Goloka
Encyclopedia
Goloka is the eternal abode of Krishna
, Svayam bhagavan
according to some Vaishnava schools, including Gaudiya Vaishnavism
and the Swaminarayan Sampraday
.
The scriptural basis for this comes from texts like Bhagavata Purana
, Padma Purana
, Brahma Vaivarta Purana
, Brahma Purana
, Brahmanda Purana
, Skanda Purana
, Mahabharata
, Narada
Pancaratra
, Garga Samhita
and Brahma Samhita
.
While in most of the Bhagavata Purana text, Krishna is presented as the cosmic Vishnu
, the supremely powerful deity under whom all other partial divinities work, in the tenth book of the Purana he is especially portrayed as the supreme person who resides in his abode Goloka.
It describes Goloka as a highest planet or realm (loka) of the Vaikuntha planets for the devotees of Krishna who is known as the protector of cows and hence the latter are found in abundance in Goloka. Also sometimes referred to as Vrindavan
, it is a land of plenty, rich with natural beauty bearing a resemblance to Garden of Eden
.
In Goloka Krishna
resides with Radharani, Krishna's eternal consort, and countless other devotees, wherein he performs his divine play, known as lila. It's believed that souls return to the material world again and again to perfect themselves and go on to Krishna's heaven, Goloka Vrndavana.
, and loka
is translated as world or planet.
In some temples, such as the Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Mumbai, the murtis installed are that of Shri Gaulokvihari and Radhikaji. Gaulokvihari is Krishna
, (vihari is resident of, hence, resident of Gaulok, Gaulokvihari) and Radhika is Radha
, his consort.
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
, Svayam bhagavan
Svayam Bhagavan
Svayam Bhagavan , "The Lord" or Lord Himself, is a Sanskrit theological term. The term refers to the concept of absolute representation of the monotheistic God as Bhagavan within Hinduism....
according to some Vaishnava schools, including Gaudiya Vaishnavism
Gaudiya Vaishnavism
Gaudiya Vaishnavism is a Vaishnava religious movement founded by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in India in the 16th century. "Gaudiya" refers to the Gauḍa region with Vaishnavism meaning "the worship of Vishnu"...
and the Swaminarayan Sampraday
Swaminarayan Sampraday
Swaminarayan Sampraday , known previously as the Uddhav Sampraday, is a Hindu sect established by Swaminarayan...
.
The scriptural basis for this comes from texts like Bhagavata Purana
Bhagavata purana
The Bhāgavata Purāṇa is one of the "Maha" Puranic texts of Hindu literature, with its primary focus on bhakti to the incarnations of Vishnu, particularly Krishna...
, Padma Purana
Padma Purana
Padma Purana , one of the major eighteen Puranas, a Hindu religious text, is divided into five parts.In the first part of the text, sage Pulastya explains to Bhishma about religion and the essence of the religion. The second part describes in detail Prithvi...
, Brahma Vaivarta Purana
Brahma Vaivarta Purana
Brahma Vaivarta Purana, one of the major eighteen Puranas, a Hindu religious text, is divided into four parts. First part describes the creation of the universe and all beings, the second part relates to description and histories of different goddesses...
, Brahma Purana
Brahma Purana
The Brahma Purana is one of the major eighteen Mahapuranas, a genre of Hindu religious texts. The extant text comprises 246 chapters. It is divided into two parts, namely the Purvabhaga and the Uttarabhaga . The first part narrates the story behind the creation of the cosmos, details the life and...
, Brahmanda Purana
Brahmanda Purana
The Brahmanda Purana is one of the eighteen Mahapuranas, a genre of eighteen Hindu religious texts and has been assigned the eighteenth place in almost all the lists of the Puranas.Brahma in Sanskrit means "the biggest", anda/andam means globe...
, Skanda Purana
Skanda Purana
The Skanda Purana is the largest Mahapurana, a genre of eighteen Hindu religious texts. The text is devoted mainly to the lilas of Kartikeya , a son of Shiva and Parvati. It also contains a number of legends about Shiva, and the holy places associated with him...
, Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
, Narada
Narada
Narada or Narada Muni is a divine sage from the Vaisnava tradition, who plays a prominent role in a number of the Puranic texts, especially in the Bhagavata Purana, and in the Ramayana...
Pancaratra
Pañcaratra
Pāñcarātra are the Vaishnava Sanskrit texts dedicated to worship of Narayana and form part of the Agamas.Unlike Vaikhanasa tradition, the Pancaratric tradition of Agamas prescribe image worship in the place of rituals like Yajnas, mentioned in the Vedas...
