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Balarama (
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
: बलराम,
IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that emerged during ...
: ''Balarāma'') is a
Hindu god Hindu deities are the gods and goddesses in Hinduism. The terms and epithets for deities within the diverse traditions of Hinduism vary, and include Deva, Devi, Ishvara, Ishvari, Bhagavān and Bhagavati. The deities of Hinduism have evolved ...
and the elder brother of
Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...
. He is particularly significant in the
Jagannath Jagannath ( or, ଜଗନ୍ନାଥ, lit=Lord of the Universe, Jagannātha; formerly en, Juggernaut) is a deity worshipped in regional Hindu traditions in India and Bangladesh as part of a triad along with his brother Balabhadra, and sister ...
tradition, as one of the triad deities. He is also known as Haladhara, Halayudha, Baladeva, Balabhadra, and Sankarshana. The first two epithets associate him with ''hala'' (''langala'', "plough") from his strong associations with farming and farmers, as the deity who used farm equipment as weapons when needed, and the next two refer to his strength. Balarama is sometimes described as incarnation of
Shesha Shesha (Sanskrit: शेष; ) , also known as Sheshanaga (Sanskrit: शेषनाग; ) or Adishesha (), is a serpentine demigod (Naga) and Nagaraja (King of all serpents), as well as a primordial being of creation in Hinduism. In the Puran ...
, the serpent associated with the deity
Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...
; Krishna is regarded as an incarnation of Vishnu. Some traditions regard him as one of the 10 principal avatars of Vishnu himself. Balarama's significance in Indian culture has ancient roots. His image in artwork is dated to around the start of the common era, and in coins dated to the second-century BCE. In Jainism, he is known as Baladeva, and has been a historically significant farmer-related deity.


History

Balarama is an ancient deity, a prominent one by the epics era of Indian history as evidenced by archeological and numismatic evidence. His iconography appears with
Nāga The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...
(many-headed serpent), a plough and other farm artifacts such as a watering pot, possibly indicating his origins in a bucolic, agricultural culture. Balarama's legend appears in many ''Parva'' (books) of the ''
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
''. The Book Three (
Vana Parva The Vana Parva, also known as the "Book of the Forest", is the third of eighteen parvas in the Indian epic Mahabharata.van Buitenen, J.A.B. (1975) ''The Mahabharata: Book 2: The Book of the Assembly Hall; Book 3: The Book of the Forest''. Chicago, ...
) states about Krishna and him that Balarama is an avatar of Vishnu, while Krishna is the source of all avatars and existence. In some art works of the
Vijayanagara Empire The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hinduism, Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana an ...
, temples of Gujarat and elsewhere, for example, Baladeva is the eighth avatar of Vishnu, prior to the
Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
(Buddhism) or Arihant (Jainism).


Texts

Narratives of Balarama are found in ''
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
'', ''
Harivamsha The ''Harivamsa'' ( , literally "the genealogy of Hari") is an important work of Sanskrit literature, containing 16,374 shlokas, mostly in the '' anustubh'' metre. The text is also known as the ''Harivamsa Purana.'' This text is believed to ...
'', ''
Bhagavata Purana The ''Bhagavata Purana'' ( sa, भागवतपुराण; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' or simply ''Bhagavata'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen great Puranas (''Mahapuranas''). Composed in Sa ...
,'' and other
Puranas Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
. He is identified with the vyuha avatar of
Sankarshana Shesha (Sanskrit: शेष; ) , also known as Sheshanaga (Sanskrit: शेषनाग; ) or Adishesha (), is a serpentine demigod (Naga) and Nagaraja (King of all serpents), as well as a primordial being of creation in Hinduism. In the Puran ...
, along with the deities of
Shesha Shesha (Sanskrit: शेष; ) , also known as Sheshanaga (Sanskrit: शेषनाग; ) or Adishesha (), is a serpentine demigod (Naga) and Nagaraja (King of all serpents), as well as a primordial being of creation in Hinduism. In the Puran ...
and
Lakshmana Lakshmana ( sa, लक्ष्मण, lit=the fortunate one, translit=Lakṣmaṇa), also spelled as Laxmana, is the younger brother of Rama and his loyalist in the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He bears the epithets of Saumitra () and Ramanuja (). ...
. The legend of Balarama as the avatar of Shesha, the demigod-serpent Vishnu rests upon, reflects his role and association with Vishnu. However, Balarama's mythology and his association with the ten avatars of Vishnu is relatively younger and post-Vedic, because it is not found in the Vedic texts. Balarama finds a mention in Kautilya's
Arthashastra The ''Arthashastra'' ( sa, अर्थशास्त्रम्, ) is an Ancient Indian Sanskrit treatise on statecraft, political science, economic policy and military strategy. Kautilya, also identified as Vishnugupta and Chanakya, is ...
(4th to 2nd century BCE), where according to Hudson, his followers are described as "ascetic worshippers" with shaved heads or braided hair. Balarama, as Baladewa, is an important character in the 11th-century Javanese text ''
Kakawin Bhāratayuddha Kakawin Bhāratayuddha is an Old Javanese poetical rendering of some books (''parva'') of the ''Mahabharata'' by Mpu Sedah and his brother Mpu Panuluh in Indian meters (''kāvya'' or ''Kakawin''). The commencement of this work was exactly 6 Nov ...
'', the Kakawin poem based on the ''Mahabharata''.


