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Lord Krishna-the Jagat Guru

K Sriram

Sri Ramana Bhaktha Samajam Chennai

Page 1 of 9

Lord Krishna– The Jagat Guru [Loka Maha Guru]

Devaki Paramanandam

Vasudeva sudam Devam Kamsa Chanoora MardanamI

Devaki Paramanandam Sri krishnam vande Jagat GurumII

The One who was born to Vasudeva, the One who annihilated Kamsa &

Chanoora, the One whose very name plunges his mother Devaki into ecstacy,

To Him, the Loka Maha Guru, Lord Krishna, I pay my humble obeisance.

Page 2 of 9

Introduction

It is surprising to note that Lord Krishna’s life represents the average person of today.

Brought up in a lower middle class family, the small boy spends his entire time in his studies

under very trying circumstances. Higher studies take him to the cities and even overseas. His

circumstances change totally when he converts his Knowledge into Experience. Experience

takes him to corridors of Power which, again, lands him in a completely different atmosphere.

His later days don’t even remotely resemble his childhood days. He could hardly return to his

native village which was his dwelling place as a child. Finally, he leaves the world as a loner in

yet another totally different atmosphere.

Lord Krishna’s life exactly corresponds to such a life of an average person today in

spite of the fact that 5000 years have elapsed since his appearance on this planet. He was

brought up in a cowherd’s family as a child. Circumstances forced him to a city where he

became a prince along with his elder brother. There he was sent to Sage Sandeepani under

whose tutelage he learnt Vedas and other studies like Martial arts, Administration of State

etc which took years to complete providing him a different atmosphere. Once he was properly

trained in Governance of the Kingdom and other arts, he returned to the capital to take up an

active role in body politics.

Under political compulsion, he shifted his capital to an island in mid-sea for the safety

& security of his citizens. He became an eye-witness to the greatest war of his times while it

is an irony, his army fought against him joining the opposite camp under his own command

and that should have been a new and strange experience for him.

His was a glorious life that set an example as to how a human life

should be lived. He lived the life of a house-holder steeped in God-

Consciousness and Bliss of God while carrying out worldly activities. He

had a son by name Pradhyumna & he got his grandson, Anirudh,

married, thus faithfully fulfilling all his duties as a house-holder. But he

is never remembered as a Grandpa but as a Divine child-prankster, a

flutist, a Romancer to Gopikas, a Master-Instructor to Arjuna on the

quintessence of Vedas & Upanishads and as Supreme Being.

He saw his own Yadava clan foolishly fighting among

themselves that resulted in their destruction. Finally he left the

world as a loner hit mistakenly by the arrow of an unknown hunter in a forest under

circumstances that defy logic. It appears that he never returned to Vrindavan, his childhood

dwelling and never went back to his teacher, Sandeepani nor to his original capital once he

shifted to mid-sea. It seems when one phase of life was over for him, it was over forever.

Now we go into the finer details of his life that serve as an eye-opener for everybody

born as a human being irrespective caste, creed, religion, race, Language or Nationality. We

will also see why millions worship him as Supreme Deity for generations together in spite of

the fact that he shed his mortal coil some 5000 years ago befitting the his name ‘Krishna’,

which means, ‘the attractive one’. Krishna comes from the sanskrit root word ‘karsh’ which

means ‘to pull’ & ‘to attract’. It also means - the well- known meaning - ‘Dark’.

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Birth, Early Life & Youth

Based on scriptural details and astrological calculations, the date of Krishna's birth,

known as Janmashtami, is 18 July 3228 BCE.

Kamsa, Prince of Mathura, put his father, Ugrasena, behind bars & became the King.

He got his sister, Devaki, married to Vasudeva. During the celebrations, a voice from the sky

said that the eighth child of Devaki would kill him. Enraged Kamsa immediately imprisoned

both Vasudeva & Devaki. He killed six children that were born to her one by one. The seventh

pregnancy of Devaki apparently ended in miscarriage but in reality the womb was transferred

to Rohini, the first wife of Vasudeva from Devaki. The seventh child was named Balarama ans

was sent to Vrindavan for further upbringing.

Rohini’s next child was Subhadra who was married to Arjuna whose son was

Abimanyau, in turn, whose son was King Parikshit who begot King Janamejaya. Thus Rohini

was the ancestress for the entire Kuru Kingdom.

