The Divinity of Krishna

This book deals with the extremely popular theme of Krishna. This is a thorough and thoughtful analysis of a subject of importance both to Sanskrit literary history and to the history of Hindu religion. Tracing an interesting and important span in the history of the religions of Krishna, this book studies the development in the understanding of Krishna’s divinity as depicted, in his biography in the Harivamsa, the Visnupurana and the Bhagvatapurana. Each of these texts come from a different century; and each shows a distinct attitude towards its subject, attitudes that might be reduced to the terms hero worship orthodox piety and mystical love. It is in the analysis and comparison of these attitudes that the distinct contribution of the present book lies. After analysing how these three texts in their treatment of the very same episodes in the life of Krishna paint a progressively more divine portrait of Krishna, the book traces the evolution of philosophical and theological concepts concerning Krishna. Thus the understanding of Krishna’s divinity, while a mere sapling in the Harivamsa, grows in the Visnupurana and attains to full maturity in the Bhagavata.