Coins, arts, and epigraphy

Balarama was anciently a powerful local deity named Samkarshana, associated with the local cult of the
Vrishni heroes The Vrishni heroes ( IAST: Vṛṣṇi Viras), also referred to as ''Pancha-viras'' ( IAST: Pañca vīras, "Five heroes"), are a group of five legendary, deified heroes who are found in the literature and archaeological sites of ancient India. T ...
in
Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the town of Vrindavan, and from Govardhan. ...
from around the 4th century BCE. The concept of the avatars of Vishnu formed during the
Kushan The Kushan Empire ( grc, Βασιλεία Κοσσανῶν; xbc, Κυϸανο, ; sa, कुषाण वंश; Brahmi: , '; BHS: ; xpr, 𐭊𐭅𐭔𐭍 𐭇𐭔𐭕𐭓, ; zh, 貴霜 ) was a syncretic empire, formed by the Yuezhi, i ...
period in the 3rd to 2nd century CE. Coins dated to about 185-170 BCE belonging to the Indo-Greek King
Agathocles Agathocles ( Greek: ) is a Greek name, the most famous of which is Agathocles of Syracuse, the tyrant of Syracuse. The name is derived from , ''agathos'', i.e. "good" and , ''kleos'', i.e. "glory". Other personalities named Agathocles: *Agathocles ...
show Balarama's iconography and Greek inscriptions. Balarama-Samkarshana is typically shown standing with a gada in his right hand and holding a plough in his left. On the other side of these coins is Vāsudeva-Krishna holding the conch and chakra. At
Chilas Chilas ( ur, ) is a city and is the divisional capital of Diamer District located in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan, on the Indus River. It is part of the Silk Road connected by the Karakoram Highway and N-90 National Highway, which link it to Islam ...
II archeological site dated to the first half of 1st-century CE in northwest Pakistan, near Afghanistan border, are engraved two males along with many Buddhist images nearby. The larger of the two males hold a plough and club in his two hands. The artwork also has an inscription with it in Kharosthi script, which has been deciphered by scholars as ''Rama-Krsna'', and interpreted as an ancient depiction of the two brothers Balarama and Krishna. The early Balarama images found in Jansuti (Mathura, Uttar Pradesh) and two at Tumain (Ashoknagar, Madhya Pradesh) are dated to 2nd/1st-century BCE and these show Balarama holding a ''Hala'' (plough) and a ''musala'' (pestle) in his two hands. In all of these early depictions, Balarama-Samkarsana seems to hold a senior position over Vāsudeva-Krishna. On the coins of
Agathocles of Bactria Agathocles I Dicaeus ( grc, Ἀγαθοκλῆς Δικαῖος, Agathoklēs Dikaios, the epithet means "the just") was a Greco-Bactrian/Indo-Greek king, who reigned between around 190 and 180 BC, likely of the dynasty of Diodotus I, due to his co ...
, Balarama is on the front of the coin (the side with a legend in Greek), whereas Vāsudeva-Krishna is on the reverse (
Brahmi Brahmi (; ; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Brāhmī'') is a writing system of ancient South Asia. "Until the late nineteenth century, the script of the Aśokan (non-Kharosthi) inscriptions and its immediate derivatives was referred to by various names such ...
side). At Chilas, Balarama is shown taller and bigger than Vāsudeva-Krishna. The same relationship is also visible in the hierarchy of the Vrishni heroes. In some Indian ancient arts and texts, Balarama (Sankarsana) and Krishna (Vasudeva) are two of the five heroes (''Pancaviras of the Vrishnis''). The other three differ by the text. In some those are "Pradyumna, Samba and Aniruddha", in others "Anadhrsti, Sarana and Viduratha". The 1st-century
Mora well inscription The Mora Well inscription is an ancient Sanskrit inscription found in the village of Mora about from Mathura, India.Heinrich Lüders and Klaus Ludwig Janert (1961), Mathurā inscriptions, Göttingen : Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, , page 154, image o ...
near Mathura, dated between 10 and 25 CE, mention the installation of five Vrishni heroes in a stone temple. The earliest surviving southeast Asian artwork related to Balarama is from the Phnom Da collection, near Angkor Borei in
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...
's lower
Mekong Delta The Mekong Delta ( vi, Đồng bằng Sông Cửu Long, lit=Nine Dragon River Delta or simply vi, Đồng Bằng Sông Mê Kông, lit=Mekong River Delta, label=none), also known as the Western Region ( vi, Miền Tây, links=no) or South-weste ...
region.


