Christ and Krishna

They approach one another with cool flowers of language,
move their mouths in the gorgeous recitation of beauty;

speak with the unpenned poetry of scripture,
the memory behind words of the blue walks of heaven.

. . . These princes of devotion, co-creators of love,
make themselves love on the plane of their skin,

blurring their words to a once-fused language,
their forms to one sinuous glistening of delight. . . .

– From "The Love Between Krishna and Jesus"
by Brian Day

Over at Kittredge Cherry’s always insightful Jesus in Love blog, the birthday of the Hindu deity Krishna is celebrated by imagining what might happen if Christ and Krishna were to meet. Ponders Kittredge: “They are two of the greatest teachers of love that the world has ever known. Would they speak of love, even make love?”

Following is more of Kittridge’s provocative reflection.

Those who value love, sexuality and interfaith dialogue may find enlightenment by imagining an erotic encounter between Jesus and Krishna.

Like Christ, Krishna is a savior who taught love. Both are believed to be divinely conceived by God and a human woman, making them human AND divine. Each had a carpenter as his adoptive father. Jesus called himself a shepherd and Krishna herded cattle, but both healed the sick, worked miracles and forgave enemies.

One difference between the two is that Jesus is considered celibate in Christian tradition, while Krishna is a fantastic lover who is “all-attractive” to men as well as women. Legends glorify Krishna’s many amorous encounters with all kinds of admirers: female and male, milkmaids and cowboys, human and divine.

. . . The idea of a gay Jesus shocks and offends some traditional Christians, but he can be liberating for LGBT people and our allies. The bisexual Krishna may serve the same purpose among Hindus. People throughout history have pictured Jesus looking like one of them: black Jesus in Africa, white Jesus in the West, and Jesus who looks Asian or Latin American in those parts of the world. It’s OK to add queer Christ to the mix because he taught love for all and embodied God’s wildly inclusive love for everyone, including sexual minorities. Gay Jesus images are needed now because conservatives are using religious rhetoric to justify discrimination against queer people.

If Jesus and Krishna met, would there be conflict or kisses?

Kittredge concludes her post (and offers an answer to the above question) by sharing a beautiful poem by Brian Day entitled “The Love Between Krishna and Jesus.” Part of this poem accompanies this post’s opening image. To read this poem in its entirety, visit Kittredge’s blog, here.


See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
The Sexuality of Jesus
Why Jesus is My Man
Jesus Was a Sissy
Sometimes I Wonder . . .
“More Lovely Than the Dawn”: God as Divine Lover
God is Love
Lover Of Us All

Image: Artist unknown.