Krishna
Krishna (; Sanskrit: कृष्ण, IAST: Kṛṣṇa Sanskrit: [ˈkr̩ʂɳɐ] ) 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 also as the Supreme God in his own right. He is the God of Love and widely revered for his divine qualities of 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.
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. They portray him in various perspectives: as a god-child, a prankster, a model lover, a divine hero, and the 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. He later killed Kamsa and restored order in Mathura. He established the city of Dvaraka and played an important role in the Kurukshetra War, serving as Arjuna’s charioteer and delivering the philosophical teachings of the Bhagavad Gita. His life ended after being struck by an arrow of a hunter named Jara due to the curse of Gandhari. After the incident, he forgave Jara and returned to his abode, Vaikuntha.
The name and synonyms of Krishna have been traced to 1st millennium BCE literature and cults. In some sub-traditions, like Krishnaism, Krishna is worshipped as the Supreme God and Svayam Bhagavan (God Himself). 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 forms across India.
Since the 1960s, the worship of Krishna has also spread to the Western world, largely due to the work of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).
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