Legend

Balarama was the son of
Vasudeva According to Hindu scriptures, Vasudeva (Sanskrit: वसुदेव, IAST: ''Vasudeva''), also called Anakadundubhi, (''anakas'' and ''dundubhis'' both refer to ''drums'', after the musicians who played these instruments at the time of his b ...
. The evil king
Kamsa Kamsa ( sa, कंस, Kaṃsa, translit-std=IAST) was the tyrant ruler of the Vrishni kingdom, with its capital at Mathura. He is variously described in Hindu literature as either a human or an asura; The Puranas describe him as an asura, whi ...
, the tyrant of
Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the town of Vrindavan, and from Govardhan. ...
, was intent upon killing the children of his cousin,
Devaki Devaki (Sanskrit: देवकी, IAST: ''Devakī'') is a character in Hindu literature, most noted for being the mother of the god Krishna. She is one of the seven daughters of Devapa or Devaka, a king of the Yadu dynasty, and has four broth ...
, because of a prophecy that he would die at the hands of her eighth child. The
Harivamsha The ''Harivamsa'' ( , literally "the genealogy of Hari") is an important work of Sanskrit literature, containing 16,374 shlokas, mostly in the '' anustubh'' metre. The text is also known as the ''Harivamsa Purana.'' This text is believed to ...
states that Kamsa went on to murder the first six children of the imprisoned Devaki by smashing the newborns against a stone floor. Vishnu intervened and when Balarama was conceived, state the Hindu legends; his embryo was transferred from Devaki's womb into the womb of Rohini, Vasudeva's first wife. In some texts, this transfer gives Balarama the epithet ''Sankarshana'' (one who was dragged away). Balarama grew up with his younger brother Krishna with his foster-parents, in the household of the head of cowherds
Nanda Nanda may refer to: Indian history and religion * Nanda Empire, ruled by the Nanda dynasty, an Indian royal dynasty ruling Magadha in the 4th century BCE ** Mahapadma Nanda, first Emperor of the Nanda Empire ** Dhana Nanda (died c. 321 BCE), last ...
, and his wife,
Yashoda Yashoda ( sa, यशोदा, translit=Yaśodā) is the foster-mother of Krishna and the wife of Nanda Baba, Nanda. She is described in the Puranic texts of Hinduism as the wife of Nanda Baba, Nanda, the chieftain of Gokul, Gokulam, and the siste ...
. The chapter 10 of the Bhagavata Purana describes it as follows: He was named Rama, but because of his great strength, he was called Balarama, Baladeva, or Balabhadra, meaning ''Strong Rama''. He was born on
Shraavana Śrāvaṇa ( sa, श्रावण) is the fifth month of the Hindu calendar. In India's national civil calendar, Śrāvaṇa is the fifth month of the year, beginning on July 23 and ending on August 22. In the Tamil calendar, it is known ...
Purnima Pūrṇimā () is the word for full moon in Sanskrit. The day of Purnima is the day (''Tithi'') in each month when the full moon occurs, and marks the division in each month between the two lunar fortnights (paksha), and the Moon is aligned exa ...
, which coincides with the occasion of
Raksha Bandhan Raksha Bandhan Quote: m Hindi ''rakśābandhan'' held on the full moon of the month of Savan, when sisters tie a talisman (rakhi q.v.) on the arm of their brothers and receive small gifts of money from them. is a popular and traditionally Hin ...
.


