue of the young Abhimanyu who had been trapped inside the Cakravyuha or wheel formation of the Kaurava army. This resulted in the cruel murder of the boy by the warriors against all the norms of the battle. When Arjuna came to know about it, he vowed that he would kill Jayadratha before sunset, the next day or immolate himself by entering fire. The Kauravas were frightened by this terrible vow and tried their best to hide Jayadratha from Arjuna’s view. Though Arjuna fought fiercely and relentlessly till the evening there was no sign of the targeted enemy. Then Kṛṣṇa, by his yogic power and not by Sudarśana discus created subjective darkness in front of Jayadratha who came out of joy and relief. Then he was killed by Arjuna. Since Jayadratha was fighting on the side of adharma or unrighteousness and had sinned on two counts, his killing by Arjuna has been justified. The point is just that Kṛṣṇa, who was working for the re-establishment of dharma, aided him.
• Kṛṣṇa incited Arjuna to kill Karna even though the latter was unarmed and was trying to lift his chariot which had run aground. This was a cowardly act and against all the norms of dharma. The fact is that Karṇa was not killed when he was unarmed or was in helpless condition. He died fighting in the usual way. This incident is narrated in details in the Karnaparva. The rebuttal given by Kṛṣṇa to Karṇa was so logical and powerful that Karṇa had to agree to it.
• Kṛṣṇa’s argument was simple. The Kauravas had flouted all the norms of dharma in trying to kill or harm the Pāṇḍavas, their attempt to poison Bhīma, destroy them all through arson, molest their wife Draupadī and snatch away their kingdom through the deceitful game of dice. Since Karṇa had abetted them in their crimes, he had forfeited all the claims to dharma.
• During the gadā-yuddha (mace-fight) between Bhima and Duryodhana, Kṛṣṇa reminded Bhima of his vow to break Duryodhana’s thighs by slapping his own thigh. Hitting below the navel was strictly prohibited in such fights. Actually it was Arjuna who did it after hearing Kṛṣṇa’s comments on the fight, since Duryodhana was slowly getting the upper hand.
• Though it was against the rules of the mace fight, Bhima had to do it since he had vowed to break Duryodhana’s left thigh because the latter had showed his bared lap indecently to Draupadī. If this was not averred by Kṛṣṇa, Duryodhana would have won and would have continued to rule the kingdom persisting his evil ways and bringing misery upon all. When the choice was between losing dharma on earth or breaking a rule in the duel, the path which is less evil was chosen. It is like amputating a limb to save life.

Justifications Related to Yādavas

• Kṛṣṇa did not prevent the fratricidal fight among the Yādavas, though he was capable of doing so. On the other hand he also joined it.
• As a race, the Yādavas had degenerated beyond redemption due to severe addiction to drinking. All the efforts of Kṛṣṇa to reform them had proved futile. Kṛṣṇa always stood for dharma and not for the people, even if they are his own. His role in the destruction of the Yādavas who had given up dharma is rather laudable.

Justifications Related to His Demise

• Krsna’s end was ignominious since he was assassinated by an ordinary hunter. Krṣṇa left his body at his own will in the yoga.
• According to the Bhāgavata he ascended to his world with the body since it was divine.
• The story of Jara, the hunter, killing Kṛṣṇa may be an allegorical way of describing that Kṛṣṇa left the body in old age.

Teachings of Kṛṣṇa

Works on Kṛṣṇa's Teachings

Kṛṣṇa was a great master in the spiritual as well as secular science. His immortal teachings have been left to us through three great works:

1. Bhagavadgitā
2. Anugitā
3. Uddhavagitā

The first two are the parts of the well-known epic Mahābhārata. The last section originates from the Bhāgavata.

Bhagavadgitā

The Bhagavadgitā is the most celebrated and followed scripture from all the teachings by Kṛṣṇa. It has been considered as a monumental work in the religio-philosophical literature of the country for centuries. It is a part of the Bhiṣmaparva. Bhagavadgitā is in the form of a dialogue between Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna. It is spread over 18 chapters and comprises of 700 verses.

