The Night Krishna Was Born

A storm, a locked prison, a baby carried across a river. His story starts like no one else's.

Locked in a Mathura prison by her cruel brother Kamsa, Devaki gives birth to her eighth child on a thunder-filled midnight. The doors fly open, the guards fall asleep, and Vasudeva carries baby Krishna across the rising Yamuna to safety in Gokul. Nobody else has a story that begins quite like this.

The Cell with the Iron Door

Long ago, in the kingdom of Mathura, there was a prison cell with a heavy iron door. Inside the cell, a young woman named Devaki sat on the cold stone floor. Her husband, Vasudeva, sat beside her. They had been locked in this cell for years.

It was night. Outside, the wind was beginning to howl. A few drops of rain had started to hit the small window high up on the wall.

Devaki was about to have a baby. Her eighth one.

She was scared. She had a good reason to be scared.

The Voice from the Sky

To understand why, you have to know about Devaki's brother. His name was Kamsa. And he was the worst kind of king.

Kamsa was Devaki's own brother, but he was cruel and full of anger. The day Devaki got married to Vasudeva, Kamsa himself drove their wedding chariot through the streets of Mathura. He looked very happy.

Then, halfway down the road, a strange thing happened. A voice came from the sky. Nobody could see who was speaking. But everyone could hear.

The voice said something terrifying.

"Kamsa," it said. "The eighth child of this sister you are driving today will be the one who kills you."

Kamsa froze. He looked at Devaki. His own little sister. The girl he had grown up with. And his face changed.

In one second, his sword was at her throat.

Vasudeva fell to his knees. He begged. He promised. "If you spare my Devaki," he said, "I myself will bring you every baby we have. Every single one. You can do what you want with them. But please, do not hurt her."

Kamsa thought about it. He pulled the sword back. But he didn't trust them. So he locked Devaki and Vasudeva in a prison cell with a heavy iron door, and he set big guards outside, day and night.