Childhood and marriage

One day, Nanda requested the presence of Sage Gargamuni, his priest, to name the newborn
Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...
and Balarama. When the Garga arrived, Nanda received him well and requested the naming ceremony. Gargamuni then reminded Nanda that Kamsa was looking for the son of Devaki and if he performed the ceremony in opulence, it would come to his attention. Nanda, therefore, asked Garga to perform the ceremony in secret and Garga did so: Balarama spent his childhood as a cow herder with his brother Krishna. He killed
Dhenuka In Hindu mythology, Dhenuka, also known as Dhenukasura, is an asura (demon) killed by Balarama, the elder brother of Krishna. The ''Harivamsa'' states that Dhenuka, with his host of attendant demons, all in the form of donkeys, as ruled over a for ...
, an
asura Asuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are a class of beings in Indian religions, Indic religions. They are described as power-seeking clans related to the more benevolent Deva (Hinduism), Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhism, Buddhi ...
sent by Kamsa, as well as
Pralamba Pralamba is an asura killed by Balarama in Hindu mythology. According to the pertinent legend, the asura assumed the guise of a cowherd and attempted to join Krishna and Balarama in a game of jumping, whose conditions dictated that the loser car ...
and Mushtika wrestlers sent by the king. When Krishna was killing Kamsa, Balarama slew his mighty commander, Kalavakra. After the evil king was slain, Balarama and Krishna went to the ashrama of sage
Sandipani Sandipani (), sometimes rendered Sāndīpana, is the guru of Krishna and Balarama in Hinduism. He is regarded to have educated them regarding all the Vedas, the art of drawing, astronomy, gandharva veda, medicine, training elephants and horses, a ...
at
Ujjain Ujjain (, Hindustani language, Hindustani pronunciation: Help:IPA/Hindi and Urdu, d͡ːʒɛːn is a city in Ujjain district of the States and territories of India, Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the fifth-largest city in Madhya Prad ...
for their education. Balarama married
Revati Revati (रेवती) is a goddess featured in Hindu scriptures. She is the daughter of King Kakudmi and the consort of Balarama, the elder brother of Krishna, and one of the Dashavatara. Her account is given within a number of Hindu texts su ...
, the daughter of King
Kakudmi Kakudmi (nominative case, stem Kakudmin), sometimes also called Raivata, is a character within Hindu Mythology. Kakudmi was the King of Kusasthali, son of Revata, and father of Revati, who married Balarama. Within Hinduism, his account is giv ...
.Pargiter, F.E. (1922, reprint 1972). ''Ancient Indian Historical Tradition'', New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, p. 135 He had two sons - Nishatha and Ulmuka, and a daughter - Vatsala/Shashirekha. Balarama is the celebrated tiller, one of the embodiments of agriculture along with livestock with whom Krishna is associated with. The plough is Balarama's weapon. In the ''Bhagavata Purana'', he uses it to fight asuras, dig a way for
Yamuna The Yamuna (Hindustani language, Hindustani: ), also spelt Jumna, is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in List of major rivers of India, India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a ...
river to bring it closer to
Vrindavan Vrindavan (; ), also spelt Vrindaban and Brindaban, is a historical city in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located in the Braj Bhoomi region and holds religious importance in Hinduism as Krishna spent most of his childho ...
, and he also availed it to drag the entire capital of
Hastinapura Hastinapur is a city in the Meerut district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. ''Hastinapura'', described in Hindu texts such as the ''Mahabharata'' and the Puranas as the capital of the Kuru Kingdom, is also mentioned in ancient Jain tex ...
into the Ganga river.


