Govardhana

Govardhana · go-vardhana, “the one that nourishes the cows”

Dakshiṇā has other meanings too: see all meanings of Dakshiṇā. Sunanda has other meanings too: see all meanings of Sunanda.

Govardhana is a holy mountain in the Vraja region of Bhāratavarsha. The Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa holds it to be the holiest of all sacred hills, with no equal on the earth in spiritual merit. Its name means “that which increases the welfare of cows” (go, cow; vardhana, that which increases or nourishes). It has this name because it gives fresh, tender grass to the cows of Gokula every day.

The most famous episode of Kṛshṇa‘s childhood is told in the Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa. Bhagavān Śrī Kṛshṇa first persuaded the gopas of Gokula to worship Govardhana instead of Indra. Then he lifted the whole mountain on his left hand and held it up for seven days as a shelter against Indra’s terrible storm. This broke the pride of Indra, the king of the devas, and Kṛshṇa received the name Govinda. The Agni Purāṇa names Govardhana among the holy places of Bhagavān Vishṇu‘s fifty-five names: at Govardhana he is remembered as Hari.

The Bhāgavata Purāṇa names Govardhana among the mountains of Bhārata and tells its whole account through Śrī Śuka Maharshi to Parīkshit. It is the mountain of Vṛndāvana by the Yamunā, on whose peak and level lands the cows of Gokula grazed and on whose slopes Śrī Kṛshṇa and Balarāma roamed playing the flute; the gopīs call it the greatest of Śrī Kṛshṇa’s devotees, for it gives the two brothers caves for rest, water, grass for the cattle and bulbs, roots and fruits. When Śrī Kṛshṇa turned the Indra-yāga of the gopas into a yajña to the cows, the brāhmaṇas and the mountain, he took a vast form upon it, saying “I am the mountain”, and ate the offerings. When Indra sent the Sāṃvartaka clouds against Gokula, the seven-year-old Śrī Kṛshṇa pulled Govardhana up with one hand, as a child holds a mushroom, and held it for seven days while all of Gokula sheltered beneath it; then Kāmadhenu and Indra consecrated him, and Indra named him Govinda. Ever after, the lifting of Govardhana is remembered as one of his līlās by the devas, Bhīshma, Brahmā, Akrūra, Nanda, the people of Mathurā and the gopīs.

Name and holiness

The Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa explains the name in Kṛshṇa‘s own words: “That which nourishes and increases the welfare of the go (cows) is called Govardhana.” The mountain gives fresh, tender grass to the cows of the Gokula settlement every day without fail. It is what keeps the whole cattle-herding life of the gopas going.

Kṛshṇa also says that there is no holy being (puṇyātmā) on the whole earth equal to Govardhana. He says this when he is persuading the gopas to worship the mountain rather than Indra. His reason is plain and practical. Govardhana helps the cows and the gopas every day. It is present, it can be seen, and it keeps their lives going. The benefit of worshipping it is felt at once. (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

The merit of worshipping Govardhana

In the same passage Kṛshṇa persuades Nanda to turn the Indra–yāga toward Govardhana. He lists what pūjā of the mountain equals. It equals all the puṇya (merit) from bathing at holy tīrthas, from feeding brāhmaṇas, from every kind of vrata, from every kind of upavāsa (fasting), from every kind of tapas, from great dāna, from service to Śrī Hari, from pradakshiṇā of the earth, from hearing all the Vedas and śāstras, and from doing all kinds of yajña with dīkshā. Kṛshṇa declares that all this merit comes to the one who feeds the cows their grass and lets the goja (the cow kind) graze freely on Govardhana.

Anyone who stops the cows from grazing freely on Govardhana takes on the pāpa of brahma-hatyā (the killing of a brāhmaṇa). That pāpa needs great prāyaścitta (atonement) to remove. (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

The Govardhana-pūjā in place of the Indra-yāga

Nanda was the chief of Gokula. He had arranged a great Indra–yāga, the yearly pūjā of Indra for good rain and wealth. Huge amounts of food, drink and goods had been gathered. Ṛshis and brāhmaṇas had come, and the whole community took part.