Just before the commencement of the Kurukṣetra war, Arjuna's chariot was stopped between the armies of the Pāṇḍavas and the Kauravas, exactly in front of the venerable Bhīṣma and the preceptor Droṇa. Arjuna sees them and others arrayed against him and collapses due to mental depression. He refuses to fight after narrating his reasons to do so. The gist of Arjuna's arguments are:

1. Killing is a sin.
2. Killing one’s own kith and kin that too for the sake of a paltry kingdom is worse.
3. It is far better to renounce the world and take to begging to maintain oneself rather than fighting.

Kṛṣṇa’s reply to these denominations are direct and clear. It is known as Bhagavadgitā. It can be surmised as follows:

• He explains to Arjuna that here the basic question is not whether to fight and kill or to retire from it.
• The prime question is whether to punish those who are impelled by greed and selfishness and have transgressed all the norms of dharma with impunity or to let them enjoy the fruits of their heinous crimes.
• This war has been foisted upon the Pāṇḍavas by the irascible Duryodhana, even though they tried all the means at their command to avoid it.
• The society expects the kṣattriya prince to protect it's life, possessions and values.
• It is the duty that the society has put on their shoulders, Arjuna and the Pāṇḍavas.
• They have no other option but to fight in defense of these.
• When concerned with killing or dying, Kṛṣṇa states that the essential nature of all the beings is ātman, the Self. It has no birth, no change, no disease nor death.
• The body is worn by the soul like apparel that is born or that dies. Hence, there need be no misgivings about the sin of killing or the fear of dying.
• Even if one suppose that the birth and death are coterminous with those of the body, there is no cause for sorrow since this is inevitable in life.
• Kṛṣṇa avers that no living being can avoid activity or work. Hence, one must learn to perform one’s duties and discharge one’s responsibilities.
• Kṛṣṇa terms it as ‘svadharma’, however unpleasant they appear to be. The reaction of work on the mind, whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, is due to the emotional attachment one has towards it and its results thereof.
• If one can learn to do one’s work to the best of one's ability, one can without any kind of attachment or aversion as a matter of duty or to serve the world or to please God then it brings internal peace and equanimity. This mode of working is known as ‘niṣkāmakarmayoga’.
• Incidentally and in reply to Arjuna’s several questions, Kṛṣṇa deals with many other topics also.
• He accepts the yajña-system, the system of sacrifices in duly consecrated Vedic fires, but expands the scope of the word ‘yajña’ by calling any act of self-sacrifice and public good as a yajña. It's significance is no less than its Vedic counterpart.
• Thus donating one’s wealth to the needy is called as dravyayajña’ and imparting knowledge to others becomes ‘jñānayajña’ and so on.
• Kṛṣṇa has christened the term ‘śreṣtha’ to anyone who works for the good of the world. He advises him to be extremely careful in his personal and public life so as to set a model to others.
• Kṛṣṇa also deals with the several paths to perfection like:

1. Jñānayoga - the yoga of knowledge
2. Bhaktiyoga - the yoga of devotion to God
3. Dhyānayoga - the yoga of meditation

• He equates Karmayoga, the yoga of selfless action with all the type of yoga mentioned above.
• Another teaching of tremendous hope given by Kṛṣṇa is the assurance that he, the Lord, will re-incarnate as ‘avatāra’ whenever dharma declines and adharma gains momentum.
• There are no conditions with regards to time and place in the act of grace.
• The doctrine of avatāra has been enunciated for the very first time in the scriptures in the Bhagavadgitā.
• Kṛṣṇa reveals his divinity by vouchsafing to Arjuna his Cosmic Form which is known as viśvarupa to strengthen his faith.
• In the end, Kṛṣṇa advises Arjuna to surrender himself to Him with the assurance of freeing him from all the sins.
• Arjuna removes his delusion and rouses himself to defend dharma.

