Today is Janmashtami—a midnight memory that India has refused to forget for over two millennia. It marks the birth of Krishna, the eighth avatar of Vishnu, born not in a palace but in a prison, smuggled across the Yamuna in a storm while his uncle Kansa plotted murder in Mathura. The story is old, but not stale. Its blueprint lies in the Puranas—the Bhagavata and the Harivamsa—but its afterlife lives in every bhajan, Dahi Handi pyramid, classroom skit and sleepy-eyed midnight arati. Krishna isn’t just butter-thief and flute-player; he’s strategist, moral dissenter, and the only god who argues back. Janmashtami celebrates not just a divine birth but the idea that when injustice becomes law, God arrives as disruption. The festival teaches courage over convenience, joy over fear, and that sometimes, truth arrives dressed in mischief. If you think you know your Krishna—his leelas, his teachings, his hidden footprints across temples and texts—here’s your chance to test it. Below is a 20-question MCQ quiz designed specially for students: Sharp, classroom-ready, and far from predictable. Ready to separate pop devotion from deep recall? Let the challenge begin.
- Krishna’s birth is traditionally linked with which lunar asterism (nakshatra)?
A) Krittika
B) Rohini
C) Mrigashira D) Bharani - Vasudeva carried the newborn Krishna across which river on a stormy night?
A) Ganga
B) Godavari
C) Narmada
D) Yamuna - Before subduing the serpent Kaliya, Krishna is said to have leapt into the waters from which tree?
A) Banyan
B) Kadamba
C) Neem
D) Peepal - The epithet “Damodara” most directly refers to…
A) Slayer of Shishupala
B) Lord of Dwarka
C) One bound by a rope around the waist
D) Player of the flute - Which conch did Krishna blow at Kurukshetra?
A) Devadatta
B) Paundra
C) Panchajanya
D) Anantavijaya - The most detailed classical account of Krishna’s childhood pastimes in Vraja appears in…
A) Mahabharata, Udyoga Parva
B) Vishnu Purana
C) Harivamsa
D) Bhagavata Purana, Canto 10 - A famed 2nd-century BCE pillar at Besnagar (Vidisha) bears a Greek ambassador’s dedication to Vāsudeva. It is called the…
A) Ashokan lion pillar
B) Heliodorus (Garuda) pillar
C) Hathigumpha inscription
D) Iron pillar - Manipuri Rasalila was codified as a classical court art under which 18th-century ruler?
A) Maharaja Ranjit Singh
B) King Bhagyachandra
C) Chandra Manikya
D) Jai Singh II - Śrinathji, the child-Krishna of Nathdwara, is central to which Vaishnava tradition?
A) Gaudiya Vaishnavism
B) Pushtimarg (Śuddhādvaita)
C) Smartism
D) Shaivism - Govardhan parikrama is popularly described as “7 kos.” About how many kilometres is that?
A) 9 km
B) 14 km
C) ~21 km
D) 38 km - “Chappan bhog” (56 offerings), often linked to Janmashtami/Annakut, is popularly explained as…
A) 7 nights of rasa × 8 gopis
B) 8 daily meals × 7 days Krishna held the hill
C) 56 village shrines
D) 56 verses of a hymn - Where did Krishna study under Guru Sandipani?
A) Takshashila
B) Ujjain
C) Kashi
D) Kurukshetra - After leaving Mathura, Krishna’s capital is traditionally associated with…
A) Ayodhya
B) Dwarka
C) Puri
D) Kanchipuram - Which of the following is not among Krishna’s chief queens (Ashtabharya) in most Puranic lists?
A) Rukmini
B) Satyabhama
C) Jambavati
D) Radha - Who brought the humble gift of flattened rice (poha/aval) to Krishna in Dwarka?
A) Vidura
B) Uddhava
C) Sudama (Kuchela)
D) Akrura - The day after Janmashtami is joyfully observed in Braj as…
A) Govardhan Puja
B) Nandotsav
C) Akshaya Navami
D) Holika Dahan - Which
Vrindavan temple is famous for its curtain being drawn repeatedly during darshan, as if “shielding” devotees from Krishna’s gaze?
A) ISKCON Delhi
B) Banke Bihari Temple
C) Dwarkadhish, Mathura
D) Krishna-Balaram Temple - The 12-syllable Vaishnava mantra closely associated with Krishna is…
A) Om Namo Narayanaya
B) Om Namah Shivaya
C) Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya
D) Hare Rama Hare Rama… - Apart from Arjuna, who is described as witnessing or narrating the battlefield events through divine sight?
A) Bhishma
B) Sanjaya
C) Vidura
D) Yuyutsu - In Maharashtra, teams forming human pyramids for Dahi Handi are popularly called…
A) Govinda pathaks
B) Mallakhamb dals
C) Yuva mandals
D) Lathi khel squads
Answers with quick explainers
- B. Rohini — Many calendar traditions link Krishna’s birth to Rohini during Ashtami of Krishna Paksha.
- D. Yamuna — Vasudeva crosses the Yamuna while the waters part, protecting the infant.
- B. Kadamba — Local lore in Vrindavan places a Kadamba tree at the Kaliya episode.
- C. One bound by a rope around the waist — Yashoda ties the mischievous child, hence “Damodara”.
- C. Panchajanya — Krishna’s conch; Arjuna’s is Devadatta, Bhima’s Paundra.
- D. Bhagavata Purana, Canto 10 — The classic source for Vraja-lilas.
- B. Heliodorus (Garuda) pillar — Evidence of early Vāsudeva worship in the Indo-Greek period.
- B. King Bhagyachandra — He refined Manipuri Rasalila’s devotional form.
- B. Pushtimarg (Śuddhādvaita) — Founded by Vallabhacharya; Śrinathji is central.
- C. ~21 km — “7 kos” is widely taken as roughly 21 kilometres.
- B. 8 daily meals × 7 days — A popular legend from the Govardhan-lila.
- B. Ujjain — Sandipani’s ashram is associated with present-day Ujjain.
- B. Dwarka — Krishna establishes his court there after Mathura.
- D. Radha — Radha is central to devotion but is not usually listed among the Ashtabharya.
- C. Sudama (Kuchela) — His simple gift symbolises pure friendship.
- B. Nandotsav — Celebrates Nanda’s joy the day after Janmashtami.
- B. Banke Bihari Temple — The quick “jhaanki-style” darshan is a signature.
- C. Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya — The famous 12-syllable (Dvadashakshari) mantra.
- B. Sanjaya — Granted divine vision to narrate events to Dhritarashtra.
- A. Govinda pathaks — Mumbai-Thane’s spirited pyramid teams.