Krishna appeared before Vasudeva & Devaki

before his birth & assured them of his protection. He

instructed Vasudeva to transfer him to Vrindavan in the

midnight before Kamsa came to know his birth. Then he

entered the womb of Devaki & the birth of Krishna took

place. Immediately Vasudeva found himself unfettered;

prison doors opened automatically; the Jailor and his clan

were fast asleep; Vasudeva left for Vrindavan carrying the

child in a basket over his head & a big-sized cobra [Adi

Sesha] spread his hood over the child & kept vigil till he

reached his destination. He handed over Krishna to

Nandagopala and took back the girl child that Yasodha, his

wife gave birth to. Soon he was back in the prison and

everything was back to normal. Kamsa, on hearing the news that the eight child had arrived,

rushed to the prison & was about to kill the child. The girl baby easily slipped from his hands

& rose in the sky saying that his enemy was brought up

somewhere else!

It took quite some time for Kamsa to find that the

eighth child was being brought up in Vrindavan. He sent several

of his deputies, like demoness Putana, tornado demon

Trinavarta to kill the child but Krishna put every one of them to

death.

Kalinga, a powerful & arrogant serpent poisoned

the waters of Yamuna & thought he could do so for ever with

impunity. Krishna danced on his five hoods & tamed him without

any trace of fear on his face.

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Once Krishna suggested that the annual Indra pooja festival could be performed for

Govardhan Hill. Indra became furious & sent thunder storms. The Lord lifted the very

Govardhan Hill on his finger and held it as an umbrella for several days & thus saved his

people, cattle, plants and the pasture of the Hill. By doing pooja to Govardhan Hill, Krishna

exhibited his concern for the environment about which our

modern scientists are so vociferous today. His pride

punctured, Indra realized that the Lord is Maha

Vishnu Himself & immediately became respectful &

accepted Krishna’s superiority.

When the Lord played on the flute, Gopikas

forgot themselves in the divine music and

assembled around him irrespective of whatever

activity they were engaged in, to the banks of the

Yamuna River and joined him in singing and dancing. His

romancing with them & his acceptance of their divine love, particularly, of Radha, [daughter

of Vrishbhanu, one of the original residents of Vrindavan], is known as Rasa lila that was

immortalized by Jayadeva in his poetry, Gita Govinda. Radha is now worshipped as the Divine

Consort of Lord Krishna.

Lord Krishna’s childhood reinforces the Hindu concept of lila, playing for fun and

enjoyment and not for gain. His pranks as a child; His lifting of Govardhan Hill & not taking

Indra seriously; the dance on the five hoods of Kalinga treating it as a game without any fear

of death even though he was engaged in a fierce battle with the serpent; killing of all Asuras,

sent by Kamsa effortlessly as if it was a child’s play [in fact he was doing it as child]; His

interaction with the Gopikas at the rasa dance or Rasa-lila are all great examples of playing

for fun. The playfulness of Krishna has inspired many celebrations like the Rasa-lila and the

Janmashtami ; where they make human pyramids to break open handis (clay pots) hung high

in the air that spill buttermilk all over the group after being broken by the person at the top.

Further it gives the participants a sense of unity. Also, it reminds us Krishna and through him,

enables us to connect ourselves to Maha Vishnu.

Krishna, the Prince

Returning as a youth to the Capital city of Mathura, Krishna overthrew and killed his

maternal uncle, Kamsa together with his supporters. He reinstated Ugrasena, his grandfather,

as the King. He released Vasudeva & Devaki and restored to them the Royal living they

deserved.

The King in consultation with the elders & Rajarishi decided that

the Princes, Krishna & Balarama should be sent to Sage Sandeepani

for study & education. Both the Princes submitted to the wishes of

their elders & spent years in the Gurukula of the Sage. Once they

were properly trained in Governance of the state, they returned

back to Mathura & virtually ran the day-to-day administration

& thus gaining enormous & vital, hands-on experience.

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Jarasandha, the powerful king of Magadha prevailed over many kings, and was

crowned emperor. Many powerful kings, like Narakasura, Pundru Vasedev, Shishupala of

Chedi, Shalva of Shuva and Vishmak became his allies. He got his two daughters Asti and Prapti

married to the heir apparent of Mathura, Kamsa. Jarasandha had also lent his army and his

personal advise to Kamsa to create a coup d'état in Mathura to put Kamsa on the throne.

When Krishna killed Kamsa in Mathura, a furious Jarasandha attacked Mathura 17

times but failed to convert the siege a victory each time. Once his army included the Panchalas

and the Kurus among other kings of India. While Krishna and the Yadavas survived the attacks,

sensing danger Krishna relocated his capital city to Dwaraka. Dwaraka was an island and it

was not possible for anyone to attack it at all. Hence peace prevailed & art and culture

prospered to the delight of Krishna.

It is during this period, Krishna became close to Pandavas, his cousins and particularly

Prince Arjuna which led to Arjuna getting married to Krishna’s sister, Subhadra. This

arrangement ensured the continuity of Kuru vamsa[Lineage] later on as explained earlier.

