Krishna (; Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) also known as Govinda, Madhava, Gopala, and other names and titles is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and as the Supreme God in his own right. He is widely revered for his divine qualities of love, compassion, protection, and tenderness. Krishna's birthday is celebrated every year by Hindus on Krishna Janmashtami, according to the lunisolar Hindu calendar, which falls in late August or early September of the Gregorian calendar.
Krishna is often depicted in dark skin in accordance with meaning of his name, "black" or "dark". The anecdotes and narratives of Krishna's life are known as Krishna Lila. He is a central figure in the Mahabharata, the Bhagavata Purana, the Brahma Vaivarta Purana, and the Bhagavad Gita, and is mentioned in many Hindu philosophical, theological, and mythological texts. These texts describes him as a divine statesman, teacher, savior of dharma, charioteer, and sometimes a cowherd. They portray him in various perspectives: as a god-child, a prankster, a model lover, a divine hero, and the universal supreme being. Quote: "Krsna's various appearances as a divine hero, alluring god child, cosmic prankster, perfect lover, and universal supreme being (...)". His iconography reflects these legends and shows him in different stages of his life, such as an infant eating butter, a young boy playing a flute, a handsome youth with Radha or surrounded by female devotees, or a friendly charioteer giving counsel to Arjuna.
Krishna was born in Mathura to Devaki and Vasudeva, but was raised by Nanda and Yashoda in Gokul to escape his maternal uncle, the tyrant king Kamsa. His life, as given in texts, incorporates highly symbolic miraculous elements: he enchanted the gopis with his divine flute playing, performed the celestial Rasa Lila, and lifted Govardhan Hill to protect his community from devastating rains. He later defeated Kamsa and restored order in Mathura. He went on to establish the city of Dvaraka and played a central role in the Kurukshetra War, serving as Arjuna’s charioteer and delivering the philosophical teachings of the Bhagavad Gita.
The name and synonyms of Krishna have been traced to 1stmillenniumBCE literature and cults. In some sub-traditions within Hinduism, such as Krishnaism, Krishna is worshipped as the Supreme God and Svayam Bhagavan (God Himself) as he was master in all 64 forms of Art and 14 Vidya. These sub-traditions arose in the context of the medieval-era Bhakti movement. Krishna-related literature has inspired numerous performance arts such as Bharatanatyam, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Odissi, and Manipuri dance. He is a pan-India god, but is particularly revered in some locations, such as Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh, Dwarka and Junagadh in Gujarat, the Jagannatha aspect in Odisha, Mayapur in West Bengal, and other places. He is also worshipped in different regional forms across India.
Since the 1960s, the worship of Krishna has also spread to the Western world, largely due to the work of the Bhaktivedanta Swami and his organisation, ISKCON.
Names and epithets
The name "Krishna" originates from the Sanskrit word , which means "black", "dark" or "dark blue".*Monier Williams Sanskrit–English Dictionary (2008 revision) Apte Sanskrit–English Dictionary The term is also associated with the Krishna Paksha, waning phase of the moon carrying its adjective meaning "darkening". In accordance with the meaning of the name, Krishna murtis are often depicted with black or blue skin.
As a name of Vishnu, Krishna it appears as the 57th name in the Vishnu Sahasranama.
Krishna is also known by various other names, epithets, and titles that reflecting his diverse associations and attributes. Among the most common names are:
Achyuta (): The infallible one; one who never falls from his divine nature Ananta (): The endless or infinite one Bāl Gopāl (): The child Krishna; protector of cows Bānke Bihārī (): The charming, graceful one who enjoys divine play Chakrapāṇi (): One who holds the Sudarshana Chakra (disc or wheel) Dāmodara (): One who was tied around the waist with a rope Devakīnandana (): Son of Devaki Dvārakādhīśa (): Lord of Dwarka Ghanashyām (): Dark like a rain-filled cloud Giridhārī (): Lifter of the (Govardhan) mountain Gopāla (): Protector of cows Alt URL Gopīnātha (): Lord of the Gopis Govinda (): One who gives joy to the cows Hari (): The remover of sins and suffering Jagannātha (): Lord of the universe Janārdana (): One who protects people; one worshipped by devotees Kanhaiyā (): Beloved young Krishna Kānha (): The dark-complexioned beloved one Keśava (): One with beautiful hair; also, slayer of the demon Keshi Keev (): Prankster Krishna (): The dark-complexioned one; the all-attractive one Mādhava (): Consort of Lakshmi; sweet and spring-like one Madhusūdana (): Slayer of the demon Madhu Manmohana (): One who enchants the mind Mohan (): The charming or enchanting one Murlīdhara (): Holder of the flute (Murlī) Nandakumāra (): Son of Nanda Navanīta Chora (): Stealer of butter Parthasārathi (): Charioteer of Arjuna Purushottama (): The supreme being; highest among all beings Rādhāramaṇa (): Beloved of Radha Rādhāvallabha (): Dear or beloved of Radha Ranchhod (): One who left the battlefield as part of divine strategy Shyām (): The dark or dusky one Shyāmsundara (): The beautiful dark-complexioned one Vāsudeva (): Son of Vasudeva () also the indwelling divine presence Venugopāla (): Krishna as the flute-playing cowherd Viṣṇu (): The all-pervading one Yādava (): Descendant of the Yadu dynasty Yogeśvara (): Lord of yoga; master of divine wisdom
Certain names of Krishna also hold regional importance, such as Jagannatha, associated with the Jagannath Temple, Puri, is a popular manifestation of Krishna in Odisha state and nearby regions of eastern India.For the historic Jagannath temple in Ranchi, Jharkhand see:
In Hindu tradition, Krishna’s names and epithets signify his qualities, relationships, divine functions, and mythological deeds. The Mahābhārata explains names such as Vāsudeva, Viṣṇu, Madhusūdana, Janārdana, and Puruṣottama by linking them to Krishna’s all-pervading nature, lineage, and slaying of demons, while the Bhāgavata Purāṇa connects names such as Dāmodara and Giridhārī to specific episodes in Krishna’s childhood and Vṛndāvana līlās.