Kurukshetra War

Balarama taught both
Duryodhana Duryodhana ( sa, दुर्योधन, ) also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata.'' He was the eldest of the Kauravas, the hundred sons of the blind king Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari. Being ...
of the Kauravas and
Bhima In Hindu epic Mahabharata, Bhima ( sa, भीम, ) is the second among the five Pandavas. The ''Mahabharata'' relates many events that portray the might of Bhima. Bhima was born when Vayu, the wind god, granted a son to Kunti and Pandu. Af ...
of the Pandavas the art of war with a mace. When war broke between the Kauravas and the Pandavas, Balarama carried obligations for both sides and so remained neutral. He went for a pilgrimage with his nephew
Pradyumna Pradyumna ( sa, प्रद्युम्न) is the eldest son of the Hindu deities Krishna and his chief consort, Rukmini. He is considered to be one of the four vyuha avatars of Vishnu. According to the Bhagavata Purana, Pradyumna was ...
and other Yadavas during the war, and returned on the last day, to watch the fight between his disciples. When Bhima defeated Duryodhana by striking him in the thigh with his mace, a traditional violation of the rules of combat, Balarama threatened to kill Bhima. This was prevented when Krishna reminded Balarama of the vow of Bhima—to kill Duryodhana by crushing the thigh he had exposed to Bhima's wife,
Draupadi Draupadi ( sa, द्रौपदी, draupadī, Daughter of Drupada), also referred to as Krishnaa, Panchali, and Yagyaseni, is the main female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata,'' and the common consort of the five Pandava brothers ...
.


Disappearance

In the
Bhagavata Purana The ''Bhagavata Purana'' ( sa, भागवतपुराण; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' or simply ''Bhagavata'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen great Puranas (''Mahapuranas''). Composed in Sa ...
, it is described that after Balarama took part in the battle causing the destruction of the remainder of the
Yadu dynasty Yaduvamsha () or Yādava Vaṃśa is a legendary dynasty featured in Hinduism, a cadet branch of the Chandravamsha dynasty. The dynasty's progenitor was Yadu, the eldest son of Emperor Yayati. Legend Origin In Hindu texts, the king Yayati ...
and witnessing the disappearance of Krishna, he sat down in a meditative state and departed from this world. Some scriptures describe a great white snake that left the mouth of Balarama, in reference to his identity as Ananta-
Sesha Shesha (Sanskrit: शेष; ) , also known as Sheshanaga (Sanskrit: शेषनाग; ) or Adishesha (), is a serpentine demigod ( Naga) and Nagaraja (King of all serpents), as well as a primordial being of creation in Hinduism. In the Pur ...
, a form of Vishnu. The place where he departed is situated near Somnath Temple in
Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
. The local people of
Veraval Veraval also known as Somnath is a municipality and the headquarters of Gir Somnath district in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is also known for the hub of fishing industries in India. Geography Veraval is located at . It has an average ele ...
believe about the cave near the temple place, that the white snake who came out of Balarama's mouth got into that cave and went back to
Patala In Indian religions, Patala (Sanskrit: पाताल, IAST: pātāla, lit. ''that which is below the feet''), denotes the subterranean realms of the universe – which are located under the earthly dimension. Patala is often translated as unde ...
''.''


Significance

In Hindu tradition, Balarama is depicted as a farmer's patron deity, signifying the one who is "harbinger of knowledge", of agricultural tools and prosperity. He is almost always shown and described with Krishna, such as in the act of stealing butter, playing childhood pranks, complaining to Yashoda that his baby brother Krishna had eaten dirt, playing in cow sheds, studying together at the school of
guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverentia ...
Sandipani Sandipani (), sometimes rendered Sāndīpana, is the guru of Krishna and Balarama in Hinduism. He is regarded to have educated them regarding all the Vedas, the art of drawing, astronomy, gandharva veda, medicine, training elephants and horses, a ...
, and fighting malevolent beasts sent by Kamsa to kill the two brothers. He is the constant companion of Krishna, ever watchful, leading to the epithet ''"Luk Luk Dauji"'' (or ''Luk Luk Daubaba'') in the Pustimarga tradition of
Vaishnavism Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...
. In the classical Tamil work Akananuru, Krishna hides from Balarama when he steals the clothes of the milkmaids while they bathe, suggesting his brother's vigilance. He is a creative store of knowledge for the agriculturists: the knowledge that dug a water channel to bring Yamuna water to Vrindavan; that restored groves, farms and forests; that produced goods and drinks. In Hindu texts, Balarama almost always supports Krishna in form and spirit. However, there are occasions where the dialogues between Balarama and Krishna present different viewpoints, with Krishna's wisdom establishing him to be the ultimate divinity. Balarama's constant symbolic association with Krishna makes him the protector and supporter of
dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
.