Anugitā

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Uddhavagitā

Unlike other two Gītās, this is not a part of the epic Mahābhārata. It belongs to the Bhāgavata. It comprises of 23 chapters. It has 1030 verses. Having intuited the imminent destruction of his race of the Yadus by mutual fighting, Kṛṣṇa decides to return to his divine Abode. Realizing this, Uddhava, an intimate companion and devotee, approaches him for spiritual guidance. Kṛṣṇa then teaches him spiritual wisdom and directs him to go to the Badarikāśrama in the Himalayas. The overview of Uddhavagitā can be summarized as below:

• Kṛṣṇa commences his teachings with an ancient story. King Yadu, the son of Yayāti, once saw an Avadhuta, a perfect being who had shaken off all the bonds born out of ignorance. He asked him how he had attained this state of freedom and bliss.
• The Avadhuta replied that he had learnt his lessons from 24 teachers:

1. Patience from earth
2. Non-attachment from wind which is not tainted by the smell it carries
3. Purity from water
4. Power to destroy evil from fire
5. Living for the good of others from the sun
6. Indifference towards the world from a python
7. Dangers of temptation from a moth
8. Desire of collecting good teachings from all the available sources from a bee
9. Need to conquer the instinct of sex and taste from an elephant and a fish
10. Conquer desires from a courtesan
11. Necessity of living alone to progress in the inner life from a girl
12. Etc.

• Kṛṣṇa tells Uddhava that karma or action binds a person to transmigratory existence. Hence one should renounce evil actions and actions motivated by desires. But he must perform ordained or obligatory duties without the desire for fruits.
• He clarifies that sansāra or transmigratory existence is due to attachment to the body and the ātman or Self is never subjected to it.
• He then describes the characteristics of the bound and the free souls. Bondages come from egoism and attachment towards the body. Freedom results from detachment.
• At the specific request of Uddhava, Kṛṣṇa delineates the signs of sādhus or holy beings and devotion towards God. Sādhus exhibit the traits like:

1. Compassion
2. Truthfulness
3. Self-control
4. Devotion to duties
5. Equanimity under all the conditions
6. Fortitude

• Devotion to God or Kṛṣṇa is manifested through:

1. Worship of images
2. Interest in listening to the stories of the Lord
3. Cultivation of certain attitudes of love
4. Going on pilgrimage
5. Observing religious festivities
6. Etc.

• A true devotee is deeply interested in serving the Lord through rituals and is devoid of pride and self-praise.
• Satsaṅga or cultivating the company of devotees and holy beings is the best means of attaining God.
• Kṛṣṇa describes the three guṇas or qualities of sattva, rajas and tamas and stresses the need to overcome the last two and augment the first. This leads to devotion and knowledge.
• He describes dhyāna or meditation on God. He explains in details regarding the topics like:

1. Mode of sitting
2. Method of prāṇāyāma or breath-control
3. Contemplation on the beautiful form of Kṛṣṇa-Viṣṇu

• The aṣṭasiddhis or the eight psychic powers that result by yogic practices are also explained, but the yogi is advised against taking interest in them since they are obstacles to spiritual enlightenment.
• Uddhava enquires about the various means in which the sages contemplate and attain the siddhis or powers. Krsna states how he is the best in all things and their very essence. He is the Self, friend and inner controller of all the beings.
• He is Viṣṇu among the Ādityas and Nīlalohita among the Rudras. He is Bhṛgu among the great sages, Prahlāda among the daityas or demons, Vāsuki and Ananta among the serpents, lion among the animals, Gaṅgā among the rivers, Himalayas among the mountains, Uddhava among the devotees and so on. In fact, he is the excellence present in everything.
• Uddhava wants to attain the complete knowledge regarding dharmas or duties that are conducive to the development of devotion. In reply Kṛṣṇa gives a fairly detailed account of the well-known varṇāśrama-dharmas, duties of the four castes and stages of life.
• He declares that all duality that appears here is only māyā, illusion and hence unreal. He, the basis of all, alone is Real.
• Uddhava then requests Kṛṣṇa to teach him jñāna and bhakti by which one can attain mokṣa or liberation.
• Kṛṣṇa expounds them by saying that jñāna or knowledge is that by which one knows that Paramātman, the Supreme Self is in everything, He is everything.
• Since karmas or ritualistic actions give transient fruits, one should not get attached to them.
• Bhakti or devotion arises as a result of listening to and reciting the stories of the Lord and by worshiping the Lord and honoring His devotees.
• Renunciation of worldly desires and worldly objects of pleasure strengthens bhakti. Kṛṣṇa further expounds the various spiritual disciplines that are conducive to jñāna and bhakti. They are yama and niyama comprising the disciplines like:

1. Ahimsā - non-injury
2. Satya - truth
3. Japa - repetition of the divine name
4. Tapas - austerities
5. Pujā - worship
6. Paropakāra - helping the needy
7. Ācāryasevā - serving the preceptor
8. Śama - concentrating the mind on the Lord
9. Dama - self control
10. Titikṣā - forbearance
11. Dhṛti - controlling the instincts of taste and sex
12. Sanyāsa - renunciation of the fruits of action
13. Etc.

