Figure in the Hindu festival stories
Vasudeva
Krishna's birth father, a Yadava prince
Also known as Anakadundubhi.
In short
Vasudeva is the birth father of Krishna and husband of Devaki, a prince of the Yadava (Vrishni) clan. Imprisoned by Kansa, he is the one who, on the night of Krishna's birth, carried the newborn in a basket across the flooded Yamuna to safety in Gokul. He is a human father, not the god Vishnu.
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Vasudeva’s story and role
In the Bhagavata Purana, Vasudeva is the son of Shurasena and a noble of the Yadava line. When the sky-voice foretells that Devaki's eighth son will kill Kansa, it is Vasudeva who saves his wife's life by promising to surrender each child to the king. Sharing her imprisonment, he watches Kansa kill their infants, and dutifully hands them over, bound by his word.
On the stormy midnight that Krishna is born, the prison guards fall asleep, the chains loosen and the doors swing open. Divinely instructed, Vasudeva places the baby in a basket and carries him out of Mathura. As he crosses the swollen Yamuna, the river parts or subsides to let him pass, and the serpent Shesha spreads his hoods above the child to shield him from the rain — one of the most depicted scenes in the whole tradition.
Reaching Nanda's home in Gokul, Vasudeva exchanges the newborn Krishna for the infant girl (Yogamaya) just born to Yashoda, and returns to the prison before dawn so the switch goes unnoticed. This act makes Vasudeva the human agent who preserves the avatar's life. He is often confused with 'Vasudeva' as an epithet of Krishna/Vishnu, but here he is Krishna's mortal father, later freed when Krishna slays Kansa.
What Vasudeva represents
Vasudeva symbolises fatherly duty, courage under oppression, and steadfast faith — the devotee who carries the Divine through darkness and danger to safety.
Festivals with Vasudeva
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About Vasudeva
Who is Vasudeva?
Vasudeva is Krishna's biological father, a Yadava prince and the husband of Devaki. In the Bhagavata Purana he carries the newborn Krishna out of Kansa's prison across the Yamuna River to the safety of Gokul.
Is Vasudeva the same as Vishnu?
No. 'Vasudeva' (with a long 'a', Vaasudeva) is also an epithet of Krishna meaning 'son of Vasudeva', which causes confusion. But Vasudeva the father is a mortal Yadava prince, not the god Vishnu.
How did Vasudeva cross the Yamuna with baby Krishna?
According to the Bhagavata Purana, the prison opened on its own and Vasudeva carried Krishna in a basket. The Yamuna receded to let him pass while the serpent Shesha spread its hoods over the child to shield him from the storm.
Why did Vasudeva give Krishna to Nanda and Yashoda?
To protect Krishna from Kansa, who was killing Devaki's children. Vasudeva swapped the newborn Krishna for Yashoda's just-born daughter and returned to prison, so Kansa would not know the eighth child had survived.
What happened to Vasudeva later?
He remained imprisoned until Krishna grew up, returned to Mathura, and killed Kansa. Krishna then freed Vasudeva and Devaki and restored the rightful king, Ugrasena, to the throne.
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