64 Qualities of Lord Krishna
Shrila
Rupa Gosvami, after consulting various scriptures, has enumerated the
transcendental qualities of the Lord Shri Krishna as follows:
(1)
beautiful features of the entire body;
(2) marked with all auspicious characteristics;
(3) extremely pleasing;
(4) effulgent;
(5) strong;
(6) ever youthful;
(7) wonderful linguist;
(8) truthful;
(9) talks pleasingly;
(10) fluent;
(11) highly learned;
(12) highly intelligent;
(13) a genius;
(14) artistic;
(15) extremely clever;
(16) expert;
(17) grateful;
(18) firmly determined;
(19) an expert judge of time and circumstances;
(20) sees and speaks on the authority of Vedas, or scriptures;
(21) pure;
(22) self-controlled;
(23) steadfast;
(24) forbearing;
(25) forgiving;
(26) grave;
(27) self-satisfied;
(28) possessing equilibrium;
(29) magnanimous;
(30) religious;
(31) heroic;
(32) compassionate;
(33) respectful;
(34) gentle;
(35) liberal;
(36) shy;
(37) the protector of surrendered souls;
(38) happy;
(39) the well-wisher of devotees;
(40) controlled by love;
(41) all-auspicious;
(42) most powerful;
(43) all-famous;
(44) popular;
(45) partial to devotees;
(46) very attractive to all women;
(47) all-worshipable;
(48) all-opulent;
(49) all-honorable;
(50) the supreme controller.
(2) marked with all auspicious characteristics;
(3) extremely pleasing;
(4) effulgent;
(5) strong;
(6) ever youthful;
(7) wonderful linguist;
(8) truthful;
(9) talks pleasingly;
(10) fluent;
(11) highly learned;
(12) highly intelligent;
(13) a genius;
(14) artistic;
(15) extremely clever;
(16) expert;
(17) grateful;
(18) firmly determined;
(19) an expert judge of time and circumstances;
(20) sees and speaks on the authority of Vedas, or scriptures;
(21) pure;
(22) self-controlled;
(23) steadfast;
(24) forbearing;
(25) forgiving;
(26) grave;
(27) self-satisfied;
(28) possessing equilibrium;
(29) magnanimous;
(30) religious;
(31) heroic;
(32) compassionate;
(33) respectful;
(34) gentle;
(35) liberal;
(36) shy;
(37) the protector of surrendered souls;
(38) happy;
(39) the well-wisher of devotees;
(40) controlled by love;
(41) all-auspicious;
(42) most powerful;
(43) all-famous;
(44) popular;
(45) partial to devotees;
(46) very attractive to all women;
(47) all-worshipable;
(48) all-opulent;
(49) all-honorable;
(50) the supreme controller.
The
Supreme Personality of Godhead has all these fifty transcendental qualities in
fullness as deep as the ocean. In other words, the extent of His qualities is
inconceivable.
As parts
and parcels of the Supreme Lord, the individual living entities can also
possess all of these qualities in minute quantities, provided they become pure
devotees of the Lord. In other words, all of the above transcendental qualities
can be present in the devotees in minute quantity, whereas the qualities in
fullness are always present in the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Besides
these, there are other transcendental qualities which are described by Lord
Siva to Parvati in the Padma Purana, and in the First Canto of
Shrimad-Bhagavatam in connection with a conversation between the deity of the
earth and the King of religion, Yamaraja. It is said therein, "Persons who
who are desirous of becoming great personalities must be decorated with the
following qualities:
truthfulness,
cleanliness, mercy, perseverance, renunciation, peacefulness, simplicity,
control of the senses, equilibrium of the mind, austerity, equality,
forbearance, placidity, learning, knowledge, detachment, opulence, chivalry,
influence, strength, memory, independence, tactfulness, luster, patience,
kind-heartedness, ingenuity, gentility, mannerliness, determination, perfection
in all knowledge, proper execution, possession of all objects of enjoyment,
gravity, steadiness, faithfulness, fame, respectfulness and lack of false
egotism."
Persons
who are desiring to become great souls cannot be without any of the above
qualities, so we can know for certain that these qualities are found in Lord
Krishna, the supreme soul.
Besides
all of the above-mentioned fifty qualities, Lord Krishna possesses five more,
which are sometimes partially manifested in the persons of Lord Brahma or Lord
Siva.
These
transcendental qualities are as follows:
(51)
changeless;
(52) all-cognizant;
(53) ever fresh;
(54) sac-cid-ananda (possessing an eternal blissful body);
(55) possessing all mystic perfections.
(52) all-cognizant;
(53) ever fresh;
(54) sac-cid-ananda (possessing an eternal blissful body);
(55) possessing all mystic perfections.
Krishna
also possesses five other qualities, which are manifest in the body of
Narayana, and they are listed as follows:
(56)
He has inconceivable potency.
(57) Uncountable universes generate from His body.
(58) He is the original source of all incarnations.
(59) He is the giver of salvation to the enemies whom He kills.
(60) He is the attractor of liberated souls.
(57) Uncountable universes generate from His body.
(58) He is the original source of all incarnations.
(59) He is the giver of salvation to the enemies whom He kills.
(60) He is the attractor of liberated souls.
All
these transcendental qualities are manifest wonderfully in the personal feature
of Lord Krishna.
Besides
these sixty transcendental qualities, Krishna has four more, which are not
manifest even in the Narayana form of Godhead, what to speak of the demigods or
living entities:
(61)
He is the performer of wonderful varieties of pastimes (especially His
childhood pastimes).
(62) He is surrounded by devotees endowed with wonderful love of Godhead.
(63) He can attract all living entities all over the universes by playing on His flute.
(64) He has a wonderful excellence of beauty which cannot be rivaled anywhere in the creation.
Adding to the list these four
exceptional qualities of Krishna, it is to be understood that the aggregate
number of qualities of Krishna is sixty-four. Shrila Rupa Gosvami has attempted
to give evidences from various scriptures about all sixty-four qualities
present in the person of the Supreme Lord Shri Krishna.(62) He is surrounded by devotees endowed with wonderful love of Godhead.
(63) He can attract all living entities all over the universes by playing on His flute.
(64) He has a wonderful excellence of beauty which cannot be rivaled anywhere in the creation.
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