Rukmini, Princess of Vidharbha, was greatly devoted to Krishna and earnestly longed

to marry him. However, Rukmini’s brothers were in favour of getting her married to

Shishupala, Prince of Chedi. Rukmini prayed to Krishna to save her & the Lord responded by

abducting her when she came out of the temple. Her brothers lead by the crown Prince Rukmi

followed him with a big army & tried to capture them both. While Krishna was fighting all

alone, Balarama, having heard the news, joined him with Yadava army & both emerged

victorious in that battle & returned home. Krishna married Rukmini amidst grand

celebrations. Rukmani never returned to Vidharbha throughout her life thereafter.

Later Krishna married Satyabhama, Jambavati, Kalindi, Mitravinda, Nagnajiti, Bhadra

and Lakshmana. These eight queens [including Rukmani are collectively called the

Ashtabharya. Krishna subsequently killed Narakasura & married 16,000 maidens who were

held captive by that demon.

Polygamy of Lord Krishna is a controversial & much talked about subject. Its feasibility

is always questioned and most reject it as a figment of imagination. These issues are handled

at the end of this article under a separate caption.

Yudhisthira aspired for the title of Emperor and he consulted Krishna on this. Krishna

decided to utilize this opportunity to annihilate Jarasandha, his old enemy. Already he had

systematically diminished the power of Jarasandha, by eliminating his powerful allies like

Kalyavana, Narakasura, Hansha, Dimbaka, Kamsa one by one. He told Yudhisthira to get rid of

Jarasandha as the latter would never accept the leadership of Yudhisthira. Hence, Krishna

along with Bhimasena & Arjuna went to Magadham and challenged Jarasandha for single

combat. This was to avoid a full-scale war & loss of lives on both sides. Jarasandha chose to

fight with Bhimasena who killed him after displaying super human might & power.

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When Yudhisthira was about to assume the title of Emperor, he had invited all the

great kings to the ceremony, Rajasuya Yagnya and while paying his respects to them, he

started with Krishna because he considered Krishna to be the greatest of them all. While most

present at the ceremony felt that Krishna should get the first honours, Agra Thambulam, his

cousin Shishupala felt otherwise and started berating Krishna. Due to a vow given to

Shishupala's mother, Krishna forgave a hundred verbal abuses by Shishupala, and upon the

one hundred and first, he assumed his Virat (universal) form and killed Shishupala with his

Chakra. This is considered to be one of the major events in his life.

Krishna played a major role in Kurukshetra war where Kauravas & Pandavas fought to

their bitter end. Krishna went to Hastinapur as Yudhisthira’s emissary to conduct peace talks

which failed miserably due to Duryodhana’s total obstinacy, mindless stubbornness and

inflexibility to accommodate even the barest minimum demands of Pandavas. When the war

became inevitable, he gave a choice to Duryodhana & Arjuna to opt between his Narayana

Sena[army] and himself. He also added that he would neither wield any weapon nor would

be an active participant in the war. Arjuna immediately opted for Krishna alone and requested

him to be his charioteer while Duryodhana gladly accepted his army. Krishna proved what an

incomparable master strategist he was & meticulously planned for the fall of apparently

invincible warriors like Bhishma, Dronacharya, Karna, Jayatratha, Duryodhana one by one &

finally brought victory to Pandavas.

Apart from the victory in the war, major positive from this war was Bhagavat Gita, the

Celestial Song-Eternal which he gave to the world as a solution to Arjuna’s well-founded

objections. He not only brought out Arjuna from the maze of moral confusion but the entire

human race for generations together. Only God can accomplish such an unthinkable

achievement that is not at all possible for ordinary mortals. Bhagavat Gita shines forth as

Himalayas among mountains among scriptures today and is the biggest of his contributions

to mankind. Truely, this astounding contribution makes him the Jagat Guru [Loka Maha Guru].

The end

After 36 years passed, a fight broke out between the Yadavas, at a festival, who killed

each other mindlessly under the influence of liquor. A frustrated Balarama gave up his body

using Yoga. Krishna retired into the forest and started meditating under a tree. The hunter

Jara, mistook Krishna's partly visible left foot for that of a deer, and shot an arrow, wounding

him mortally. After he realised the mistake, while still bleeding, Krishna told Jara, "O! Jara,

you were Bali in your previous birth. I killed you as Rama in Tretayuga. Here you had a chance

to even it and since all acts in this world are done as desired by me, you need not worry for

this". Then Krishna ascended back to his eternal abode, Vaikunta as Maha Vishnu. Thus came

to an end one of the finest manifestations of God the world has ever seen!

Page 7 of 9

What is Gokulashtami?

Gokulashtami, Janmashtami or Krishna Jayanthi is a

very auspicious day for the Hindus across the world. Gokul is

the name of the place where Lord Krishna was brought up. It

is the birthday of Lord Krishna – worshiped as the eighth

incarnation of Maha Vishnu throughout the length & breadth

of Bharat, our Holy mother Land, with great fanfare &

enthusiciasm. However, the celebrations in Dwaraka & Dahi

Handi festival in Mumbai, Capital of Maharashtra, need special

mention.