Iconography

Balarama is depicted as light-skinned, in contrast to his brother, Krishna, who is dark-skinned; Krishna in Sanskrit means dark. His ''ayudha'' or weapons are the
plough A plough or plow ( US; both ) is a farm tool for loosening or turning the soil before sowing seed or planting. Ploughs were traditionally drawn by oxen and horses, but in modern farms are drawn by tractors. A plough may have a wooden, iron or ...
''hala'' and the mace ''gadā''. The plough is usually called Balachita. He often wears blue garments and a
garland A garland is a decorative braid, knot or wreath of flowers, leaves, or other material. Garlands can be worn on the head or around the neck, hung on an inanimate object, or laid in a place of cultural or religious importance. Etymology From the ...
of forest flowers. His hair is tied in a topknot and he has earrings, bracelets and armlets; he is known for his strength, the reason for his name; Bala means strength in Sanskrit. In the
Jagannath Jagannath ( or, ଜଗନ୍ନାଥ, lit=Lord of the Universe, Jagannātha; formerly en, Juggernaut) is a deity worshipped in regional Hindu traditions in India and Bangladesh as part of a triad along with his brother Balabhadra, and sister ...
tradition, one particularly popular in eastern and central regions of India, he is more often called Balabhadra. Balarama is one in the triad, wherein Balarama is shown together with his brother Jagannath (Krishna) and sister Subhadra (
Subhadra Subhadra ( sa, सुभद्रा, Subhadrā) is a Hindu goddess mentioned in ancient Hindu scriptures like the ''Mahabharata'' and the ''Bhagavata Purana''. She is described as the favourite child of Vasudeva and the younger sister of de ...
). Jagannath is identifiable from his circular eyes compared to an oval of Shubhadra and almond-shaped eyes of the abstract icon for Balarama. Further, Balarama's face is white, Jagannath's icon is dark, and Subhadra icon is yellow. The third difference is the flat head of Jagannath icon, compared to the semi-circular carved head of abstract Balarama. The shape of Balabhadra's head, also called Balarama or Baladeva in these regions, varies in some temples between somewhat flat and semi-circular.


Sculpture

File:Chaturvuyha Sankarshan Vasudeva 2nd century CE, Mathura Museum.jpg, Chatur-vyūha: Balarama, with serpent hood and drinking cup, to the right of Vasudeva-Krishna. 2nd century CE,
Art of Mathura The Art of Mathura refers to a particular school of Indian art, almost entirely surviving in the form of sculpture, starting in the 2nd century BCE, which centered on the city of Mathura, in central northern India, during a period in which Bu ...
. File:Balarama - Gupta Period - Yamuna Bagh - ACCN 14-15-435 - Government Museum - Mathura 2013-02-23 5336.JPG, Balarama, Gupta period, Mathura File: Diety wearing Chang Kben, Phnom Da, Angkor Borei, Cambodia.jpg, 6th century Balarama from Phnom Da, Angkor Borei, Takeo,
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...
. Now exhibits at
National Museum of Cambodia The National Museum of Cambodia ( km, សារមន្ទីរជាតិ) is Cambodia's largest museum of cultural history and is the country's leading historical and archaeological museum. It is located in Chey Chumneas, Phnom Penh. Overv ...
. File:Balarama - Mediaeval Period - Swami Ghat - ACCN 49-3210 - Government Museum - Mathura 2013-02-23 5342.JPG, Balarama, Medieval period, Mathura File:Balarama from Badoh, Medieval period.jpg, Balarama from Badoh, Medieval period File:Balarama - Circa 18th Century CE - ACCN 80-6 - Government Museum - Mathura 2013-02-23 5347.JPG, Balarama, 18th century, Mathura