Kṛshṇa came to the gathering with Balarāma and the gopas, shining in his divine beauty. He held a long talk with Nanda. Who really controls the rain? Not Indra. The sun draws up the water. The clouds are formed by the order of Brahmā. Everything in the world works by the will of Parameśvara. Indra is only one instrument among many in a system ruled by the Supreme. The brāhmaṇas are the true channels of all divine grace. And Govardhana feeds the very cows that feed the gopas, so it is the nearest and most real sign of divine grace in their lives.

Kṛshṇa ended by proposing that half the goods gathered be given to Govardhana and to the brāhmaṇas. Nanda was convinced and agreed. The gathering of ṛshis gave their approval. Among them were Garga, Gālava, Śākalya, Gautama, Kaṇva, Kātyāyana, Saubhari, Vāmadeva, Yājñavalkya, Pāṇini, Ṛshyaśṛṅga, Bharadvāja, Kṛshṇadvaipāyana, Jaimini, Parāśara, Maitreya and Vaiśaṃpāyana, and others. The Indra-yāga became a Govardhana-pūjā and a brāhmaṇa-pūjā. The food was offered, the fire yajña was done, and the sacred chants rang out. (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

Kṛshṇa takes the form of Govardhana

When the offerings were finished, Kṛshṇa went near Govardhana mountain and took a second form, separate from the form standing beside Nanda. He said: “I am Govardhana. I accept your offerings. Ask me for a vara (a boon), Nanda.” At the same time the Kṛshṇa beside his father pointed to this mountain form and urged Nanda to pray to it. Nanda was deeply moved. He prayed for firm bhakti toward Śrī Hari and for dāsya-mukti, mukti through eternal service. The mountain form accepted the offerings, gave the vara and vanished.

This shows that Govardhana is not only a hill of earth and stone. It is a form of Bhagavān Kṛshṇa himself, a svarūpa (his own manifestation). (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

Indra’s anger and the storm

Indra learned that his yearly worship had been stopped, and that a mere child had caused this insult. He was full of rage. He mounted his chariot and rode to Gokula with his whole army of Maruts and masses of storm-clouds. He meant to destroy Gokula and Govardhana mountain completely.

The attack was terrible. Howling winds tore through the settlement. Thick black clouds blotted out the sky. Rain fell in torrents mixed with hailstones. Lightning struck again and again, and the earth shook with the force of the attack. Trees were torn up. The gopas, gopīs, cattle and children ran in panic. Nanda, in his fear, began to pray to Śrī Hari. (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

Kṛshṇa lifts Govardhana

Kṛshṇa answered at once, with the ease of a child at play. He comforted his father and the frightened people. Then, with his left hand, as a child might pick up a small stone, he lifted the whole of Govardhana mountain. He held it high over Gokula, and it became a huge umbrella that sheltered every person, every cow and every living being in the settlement.

The text says: “Bālaka (the child) raised that mountain with his left hand as if lifting a stick.” This act shows that the child of Nanda and Yaśodā was no ordinary boy.

For seven days and seven nights Kṛshṇa stood so, with the mountain resting on his raised hand, while the whole community sheltered under it. No rain, no hail and no wind reached them. The storm raged outside, but under Govardhana there was peace. (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

Indra is defeated and submits

As the days went by, every weapon and every effort of Indra failed. His vajra (thunderbolt) was frozen when he raised it, and his armies were held still. He was bewildered. The Purāṇa tells that Kṛshṇa‘s laughter and ease in holding the mountain showed Indra who the child really was. Indra saw in him the Parāt-para Brahman, the Supreme beyond all guṇas, who creates and destroys all worlds by a play of his eyebrow.

Indra fell into a deep faint, and then into an inner vision in which everything around him appeared as Kṛshṇa. When he came to himself, he came down from his chariot and offered his famous stotra, the Indra-Govinda Stotra. In it he honoured Kṛshṇa as the son of Yaśodā and Nanda, as the beloved of Rādhā, as the one who delights with the gopīs, and as Govinda who protects the cows and the earth. After he received Kṛshṇa’s grace, Indra left with his armies, fully humbled.

