Introduction
Krishna is the son of Vasudeva and Devaki, a prince of the Yadavas and king of Dwaraka. He is the friend and adviser of the Pandavas, and in the Mahabharata he is the charioteer of Arjuna and speaks the Bhagavad Gita.
This article primarily follows the Mahabharata. Where a well-known detail comes from a Puranic or later source, the article identifies it.
Family
- Father: Vasudeva
- Mother: Devaki
- Wives: Rukmini, Satyabhama, Jambavati, Kalindi, Mitravinda, Nagnajiti, Bhadra (wife of Krishna), Lakshmana (wife of Krishna)
- Siblings: Balarama, Subhadra
- Sons: Pradyumna, Samba
Childhood
The Harivamsha and the Puranas describe Krishna's birth in Kamsa's prison and his childhood among the cowherds at Gokula and Vrindavan. He killed Kamsa as a young man. These stories are outside the core Mahabharata, which concentrates on his adult life.
Dwaraka
After Jarasandha's repeated attacks, Krishna moved the Yadavas to the island city of Dwaraka. He married Rukmini and, according to tradition, seven other principal queens, the Ashtabharya.
With the Pandavas
Krishna is the first cousin of the Pandavas, since Kunti was his father's sister. He helped them at the Rajasuya, where he killed Shishupala, and came to Hastinapura as a peace messenger before the war. When the Kauravas refused to make peace, he offered the choice of his army or himself, and Arjuna chose Krishna, who would not fight but drove his chariot.
The Bhagavad Gita
At the start of the battle, when Arjuna refused to fight his relatives, Krishna spoke the Gita to him. It is reported to Dhritarashtra by Sanjaya.
The war
Krishna guided the Pandava strategy, and in several cases advised actions that broke the strict rules of war. Gandhari cursed him after the war that his clan would perish.
The end
In the Mausala Parva, the Yadavas killed each other in a drunken fight at Prabhasa. Krishna was shot in the foot by a hunter named Jara and left the world.
Avatar
In the Mahabharata, Krishna is identified with Vishnu and, together with Arjuna, as Narayana, the companion of Nara. The Bhagavata Purana treats him as the highest form of the divine.