Temples

*
Kendrapara Kendrapara is a Town and a municipality in the Kendrapara district of the Indian state of Odisha. It is the headquarters of Kendrapara district. Geography Kendrapara is located at . It has an average elevation of . It is surrounded by Bhadrak, ...
,
Baladevjew Temple Baladevjew Temple is situated in Ichhapur (Tulasi Khetra), Kendrapara, Odisha, India. Baladevjew Temple is a very famous temple of Odisha and Balarama is its main divinity. However, Jagannath and Subhadra are also worshipped in the ''Ratna Sinha ...
, Odisha *
Ananta Vasudeva Temple Ananta Vasudeva Temple ("Temple of the Infinite Vāsudeva", Odia:ଅନନ୍ତ ବାସୁଦେବ ମନ୍ଦିର) is a Hindu temple dedicated to Krishna, an ''avatar'' of Vishnu located in Bhubaneswar, the state capital of Odisha, Ind ...
* Kathmandu temples,
Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
* Shri Dauji Mandir,
Hathras Hathras is a historical city in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is also the headquarters of Hathras district, formed on 3 May 1997 by merging parts of Aligarh, Mathura and Agra. It is a part of the Aligarh Division. The primary spoken language is a ...
,
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...


Outside Hinduism


Jainism

The
Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
Puranas Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
, notably, the ''Triṣaṣṭiśalākāpuruṣacarita'' of
Hemachandra Hemachandra was a 12th century () Indian Jain saint, scholar, poet, mathematician, philosopher, yogi, grammarian, law theorist, historian, lexicographer, rhetorician, logician, and prosodist. Noted as a prodigy by his contemporaries, he gain ...
, narrate hagiographical accounts of nine Baladevas or
Balabhadra In Jainism, Balabhadra or Baladeva are among the sixty-three illustrious beings called ''śalākāpuruṣas'' that are said to grace every half cycle of time. According to Jain cosmology, ''śalākāpuruṣa'' are born on this earth in every ' ...
s who are believed to be
śalākāpuruṣa According to the Jain cosmology, the śalākapuruṣa ( sa, शलाकपुरूष) "illustrious or worthy persons" are 63 illustrious beings who appear during each half-time cycle. They are also known as the ''triṣaṣṭiśalākāpuru ...
s (literally torch-bearers, great personalities). Balarama was the ninth one. Balarama along with Krishna are considered as cousins of the revered
Tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (Sanskrit: '; English: literally a 'ford-maker') is a saviour and spiritual teacher of the ''dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a '' tirtha'', which is a fordable passag ...
Neminatha Neminatha, also known as Nemi and Arishtanemi, is the twenty-second ''tirthankara'' (ford-maker) in Jainism. Along with Mahavira, Parshvanatha and Rishabhanatha, Neminatha is one of the twenty four ''tirthankaras'' who attract the most devo ...
(Aristanemi) by Jains. The Jainism tradition lists 63 ''Śalākāpuruṣa'' or notable figures which, amongst others, includes the twenty-four ''Tirthankaras'' and nine sets of triads. One of these triads is Krishna as the ''Vasudeva'', Balarama as the ''Baladeva'', and
Jarasandha Jarasandha was a powerful king of Magadha, a minor antagonist in Mahabharata. He was the son of king Brihadratha, the founder of the Barhadratha dynasty of Magadha. According to popular lore, the descendants of Brihadratha ruled Magadha for 260 ...
as the ''Prati-Vasudeva''. In each age of the Jain cyclic time is born a ''Vasudeva'' with an elder brother termed the ''Baladeva''. Between the triads, ''Baladeva'' upholds the principle of non-violence, a central idea of Jainism. The villain is the ''Prati-vasudeva'', who attempts to destroy the world. To save the world, ''Vasudeva-Krishna'' has to forsake the non-violence principle and kill the ''Prati-Vasudeva''. The stories of these triads can be found in the ''
Harivamsa Purana was composed by Acharya Jinasena in 783 AD. It is divided into 66 cantos and contains 12,000 slokas. The book aims to narrate the life of Neminatha, the twenty-second Tirthankara in Jainism. According to the Jain sources, Krishna is the firs ...
'' (8thcentury CE) of
Jinasena Jinasena (c. 9th century CE) was a monk and scholar in the ''Digambara'' tradition of Jainism. He was patronized by the Rashtrakuta king Amoghavarsha I. He was the author of ''Adipurana'' and '' Mahapurana''."Vasudeva Krishna in Jaina Cosmohistory
in
