The Krishna Karnamrita is a Sanskrit devotional work by the poet Vilvamangala of Kerala. Dated between the period of the ninth to the fifteenth century CE, the work eulogises the Hindu deity Krishna.

Etymology

Kṛṣṇakarṇāmṛtam means 'nectar to the ears of Krishna'.

Legend

According to legend, Bilvamangala is regarded to have lavished all of his time and attention on a harlot called Cintamani, being unable to focus his energy on anything else. Cintamani urged Bilvamangala to devote himself to Krishna so that he would attain eternal joy, for which she is hailed as his guru in the work. Bilvamangala travelled to Vrindavana, where he spent his final days and worked on the composition of the text. Krishna himself is regarded to have listened to the poems of Bilvamangala.

Description

The work exists in two recensions. The southern and western manuscripts of the work feature three āśvāsas (sections) comprising a hundred verses each, whereas the eastern manuscripts of Bengal feature a single section of one hundred and twelve verses. The hymns of the work describe the pastimes of the deity Krishna in Vrindavana, expressing the rasas associated with bhakti (devotion) towards him. Most of the verses describe the ardent desire of the soul to be reunited with the Ultimate Reality represented by the deity. The text was influential for Bengali Vaishnavism due to its introduction to the region by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who encountered the work during his journey to the south.

Hymn

The second verse of the work extols the attributes of Krishna: "Behold the object which is showered by wish-tree blossoms falling from the finger tips of heavenly maidens and which, although nirvana calm, produces a flood of sound from the famed flute. It is the most high in the form of a boy who gives final release into the hands of the suppliant as he did to the thousands of encircling, dancing milkmaids whose hold on the garment wrapped around them was constantly being loosened."