Role and significance in religion
Krishna is the eighth avatar of Vishnu and a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as a full incarnation of Vishnu and Supreme God in his own right. He is also referred to as Swayam Bhagavan (God Himself) particularly in the Krishnaism and Vaishnavism traditions.
He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love, and is widely revered among Hindu divinities. He struck down his maternal uncle Kamsa, established the ancient city of Dwarka, and played a pivotal role in the Mahabharata epic by fighting for the Pandavas and concluding the war.
Krishna appears as a central figure in several Hindu texts, including the Mahabharata and the Bhagavata Puran, where he expounds many of his philosophical ideas. The Bhagavad Gita, part of the Mahabharata, is widely read as an independent spiritual text in its own right. It allegorically describes the ethical and moral dilemmas of human life through the conversation of Krishna and Arjuna during the Kurukshetra War. The text presents answers to questions of human freedoms, choices, and responsibilities (dharma) towards oneself and others. These teachings later became a central influence on the Bhakti movement in medieval India.
Origins and early sources The tradition of Krishna appears to have developed through the amalgamation of several independent deities of ancient India, the earliest attested being Vāsudeva. Vāsudeva was a hero-god of the tribe of the Vrishnis, belonging to the Vrishni heroes, whose worship is attested from the 5th–6th centuries BCE in the writings of Pāṇini, and from the 2nd century BCE in epigraphic evidences such as the Heliodorus pillar. The Vrishnis were thought to have later merged with the tribe of the Yadavas, whose hero-god was Krishna. Vāsudeva and Krishna subsequently merged into a single deity, who appears in the Mahabharata, and started to be identified with Vishnu in the Mahabharata and the Bhagavad Gita. By the 4th century CE, the Gopala-Krishna tradition of the Abhiras centred on the Krishna's role as protector of cattle, which has also been incorporated into the broader Krishna tradition.
Early epigraphic sources
Depiction in coinage (2nd century BCE)
Around 180 BCE, the Indo-Greek king Agathocles issued coinage (discovered in Ai-Khanoum, Afghanistan) bearing images of deities that are now interpreted as being related to Vaisnava imagery in India.Audouin, Rémy, and Paul Bernard, "Trésor de monnaies indiennes et indo-grecques d'Aï Khanoum (Afghanistan). II. Les monnaies indo-grecques." Revue numismatique6, no.16 (1974), pp.6–41 (in French). The deities displayed on the coins appear to be Saṃkarṣaṇa-Balarama with attributes of the gada (mace) and the plow, and Vāsudeva-Krishna with attributes of the shankha (conch) and the sudarshana chakra (wheel).Nilakanth Purushottam Joshi, Iconography of Balarāma, Abhinav Publications, 1979, p. 22
Inscriptions
The Heliodorus Pillar is a stone pillar with a Brahmi inscription that was discovered by colonial-era archaeologists in Besnagar (Vidisha, in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh). Based on the internal evidence of the inscription, it has been dated to between 125 and 100BCE and is named after Heliodorus, an Indo-Greek who served as an ambassador of the Greek king Antialcidas to a regional Indian king, Kasiputra Bhagabhadra. The Heliodorus pillar inscription is a private religious dedication of Heliodorus to Vāsudeva, an early deity and another name for Krishna in the Indian tradition. The inscription states that the column was constructed by "the Bhagavata Heliodorus" and that it is a "Garuda pillar" (both Vishnu-Krishna-related terms). Additionally, the inscription includes a Krishna-related verse, from chapter11.7 of the Mahabharata, that states that the path to immortality and heaven is to correctly live a life of three virtues: self-temperance (damah), generosity (cagah or tyaga), and vigilance (apramadah). The Heliodorus pillar site was fully excavated by archaeologists in the 1960s. The effort revealed the brick foundations of a much larger ancient elliptical temple complex with a sanctum, mandapas, and seven additional pillars. The Heliodorus Pillar inscription and the temple are among the earliest known evidence of Krishna-Vasudeva devotion and Vaishnavism in ancient India.
The Heliodorus inscription is not isolated evidence. The Hathibada Ghosundi Inscriptions, all located in the state of Rajasthan and dated by modern methodology to the 1stcenturyBCE, mention Saṃkarṣaṇa and Vāsudeva, and state that the structure was built for their worship in association with the supreme deity Narayana. These four inscriptions are known for being some of the oldest-known Sanskrit inscriptions. However, historians argue that the Hathibada-Ghosundi inscription is associated with Jainism, as it explicitly mentions the Jina.Bühler, Georg (1886). "The Ghosundi and Hāthibāḍā Inscriptions". Epigraphia Indica. Vol. I. Archaeological Survey of India. pp. 7–12.
A Mora stone slab found at the Mathura-Vrindavan archaeological site in Uttar Pradesh, now held in the Mathura Museum, has a Brahmi inscription. It is dated to the 1stcenturyCE and mentions the five Vrishni heroes, otherwise known as Saṃkarṣaṇa, Vāsudeva, Pradyumna, Aniruddha, and Samba. p. 51: The coins of Rajuvula have been recovered from the Sultanpur District...the Brahmi inscription on the Mora stone slab, now in the Mathura Museum,