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Linkages between two saviors: Christ and Krishna
Views about the linkage between Krishna and Christ:
Many early Christian theologians noted the extreme similarity between Christianity and other religions such as Hinduism. a henotheistic religion, Mithraism an ancient Pagan religion, etc. Eusebius of Caesarea (circa 283-371 CE) wrote: "The religion of Jesus Christ is neither new nor strange." 1
St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 CE) wrote: "This, in our day, is the Christian religion, not as having been unknown in former times, but as having recently received that name." 2
Some early Christian leaders attributed the similarities between Christianity and earlier religions to a trick of Satan. They felt that Satan had created many crucified saviors, born of virgins, before Jesus in order to discredit Christianity's uniqueness. Others attribute the similarities to coincidence.
Conservative Christians generally believe in the inerrancy of the Bible. Thus, the Gospel of John is absolutely accurate when it presents Jesus Christ as a supernatural being, the Son of God, who was present at the creation of the universe, is the savior of humanity, and who came to earth so that believers "might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (John 10:10 KJV). Any similarity to legends about Krishna are either forgeries, or coincidences. There was no incorporation into the Christian Gospels of legends about the life of Krishna. The points of similarities must have resulted from other influences. There is no Krishna-Christ linkage; the topic is ridiculous; it is not even worth investigating. It is blasphemy to suggest such a connection.
Some skeptics have suggested that Yeshua of Nazareth (a.k.a. Jesus Christ by most Christians) and Krishna, the second person of the Hindu trinity, are the same person. It is rather obvious that that they are not. Jesus appears to have been born in Palestine during the last decade BCE, whereas Krishna is dated many millennia earlier, in India.
Some liberal religious historians have raised the possibility that stories of Jesus' birth, ministry, execution, and resurrection were copied, at least in part, from Krishna's life.
Many liberal Christians feel that a Hindu source for many of the events in Jesus' life is a topic is worth studying. Many non-Christian religious belief systems, including Hinduism, permeated the Mediterranean region in the 1st century CE. There were various male heroes within Egyptian, Greek, Indian, Roman and other pantheons of Gods, whose role was to be saviors to humanity -- much like Jesus. In order to compete with those religions, Christianity would have had to describe Jesus in terms that matched or surpassed the legends and myths of other religions. Otherwise, it would not have survived. The authors of the gospels may well have picked up themes from other sources and added them to their writings in order to make Christianity more credible to a religiously diverse world, most of which worshiped multiple Gods and Goddesses. By isolating and removing such foreign material, we might be able to get a clearer picture of what Jesus taught and how he lived.
If a strong Krishna - Christ link exists, what is left of Christianity?
If one were to delete from the Gospels the events in Jesus' life that seem to originate in Krishna's story, one would end up with a story of:
A very human, itinerant, Jewish, rabbi-healer.
A teacher who largely followed the teachings of Hillel -- a liberal Jewish rabbi from the 1st century BCE.
An observant Jew who had a special relationship with God -- a kinship so close that Jesus referred to God by the familiar term "Abba."
This is very close to the image of Jesus found by many liberal theologians, in their quest for the historical Jesus.
If the events in Jesus' life that appear to come from Krishna were eliminated as invalid, then most of the key Christian beliefs about Jesus would have to be abandoned: his virgin birth, incarnation, sinless life, crucifixion, descent into Hell, resurrection, ascension to heaven. Criteria for salvation, belief in the Trinity, the inerrancy of the Bible, the inspiration of the authors of the Bible by God, etc. would also have to be rejected.
Beliefs about Jesus:
A few skeptics claim that Yeshua of Nazareth was a purely mythical character. A few others believe that he was a real individual who lived in perhaps the 2nd or 3rd century BCE. But there is a near consensus that Yeshua of Nazareth was born in Palestine circa 4 to 7 BCE.
Beliefs about his nature and role differ:
Most Christians believe that he is the Son of God, the second personality in the Trinity. He spent a relatively short period preaching and healing (one year mainly in the Galilee according to the synoptic gospels; three years mainly in Judah according to the Gospel of John). He was executed, resurrected and ascended into heaven. Conservative Christians believe that the normal destination for human beings is eternal punishment in Hell; only a relatively small percentage of people who repent of their sin and trust Jesus as Lord and Savior will escape this fate.
Muslims believe that Jesus was, after Muhammad, the greatest of prophets. Jesus was neither crucified nor resurrected; he ascended bodily into heaven without having first died. They believe that God would not have allowed his prophet to die an ignoble death by crucifixion. Various traditions within Islam hold different beliefs. Two are: that Jesus substituted Judas Iscariot for himself on the cross, or that God intervened and removed Jesus from Roman captivity before the crucifixion took place. They regard God as being single and indivisible. The Christian Trinity of three persons is rejected as the ultimate blasphemy against God.
Jewish Christians circa 30 CE appear to have believed that he was a Jewish reformer, teacher, prophet, and native healer, but not a deity.
In the early Christian movement, Gnostic Christians believed that Jesus was a spirit being, who only appeared to be a person in the flesh.
About Krishna (a.k.a. Chrishna):
Krishna was born, lived and died at least 14 centuries before Yeshua. Estimates of his birth date vary. Some are 1477, 3112, 3600, 5150, and 5771 BCE. 3,4
Hindus believe that whenever profound evil spreads widely throughout the earth, the Supreme Being comes to earth in the form of a human person "in order to uproot vice and to establish virtue so that the earth may get rid of sinners." 5 Lord Krishna was just such an incarnation. "Krishna is the ninth 12 and the complete incarnate of Vishnu, the Godhead of the Hindu Trinity of deities. Of all the Vishnu avatars he is the most popular, and perhaps of all Hindu gods the one closest to the heart of the masses...Krishna was dark and extremely handsome. The word Krishna literally means 'black', and black also connotes mysteriousness...Whether he was a human being or a God-incarnate, there is no gainsaying the fact that he has been ruling the hearts of millions for over three millennia. In the words of Swami Harshananda, 'If a person can affect such a profound impact on the Hindu race affecting its psyche and ethos and all aspects of its life for centuries, he is no less than God' ." 6
He is believed to have died at the advanced age of 125. "In his final days on earth, he taught spiritual wisdom to Uddhava, his friend and disciple, and ascended to his abode after casting off his body, which was shot at by a hunter named Jara." 7
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birth is known as Sri Krishna Janmasthana. He appeared with His brother Balarama in response to the demigods' prayers for protection from the widespread influence of demonic administration on earth. And as the earth became overrun by militaristic activities of these kingly demons, the demigods including the Earth goddess earnestly sought Lord Visnu's protection. Seeing the deteriorating social and political conditions and hearing the prayers of the demigods, the all-compassionate Supreme Lord Sri Krishna decided to descend for the benefit of all. The Supreme Lord descends from time to time in this material world to reestablish the teachings of the Vedas. In His Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krishna promises: "Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion--at that time I descend Myself. To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion, I Myself appear milleniumm after millenium."