When Dasaratha performed the putrakameshti yaga, in order to beget sons, a divine being emerged from the sacrificial fire, with a golden pot of porridge in his hands. The divine person instructed Dasaratha to give the porridge to his wives. Since Kausalya was the chief queen, Dasaratha gave her half of the contents of the pot. Of the remaining, he gave half to Sumitra. That is, he gave her one-fourth of the contents of the pot. Of the remaining one fourth, he gave one-eighth to Kaikeyi and one eighth to Sumitra. Dasaratha was blessed with four sons, Rama being the eldest. Here we have one king Dasaratha doing tapas for progeny and being blessed with four sons. How is four significant in the context of the Krishna avatara? Vasudeva and Devaki did tapas for a son. So did Nandagopa and Yasoda. So, here we have two sets of parents doing tapas for a child, and all four are blessed with the same child — Krishna, said M.A. Venkatakrishnan, in a discourse.
Whether as Rama or as Krishna, the Lord experienced the problematic life we have on earth. He chose to face problems, and showed how to keep to the dharmic path, in spite of everything. In the Krishna avatara, He was in Devaki’s womb for twelve months. The normal gestation period for a human baby is only ten months. But the Lord lived in the cramped space of a woman’s womb for an extra two months. All this He undertook of His own accord. None of His avataras is due to karma. In the Ramayana also, we find that He chose Dasaratha as His father, before the avatara began. The whole of Vishnu Sahasranama is about Krishna, although individual names are interpreted differently. Bhishma is on his bed of arrows, awaiting death. He says that the highest dharma in the world is Lord Krishna Himself.
