Jambavati Parinayam.

The marriage of Jambavati and Satyabhama to Krishna is closely linked with the story of Syamantaka, the precious jewel, which has its mention in the Vishnu Purana and the Bhagavata Purana. The precious jewel originally belonged to the Sun god Surya. Surya pleased with his devotee – the Yadava nobleman, Satrajit, gave him the dazzling diamond as a gift. When Satrajit returned to the capital city of Dwarka with the jewel, people mistook him for Surya because of his dazzling glory. Krishna, impressed by the lustrous stone, asked him to present the jewel to Ugrasena, Mathura's king and Krishna's grandfather, but Satrajit did not comply.

Subsequently, Satrajit presented Syamantaka to his brother Prasena, who was a counselor. Prasena, who wore the jewel often, was attacked by a lion one day while hunting in the forest. He gets killed in a fierce battle and the lion flees with the jewel. The lion fails to retain the jewel though, as shortly after the battle, it enters Jambavan's mountain cave adobe, only to get killed. Jambavan, who seized the glittering jewel from the clutches of the lion gives it to his young son to play with.

Back in Dwarka, following the disappearance of Prasena, it was rumoured that Krishna, who had an eye on the Syamantaka jewel, had Prasena murdered and stolen the jewel. Krishna, who was furious with this false allegation, went out with other Yadavas in search of Prasena to establish his innocence by finding the jewel. He followed the trail that Prasena had taken and discovered the corpses of Prasena. He then followed the trail of the lion and reached the cave, where the dead lion was lying. Krishna told his fellow Yadavas to wait outside, while he entered the cave alone. Inside he saw a little child playing with the priceless jewel. As Krishna approached Jambavan's son, the child's nanny cried aloud, alerting Jambavan. The two then engaged in a furious combat for 27–28 days (as per Bhagavata Purana) or 21 days (as per Vishnu Purana). As Jambavan gradually grew tired, he realised that Krishna was none other his benefactor Rama from the Treta yuga. In gratitude and devotion to Krishna who spared his life, Jambavan gave up his fight and returned the jewel to Krishna. Jambavan offered his maiden daughter Jambavati in marriage to Krishna along with the Syamantaka jewel. Krishna accepted the proposal and married Jambavati. They then moved to Dwarka.

Meanwhile, Yadavas who accompanied Krishna to the cave had returned to the kingdom presuming Krishna as dead. Every member of the royal family had assembled to mourn his death. After returning to Dwarka, Krishna narrated the story of the recovery of the jewel and his marriage to Jambavati. He then returned the jewel to Satrajit in the presence of Ugrasena. Satrajit felt shy and ashamed to receive it as he had realised his error of judgement and his greediness. He then offered his daughter Satyabhama in marriage to Krishna along with the precious jewel. Krishna married Satyabhama, but refused the gem.

Jambavati  is one Ashtabharya, the ninth principal queen-consorts of Hindu god Krishna, an avatar of the god Vishnu and the king of Dwarka – in the Dwapara Yuga (epoch). While she was married second to Krishna, Jambavati was fourth in the order of importance after Rukmini and Satyabhama, whom Krishna married fourth. She was the only daughter of the bear-Jambavatiking Jambavan. Krishna married her, when he defeated Jambavan to retrieve the stolen Syamantaka jewel.

In puranic literature, Jambavati has been an epic character in Bhagavata Purana, Mahabharata, Harivamsa and Vishnu Purana. The legend of the fight between Jambavan and Krishna's over the Syamantaka jewel has been prominently featured. Even the great ruler of the kingdom of Vijayanagara, Krishnadevaraya, composed a drama called the Jambava Kalyanam. Ekaramantha wrote a poem with the theme Jambavati Parinayam (meaning: Jambavati's marriage).