Krishna’s jnana mudra

The specific teaching of the Bhagavata Purana is to show that Bhakti and selfless devotion to the Lord is the highest destiny for the jivatma. This becomes most explicit in Krishna avatar through the life and teachings of Krishna, pointed out Sri R. Krishnamurthy Sastrigal in a discourse. Krishna is acclaimed as the Jagadguru for His exposition of the profound philosophy of the Upanishads in simple and direct manner to appeal even to the common man. To those who seek surrender at His feet, He is the wish-yielding Parijatha tree. But He not merely grants their wishes pertaining to worldly attainments but also leads them to the ultimate goal.

The image of Krishna with whip in His hand which is used to drive the cows in Brindavan or the chariot for Arjuna during the Mahabharata war is seen as the jnana mudra or chin mudra by which He propels every jivatma to seek salvation from samsara. The flute He holds and the divine music He plays is also symbolic of His unique method to turn people towards the path of bhakti from their ignorance that ties them down to samsara.

All His childhood leelas carry a deeper import. Right from His birth that is described with wonder by Suka, He assumes a variety of roles and also faces many challenges. By dealing with all these with great élan He shows mankind that one should learn to accept joy and sorrow with equanimity. His penchant for stealing butter indicates His special love for His devotees with pure mind and heart whom He wishes to possess. Just as butter does not associate with the butter milk in which it is placed, His devotees are steeped in Krishna Bhakti and do not get affected by samsara. Above all, He is very compassionate to all and gives moksha even to His enemies such as Putana, Aghasura, Sisupala, and so on.