Parashakti Vidya Gurukul

Did you know ?
Why is Lord Venkateswara called Govinda?
The term “Gōvinda” has multiple meanings. The most common one means “the protector of cows”.

When Indra’s ahaṃ increased and he was mad that he was not being worshipped, he created immense rain over the village of Vṛndāvana. The area started to flood and people were in need of shelter. So, all of them went to Mount Gōvardhana and wished for sanctuary. Then, little Kṛṣṇa picked up the whole Gōvardhana Parvata (which was much taller in Dvāpara Yuga than it is now) with only his pinky finger. All the villagers and cows went under the mountain and stayed there for seven days straight listening to Kṛṣṇa’s flute. When Indra’s ahaṃkāra was broken, he stopped the rain and apologized to Kṛṣṇa. Dēvī Kāmadhēnu, a form of Lalitā and mother of all cows, appeared and expressed her anger towards Indra since he was given the responsibility to protect cows, her children, on Earth. Then, she appointed Kṛṣṇa the new protector of those cows and called him “Gōvinda”.

Another tale regarding this name is that it means “protector of the Earth” since another meaning of the term “gōvu” is “Earth”. He came on Earth in this Kaliyuga to save Bhūdēvī by blessing all devotees.

Since he provides the power of speech (gō), he is called “Gōvinda”.

Once, Vēṅkaṭēśvara went to a Ṛṣi Agastya’s hut and asked for a few cows. The sage said that for gōdāna (the donation of a cow), one’s consort would be needed. Even though it was Śrī Viṣṇu himself, he was still required to bring his consort. The next day, Śrīnivāsa brought Padmāvatī, his wife, to the hut thought the sage was gone and instead, his disciple was there. His disciple didn’t know who Śrīnivāsa was so he sent them away because his ācārya Agastya was not present. As they were leaving, the Agastya Muni saw them going and he ran after them saying “Gōvu Inda” (meaning: take the cow) multiple times. After a while, those phrases sounded together as “Gōvinda” and the couple turned back and smiled at Agastya as their līlā was complete.

Gōvinda Gōvinda!🙏🏻

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