Trinavarta (,

IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Brahmic family, Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that ...

: ) is an

asura Asuras () are a class of beings in Indian religions, and later Persian and Turkic mythology. They are described as power-seeking beings related to the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the wor ...

who is featured in

Hindu literature Hindu texts or Hindu scriptures are manuscripts and voluminous historical literature which are related to any of the diverse traditions within Hinduism. Some of the major Hindu texts include the Vedas, the Upanishads, and the Itihasa. Scholars ...

, most prominently in the

Bhagavata Purana The ''Bhagavata Purana'' (; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam)'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' () or simply ''Bhagavata (Bhāgavata)'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen major Puranas (''Mahapuranas'') and one ...

. He is described to be a whirlwind asura dispatched by

Kamsa Kamsa (, ) was the tyrant ruler of the Vrishni kingdom, with its capital at Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, Mathura. He is variously described in Hindu texts, Hindu literature as either a human or an asura; The Puranas describe him as an asura, while ...

to murder

Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...

, but is slain by the deity instead.

Legend

Kamsa sent Trinavarta to kill his nephew. Assuming the form of a whirlwind, Trinavarta carried away the sitting Krishna. He enveloped the whole of

Gokul Gokul is a town in the Mathura district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located south-east of Mathura. History In the ''Viṣṇu Purāṇa'' and '' Bhāgavata Purāṇa'', the term "gokula" does not refer to any specifi ...

am with a cloud of dust and darkness, the resultant cover of sand particles causing great distress to

Yashoda Yashoda (, ) is the foster-mother of Krishna and the wife of Nanda. She is described in the Puranic texts of Hinduism as the wife of Nanda, the chieftain of Gokul, and the sister of Rohini. According to the Bhagavata Purana, Krishna was bo ...

, who attempted to find her son with the help of the

gopi Gopi (, ) or Gopika in Hinduism are commonly referred to the group of milkmaids of Braj. They are regarded as the consorts and devotees of Krishna and are venerated for their unconditional love and devotion (''Bhakti'') to him as described i ...

s. Even as the asura carried the deity to the sky, Krishna caused himself to possess enormous weight, halting the asura in his ascent, who was unable to carry him further. The deity then proceeded to clasp his captor's throat with intense force, which paralysed him and pushed out his eye-sockets. The asura descended back to the region of

Vraja Braj, also known as Vraj, Vraja, Brij or Brijbhumi, is a region in India on both sides of the Yamuna river with its centre at Mathura district, Mathura-Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh state encompassing the area which also includes Palwal, Ballabh ...

, where he was crushed to death upon a rock.

Nanda Nanda, including Nanda (南大), may refer to: Education * Nanchang University (南昌大学), a public university in Nanchang, Jiangxi, China * Nanhua University (南华大学), a public university in Hengyang, Hunan, China * Nanjing Universi ...

and the gopas discovered the infant dangling upon the chest of the slain asura, completely unharmed.

Literature

The

Brahma Vaivarta Purana The ''Brahmavaivarta Purana'' (; ) is a voluminous Sanskrit text and one of the major Puranas (''Maha-purana'') of Hinduism. It is an important Vaishnava text. This Purana majorly centers around the Hindu deities Radha and Krishna. Although ...

offers details regarding the previous birth of Trinavarta. According to the text, Trinavarta was previously a mighty

Pandya The Pandya dynasty (), also referred to as the Pandyas of Madurai, was an ancient Tamil dynasty of South India, and among the four great kingdoms of Tamilakam, the other three being the Pallavas, the Cholas and the Cheras. Existing sinc ...

king named Sahasraksha. Infatuated with passion, the king is stated to have engaged in amorous activities with a hundred damsels along the banks of a river named Pushpabhadra, located near the Gandhamadana mountain. The sage

Durvasa In Hindu scriptures, Durvasa (, ), also known as Durvasas (), is a legendary rishi (sage). He is the son of Anasuya and Atri. According to some Puranas, Durvasa is a partial avatar of Shiva, known for his short temper. Wherever he goes, he is ...

appeared before Sahasraksha and the women, surrounded by his disciples. When the king failed to offer the sage the customary respect, he was cursed to be reborn as an asura, one whose liberation was to be received at the hands of Krishna. The third volume of the

Rukminisha Vijaya Rukminisha Vijaya (, ), is a Vaishnava work composed by the 16th-century Hindu, Madhva saint, Vadiraja Tirtha. It is an important work of Sanskrit literature, containing 19 chapters and 1,241 verses in various metres. The text is written in the V ...

begins with Krishna's vanquishing of this asura.

References

{{Reflist Asura Hinduism Krishna

Legend

Literature

See also

References