Kṛshṇa then gently set Govardhana back in its place. The community came out from under its shelter, and great joy followed. (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

Kṛshṇa named Govinda

The name Govinda, which Indra uses in his stotra, has several meanings. It means the protector of cows (go, cows). It means the finder or protector of the earth (go, earth; vinda, one who finds or protects). It also means the one who is known through the Vedas (go, Vedic words). In this episode all three meanings are at work. Kṛshṇa protected the cows of Gokula from Indra’s storm. He upheld and protected the earth by lifting the mountain. And he showed himself as the Parāt-para Brahman, known through all the Vedas. (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

Govardhana as a tīrtha

This episode makes Govardhana one of the holiest places in Bhāratavarsha. In Kṛshṇa‘s own words, the cows that graze on its slopes, the earth touched by their hooves and the dust of the mountain are all equal to a holy tīrtha. Kṛshṇa tells Nanda in his talk that one who dies in the region of Govardhana gains mukti (liberation) at once. The mountain is one with Kṛshṇa’s own form. So going round Govardhana (pradakshiṇā) is the same as going round Bhagavān Kṛshṇa himself. (Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21)

Govardhana among the mountains of Bhārata

The Vāmana Purāṇa names Govardhana among the mountains of Kumāra-dvīpa, one of the nine divisions of Bhārata-varsha. When the ṛshis described Jambūdvīpa to the rākshasa king Sukeśī, they first named the seven kula-parvatas (chief mountain ranges) of Kumāra-dvīpa: Mahendra, Malaya, Sahya, Śuktimān, Ṛksha, Vindhya and Pāriyātra. Besides these, they said, there are other lovely mountains of great extent, in hundreds and thousands. Among those they named are Kolāhala, Vaibhrāja, Mandara, Durdura, Vātandhama, Vaidyuta, Maināka, Sarasa, Tuṅgaprastha, Nāgagiri, Govardhana, Ujjāyana, Pushpagiri, Arbuda, Raivata, Ṛshyamūka, Gomanta, Citrakūṭa, Kṛtasmara, Śrīparvata and Koṅkaṇa. (Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 13)

Bhagavān Vishṇu as Hari at Govardhana

Agnideva taught Vasishṭha Maharshi fifty-five names of Bhagavān Vishṇu, each to be remembered at its own holy place. One who does japa of them gains the fruit of mantra-japa and the imperishable puṇya of pūjā at the tīrthas. Among them: at the Govardhana mountain one should remember Bhagavān Vishṇu as Hari. One who remembers him in this way gains bhukti (enjoyment in this world) and mukti (moksha); one who does japa of these names gains everything. Śrāddha, dāna (giving), japa and tarpaṇa done at these kshetras become a crore-fold, and one who does so becomes one with Brahman after death. One who reads or hears these names is freed from pāpa and attains svarga. (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 305)

Govardhana in the Bhāgavata Purāṇa

The Bhāgavata Purāṇa tells the Govardhana episode in Chapters 24 to 27.

Among the mountains of Bhārata

Śuka names Govardhana among the twenty-seven mountains of the Bhārata khaṇḍa, in this order: Malaya, Maṅgalaprastha, Maināka, Trikūṭa, Ṛshabha, Kūṭaka, Kollaka, Sahya, Devagiri, Ṛshyamūka, Śrīśaila, Veṅkaṭa, Mahendra, Vāridhāra, Vindhya, Śuktimān, Ṛkshagiri, Pāriyātra, Droṇa, Citrakūṭa, Govardhana, Raivataka, Kakubha, Nīla, Gokāmukha, Indrakīla and Kāmagiri. Besides these there are mountains in hundreds and thousands.