• Kṛṣṇa further describes the three well-known yogas:

1. Jñānayoga - An intense spirit of renunciation is a must for it.
2. Karmayoga - Renouncing evil actions and the fruits of the good ones is a precondition for it.
3. Bhaktiyoga - Interest and faith in listening to the stories of the Lord is a quality needed for it.

• It is then followed by a discussion about the various philosophical truths and principles given in other works like prakṛti and puruṣa
• The mode of rebirth of an ignorant being due to ignorance is also stated.
• Uddhava asks that how should a devotee react to the evil behavior of evil persons. In reply, Kṛṣṇa narrates the story of a bhiksu who put up bravely with the harassment of unsympathetic and evil persons. There was a rich man in the country of Avantī. He was a miser and treated even his own wife, children and other relatives with scant regard. The gods were offended by him. Wherefore he lost everything being cheated by his own people. His troubles gave rise to wisdom and a genuine spirit of renunciation. He then became an itinerant mendicant. Whenever he moved out begging for alms, evil people who had known his earlier life started harassing him in many ways including violent physical assaults. However, accepting everything as the fruit of his evil karmas, he never retaliated nor reacted in any way. Thus he practiced extreme forbearance without any rancor in his heart. He then sang unto his own mind, a poem containing nuggets of great spiritual wisdom. The gist of that poem is called as the Bhiksugitā. It is one’s own mind that is responsible for weal or woe. One who conquers his own mind is even the Master of gods. This can be achieved by devotion to God.
• Some discussions about getting rid of moha or delusion by Sāṅkhyayoga or the path of knowledge and description of the three guṇas and their products follow next.
• The obstacles created by lust in the path of yoga are described by narrating the story of Pururavas.
• The need for and the tremendous advantages of cultivating satsañga or company of the holy ones is the topic that comes next.
• It is followed by a detailed description of pujā or ritualistic worship of God.
• A brief summary of the rituals involved in the worship can be given as follows:

1. Bath and wearing clean clothes suitable for pujā
2. Keeping the image or symbol of worship
3. Preliminary processes of ritual purification called nyāsa
4. Āvāhana or inviting the Lord into the image or symbol
5. Offering sandal paste, flowers, incense, lamp and items of food

• On special occasions homa is also done. The whole worship can be concluded with recitation of hymns and salutation. Faith and devotion are most important in such worship.
• After stressing that the external world is only an appearance and the ātman or Self is the spirit beyond the body-mind complex and giving some methods of yoga that helps in overcoming the obstacles to the inner life, Kṛṣṇa concludes his teachings with a description of a paṇḍita, a man of spiritual wisdom who has attained equanimity.
• Uddhava then departs for the Badarikāśrama in the Himalayas with a heavy heart due to the separation from Kṛṣṇa.

Kṛṣṇa’s Philosophy of Life

General Philosophy

The philosophy of life that Kṛṣṇa lived can be learnt from his way of living life. The base of his life was dharma. Anything that is good for the individual, the society and the two being in consonance with each other is called dharma. Whenever there is a conflict between these two, social betterment should be preferred. There are three recognized and proven sources of dharma:

1. The śāstras or the Holy Books
2. The sampradāya or tradition set up by a long line of ṛṣis or sages
3. One’s own purified mind

Philosophy Adept of Kṛṣṇa's life

Kṛṣṇa followed all the general philosophies in his personal life. He performed the following duties:

• He performed all the rituals prescribed for each stations in life.
• He observed all his duties relentlessly.
• He honored the elders, the brāhmaṇas and the sages.
• He took good care of all his dependents.
• Dharma is protected and nourished when institutions and the people running the institutions follow dharma unhindered. Kṛṣṇa was ever ready to protect them both.
• While preserving dharma, if confrontation with the wicked was necessary, he was the first to rise against them in defense of dharma.
• He was the personification of fearlessness.
• He was ever ready to face any problem in life.
• He always tried his best to defuse nasty situations before they grew into knotty problems.
• He was completely detached, the very picture of supreme unconcern.
• He was the Yogeśvara, the master of yoga.
• He also was famous as Yogīśvara, the master of yogis.
• He never forgot to teach the highest spiritual verities to those who sought them sincerely.

