Vrishabhanu
TextsPadma Purana, Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Garga Samhita
GenderMale
RegionVraja
Personal information
Parents
  • Surabhānu[1] (father)
SpouseKirtida
ChildrenRadha
DynastyYaduvamsha-Chandravamsha

Vrishabhanu (Sanskrit: वृषभानु; IAST: Vṛṣbhānu), also spelled as Brushabhanu, is a Yadava chieftain featured in Hindu scriptures.[2][3][4] He is described as the father of the goddess Radha, who is the chief consort of god Krishna and also regarded as the incarnation of the goddess Lakshmi in Dvapara Yuga.[5][6]

According to the Padma Purana, Vrishbhanu was the chief of Barsana, and the owner of 10 lakh cows. In his previous birth as King Suchandra, Vrishabhanu is stated to have received a divine boon from Brahma to become the father of Lakshmi in the Dvapara Yuga.[7][8]

Legend

Boon

In his previous birth, Vrishbhanu was named as Suchandra and was married to Kalavati, the grand-daughter of Daksha Prajapati. After enjoying conjugal relations with Kalavati for a long time, Suchandra retired from his family life and went to the ashrama of sage Agastya. When Kalavati started crying because of being abandoned by her husband, Brahma granted a boon to her that she would reborn with her husband in her next life, and that both of them would be blessed with goddess Lakshmi (Radha) as their daughter.[9]

Father of Radha

As per the boon of Brahma, King Suchandra was reborn in the Dvapara Yuga as King Vrishbhanu in the land of Vraja. He married Kirtida (The rebirth of Kalavati), and goddess Lakshmi (Radha) was born as their daughter.[10][11]

According to a different legend, the birth story of Radha is similar to Sita, who was also an avatar of Lakshmi.[12] When King Vrishbhanu went to take a bath in a pond, he saw a baby girl on a lotus flower in the pond, and took her to his home. The baby girl was named as Radha, and was accepted as the daughter of Vrishbhanu and Kirtida.[13][14]

See also

References

  1. ^ Entwistle 1987, p. 50.
  2. ^ Trilochan Dash. Krishna Leeela in Brajamandal a Retrospect. Soudamini Dash. pp. 192–. GGKEY:N5C1YTUK5T3.
  3. ^ R. K. Das (1990). Temples of Vrindaban. Sandeep Prakashan. ISBN 978-81-85067-47-6.
  4. ^ The Vedanta Kesari. Sri Ramakrishna Math. 1970.
  5. ^ Prakashanand Saraswati (2001). The True History and the Religion of India: A Concise Encyclopedia of Authentic Hinduism. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. pp. 666–. ISBN 978-81-208-1789-0.
  6. ^ Pavan K. Varma (July 2009). The Book of Krishna. Penguin Books India. pp. 46–. ISBN 978-0-14-306763-4.
  7. ^ Paramahamsa Sri Swami Vishwananda (12 January 2017). Shreemad Bhagavad Gita: The Song of Love. Bhakti Marga Publications. pp. 1472–. ISBN 978-3-940381-70-5.
  8. ^ Anu Julka (8 October 2014). SHRINATH JI. PartridgeIndia. pp. 23–. ISBN 978-1-4828-2286-1.
  9. ^ Surya N. Maruvada (2 March 2020). Who is Who in Hindu Mythology - VOL 1: A Comprehensive Collection of Stories from the Pur??as. Notion Press. pp. 528–. ISBN 978-1-64805-684-0.
  10. ^ June McDaniel; Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies June McDaniel (1 January 2003). Making Virtuous Daughters and Wives: An Introduction to Women's Brata Rituals in Bengali Folk Religion. SUNY Press. pp. 89–. ISBN 978-0-7914-5565-4.
  11. ^ Namita Gokhale; Malashri Lal (10 December 2018). Finding Radha: The Quest for Love. Penguin Random House India Private Limited. pp. 14–. ISBN 978-93-5305-361-1.
  12. ^ Swami Mukundananda (4 January 2015). Festivals of India. Jagadguru Kripaluji Yog. pp. 76–. GGKEY:NQPDB6TQQBK.
  13. ^ Steven Rosen (2012). The Agni and the Ecstasy: Collected Essays of Steven J. Rosen. Arktos. pp. 160–. ISBN 978-1-907166-79-2.
  14. ^ Dev Prasad (27 January 2015). Krishna: A Journey through the Lands & Legends of Krishna. Jaico Publishing House. pp. 61–. ISBN 978-81-8495-170-7.
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