Question: We always hear that Krsna was born in the prison house of Kamsa, as the son of Vasudeva and Devaki. However, mention of occasionally made of Krsna being directly born from the womb of Yasoda. Where is the scriptural reference which states that Krsna was one of two children, twins, born of Yasoda and Nanda Maharaja?
Answer by Romapada Swami:
Below are two commentaries’ references.
1.
Laghu-bhagavatamrta 1.5.459 – Rupa Goswami
“Exhausted by the labor of childbirth, Yasoda was overwhelmed with sleep and unable to understand what kind of child had been born to her.” SB 10.3.53
Yasoda, like Devaki, looking at the features of Krsna, could understand that he as the supreme lord (param). But did Yasoda not understand that she had given birth to a girl child also, and that Vasudeva had in front of her taken the girl and exchanged his son and left? She did not know about the exchange (na tad veda). Another version has na tal-lingam instead of na tad veda. In that case the meaning is “She did not know about the indications – the birth of the girl and Vasudeva exchanging the children.” Lingam means indication and inference, according to Visva-kosa. The reason she did not understand is given: she was exhausted. In Adi Purana it is clearly said by Narada nanda-gopa-grhe putro yasoda-garbha-sambhavah: a son was born from the womb of Yasoda in the house of Nanda. It is said elsewhere that Krsna was Yasoda’s son, and we should accept the direct meaning of such statements:
nandas tv atmaja utpanne jatahlado maha-manah
Nanda Maharaja was naturally very magnanimous, and when Lord Sri Krsna appeared as his son, he was overwhelmed by jubilation. SB 10.5.1
nayam sukhapo bhagavan dehinam gopika-sutah jnaninam catma-bhutanam yatha bhaktimatam iha
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, the son of mother Yasoda, is accessible to devotees engaged in spontaneous loving service, but He is not as easily accessible to mental speculators, to those striving for self-realization by severe austerities and penances, or to those who consider the body the same as the self. SB 10.9.21
However, when Devaki spoke to Kamsa, she was trying to hide the fact of her son’s birth by saying the eighth child was a daughter. It cannot be taken literally.
upaguhyatmajam evam rudatya dina-dinavat yacitas tam vinirbhartsya hastad acicchide khalah
Sukadeva Gosvami continued: Piteously embracing her daughter and crying, Devaki begged Kamsa for the child, but he was so cruel that he chastised her and forcibly snatched the child from her hands. SB 10.4.7
But why did Sukadeva not state the birth of Krsna from Yasoda directly? One should accept it as the Lord’s intention. “I will appear in the house of both Nanda and Vasudeva. I will however remain only in Nanda’s house with one form. If I have two forms, Kamsa will know that I have taken birth and will persecute both sets of parents. You (Sukadeva) should recite my story so that the secret is not revealed.” This is the intention of the Lord. Accepting the Lord’s desire, the author wrote the work accordingly. Api in text 450 indicates that Krsna being Yasoda’s son is kept covered.
- VCT’s commentary on the same verse
The fact that Krsna was also born to Yasoda is not very well known. Because Yasoda and Devaki were friends, Yasoda gave her fame to Devaki and allowed Devaki to become famous as the mother of Krsna. The name Yasoda means to give (dadati) fame (yaso). However, the name Devaki is also another name of mother Yasod. as stated in the Brhad-visnu Purana: dve namni nanda-bharyaya, yasoda devakiti ca, atah sakhyam abhut tasya, devakya sauri-jayaya: “The wife of Nanda had two names, Yasoda and also Devaki. Therefore, it was natural that she [the wife of Nanda] developed friendship with Devaki, the wife of sauri [Vasudeva].” This is also in accordance with Vaisna Tosani, Ananda Vrndavana Campu and Brhad-bhagavatamrta.