, Garga Samhita
Garga Samhita
Garga Samhita is a book written by the sage Garga and deals with the life of Krishna. This Garga Samhita is different from the astrological treatise with the same name Garga Samhita. Only fragments of the astrological text with the name Garga samhita is available; but the whole of the devotional...
and Brahma Samhita
Brahma Samhita
The Brahma Samhita is a Sanskrit Pancaratra text, composed of verses of prayer spoken by Brahma glorifying the supreme The Brahma Samhita is a [[Sanskrit]] [[Pancaratra]] text, composed of verses of prayer spoken by [[Brahma]] glorifying the supreme...
.
While in most of the Bhagavata Purana text, Krishna is presented as the cosmic Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
, the supremely powerful deity under whom all other partial divinities work, in the tenth book of the Purana he is especially portrayed as the supreme person who resides in his abode Goloka.
It describes Goloka as a highest planet or realm (loka) of the Vaikuntha planets for the devotees of Krishna who is known as the protector of cows and hence the latter are found in abundance in Goloka. Also sometimes referred to as Vrindavan
Vrindavan
Vrindavan also known as Vraj is a town in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India...
, it is a land of plenty, rich with natural beauty bearing a resemblance to Garden of Eden
Garden of Eden
The Garden of Eden is in the Bible's Book of Genesis as being the place where the first man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, lived after they were created by God. Literally, the Bible speaks about a garden in Eden...
.
In Goloka Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
resides with Radharani, Krishna's eternal consort, and countless other devotees, wherein he performs his divine play, known as lila. It's believed that souls return to the material world again and again to perfect themselves and go on to Krishna's heaven, Goloka Vrndavana.
Etymology
Goloka means the world of cows. The Sankrit word 'go' can refer to either cows or starStar
A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...
, and loka
Loka
Loka is a Sanskrit word for "world". In Hindu mythology it takes a specific meaning related to cosmology.-Hindu tradition:In the Puranas, and already in the Atharvaveda, there are fourteen worlds, seven higher ones and seven lower ones , viz...
is translated as world or planet.
Gaulokvihari
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
, (vihari is resident of, hence, resident of Gaulok, Gaulokvihari) and Radhika is Radha
Radha
Radha , also called Radhika, Radharani and Radhikarani, is the childhood friend and lover of Krishna in the Bhagavata Purana, and the Gita Govinda of the Vaisnava traditions of Hinduism...
, his consort.
Kṛṣṇaloka structure
All the Vaikuṇṭha planets are like petals of a lotus flower, and the principal part of that lotus, called Kṛṣṇaloka or Goloka Vṛndāvana, is the center of all the Vaikuṇṭhas. Thus the expansions of Kṛṣṇa in various forms, as described herein, as well as His various abodes on the spiritual planets in the spiritual sky, are unlimited. Kṛṣṇaloka is divided into three different portions: Gokula, Mathurā and Dvārakā. As stated in Brahma-saṁhitā (5.43), all the Vaikuṇṭha planets in the spiritual sky (known as Viṣṇuloka) are situated in the planet known as Kṛṣṇaloka, Goloka Vṛndāvana.See also
- Brahma SamhitaBrahma SamhitaThe Brahma Samhita is a Sanskrit Pancaratra text, composed of verses of prayer spoken by Brahma glorifying the supreme The Brahma Samhita is a [[Sanskrit]] [[Pancaratra]] text, composed of verses of prayer spoken by [[Brahma]] glorifying the supreme...
- GovindaGovinda' and ' are names of Krishna, referring to his youthful occupation as a cowherd. He is regarded as the Supreme Godhead in the Vaishnava tradition and also by much of the pan-Hindu tradition...
- NarayanaNarayanaNarayana or Narayan or Naraina is an important Sanskrit name for Vishnu, and in many contemporary vernaculars a common Indian name. Narayana is also identified as the original man, Purusha. The Puranas present divergent views on Narayana...
- Ocean of milkOcean of milkIn Hindu cosmology, the Ocean of Milk is the fifth from the center of the seven oceans that surround loka or directional space and separate it from aloka or non-directional space. It surrounds the continent known as Krauncha. The gods and demons worked together for a millennium to churn the sea...
- Sat-Chit-AnandaSatchitanandaSaccidānanda, Satchidananda, or Sat-cit-ānanda is a compound of three Sanskrit words, Sat , Cit , and Ānanda , meaning Existence , Consciousness, and Bliss respectively...
- Vaikunta planetsVaikuntaVaikuntha , Param Padam , or Paramapadam is the abode of Lord Vishnu. It is believed, in the tradition of Vaishnavites, to be the place of eternal bliss, exclusive to the Lord, His eternal consort, the Goddess Lakshmi, and the three-folded Serpent Sesha Naga, upon whom the Lord, and His Shakti ,...