Learn how Lord Krishna’s birth can help us lead more meaningful and happy lives.

Lord Sri Krishna appeared on Earth approximately 5,000 years ago, at the end of Dvapara-yuga, in response to prayers from Mother Earth and other devatas to protect the innocent from tyrants disguised as kings. 

The Cosmic Governance of the Lord

In this age of science and scepticism, one may wonder how one can believe that there are living beings on other planets and that God incarnates Himself in answer to their prayers. One mistaken assumption that is sometimes made is that life on other planets must be similar to how it is here for human beings. We see that even on Earth, there are various environments and living beings, such as extremophiles, that can survive even in volcanic environments, whereas we cannot. Similarly, our Vedic scriptures tell us that other planets have various living conditions and living beings there have bodies suited to those atmospheres. Just as we have leaders, the Supreme Lord has empowered universal controllers called devatas to govern the universe.

Nature and Devotees Celebrate Krishna’s Arrival

Knowing that the Lord was about to take birth from Devaki’s womb, the devatas invisibly appeared to offer their respects and prayers. 

The Srimad-Bhagavatam, the mature fruit of all Vedic wisdom and final work of Srila Vedavyasa, (10.3.1-5) describes vividly how merely His appearance brought great happiness to one and all.

śrī-śuka uvāca
atha sarva-guṇopetaḥ
kālaḥ parama-śobhanaḥ
yarhy evājana-janmarkṣaṁ
śāntarkṣa-graha-tārakam

Thereafter, at the auspicious time for the appearance of the Lord, the entire universe was surcharged with all the qualities of goodness, beauty and peace. The constellation Rohini appeared, as did stars like Ashvini. The sun, the moon and the other stars and planets were very peaceful.

diśaḥ prasedur gaganaṁ
nirmaloḍu-gaṇodayam
mahī maṅgala-bhūyiṣṭha-
pura-grāma-vrajākarā

All directions appeared extremely pleasing, and the beautiful stars twinkled in the cloudless sky. Decorated with towns, villages, mines and pasturing grounds, the earth seemed all-auspicious.

nadyaḥ prasanna-salilā
hradā jalaruha-śriyaḥ
dvijāli-kula-sannāda-
stavakā vana-rājayaḥ

The rivers flowed with clear water, and the lakes and vast reservoirs, full of lilies and lotuses, were extraordinarily beautiful. In the trees and green plants, full of flowers and leaves, pleasing to the eyes, birds like cuckoos and swarms of bees began chanting with sweet voices for the sake of the demigods.

vavau vāyuḥ sukha-sparśaḥ
puṇya-gandhavahaḥ śuciḥ
agnayaś ca dvijātīnāṁ
śāntās tatra samindhata

A pure breeze began to blow, pleasing the sense of touch and bearing the aroma of flowers, and when the brahmanas engaging in ritualistic ceremonies ignited their fires according to Vedic principles, the fires burned steadily, undisturbed by the breeze.

manāṁsy āsan prasannāni
sādhūnām asura-druhām
jāyamāne ’jane tasmin
nedur dundubhayaḥ samam

Thus when the birthless Lord Vishnu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, was about to appear, the saints and brahmanas, who had always been disturbed by demons like Kamsa and his men, felt peace within the core of their hearts and kettledrums simultaneously vibrated from the upper planetary system. 

Astrology is the science of studying the positions of stars and whether they indicate something auspicious or inauspicious based on the soul’s past actions or karma. A learned scholar makes a horoscope when a child is born to understand his future. The constellation Rohini is under the supervision of Lord Brahma, the creator who was born from Lord Vishnu. Now, Vishnu or Krishna is about to appear under this particular constellation, which is considered very auspicious. The Lord ensured all auspicious signs for His divine appearance. Even though He appeared at midnight in September, it seemed like spring with lotuses and lilies blossoming. The water bodies appeared like they would be during fall (autumn).

The Purpose Behind the Lord’s Advent

The Lord famously declares in the Bhagavad-gita (4.7-8) that He incarnates whenever and wherever there is discrepancy and decline in the practice of religious principles to deliver the pious, annihilate the miscreants and reestablish religious principles millennium after millennium. 

One may wonder that in Kali-yuga, when there is a wholesale disregard for or misuse of religion and the rise of atheism, why isn’t the Lord incarnating and killing demons? 

The Hidden Golden Avatara

Less known is that the Lord has already incarnated as a devotee. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is the hidden incarnation (Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.9.38) of Krishna for Kali-yuga to spread the yuga-dharma of congregational chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra.

kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ
sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam
yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair
yajanti hi su-medhasaḥ

In the Age of Kali, intelligent persons perform congregational chanting to worship the incarnation of Godhead who constantly sings the names of Krishna. Although His complexion is not blackish, He is Krishna Himself. He is accompanied by His associates, servants, weapons and confidential companions.

(Srimad-Bhagavatam 11.5.32)

Welcoming Krishna in Kali-yuga

The Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.1.10) explains how people in this Kali-yuga are already very disturbed in body and mind by various diseases and anxieties.

prāyeṇālpāyuṣaḥ sabhya
kalāv asmin yuge janāḥ
mandāḥ sumanda-matayo
manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ

O learned one, in this iron Age of Kali, men almost always have but short lives. They are quarrelsome, lazy, misguided, unlucky and, above all, always disturbed.

So much so that some individuals resort to desperate and unlawful acts like suicide and murder, which are becoming alarmingly common, even in educational institutions both domestically and abroad. In such circumstances, the Lord doesn’t need to kill asuras, as they are already self-destructing. What is truly needed is a transformation of the heart. In this age, Krishna incarnates not to kill demons physically but to eradicate demoniac tendencies within us through His holy name.

kali-kāle nāma-rūpe kṛṣṇa-avatāra
nāma haite haya sarva-jagat-nistāra

In this Age of Kali, the holy name of the Lord, the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, is the incarnation of Lord Krishna. Simply by chanting the holy name, one associates with the Lord directly. Anyone who does this is certainly delivered. (Chaitanya-charitamrita, Adi-lila 17.22)

Let us take advantage of this great blessing of Krishna, chant the Hare Krishna mantra daily and experience His loving reciprocation and guidance individually and collectively.

Join us with your family and friends for the Sri Krishna Janmashtami celebrations on 25th-26th August to celebrate the divine appearance of the Lord at:

• ISKCON Bangalore, Rajajinagar
• ISKCON Vaikuntha Hill, Vasanthapura
• KTPO, Whitefield

To know more about the festival, visit: iskconbangalore.org/sri-krishna-janmashtami