Philosophy of Kṛṣṇa's Life as per Bhāgavata

The Bhāgavata has called him Bhagavān, the Lord Himself. It can be quoted as:

"Kṛṣṇastu bhagavān svayam".

According to Bhāgavata:

• He is the Puruṣottama, the best of men, of the Bhagavadgitā.
• There was no need for him to be engaged in action either to get or get rid of anything in his life.
• Yet, he worked relentlessly for the betterment of the society for the sake of others and for the betterment of the world.
• He never had any axe to grind.
• He was unselfish to the core.
• His work and actions were always perfect.
• He was equally skilled in the art of love, compassion and war.
• He was dexterous in his speech. He soothed the suffering ones and chided or derided hotheaded renegades to the evil ones.
• He was easily controlled by pure love but was adamantine to those that hated him and fought with him.
• He was ever forgiving to the meek and the humble but an inveterate enemy of the cheats and the hypocrites.

His preachings for us to emulate are:

Be ever active for the sake of dharma, for the good of others; but never be selfish. Do your work as best as you can. Follow dharma and have firm faith that it will protect you. Do not run away from the problems of life but face them boldly. Pray to God and He will give you the strength needed to face them or transcend them. Never forget that the final goal of life is liberation. Strive your best to attain it through jñāna and bhakti and be free.

Rādhā

In the popular religious lore of the religion, Rādhā has been very intimately associated with Kṛṣṇa. It is remarkable that Rādhā is nowhere mentioned in the four well-known sources of the Kṛṣṇa story:

1. Mahābhārata
2. Harivamśa
3. Visnupurāna
4. Bhāgavata

There is a reference in the Bhāgavata about the fortunate gopī who had gone alone with Kṛṣṇa just before the Rāsakrīḍā. The word used was anayārādhitah which might be the roots for the later concept of Rādhā. She is represented as the gopī dearest to Kṛṣṇa.

A detailed story of Rādhā appears in the Kṛṣṇajanma khanda of the Brahma vaivartapurāna. It is a late work. In this work, she is described as having emerged out of Kṛṣṇa. She is dignified as his Śakti or power. Perhaps the well known lyric Gitagovinda of the poet Jayadeva (A. D. 1200) has immortalized. Bengal Vaiṣṇavism nourished by Caitanya (A. D. 1485-1533) and others has also given her a unique place in it's Kṛṣṇa theology and metaphysics.

It is plausible that the ‘Prakṛti-pradhāna’ approach of the earlier Sāṅkhya system of philosophy has gradually metamorphosed into the personality of Rādhā of the later Vaiṣṇava schools of theology.

Kṛṣṇa Festivals

Generally every religion has three aspects:

1. Philosophy - It tries to deal with the ultimate truths and values.
2. Mythology - It tries to present them to the masses in a language that they can understand.
3. Rituals - These practices fulfill an emotional need by affording opportunities to practice religion.

Festivals in each religion are legion. Few most important ones which are directly related to the Kṛṣṇa legends are outlined here.

Janmāstami

The most important of all the festivals associated with Kṛṣṇa is janmāstami. It is the birthday of Kṛṣṇa. He was born on the aṣṭamī or the eighth day of the kṛṣṇapakṣa or dark fortnight of the month of Śrāvaṇa (August-September) at midnight. The nakṣatra or constellation was Rohiṇi. Generally this comes the next day. Hence that day is called Jayantī. Both the days are important though the actual worship has to be done at midnight on the aṣṭamī day.

