Srimad Bhagavatam — Navama Skandha, Shloka 53
The Yadu–Vṛṣṇi–Andhaka Genealogies and the Purpose of Kṛṣṇa’s Advent
प्रवरश्रुतमुख्यांश्च साक्षाद् धर्मो वसूनिव । वसुदेवस्तु देवक्यामष्ट पुत्रानजीजनत् ॥ ५३ ॥ कीर्तिमन्तं सुषेणं च भद्रसेनमुदारधी: । ऋजुं सम्मर्दनं भद्रं सङ्कर्षणमहीश्वरम् ॥ ५४ ॥ अष्टमस्तु तयोरासीत् स्वयमेव हरि: किल । सुभद्रा च महाभागा तव राजन् पितामही ॥ ५५ ॥
pravara-śruta-mukhyāṁś ca sākṣād dharmo vasūn iva vasudevas tu devakyām aṣṭa putrān ajījanat
Les huit fils de Sahadevā, tels Pravara et Śruta, étaient la manifestation même des huit Vasus dans les cieux. Et par le sein de Devakī, Vasudeva engendra huit fils d’éminentes qualités : Kīrtimān, Suṣeṇa, Bhadrasena, Ṛju, Sammardana, Bhadra et Saṅkarṣaṇa, le Souverain, incarnation serpentine. Le huitième était Hari Lui-même — Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Et l’unique fille, Subhadrā, ô roi, fut ta grand-mère.
The fifty-fifth verse says, svayam eva hariḥ kila, indicating that Kṛṣṇa, the eighth son of Devakī, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Kṛṣṇa is not an incarnation. Although there is no difference between the Supreme Personality of Godhead Hari and His incarnation, Kṛṣṇa is the original Supreme Person, the complete Godhead. Incarnations exhibit only a certain percentage of the potencies of Godhead; the complete Godhead is Kṛṣṇa Himself, who appeared as the eighth son of Devakī.
FAQs
This verse states that Vasudeva, in Devakī, begot eight sons—setting the stage for the appearance of Lord Hari among them.
Śukadeva highlights the excellence and celebrated nature of the lineage by likening them to the Vasus—divine beings associated with order and righteousness.
It helps a seeker see life through dharma and devotion—remembering that divine purpose can manifest through family, duty, and sacred responsibility.