page_title: Vāsudeva
section_title: Evolution as a deity
hierarchical_section_title: Vāsudeva / Evolution / Evolution as a deity
caption_attribution_description: English: Vasudeva in the Ghosundi Fragment A inscription
context_page_description: Vāsudeva, Vāsudevā, later incorporated as Vāsudeva-Krishna, Krishna-Vāsudeva or simply Krishna, was the son of Vasudeva Anakadundubhi, king of the Vrishnis in the region of Mathura. He was a leading member of the Vrishni heroes, and may well have been an ancient historical rulers in the region of Mathura.
  Vāsudevism initially arose following the decline of the authority of Vedism in India, which occurred during the 8th to 6th century BCE. Vāsudeva then became the object of one of the earliest forms of personal deity worship in India, and is attested from around the 4th century BCE. At that time, Vāsudeva was already considered as a deity, as he appears in Pāṇini's writings in conjunction with Arjuna as an object of worship, since Pāṇini explains that a vāsudevaka is a devotee of Vāsudeva.
  By the end of the 2nd century BCE, Vāsudeva was considered as Devadeva, the "God of Gods", the Supreme Deity, whose emblem was the mythical bird Garuda, as known from the Heliodorus pillar inscription.
context_section_description: The cult of Vāsudeva may have evolved from the worship of a historical figure belonging to the Vrishni clan in the region of Mathura. He is known as a member of the five "Vrishni heroes". 
  It is thought that the hero deity Vāsudeva may have evolved into a Vaishnavite deity through a step-by-step process: 1) deification of the Vrishni heroes, of whom Vāduseva was the leader 2) association with the God Narayana-Vishnu 3) incorporation into the Vyuha concept of successive emanations of the God. In literature, the Vrishni heroes and Vāsudeva are mentioned by Pāṇini in Astadhyayi verse 6.2.34 around the 4th century BCE, while Krishna is referred to as Krishna Varshneya in verse 3.187.51 of the Mahabharata. Epigraphically, the deified status of Vāsudeva is confirmed by his appearance on the coinage of Agathocles of Bactria (190-180 BCE) and by the devotional character of the Heliodorus pillar inscription. Later, the association with Narayana (Vishnu) is confirmed by the Hathibada Ghosundi Inscriptions of the 1st century BCE. It is generally thought that "by the beginning of the Christian era, the cult of Vāsudeva, Vishnu and Narayana amalgamated". By the 2nd century CE, the "avatara concept was in its infancy", and the depiction of the four emanations of Vishnu (the Chatur-vyūha), consisting in the Vrishni heroes including Vāsudeva and minus Samba, starts to become visible in the art of Mathura at the end of the Kushan period.
  The Harivamsa describes intricate relationships between Krishna Vāsudeva, Sankarsana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha that would later form a Vaishnava concept of primary quadrupled expansion, or chatur vyuha.
  Vāsudeva is also associated with the qualities of gentleness and strength.
caption: The name Vāsudevā (𑀯𑀸𑀲𑀼𑀤𑁂𑀯𑀸) in the Brahmi script, in the Ghosundi inscription, 1st century BCE.
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