Devotee

 A list of great devotees of Lord Krishna across different traditions and time periods:

1. Ancient Devotees (Puranic Era)

Prahlada – The child devotee of Vishnu, whose faith remained unshaken despite his father Hiranyakashipu’s tyranny.

Dhruva – A young prince who performed intense penance and was granted a permanent celestial abode by Vishnu.

Gajendra – The elephant king who surrendered to Vishnu and was rescued from a crocodile.

Akrura – A great devotee who played a key role in bringing Krishna from Vrindavan to Mathura.

Uddhava – Krishna’s close friend and disciple, known for his deep wisdom and devotion.

Rukmini – Krishna’s principal queen, who saw him as her divine Lord even before marriage.

Satyabhama – Another of Krishna’s queens, known for her devotion and pride, later surrendered completely to Krishna.

Sudama – Krishna’s childhood friend and a great devotee who was blessed abundantly by Krishna despite offering just a handful of beaten rice.

Radha – The epitome of pure love and devotion, eternally united with Krishna in divine love.

The Gopis of Vrindavan – The cowherd women whose love for Krishna transcended worldly attachments.

The Pandavas – Especially Arjuna, who received the Bhagavad Gita from Krishna.

Draupadi – Krishna’s sister-like devotee, whom he saved multiple times, including during her humiliation in the Kaurava court.

Vidura – A wise minister in the Kuru court who saw Krishna as the Supreme Lord.

Shabari – A devotee of Lord Rama but equally revered for her unwavering faith in Vishnu’s incarnations.

2. Devotees from the Bhakti Movement (14th–17th Century CE)

Meera Bai (1498–1547) – A Rajput princess whose songs and poems express her deep love for Krishna.

Sant Tukaram (1608–1649) – A great saint from Maharashtra who sang Abhanga bhajans in praise of Vithoba (Krishna).

Sant Eknath (1533–1599) – A Marathi saint and poet who spread Krishna bhakti through simple verses.

Ramdas Bodana (16th century) – A Gujarati saint devoted to Krishna, a contemporary of Meera Bai.

Surdas (1478–1583) – A blind poet-saint who composed Sur Sagar, filled with devotional songs on Krishna.

Tulsidas (1532–1623) – Though a devotee of Rama, he revered Krishna and composed hymns on him.

Kabir (1440–1518) – A mystic poet whose works highlight Krishna as the Supreme Reality.

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534) – The founder of the Gaudiya Vaishnavism tradition, who spread Krishna consciousness through kirtans.

Namdev (1270–1350) – A Maharashtrian saint known for his compositions on Krishna.

Jnaneshwar (1275–1296) – A Marathi saint whose Jnaneshwari contains deep devotion to Krishna.

Jayadeva (12th century) – The author of Gita Govinda, which beautifully describes Krishna’s divine love.

3. Devotees from South India

The Alvars (6th–9th century CE) – Twelve Tamil poet-saints devoted to Vishnu/Krishna:

Periyalvar – Who saw Krishna as his divine child.

Andal – The only female Alvar, who wished to marry Krishna and composed Tiruppavai.

Nammalvar – His verses describe Krishna’s divine leelas in detail.

Madhurakavi Alvar, Kulasekhara Alvar, Thondaradippodi Alvar, Tirumangai Alvar, etc.p

Annamacharya (1408–1503) – A composer of thousands of kirtans on Lord Venkateswara (a form of Krishna).

Purandara Dasa (1484–1564) – A Haridasa saint who composed bhajans on Krishna in Kannada.

Kanakadasa (1509–1609) – A disciple of Vyasaraya and a devotee of Krishna (Udupi Krishna temple).

Vyasaraja (1447–1539) – A great Madhva saint and guru of Purandara Dasa.

4. Devotees from Other Traditions

Vallabhacharya (1479–1531) – The founder of Pushti Marg, which emphasizes Krishna’s divine grace.

Vitthalanatha (1516–1588) – Vallabhacharya’s son, who continued the Krishna bhakti movement.

Raskhan (16th century) – A Muslim poet who became an ardent devotee of Krishna.

Haridas Swami (15th century) – A devotee who initiated the famous Haridasi tradition of Krishna bhakti.

Narottama Dasa Thakur (16th century) – A great Gaudiya Vaishnava saint.

Bilvamangala Thakura (11th century) – The author of Krishna Karnamrita, filled with krishnas glories.