The film Zeitgeist begins with list of pagan gods such Horus, Attis, Krishna, Dionysus and Mithra. It goes through the list of details associated with Jesus Christ and then applies them to these pagan gods in order to create the impression that Christianity is only a copycat religion of paganism. — So far, the claims made by Peter Joseph (the film producer) about the alleged parallels with Horus turned out to be completely incorrect and irrelevant, while the ones about Attis are only marginally better. However, it should be kept in mind that just because the claims made about these two have turned out to be false, weak and unconvincing, that doesn’t necessarily falsify the rest of the claims that are made in Zeitgeist, so it is necessary to continue checking the facts.
The next deity that Zeitgeist focuses on is Krishna, a Hindu god. The film quickly summarizes his life:
Krishna, of India, born of the virgin Devaki with a star in the east signaling his coming, performed miracles with his disciples, and upon his death was resurrected.
According to the story of Krishna’s birth, the princess Devaki married Vasudeva. Soon after the wedding, Kamsa, the king of Mathura, Devaki’s brother, heard a voice which warned him that the eighth child of his sister would eventually kill him. When he heard that, he imprisoned both his sister and her husband. Whenever the couple had a child, Kamsa would be informed by his servants, and each newborn would be killed by smashing it’s head against the prison wall.
By the ninth year of their marriage, Devaki was pregnant with her eighth child, and when her child was born, Vasudeva was awakened and heard a voice telling him to take the child and escape to the home of a friend named Nand, who had just had a daughter with his wife Yashoda, and swap the children. When Vasudeva placed Krishna in a basket, the prison door swung open and he escaped.
When he finally arrived at Nand’s home, Vasudeva found Yashoda awake who willingly gave him her daughter and took his son. When he returned to the prison, he placed the newborn girl by his wife who, when she was awakened, didn’t know the difference. When the prison guards realized that the eighth child was finally born, they informed their master. Having been informed that the child was female, he determined to kill it, no matter it’s gender. When he arrived at the cell, Devaki pleaded with her brother to have mercy, saying that since the child was only a little girl, that the prophecy had been disproven.
Paying no heed to her, Kamsa hurled the child against a wall but failed to kill her. She then appeared to him as the goddess Druga and told him that the one who he wished to destroy was elsewhere, safe and alive. Druga then told him that even at that moment she could single handedly destroy him herself, but that his life must end at the proper time.
Knowing this story of Krishna’s birth, the most obvious error Zeitgeist makes is the claim that Devaki was a virgin when he was born. The idea of her virginity logically was a ship long since sailed. Also, I can find no Hindu or encyclopedic reference to a “star in the east” which announced his birth, and apparently, no Hindu scholar seems to know about it.
In Hindu mythology, it is true that Krishna performed miracles, but so what? — Miracles are very generic and are only to be expected in legends and religious literature of any deity. This shows no relevant relationship with Jesus.
Also, as for the death and resurrection of Krishna, it would be a massive streatch to say that it is similar to that of Jesus. . . The circumstances under which Krishna died were far different. According to the Hindu writings in the Mahabharata, he was accidentally shot and killed by a hunter that mistook him for a deer:
The hunter, mistaking Keshava [or Krishna], who was stretched on the earth in high Yoga, for a deer, pierced him at the heel with a shaft and quickly came to that spot for capturing his prey. Coming up, Jara beheld a man dressed in yellow robes, rapt in Yoga and endued with many arms. Regarding himself an offender, and filled with fear, he touched the feet of Keshava. The high-souled one comforted him and then ascended upwards, filling the entire welkin with splendour. (Mahabharata 16: 4)
Krishna also was not resurrected in the sense that Jesus was, with a body of flesh and blood (Luke 24: 39). On the contrary, he left his body behind when he passed on.
A look at the facts shows that Krishna and Jesus are not similar enough to claim that one cause the other. The intentions of Peter Joseph, the maker of Zeitgeist, are now becoming clearer: “To hell with academic correctness! We have our agenda and we are going to advance it even if it means distorting the facts.”
References and Recommended Links:
Story of the Birth of Lord Krishna, from www.tell-a-tale.com
- Janmastami is the celebration of the birth of Krishna which falls between the months of August and September. One estimated date places his birth on June 18th, 3229 B.C. Though Zeitgeist doesn’t claim that he was born on December 25th, I think it’s inevitable that at least some Christ-Mythicists will attempt it.
Krishna, The Encyclopedia Britannica
Mahabharata 16:4, available at www.sacred-texts.com
Krishna, The New World Encyclopedia
Krishna and Jesus, and Are Jesus and Krishna Parallels? by James Patrick Holding of Tekton Education and Apologetics Ministries
Da Pacem Domine 