Source: Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 5, Chapter 19

The mountain of Vṛndāvana

When the gopas left the old Gokula for Vṛndāvana, a forest good for the cattle, with holy hills, grass and herbs in plenty, Balarāma and Śrī Kṛshṇa felt great joy at seeing Vṛndāvana, the mountain Govardhana and the sand banks of the Yamunā. In the year when Śrī Kṛshṇa himself had taken the form of the calves and gopa boys, five or six days before the year was complete, the cows grazing on the peak of Govardhana saw the calves far away near the cowherd village; overcome by love, they ran down heedless of their herdsmen and of the hard path, reached the calves at the foot of the mountain, and fed them from their udders. Later, delighted by the beauty of Vṛndāvana, Śrī Kṛshṇa played with his companions on the banks of the Yamunā near Govardhana, grazing the cattle.

Source: Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapters 11, 13, 15

Kṛshṇa’s argument (Chapter 24)

Śrī Kṛshṇa, living in Vṛndāvana with Balarāma, saw the gopālakas preparing the Indra-yāga. Though he knew their intention, he humbly bowed to the elders headed by Nanda and asked: “O father, what is this undertaking? What is its fruit, who is its devatā, what is its means, who is its yajamāna? Is it a Vedic karma or only a worldly one?” Nanda answered that Indra is the lord of rain, the clouds are his forms, and with the offerings left over from his yāga people live and gain dharma, artha and kāma; this dharma has come down by tradition, and whoever gives it up does not obtain good. Śrī Kṛshṇa then spoke to his father words that were bound to stir Indra’s anger.

Kṛshṇa saw the great preparations for the Indra–yāga. He put a series of questions to his father Nanda and the gopas. His argument starts from karma, svabhāva (one’s own nature) and the order of the world. Each being is born with a particular svabhāva, a nature and a work, and acts by that nature to live and to thrive. This svabhāva is itself the arrangement of Bhagavān Kṛshṇa. Cows live on grass. Gopas live by the cows and by the forest. Their true protector is not Indra but the land they live on, the forest where they graze, and above all Govardhana, which gives fresh grass to the cows every day. Pūjā should go to what really keeps one alive, to one’s svābhāvika-devatā, the deva that belongs to one’s own nature and way of life.

Clouds also give rain by their own nature. They do not need Indra’s command for every rainfall. Rain comes from the working together of sun, clouds and wind. Indra does not send each shower himself. He presides over a natural process that would go on without him.

Kṛshṇa ended: the gopas should worship what truly gives them life. These are the brāhmaṇas, who hold together the order of dharma in society, the cows, who give milk and feed the community, and Govardhana, who gives the cows their grass. The yāga should be performed with the very materials gathered for the Indra-yāga. (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 24)

In his own words: “We have no countries, no cities, no villages, no houses; we always live in the forests and on the mountains. So begin a yajña that honours the cows, the brāhmaṇas and the mountain, with whatever materials there are for the Indra-yāga. Make many kinds of dishes, pāyasa, dal, upmā of wheat semolina, sweet cakes and fried rings, and bring the milk and curd from every house. Let the brāhmaṇas perform homa according to rule; give them food, and milk-giving cows as dakshiṇā. Give to all according to their deserving, down to the fallen and even the street dogs. Give grass to the cows and offer naivedya to the mountain. Then, having eaten, fragrant and adorned, make pradakshiṇā of the cows, the brāhmaṇas, the fires and Govardhana mountain. This yāga is dear to the cows, the brāhmaṇas, Govardhana and to me too.” Śuka says that Śrī Kṛshṇa, who is Kāla in form, said this wishing to subdue the pride of Indra, and Nanda, Sunanda and the others accepted it, saying “This is good.” (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 24)

The Govardhana-pūjā (Chapter 24)

The community accepted Kṛshṇa‘s words. The preparations were turned to a new use. The gopas worshipped Govardhana with great quantities of food. They went round the mountain with the cows, and brāhmaṇas were fed richly. As the offerings were set before the mountain, Kṛshṇa himself took a divine form on the face of the mountain, vast and shining, and ate all the offering. “I am the mountain,” he said. Then, together with the people of Gokula, Śrī Kṛshṇa himself bowed to that form of his own, and the gopas cried: “Wonder! Look! This mountain has taken a form and blessed us!” Kṛshṇa stood beside Nanda and was also Govardhana. This shows that Govardhana is a svarūpa (his own manifestation) of Bhagavān Kṛshṇa. (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 24)

