Balarama
|
Balarama, next to the river Yamuna. Copyright BBTI |
In
Hinduism,
Balarama (phonetically Balarāma - his other names include Baladeva, Balabhadra and Halayudha) is the elder brother of
Krishna. Most
South Indian Hindu traditions and many branches of
Vaishnavism regard Balarama as being the ninth avatar of Vishnu. In either tradition, Balarama is acknowledged as being a manifestation of
Shesha, the divine serpent on whom
Vishnu rests.
The sacred Hindu scripture
Bhagavata Purana explains how
Krishna is the original Supreme Personality of Godhead from whom everything else emanates. As part of this divine 'emanation', Krishna's very first expansion is Balarama, and from Balarama all other incarnations of God then appear. Of the three transcendental elements (sat, cit and ananda), Balarama is in charge of sat (
Sanskrit:
eternity or
truth), cit (
Sanskrit:
knowledge or
consciousness). Hence he worshiped as the supreme teacher or
adiguru. (
Note: Ananda (Sanskrit: happiness
or bliss
.)
Balarama was conceived as a son of
Vasudeva and
Devaki.
Kamsa, brother of
Devaki and an evil king, was intent upon killing all the progeny of
Devaki, because of a prediction that
Kamsa would die at the hands of the eighth son of Devaki. Kamsa threw his sister
Devaki and her husband
Vasudeva into jail, and proceeded to kill each of their children as soon as they were born.
In due course of time,
Devaki bacame pregnant for the seventh time. However, this child was not destined to meet the fate of the six previous infants. The unborn child was miraculously transferred from the womb of
Devaki to the womb of
Rohini, who had desired a child of her own. Thus Balarama's other name is also Sankarsana which describes the transfer of the child from the womb. The child was formally named Rama, but because of his great strength he was called Balarama (Strong Rama).
Thus,
Rohini actually gave birth to
Balarama and raised him. Balarama spent his childhood as a cowherd boy with his brother
Krishna and friends. He later married
Revati, the daughter of King Raivata, ruler of the Anarta province.
Krishna's Brother
Gaudiya Vaishnavas believe that Balarama is the Supreme Personality of Godhead himself. He is worshipped as equal in supremacy to Krishna himself, yet wherever
Krishna appears, Baladeva appears as Krishna's brother, sometimes elder, sometimes younger. Balarama is constantly serving Krishna in every respect, in all of Krishna's incarnations and manifestations. In
Rama-lila, Balarama serves
Ramachandra as his younger Brother,
Lakshmana. In Kali-
yuga, Balarama spreads the '
Sankirtan movement' of
Caitanya as
Nityananda.
The only
theological difference between Krishna and Balarama is that the bodily hue of Krishna is dark and that of Balarama is fair. Krishna is the Creator, and Balarama is his creative
potency, but they are both worshipped as the Supreme
Primeval Lord.
Balarama is almost always depicted as being fair skinned, especially in comparison to his brother, Krishna, who is shown as dark blue or black in hue. His weapons are the
plough and the
mace. Traditionally Balarama wears blue garments and a
garland of forest flowers. His hair is tied in a topknot and he has earrings, bracelets and armlets. Balarama is described as being very physically strong, in fact 'bala' in
Sanskrit refers to '
strength'. Baladeva is famous as being Krishna's dearest friend.
[[Image:AgathoclesSquareCoin.jpg|thumb|350px|Indian-standard silver drachm of the {{Greco-Bactrian}} king {{Agathocles of Bactria|Agathocles}} ({{190 BCE|190}}-{{180 BCE}})
Obv: Indian god {{Balarama}}-{{Samkarshana}}, wearing an ornate headress, earrings, sword in sheath, holding a mace in his right hand and a plow-symbol in the left. Greek legend: BASILEOS AGATOKLEOUS "Of King Agathocles".
Rev: Indian god {{Vasudeva}}-{{Krishna}}, with ornate headdress, earrings, sword in sheath, holding {{sankha}} (pear-shaped vase) and {{chakra}} (wheel). {{Brahmi}} legend: RAJANE AGATHUKLAYASA "King Agathocles".]]
In Bhagavata Purana
One day,
Nanda Maharaja requested
Gargamuni, the family priest to visit their home in order to give names to Krishna and Balarama. When Gargamuni arrived at his house Nanda Maharaja, received him very well and then requested him to perform the naming ceremony. Gargamuni then reminded Nanda Maharaja that
Kamsa was looking for the son of Devaki and said that if he performed the ceremony very opulently it would come to the notice of Kamsa, who would then suspect that Krishna was the son of Devaki. Nanda Maharaja therefore asked Gargamuni to perform the ceremony in secret, and Gargamuni did so giving the reasons for Balarama's names as follows:
"Because Balarama, the son of Rohini, increases the transcendental bliss of others, His name is Rama, and because of His extraordinary strength, He is called Baladeva. He attracts the Yadus to follow His instructions, and therefore His name is Sankarshana." Bhagavata Purana 10.8.12In Mahabharata
Balarama famously taught both
Duryodhana of the Kauravas and
Bhima of the Pandavas the art of fighting with a mace. When war broke between the Kauravas and the Pandavas, Balarama was equally affectionate to both parties and so decided to be neutral. Eventually when Bhima (of greater strength) defeated Duryodhana (of greater skill) by dealing a blow below the navel with his mace, Balarama threatened to kill Bhima. This was only prevented when Krishna reminded Balarama of Bhima's vow to kill Duryodhana by crushing the very thigh he exposed to his wife
Draupadi.
In the
Bhagavata Purana it is described that after Balarama took part in the battle that caused the destruction of the rest of the
Yadu dynasty, and after he witnessed the disappearance of
Krishna, he then sat down in a meditative state and departed from this world by producing a great white snake from his mouth, and thus he was carried by
Sesha in the form of a serpent.
"Lord Balarama is the original Vishnu; therefore anyone remembering these pastimes of Lord Balarama in the morning and the evening will certainly become a great devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and thus his life will become successful in all respects." -
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada"The splendor of Lord Balarama's transcendental form eclipses many millions of glistening rising moons, and the slightest scent of His boundless strength is sufficient to destroy many armies of demons." - From Appreciating
Sri Vrindavana Dhama, pg. 111
*
Lakshmana*
Nityananda*
Shesha*
Vedic Encyclopedia*
1000 names of Lord Balarama*
Krishna & Balarama Deity Gallery - Vrindavan.com*
Krishna & Balarama Deity Gallery - Vrindavan-dham.com*
Krishna-Balarama Temple
