TheBhagavata (/ˈbɑːɡəˌvɑːtə/;Sanskrit:भागवत,IAST:Bhāgavata[bʱɑ́ːɡɐʋɐtɐ]) tradition, also calledBhagavatism (/ˌbɑːɡəˈvɑːtɪz(ə)m/), is an ancient religious sect that traced its origin to the region ofMathura.[5] After its syncretism with theBrahmanical tradition ofVishnu, Bhagavatism became a pan-Indian tradition by the second century BCE, according toR.C. Majumdar.[6]
Historically, Bhagavatism corresponds to the development of a popular theistic movement in India, departing from the elitist sacrificial rites ofVedism,[7] and initially focusing on the worship of theVrishni heroVāsudeva in the region ofMathura.[1] It later assimilated into the concept ofNarayana[8] whereKrishna is conceived assvayam bhagavan. According to some historical scholars, worship of Krishna emerged in the 1st century BCE. However,Vaishnava traditionalists place it in the 4th century BCE.[9] Despite the relative silence of the earlierVedic sources, the features of Bhagavatism and the principles of monotheism of Bhagavata school, as described in theBhagavad Gita, are viewed as an example of the belief thatVāsudeva-Krishna is not anavatar of the VedicVishnu, but is the Supreme Being Himself.[10][11]
In the ninth centuryCEBhagavatism was already at least a millennium old and many disparate groups, all following theBhagavata Purana could be found. Various lineages ofGopala worshipers developed into identifiable denominations. However, the unity that exists among these groups in belief and practice has given rise to the general termKrishnaism. Today the faith has a significant following outside of India as well.[13] Many places associated withKrishna such asVrindavan attract millions of pilgrims each year who participate in religious festivals that recreate scenes fromKrishna's life on Earth. Some believe that early Bhagavatism was enriched and transformed with powerful and popular Krishna tradition with a strong "human" element to it.[14]
According toRam Sharan Sharma,Narayana was originally a non-Vedic tribal deity by the name Bhagavata, and his devotees were referred to as the Bhagavatas. Narayana or Bhagavata was viewed as a divine counterpart of the tribal leader. Just as a tribal leader accepted gifts from his kinsfolk and redistributed them, Narayana was believed to do the same—granting shares or good fortune (bhaga) to his followers, who in turn offered him their devotion.[15][16]
By the 2nd century BCE,Vishnu, who was a minor god in the earlierVedic period, merged with Narayana and came to be known as Narayana-Vishnu. In spite of their differences, the two cultures, worshippers, and gods blended and merged together.[15]
It is believed that Bhagavatas borrowed or shared the attribute or titlePurusha of their monotheistic deity from the philosophy ofSamkhya. The philosophy was formulated by the end of the 4th century BCE and as time went other names such asNarayana were applied to the main deity of Krishna-Vāsudeva.[17]
The association of the Sun-birdGaruda with the "Devadeva" ("God of Gods")Vāsudeva in theHeliodorus pillar (113 BCE) suggests that the Bhagavat cult of human deities had already absorbed the Sun-godVishnu, an ancient Vedic deity.[18] Slightly later, theNagari inscription also shows the incorporation of the Brahmanical deityNarayana into the hero-cult of Bhagavatism.[18] Vishnu would much later become prominent in this construct, so that by the middle of the 5th century CE, during theGupta period, the termVaishnava would replace the termBhagavata to describe the followers of this cult, and Vishnu would now be more popular than Vāsudeva.[18] Bhagavatism would introduce the concept of thechatur-vyuhas, in which the four earthly emanations of Narayana were considered to be Vasudeva (Krishna) as the creator,Sankarsana (Balarama) as the preserver,Pradyumna as the destroyer, andAniruddha as the aspect of intellect. The concept of vyuhas would later be supplanted by the concept ofavataras, indicating the transformation of Bhagavatism into Vaishnavism.[19]
Some relate absorption byBrahmanism to be the characteristic of the second stage of the development of the Bhagavata tradition. It is believed that at this stage Krishna-Vāsudeva was identified with the deity of Vishnu, that according to some belonged to the pantheon of Brahmanism.[20]
Rulers onwards fromChandragupta II, Vikramaditya were known as parama Bhagavatas, or BhagavataVaishnavas. TheBhagavata Purana entails the fully developed tenets and philosophy of the Bhagavata cult where Krishna gets fused withVasudeva and transcends VedicVishnu and cosmicHari to be turned into the ultimate object ofbhakti.[21]
With the fall of theGuptas, Bhagavatism had lost its pre-eminence in the north, withVardhana sovereigns such asHarsha adhering to non-Bhagavata creeds.[22] Though the Bhagavata religion still flourished in the north, its stronghold was now not the valley of the Ganges or Central India, but the Tamil country. There, the faith flourished under the strong impetus given by theAlvars, "who by their Tamil songs inculcated Bhakti and Krishna-worship mainly". Bhagavatism had penetrated into the Deccan at least as early as the first century BCE. TheSilappadikaram and the other ancient Tamil poems refer to temples dedicated to Krishna and his brother at Madura, Kaviripaddinam, and other cities. The wide prevalence of Bhagavatism in the far south is also testified to by theBhagavata Purana which says that in the Kali Age, devoted worshippers of Narayana, though rare in some places, are to be found in large numbers in the Dravida country watered by the rivers Tamraparnl, Kritamala, the sacred Kaveri, and the great stream (Periyar) flowing to the west.[23] Yamunacharya, who laid the tenets of theVishishtadvaita philosophy, has his works described as "a somewhat modified and methodical form of the ancient Bhagavata, Pancharatra, or Satvata religion".[24] The Alvars would be among the first catalysts of theBhakti movement, a Hindu revivalist movement that would reintroduce Bhagavata philosophy back to its place of origin.[25]
References toVāsudeva also occur in early Sanskrit literature.Taittiriya Aranyaka (X, i,6) identifies him withNarayana andVishnu.Pāṇini, ca. 4th century BCE, in hisAshtadhyayi explains the word "Vāsudevaka" as aBhakta (devotee) of Vāsudeva. At some stage during the Vedic period, Vāsudeva and Krishna became one deity or three distinct deities Vāsudeva-Krishna, Krishna-Gopala and Narayana, all become identified with Vishnu,[26] and by the time of composition of the redaction ofMahabharata that survives till today.
AGupta period research makes a "clear mention of Vāsudeva as the exclusive object of worship of a group of people", who are referred to asBhagavatas.[27]
According to an opinion of some scholars, in Patanjali's time identification of Krishna with Vāsudeva is an established fact as is surmised from a passage of the Mahabhasya – (jaghana kamsam kila vasudevah).[28] This "supposed earliest phase is thought to have been established from the sixth to the fifth centuries BCE at the time of Pāṇini, who in his Astadhyayi explained the wordvāsudevaka as a bhakta, devotee, of Vāsudeva and it is believed that Bhagavata religion with the worship od Vāsudeva Krishna was at the root of the Vaishnavism in Indian history."[29][30]
Not only was Krsnaism influenced by the identification of Krsna with Vishnu, but also Vaishnavism as a whole was partly transformed and reinvented in the light of the popular and powerful Krishna religion. Bhagavatism may have brought an element of cosmic religion into Krishna worship; Krishna has certainly brought a strongly human element into Bhagavatism. ... The center of Krishna-worship has been for a long time Brajbhumi, the district of Mathura that embraces also Vrindavana, Govardhana, and Gokula, associated with Krishna from the time immemorial. Many millions of Krishnabhaktas visit these places ever year and participate in the numerous festivals that reenact scenes from Krshnas life on Earth
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