Sahasranama position 35 of the 1,072 names

Krishna

कृष्णा

Kṛṣṇā

What Krishna means

Krishna is name 35 in the Adya Mahakali Sahasranama, the 1,072-name devotional text to Maa Kali. The all-attractive Dark One who draws all creation back unto herself.

Also spelled

  • Krsna
  • Source transliteration: KRIISHHNA

Sanskrit names travel into English in several romanizations. This page keeps the common spelling, the IAST form, and the source transliteration together so the same name is discoverable under each spelling readers use.

Meaning and elaboration

Meaning: The all-attractive Dark One who draws all creation back unto herself.

Elaboration

The name Kriishhna comes from the Sanskrit root "krishh," meaning "to draw," "to attract," or "to pull toward oneself." It also carries the sense of darkness or blackness, which naturally aligns with Kali's dark and all-encompassing form. Though this name is most widely associated with Vishnu's avatara, it is also applied to Kali to reveal her irresistible cosmic magnetism and her boundless dark nature.

The Cosmic Magnet As Kriishhna, Kali is the supreme attractive force within the universe. She draws all beings, all movements, and finally all consciousness back into her primordial essence. This attraction is not merely physical. It is spiritual and absolute, pulling the individual soul toward reunion with the Divine. In this form she is the great pull of the Void, the final attractor into which all existence returns.

All-Attractive Darkness Her darkness here does not signify ignorance. It signifies infinitude, mystery, and the ungraspable vastness of the Absolute. Just as the night sky appears dark while holding countless stars within it, Kali's darkness reveals her limitless and pre-cosmic nature. In that darkness, all forms, names, and colors are gathered into an undivided unity beyond distinction.

The Dance of Creation and Dissolution The attractive power of Kriishhna Kali governs the full cycle of creation (srishti), sustenance (sthiti), and dissolution (samhara). From herself she draws forth creation, by her energy she sustains it, and into herself she withdraws it again. In this way the whole movement of existence becomes part of her divine play (Lila). For the devotee, meditation on Kriishhna Kali reveals the hidden unity beneath the world's many forms and deepens the understanding that all existence rests in her alone.

Text and sources

The name list follows the Adya Mahakali Sahasranama as compiled for this project. The English meaning and elaboration are interpretive notes for devotional study, not a translation of a single critical edition.

Read the editorial method and source notes →

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