BHAGAVATA PURANA

Of all Hindu works, the Bhagavata Purana ranks next to the Bhagavad Gita in popularity.  The legendary Maharshi Veda Vyasa, author of the Mahbharata, is accredited with the composition of it.

The Bhagavata is a complex synthesis of numerous streams of Hindu thought in many literary forms, from the purest Bhakti hymns to a variety of stories.  There are retellings of ancient myths, with much emotion, some eroticism, and a good mixture of anthropomorphism.  The doctrine of lila, divine sportive play, explains the creation.

Composed in the ninth or tenth century A.D., the Bhagavata is written in a lofty and difficult form of Sanskrit.  There are twelve sections divided into 320 chapters.  The tenth section of ninety chapters tells the story of Lord Krishna.

The view of Krishna here is considerably different from that of the Bhagavad Gita.  In the Bhagavata, we see Krishna in a more human and semi-divine aspect rather than fully divine.  He is seen partaking in ordinary life, with special emphasis on his childhood and youth.