Śuka tells the rite as it was done. The brāhmaṇas recited the svasti-vācana; with the very materials of the Indra-yāga the gopas offered dhūpa, dīpa and naivedya to Govardhana, the brāhmaṇas and the cows, and grass to the cows; and with the herds of cows walking in front they made pradakshiṇā of the mountain. The gopikās, well adorned, rode in carts yoked with bulls and sang of Śrī Kṛshṇa’s valour. Śrī Kṛshṇa took the mountain-form to create faith in the gopālakas. The gopas said: “This mountain takes any form it wishes, lives in the forest and harms those who dishonour it; let us bow to it for our well-being and that of the cows.” So, moved by Śrī Kṛshṇa, they worshipped Govardhana, the cows and the brāhmaṇas, and went back to Gokula with him. (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 24)

The lifting and the Govinda Abhisheka (Chapters 25 to 27)

Chapter 24 gives the Govardhana-pūjā and Kṛshṇa‘s appearing as the mountain. Chapter 25 tells of the storm and the lifting. Chapters 26 and 27 end the episode with Indra‘s submission and Kṛshṇa’s naming as Govinda.

The lifting (Chapter 25): Indra loosed the Sāṃvartaka clouds of dissolution against Gokula. Kṛshṇa lifted the whole Govardhana mountain on his left hand. He held it for seven days and seven nights as an umbrella over the whole community and all their cattle. The Bhāgavata notes his ease. He stood with the mountain on his raised hand as if he were holding a child’s toy.

Śuka tells it in full. When Indra learned that the gopas, whose protector was Śrī Kṛshṇa, had stopped his pūjā, he grew angry, and, proud of being a lokapāla, he commanded the Sāṃvartaka clouds that bring pralaya: “See the pride of these forest-dwelling gopālakas! Relying on Kṛshṇa, a human being, they have insulted me. Destroy their cattle. I too, with the Maruts, will mount Airāvata and come after you to Gokula.” The clouds came to Nanda‘s Gokula; the Maruts drove them with fierce winds; they blazed with lightning, roared with thunder, rained hailstones and poured streams of water as thick as pillars until high and low ground could no longer be seen. The cattle, the gopas and the gopikās, shivering with cold, took refuge in Śrī Kṛshṇa; the cows covered their calves under their bodies and came to his feet; and the gopas cried: “O Śrī Kṛshṇa! You alone are the protector of Gokula; you alone can protect us from Indra.”

Śrī Kṛshṇa saw that it was the work of Indra and resolved: “By my own power I will remove the pride and ajñāna of Indra and the others who think they are lokapālas; the breaking of pride that I do ends only in removing their misfortunes. I alone am the protector of this Gokula; I have taken it as my own family, and I have taken the vrata of protecting such good people.” So saying, he pulled up Govardhana mountain with one hand and held it with ease, as a child holds a mushroom. “O father! O people of Gokula! Enter the hollow under this mountain with your herds and rest there. Do not fear that the mountain will fall from my hand, nor the wind and rain any more.” With their carts, goods and servants they entered the wide hollow where the mountain had stood, and while they watched he held it for seven days, without hunger or thirst, without any wish for comfort, never moving from where he stood. Seeing that greatness of his yogamāyā, Indra was astonished; his pride left him, and he turned his clouds back. When the sun rose and the wind and rain had stopped, Śrī Kṛshṇa, the holder of Govardhana, told the gopas to come out with their women, children and possessions, and while all beings watched he set the mountain back in its own place as it was before. The gopas embraced him; the gopikās worshipped him with curd, akshatas and water and blessed him; Yaśodā, Rohiṇī, Nanda and Balarāma embraced him; the Sādhyas, Siddhas, Gandharvas and Cāraṇas rained flowers, the devatās sounded conches and dundubhis, and the Gandharvas headed by Tumburu sang. The gopikās went back to Gokula singing of his līlās, the lifting of Govardhana among them. (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 25)

