Shoor(saini) Maharaja Krishna

"Shuraseno Yadu Shreshthah Sannivasah Suyamuna!"   (Krishna, the  Shoorsaini, the chief among the Yadus,  dwells in a beatific abode by the blessed Yamuna!)   -Visnu Sahasranama, Verse 88   It is superfluous to write here anything about Sri Krishna because so much is already written about him. Here we just need to mention  few facts about him. He was the grandson of Maharaja Shoorsen, the founder of Saini dynasty. For this reason he is described as a Shoorsaini (Skt. Surasena) throughout the Puranic canon.    Seal of Dwaraka (left) discovered from under sea excavations at Dwarka. This seal is described in Harivamsa Purana, indicating Mahbharata story of Krishna as probably historical. According to the Puranic source, each citizen of Dwaraka during Krishna's reign was requred to carry this 'mudra' or seal.   A lot of  people regard Krishna as an incarnation of God. We acknowledge and respect their beliefs. But in this journal we honor him more as a beloved and revered Saini ancestor, known in the  folk tradition as "Jathera",  rather than as a popularly worshipped deity. The  Sainis, Hindu or Sikh, do not need any other justification to honor him and to express  their deep affection for him.  Sainis have a long tradition of building shrines for their ancestors .  Needless to say, Shoorsaini Sri Krishna is among their most revered and beloved "Jatheras".   Without affirming or discounting the claims of Krishna's  divinity, which is an issue on which this journal holds no particular  opinion, we are here primarily interested in discussing  the human aspect of his personality.   Here we draw reader's attention to the issue of Krishna's historicity which is explored in the documentaries given below. A great credit is due to the makers of these informative documentaries.