Some of the essential parts of the ritual are:

• Fasting for the whole day and night
• Worship of Kṛṣṇa in image or picture
• Keeping vigil throughout the night
• Listening to the stories and exploits of Kṛṣṇa
• Recitation of the Bhāgavata
• Singing of hymns and songs
• Japa of the famous mantra:

  Om namo bhagavate Vāsudevāya

Mathura and Vṛndāvan are the two towns associated with Kṛṣṇa’s birth and childhood. There are a number of temples dedicated to him. Janmāṣṭamī is celebrated there on a grand scale. It is noteworthy that in Mahārashtra particularly, the boys and the common folk hang up the pots full of curds and buttermilk on the day after the birth of Kṛṣṇa is celebrated. They play underneath the pots and get drenched by the curds and buttermilk oozing from the holes made by the boys in typical Kṛṣṇa fashion.

Rādhāṣtamī

Rādhā or Rādhikā was the gopī dearest to Kṛṣṇa. Her birthday is celebrated as Rādhāṣtamī on Bhādrapada śukla aṣṭamī. A combined worship is offered to Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa in this festival. One should subsist on fruits only on this day. Apart from hearing and singing devotional music, one should also listen to certain episodes related to Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa from the Brahmavaivartapurāṇa.

Govardhanapujā

Govardhanapujā includes Annakuta. It is another festival related to Kṛṣṇa but more commonly observed in North India. It is observed on the first day of the bright half of the month of Kārttika. It is a day after the famous festival Dīpāvalī (Diwali).

The salient features of this pujā are:

• Worship of the Govardhana hill and Kṛṣṇa as Gopāla
• Decorating and worshiping the cows, calves and bulls
• Keeping vigil in the night
• Contemplating on the Kṛṣṇa story

The Govardhana hill can be worshiped only in Mathurā. A replica is made at other places for the purpose of worship. It is generally made of cow dung. A big heap of food, comprising of various eatables should also be prepared. This heap of food resembles a hill, which is also worshiped. This is the Annakuta festival.

Dolotsava

When the festival of revelry, the Holi or Holikā, is celebrated all over the country, Bengal celebrates it as Dolāyātrā or Dolotsava. It is observed for three or five days from the 14th day of the dark half of the month Phālguna.

It is usually celebrated in March. It is also known as phālguna kṛṣṇa caturdaśī. The chief sacraments of this festival are:

• Worship of Agni or the fire-god
• Worship of Kṛṣṇa in an image stationed in dolā or swing and swinging it for 7 times on the first day and 21 times on the last day

Gītā Jayantī

The day on which Kṛṣṇa taught Bhagavadgitā to Arjuna is called Gītā jayantī. It falls on the eleventh day of the bright half of the month Mārgaśira. It is celebrated in the month of December. It is also known as Mārgaśira śukla ekādaśī. It is celebrated with:

• Fasting
• Worship of Krṣṇa as Gitācārya
• Chanting of the Gitā
• Listening to the discourses of Gitā

Conclusion

Kṛṣṇa has been an agonizing enigma to some while he has put millions into ecstasies at the same time. His very name ‘Kṛṣṇa-Vāsudeva’ solves this riddle. Etymolgoically, ‘Kṛṣṇa’ is one who is ever blissful and ever attracts others towards himself. ‘Vāsudeva’ is the Divinity that pervades everything in the universe and is also immanent in it. Hence he is ever blissful divinity pervading in everything in the universe.

Hence, Kṛṣṇa as a human being is extremely handsome and intensely affectionate person. He has always drove the votaries into rapturous moods. But as God or God’s incarnation on earth his ways have been inscrutable.

The word ‘Kṛṣṇa’ also means ‘dark’ or ‘mysterious’. He was dark in color and his ways were mysterious. The ocean appears to be dark from a distance. But when we approach it and take its water into our hands, the water is pure and colorless. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa might seem like a riddle but only from distance. When approached with love and faith, the dark mist of misunderstandings dissolve into a crystal clear experience of divine bliss and eternal presence.

Kṛṣṇa is true to his words. He has said that:

‘In whichever way people approach me, in the same way do I respond.’

If we view Kṛṣṇa as a mystery, he will create more mysteries for us. On the other hand, if we approach him as the Divine in human form, ever gracious and merciful, he will solve all our problems. The innumerable mystics and devotees of Kṛṣṇa are the standing proof of this over the centuries..

References

• The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore