In Hinduism, Vasudeva is the father of Krishna and Balarama by Devaki.

Alternatively, Vasudeva is another name for Vishnu and appears as the 332nd, 695th, and 709th names of Vishnu in the Vishnu sahasranama.

• According to Adi Sankara' s commentary on the Vishnu sahasranama, Vasudeva means One who is both Vasu and Deva. Vasu means one who dwells in everything or one who covers everything. Div means play, desire to conquer, shine.

Thus, Vasudeva means the All-Pervading one like Vishnu and because He covers all beings and is the source of all divinities. Additionally, Vasudevah means the son of Vasudeva. In still another meaning, Vasudeva means the Divinity who covers the whole universe by Maya or the manifestation of His Power.

Reference: Cited from Sri Vishnu Sahasranama, commentary by Sri Sankaracharya, translated by Swami Tapasyananda, available at Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai. available at India web site: http://www.sriramakrishnamath.org and US site: http://www.vedanta.com.