The Krishna avataar is the eighth dashaavataar of Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu descended on earth in this human form to slay the demon king, Kansa and took birth as his nephew. He was born in prison, to Kansa’s sister, Devaki and Vasudeva and was miraculously transported to Gokul where he was raised by his foster parents, Yashoda and Nand. As Kansa had heard the prophecy that Devaki’s eight son will kill him, Vasudev carried with him the daughter of Nand and Yashoda believing that Kansa would not kill a girl. But the evil Kansa did kill the baby girl, only to realise that she was a celestial being and that the eight son was being raised far away from the prison. Kansa tried to search for his nephew and got many babies of similar age killed too, but Lord Krishna could not be killed. Eventually, he killed his uncle and freed the people from his torture. Lord Krishna’s birth is celebrated as Janmashtami by his devotees.

The Krishna avataar is known for his brilliance, strategy, compassion and love. Lord Krishna also played an important role in Mahabharata where his advice to the Pandavas, especially Arjun helped the Pandavas win the war against the Kauravas. He was the trusted charioteer to Arjuna and the entire Kurukshetra war was won due to Lord Krishna’s brilliant strategy.  

According to some myths, Lord Krishna lived for 126.5 years. There is an interesting myth about his death. It is said that once Krishna sat on a tree to meditate. A hunter called Jara mistook his foot as a deer, and shot an arrow that pierced Krishna’s feet. This arrow was the reason for his demise and it is also believed that Krishna’s demise is the beginning of Kalyug.