The gopas, astonished, said to Nanda: “He is a little boy of seven years. How did he hold up a great mountain with one hand, with ease, as a great elephant holds a lotus? Where is a boy of seven, and where the holding up of a great mountain?” Nanda told them the words of Gargācārya: that the boy takes avatāras in every yuga, that he is Śrīmān Vāsudeva, and that he is equal to Nārāyaṇa in qualities, splendour, fame and greatness; and the people of Gokula worshipped Nanda and Śrī Kṛshṇa with joy. Śuka closes the chapter: when Indra, angry that his yajña was stopped, rained thunderbolts, hail and streams of rain with a whirlwind, Śrī Kṛshṇa alone was Gokula’s protector; full of compassion and with a smile, as a child holds a mushroom, he pulled up the mountain with one hand, protected Gokula and broke the pride of Indra. “May that Govinda be pleased with us!” (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 26)

Indra’s submission (Chapter 27): After seven days, when all his weapons had failed, Indra came down and offered his stotra of surrender. Kṛshṇa received him kindly. He explained that this was not a punishment. It was the compassionate removal of Indra’s pride (mada) by Bhagavān Kṛshṇa. He urged Indra to rule his realm knowing that all lordship flows from the Supreme.

Śuka gives the meeting in full. Kāmadhenu came to Śrī Kṛshṇa from Goloka with Indra. Indra, ashamed of his offence, came to him in a lonely place, bowed so that his crown touched both his feet, and praised him: his svarūpa is pure sattva, dense with knowledge, untouched by the guṇas; greed and anger are not in him, yet he punishes the wicked to protect dharma; he is the father, guru and ruler of all, Kāla who holds the rod; he takes avatāras in līlā to humble those who boast of being lords of the world. “Full of the pride of authority I committed an offence; forgive me. When my yajña was obstructed I sent this rain and storm to destroy Gokula. My effort has proved vain and my pride is destroyed; you have shown me grace. I take refuge in you.” Śrī Kṛshṇa laughed and answered in a voice deep as the rumble of a cloud: “O Indra, you had become very proud of your kingship over the devas. Only to show you grace did I obstruct the yajña, so that you will always remember me. Whomever I wish to bless, I take away his wealth. Go, keep my command, and carry out your office without pride.” (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 27)

The Govinda Abhisheka (Chapter 27): Surabhi, Kāmadhenu herself, the divine cow, came forward and bathed Kṛshṇa with divine milk. Indra bathed him with water of the Gaṅgā brought by Airāvata. Kāmadhenu, with her offspring the cows, first addressed him: “O Kṛshṇa, you are our supreme deity, our Indra; urged by Brahmā we shall consecrate you as Indra,” and her milk was the first abhisheka. Then, urged by Aditi and the mothers of the devas, Indra with the devarshis poured the waters of the Ākāśagaṅgā, and gave him the title Govinda, the one who protects the cows. (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapters 25–27)

At that consecration Nārada, Tumburu, Citraratha and the gandharvas, vidyādharas, siddhas and cāraṇas sang the glory of Śrī Hari, the apsarās danced, the devas rained flowers, the cows made a flood of milk upon the earth, the rivers poured waters of many flavours, the trees poured honey, the lands gave crops without ploughing, the mountains brought their gems to the surface, and even the tiger gave up its enmity. Then, with Śrī Kṛshṇa’s leave, Indra went back to svarga. (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 27)

