A beautiful little kid mischievously stealing butter from a pot, and later on, a stunning youth mesmerising everyone with His magnetic flute. That is how most of us would visualise Shri Krishna. Even if for a moment, we forget all about His miracles and Leelas, the one thing that set Him apart from anyone else was His blue colour.
Why is Sri Krishna blue? Let us seek the answer in various explanations and interpretations.
Drinking Putana’s milk
Krishna’s evil uncle Kamsa sends the demoness Putana to kill infant Krishna. Putana, disguised as a beautiful woman, comes to Gokul and requests Yashoda to allow her to breastfeed her little one. In those days, it was a common practice. Like the other people of Gokul, Yashoda too was mesmerised by her beauty and permitted her to breastfeed Krishna. However, Putana had smeared her breasts with a mandana or intoxicant with the intention of killing Krishna. According to the later versions of this story, Putana smeared her breasts with a poison. Other stories even say that her milk itself was poison.
Sri Krishna not only drank her poisonous milk but also sucked out her life. It is believed that the poison, however, entered His body and gave Him the blue colour.
Subduing Kaliya
Kaliya, a poisonous snake, came to live in the Yamuna. It is believed that the four leagues of water around him boiled with poison. One day, when Krishna was playing with His friends, their ball fell inside the Yamuna. Krishna jumped into the river to get His ball and thus encountered the venomous Kaliya. At the bottom of the river, Kaliya wrapped himself around Sri Krishna’s body but He, in turn, assumed such a huge shape that the serpent had to release Him. Later, Sri Krishna danced on Kaliya’s hoods, beating Him with his feet. Kaliya’s wives begged Sri Krishna for mercy. Kaliya too realised the greatness of the ‘little kid’ he was trying to kill and surrendered. Sri Krishna did not kill Kaliya but asked him to leave the Yamuna and go to Ramanaka Dwipa (modern Fiji).
According to one school of thought, the poison from Kaliya entered Sri Krishna’s body while fighting the serpent and turned Him blue.
Birth from Lord Vishnu’s Hair
It is believed that Lord Vishnu planted a white hair and a black hair in Devaki’s womb. From the white hair was born Balaram and from the black was born Sri Krishna. This gave Him the blue or ‘blackish’ complexion.
Sri Krishna has a blue aura
Science tells us that the entire existence is energy in one form or the other. It is also believed that every being emits an aura, a field of energy that surrounds the body, of a certain colour. It is possible that Sri Krishna was not literally blue, but He reflected the blue aura. According to the colour spectrum, blue is a calm hue and produces a relaxing effect. It is, in fact, the coolest colour. Anyone with a blue aura reflects intelligence and self-awareness, and a collected personality. Such a person does not seek attention but impresses the others simply by his/ her presence.
It is also believed that the dominant aura is also connected to one of the seven chakras, the centre of spiritual power in the human body. The blue aura is associated with the fifth or throat chakra. Anyone with a deep blue aura exhibits oratory skills, honesty, and excellent self-expression.
It comes as no surprise that Sri Krishna manifested a blue aura. The epic Mahabharata is only an episode in Sri Krishna’s life that narrates His sense of dharma and adharma, His sense of duty, and justice. The Bhagavad Gita, which records the conversation between Sri Krishna and Arjun, is nothing short of an impressive and eloquent expression through which Sri Krishna convinces Arjun about the efficacy and significance of the battle of Kurukshetra.
Sri Krishna as the Supreme Godhead
In Chapter 10 of the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna tells Arjun,
sarganam adir antas ca
madhyam caivaham arjuna
adhyatma-vidya vidyanam
vadah pravadatam aham
Meaning:
Of all creations I am the beginning and the end and also the middle, O Arjuna. Of all sciences I am the spiritual science of the Self, and among logicians I am the conclusive truth.
Sri Krishna is the universe. He is all creation, and more. Within Him are the vastness of the sky and the depth of the ocean. His blue aura is a reflection of this vastness that remains beyond the ken of human cognisance.
The upcoming Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir, the world’s tallest Krishna temple, is also conceived as blue. When you stay in your home in Krishna Bhumi or spend a few days in Vrindavan through a Krishna Bhumi Holydays membership, you will stay close to this awe-inspiring temple. Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir will mesmerise you with its imposing presence and make your Vrindavan experience even more beautiful.
Radhe Radhe!
