Krishna

=== Childhood and youth ===
The legends of Krishna's childhood and youth describe him as a cow-herder, a mischievous boy whose pranks earn him the nickname ''Makhan Chor'' (butter thief), and a protector who steals the hearts of the people in both Gokul and Vrindavana. The texts state, for example, that Krishna lifts the [[Govardhana hill]] to protect the inhabitants of Vrindavana from [[Sāṁvartaka|devastating rains and floods]].<ref name="MW">{{cite book|author = Lynne Gibson|title = Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions|publisher = Merriam-Webster|year = 1999|page = 503}}</ref>

[[File:Krishna and Balarama Studying with the Brahman Sandipani (1525-1550 CE).jpg|thumb|left|''Krishna and [[Balarama]] Studying with the Brahman [[Sandipani]]'' (''[[Bhagavata Purana]]'', 1525–1550 CE print).]]
Other legends describe him as an enchanter and playful lover of the gopis (milkmaids) of Vrindavana, especially [[Radha]]. These metaphor-filled love stories are known as the ''[[Rasa lila]]'' and were romanticized in the poetry of [[Jayadeva]], author of the [[Gita Govinda]]. They are also central to the development of the Krishna [[bhakti]] traditions worshiping [[Radha Krishna]].<ref>{{cite book|author = Schweig, G. M.|year = 2005|title = Dance of divine love: The Rasa Lila of Krishna from the Bhagavata Purana, India's classic sacred love story.|publisher = [[Princeton University Press]], Princeton, NJ; Oxford|isbn = 978-0-691-11446-0}}</ref>

Krishna's childhood illustrates the Hindu concept of ''Lila'', playing for fun and enjoyment and not for sport or gain. His interaction with the gopis at the rasa dance or [[Rasa-lila]] is an example. Krishna plays his flute and the gopis come immediately, from whatever they were doing, to the banks of the [[Yamuna River]] and join him in singing and dancing. Even those who could not physically be there join him through meditation. He is the spiritual essence and the love-eternal in existence, the gopis metaphorically represent the ''[[prakṛti]]'' matter and the impermanent body.<ref name="Largen">{{cite book|author=Largen|first=Kristin Johnston|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D7_gveSP6-sC|title=God at Play: Seeing God Through the Lens of the Young Krishna|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|year=2011|isbn=978-1608330188|location=India|pages=|oclc=1030901369}}</ref>{{rp|256}}

This ''Lila'' is a constant theme in the legends of Krishna's childhood and youth. Even when he is battling with a serpent to protect others, he is described in Hindu texts as if he were playing a game.<ref name=Largen />{{rp|255}} This quality of playfulness in Krishna is celebrated during festivals as Rasa-Lila and [[Janmashtami]], where Hindus in some regions such as [[Maharashtra]] playfully mimic his legends, such as by making human gymnastic pyramids to break open ''handis'' (clay pots) hung high in the air to "steal" butter or buttermilk, spilling it all over the group.<ref name=Largen />{{rp|253–261}}