Govardhana remembered

• The gopīs’ Veṇu-gīta. “Friends, do you see? This Govardhana mountain is the greatest among the devotees of Bhagavān Śrī Kṛshṇa, for it swells with joy at the touch of the feet of Balarāma and Kṛshṇa. When the two come with the cows and the gopālas, it honours them greatly, giving caves for their rest, drinking water for all, green grass for the cattle, and a meal of bulbs, roots and fruits.” (Skandha 10, Chapter 21)
• The gopīs’ song in his absence. Śrī Kṛshṇa, graceful with his garland and earrings, roams the slopes of Govardhana with Balarāma and, when he is joyful, fills the world with the sound of his flute; Śrī Kṛshṇa-candra, born of Yaśodā, does good to Gokula and the cows, and that is why he lifted Govardhana. (Skandha 10, Chapter 35)
• Vyomāsura. One day the gopālas were grazing the cattle on the level lands of Govardhana and playing at thieves and guards, when the asura Vyoma came among them and hid the boys in a mountain cave. (Skandha 10, Chapter 37)
• In Mathurā. At Kaṃsa‘s arena the people of Mathurā said of Śrī Kṛshṇa: “He held up a great mountain with one hand for seven days without a break and protected Gokula from rain, whirlwind and thunderbolts.” (Skandha 10, Chapter 43)
• Nanda to Uddhava. Nanda asked Uddhava whether Śrī Kṛshṇa remembered them, his mother, his kin and friends, the gopālakas, Gokula, the cows, Vṛndāvana and Govardhana mountain, and remembered that he had stood holding up Govardhana for seven days without a break. (Skandha 10, Chapter 46)
• Akrūra. Refusing to help Śatadhanvā, Akrūra said: “When he was a boy of seven, Śrī Kṛshṇa plucked up a mountain with ease, lifted it on one hand and held it as a child holds a mushroom.” (Skandha 10, Chapter 57)
• Bhīshma. In his last stuti Bhīshma remembers how the gopikās, when Śrī Kṛshṇa withdrew from their sight, imitated his acts, the lifting of Govardhana and the rest, and became one with him. (Skandha 1, Chapter 9)
• Brahmā to Nārada. At only seven years old, to protect the cattle and the innocent people, he lifted Mount Govardhana easily with one hand, like a tall mushroom, and held it up for seven days. (Skandha 2, Chapter 7)
• The devas before his birth. In their stuti to the child in Devakī‘s womb, the devas say that his names and forms, with births such as Matsya and līlās such as the lifting of Govardhana, are endless and beyond mind and speech. (Skandha 10, Chapter 2)
• Drumila to Nimi. Śrī Hari, who has no birth, is born in the Yādava clan to lighten the burden of the earth and does līlās such as the lifting of Govardhana, which even the devatās cannot do. (Skandha 11, Chapter 4)
• Sūta‘s summary. Among the contents of the tenth skandha Sūta names Śrī Kṛshṇa lifting the Govardhana mountain, and Indra and Surabhi. (Skandha 12, Chapter 12)

Source: Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 1, Chapter 9; Skandha 2, Chapter 7; Skandha 10, Chapters 2, 21, 35, 37, 43, 46, 57; Skandha 11, Chapter 4; Skandha 12, Chapter 12

Per Bhavishya Purāṇa

The Pratisarga Parva of the Bhavishya Purāṇa tells that the five-year-old Dhruva, abandoned by father and mother, came to Govardhana mountain on the upadeśa of Devarshi Nārada, took up a great vrata and for six months performed dhyāna of Bhagavān Vishṇu (Khaṇḍa 4, Chapter 17).

In the Gośpada vrata of the Uttara Parva, a gośpada (the cow’s hoof) of gold or the like, and a Govardhana mountain of guḍa, receive pūjā in the morning and are given to a brāhmaṇa with the words govindaḥ prīyatām, “may Govinda be pleased” (Chapters 18–19).

Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 4, Chapter 17; Uttara Parva, Chapters 18–19

Sources

• Brahma Vaivarta Purāṇa, Śrī Kṛshṇa Janana Khaṇḍa, Chapter 21
• Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 1, Chapter 9; Skandha 2, Chapter 7; Skandha 5, Chapter 19; Skandha 10, Chapters 2, 11, 13, 15, 21, 24–27, 35, 37, 43, 46, 57; Skandha 11, Chapter 4; Skandha 12, Chapter 12
• Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 13
• Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 305
• Bhavishya Purāṇa, Pratisarga Parva, Khaṇḍa 4, Chapter 17; Uttara Parva, Chapters 18–19