Shloka 15
Garga Muni Names Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma; the Butter-Thief Pastimes; Yaśodā Sees the Universe in Kṛṣṇa’s Mouth
बहूनि सन्ति नामानि रूपाणि च सुतस्य ते । गुणकर्मानुरूपाणि तान्यहं वेद नो जना: ॥ १५ ॥
bahūni santi nāmāni rūpāṇi ca sutasya te guṇa-karmānurūpāṇi tāny ahaṁ veda no janāḥ
നിന്റെ ഈ പുത്രന് അനേകം നാമങ്ങളും രൂപങ്ങളും ഉണ്ട്; അവ അവന്റെ ദിവ്യഗുണങ്ങളുടെയും ലീലകളുടെയും അനുസാരമാണ്. അവ എനിക്ക് അറിയാം; സാധാരണ ജനങ്ങൾ അറിയുന്നില്ല.
Bahūni: the Lord has many names. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca. As stated in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.33) , the Lord is one, but He has many forms and many names. It was not that because Garga Muni gave the child the name Kṛṣṇa, that was His only name. He has other names, such as Bhaktavatsala, Giridhārī, Govinda and Gopāla. If we analyze the nirukti, or semantic derivation, of the word “Kṛṣṇa,” we find that na signifies that He stops the repetition of birth and death, and kṛṣ means sattārtha, or “existence.” (Kṛṣṇa is the whole of existence.) Also, kṛṣ means “attraction,” and na means ānanda, or “bliss.” Kṛṣṇa is known as Mukunda because He wants to give everyone spiritual, eternal, blissful life. Unfortunately, because of the living entity’s little independence, the living entity wants to “deprogram” the program of Kṛṣṇa. This is the material disease. Nonetheless, because Kṛṣṇa wants to give transcendental bliss to the living entities, He appears in various forms. Therefore He is called Kṛṣṇa. Because Garga Muni was an astrologer, he knew what others did not know. Yet Kṛṣṇa has so many names that even Garga Muni did not know them all. It is to be concluded that Kṛṣṇa, according to His transcendental activities, has many names and many forms.
FAQs
This verse states that Kṛṣṇa possesses many names and many forms, and that these are given according to His qualities and His divine activities (pastimes).
Gargācārya indicates that Kṛṣṇa’s true identities and divine manifestations are understood by enlightened sages through knowledge and devotion, whereas common people cannot recognize His transcendental nature.
Chanting and remembering Kṛṣṇa through His names connected to His qualities (compassion, protection, beauty) helps focus the mind on virtue and devotion, shaping one’s character and daily choices.