The story of Krishna's life in the ''Puranas'' of Jainism follows the same general outline as those in the Hindu texts, but in details, they are very different: they include Jain ''Tirthankaras'' as characters in the story, and generally are polemically critical of Krishna, unlike the versions found in the ''Mahabharata'', the ''Bhagavata Purana'', and the ''Vishnu Purana''. For example, Krishna loses battles in the Jain versions, and his ''gopis'' and his clan of Yadavas die in a fire created by an ascetic named Dvaipayana. Similarly, after dying from the hunter Jara's arrow, the Jaina texts state Krishna goes to the third hell in
Jain cosmology Jain cosmology is the description of the shape and functioning of the Universe (''loka'') and its constituents (such as living beings, matter, space, time etc.) according to Jainism. Jain cosmology considers the universe as an uncreated entity t ...
, while Balarama is said to go to the sixth heaven. In other Jain texts, Krishna and Baladeva are stated to be a cousin of the twenty-second ''Tirthankara'', Neminatha. The Jain texts state that Naminatha taught Krishna all the wisdom that he later gave to Arjuna in the ''Bhagavad Gita''. According to
Jeffery D. Long Jeffery D. Long (born 1969) is a religious studies scholar who works on the religions and philosophies of India, particularly Hinduism and Jainism. He is a professor of religion and Asian studies at Elizabethtown College. Education and caree ...
, a professor of Religion known for his publications on Jainism, this connection between Krishna and Neminatha has been a historic reason for Jains to accept, read, and cite the ''Bhagavad Gita'' as a spiritually important text, celebrate Krishna-related festivals, and intermingle with Hindus as spiritual cousins. Evidence related to early Jainism, states
Patrick Olivelle Patrick Olivelle is an Indologist. A philologist and scholar of Sanskrit Literature whose work has focused on asceticism, renunciation and the dharma, Olivelle has been Professor of Sanskrit and Indian Religions in the Department of Asian Studi ...
and other scholars, suggests Balarama had been a significant farmer deity in Jain tradition in parts of the Indian subcontinent such as near the Mathura region. Jain texts such as the ''
Kalpasutra Kalpasutra may refer to: * Kalpa (Vedanga) Kalpa ( sa, कल्प) means "proper, fit" and is one of the six disciplines of the Vedānga, or ancillary science connected with the Vedas – the scriptures of Hinduism. This field of study is foc ...
'' describe the same idea of embryo transfer, as in Hindu texts for Balarama, for the 24th Tirthankara
Mahavira Mahavira (Sanskrit: महावीर) also known as Vardhaman, was the 24th ''tirthankara'' (supreme preacher) of Jainism. He was the spiritual successor of the 23rd ''tirthankara'' Parshvanatha. Mahavira was born in the early part of the 6t ...
; in the latter case, the embryo of a Brahmin woman is moved into the womb of a Kshatriya woman. Balarama, states
Pratapaditya Pal Pratapaditya Pal is an Indian scholar of Southeast Asian and Himalayan art and culture, specializing particularly in the history of art of India, Nepal and Tibet. He has served as a curator of South Asian art at several prominent US museums incl ...
, was one of the historic deities revered in Jainism along with Ambika, Lakshmi and others. As with the Hindu farmers, state
Paul Dundas Paul Dundas (born 1952) is a scholar and a senior lecturer in Sanskrit language and head of Asian Studies in the University of Edinburgh. His main areas of academic and research interest include Jainism, Buddhism, classical Sanskrit literature a ...
and other scholars, it is likely that Balarama was the patron deity of Jain farmers in the early centuries of the common era, because a large number of Balarama images have been found in early Jain arts.


Buddhism

Balarama images have been discovered in central Indian Buddhist sites, such as with Sanchi stupas at Andher, Mehgaon and Chandna. These are dated to around the start of the common era. The Ghata Jataka, one of the Jataka Tales that form part of Buddhist scriptures, depicts Krishna as a previous birth of Buddha's disciple Sariputta and has Balarama depicted as the previous birth of one of the Buddha's disciples.


Notes


References


Bibliography

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External links

* {{Authority control People related to Krishna Avatars of Vishnu Hindu gods Characters in the Mahabharata Deities of Jagannath Characters in the Bhagavata Purana Salakapurusa Agricultural gods