How is Gokulashtami celebrated?

The celebrations in Dwaraka are held as very special.

Dwarkadhish temple is the centre of attraction where devotees worship Lord Krishna on Sri

Krishna Janmashtami. Idols of the deity are decorated with precious ornaments. Lord Krishna

is devoted with the commencement of Mangala Arti in morning. It is followed by Bhoga or

food offerings that comprises mainly of milk products. After Krishna’s face gets cleansed, the

devotees are given Darshan.

After Lord Krishna gets dressed up in his godly attires, the curtain is rolled up and everyone

gets the chance to get Darshan (Holy Sight). The curtain is rolled down after 10:30 p.m.

At 12 midnight, the time of Lord Krishna’s birth, the celebrations get burst into joyousness.

The whole momentum gets enthusiastic with the phrase “Nand Gher Anand Bhaio, Jay

Kaanha Laal Ki”, as the devotees welcome Lord Krishna. The celebrations are endowed upon

Krishna for two hours. The Dwarkadhish temple gets closed down at

2:30 am.

Dahi Handi

Dahi Handi (clay pot) is a popular festival in Maharashtra, especially in

Mumbai performed on Gokulashtami. On this day, a clay pot is filled

with butter and curd and tied at a height. The Dahi Handi festival

symbolizes harmony among its practitioners who form a pyramid on

the ground and aims to reach the height where the Handi is tied.

The persons involved in this performance are known as Govinda

Pathak. The person standing at the topmost level of the pyramid breaks the clay pot with a

hard object such as a coconut and its contents gets spilled down to the whole group. This

promotes unity among the participants.

Page 8 of 9

“Govinda Ala Re” is a huge cheer that is

constantly chanted during the Dahi Handi

performance. The Dahi Handi is celebrated

with extreme devotion and it adds great

fervor in the streets of Mumbai.

Competitions are also held to praise the

team of Govinda Pathak that breaks the

most number of Handis on Gokulashtami.

While the Dwarkadhish temple

showcases the spiritual side of Lord

Krishna, the Dahi Handi festival highlights Krishna’s other nature of large-hearted

sportsmanship. Krishna Janmashtami is also celebrated in Mathura with great strictness that

is almost similar to that of Dwarka celebrations.

Gokulashtami is celebrated with great fervor in South India.

In Tamil Nadu, the people decorate the floor with kolams (decorative pattern drawn with rice

batter). Githa Govindam and other such devotional songs are sung in praise of Lord Krishna.

They draw the footprints of Lord Krishna from the threshold of the house to the temple, which

depicts the arrival of Lord Krishna into the house. A recitation of Bhagvat Gita is a popular

practise. The offerings made to Lord Krishna include fruits, betel and butter. Savouries

believed to be Lord Krishna's favourites are prepared with great care. The most important of

them are Seedai, Sweet Seedai, Thattai, Muruku, appam, Verkadalai Urundai. The festival is

celebrated in the evening as Lord Krishna was born at midnight. Most people observe a strict

fast on this day and eat only after the puja. They also dress the youngest child in their family

like Lord Krishna and perform oonjal or swing which is rocked gently and prasadam offered

to lord is served first to the child-Krishna to the happiness of the whole family.

Page 9 of 9

Significance of Lord Krishna’s costume

The Incarnation of Krishna represents the descent of the infinite to the finite material world.

His costume signifies this. His skin colour is blue & dress is in yellow colour. Blue is the colour

of the infinite i.e. whatever is immeasurable can appear to mortal eye as blue, such as the sky

or ocean. Yellow is the colour of earth, like fire emitting yellow colour. Hence blue coloured

Krishna clothed in yellow suggests that the infinite Pure consciousness has become the world

of endless forms. Therefore, the lesson Lord wants to teach us is that every form in this

universe is but a representation of that Pure Eternal, Absolute Consciousness.

Gokulashtami or Janmashtami celebrations of Krishna’s Birth Day every year remind

us what a great Large-hearted Sportsman, Magnificent Romancer teaching Divine Love to

Gopikas, Political strategist, Administrator par excellence, Spiritual Giant, Loka Maha Guru

educating this entire world through Arjuna on right-living, Strict Task master full of

Compassion and Role Model House-holder that Lord Krishna is, all-the-while being a Full-

Blown Self-Realized Gnani and the Supreme Deity.

Let us all celebrate the ensuing Janmashtami this year on 5th Sep 2015 and pray for His

Grace for the ultimate Heavenly-merging in Him i.e. the Self-Realization in this birth itself!

A very very Happy Janmashtami to you all!