Sri Krishna Janmashtami Festival
Janmashtami is a famous Hindu festival. Janmashtmi festival is dedicated to Lord Sri Krishna. Janmashtami is on 14th August in the year 2009.Dedicated to Lord Krishna, Janmashtami festival is one of the important festivals of Hindu. Janmashtami comes every year on the eighth day in the Month of August-September. Sri Krishna was born in the ‘Rohini’ star. Janmashtami is celebrated for two days, the first day is called Krishnashtami or Gokulashtami and the second day is called Kalastami or Janmashtami Janmashtami also known as Sri Krishna Astami is celebrated on the occasion of birth ceremony of Lord Krishna. It is said that Lord Krishna born on Astami.Janmashtami celebration in Brij and Mathura is world famous. Janmashtami is on 14th August in the year 2009.
Krishna Janmashtami festival, or Krishna jayanti, is celebrated with joy & fervour and holds utmost significance in the Indian Hindu families. On this day, after giving bath, the idol of Lord Krishna is adorned with new clothes of yellow color and precious jewellery. The idol of lord is offered special bhog made up of milk and fruit products.The devotees all over mark this revered festival by fasting upto midnight, chanting hymns and mantra, singing bhajans and by performing special prayers to seek the blessings of the Lord Krishna.
The festival of Sri Krishna Janmashtami is celebrated with so much devotion and enthusiasm. So many rituals and customs are followed on this day, some are common and some are very unique to a particular region. Devotees all over sings bhajans, chants hymn “hare Rama hare krishna” and offers special pooja and aarti to get the blessings of God. Devotees all over India congregates Krishna temples at Vrindavan, Mathura, Dwarka, to plunge deep in the religious atmosphere. Mainly the fasting upto the birth of Krishna in midnight is observed. In the early morning the idols of Krishna is cleansed with curd and Ganga water. After that the idol is decorated with yellow clothe and glittering gems. Special dishes made of milk are offered to the Lord Krishna and at the midnight devotees have food to end their fasts.
Different forms of rituals are celebrated in different parts of India. In Maharashtra, a matka or earthen pot containing milk or curd is suspended high above the ground and groups of young men and children form human pyramids to try and reach the pot and eventually break it.
Krishna temples spread all over India are also considered so important in propagating the philosophy and practices of rich and ancient Vaishnava tradition. Here are the names of famous Krishna Temples in India :
* ISKCON Temples in Delhi, Bangalore, West Bengal and U.P.
* Krishna Janma Bhoomi Mandir, Mathura
* Banke Bihari Mandir, Vrindavan
* Guruvayur Temple, Kerala
* Udupi Sri Krishna Temple, Karnataka
* Jagannath Temple, Puri, Orissa
* Dwarkadhish Temple, Gujarat
Legend of Janmashtami
The birth story of Lord Krishna is full of dramatic events.
In the ancient Northern India a very flourished town called Mahtura was ruled by a great Yaduvanshi King Ugrasen. He had two children a son Kansa and a daughter named Devki. Kansa was so rude and cruel, that he forcefully became the king of Mathura by confining his father to the jail. Being a brutal King, Kansa also had lots of love for his sister Devki and married her off to Vasudev, one of the high ranking officers in his army. On their marriage a heavenly prediction echoed that the eight child of Devki would be the slayer of Kansa. Feared by the prediction Kansa imprisoned Devki and Vasudev in the palace dungeon and ordered them to handover all their children to him.
Kansa killed all the six new borns but could not kill the seventh child due to the divine intervention because that baby was born to Vasudev’s another wife Rohini. Thus Balram, the elder brother of Krishna was born.
However, when the eighth child was born, a miracle occurred. The gates of the dungeon flew open, the guards fell asleep and a voice from the heavens commanded Vasudev to take his child to Gokul where his friend Nand and his wife Yashodha lived and exchange his son for their daughter. Thus, Kansa’s plan to kill Krishna was foiled and This eighth child grew up as Yashoda and Nand’s son in Gokul and later killed his maternal uncle Kansa, freeing all the people of Mathura from his atrocities.
Significance of Janmashtami
Krishna means the most attractive. He is the divinity, the energy that pulls everything to it. Janamashtami commemorates the birth of Lord Krishna, born to destroy Kansa, the evil king of Mathura. Thus, birthday of Lord Krishna holds much significance in India and celebrated in different forms. This festival offers an Occasions for social get together and exchange of good wishes. Devotees observe fasts and indulge themselves in pooja ceremonies. The fast signifies the controlling of the senses and indulging themselves in activities that takes them to the divine enlightenment and destroys the ego within
While it is the festival that is celebrated in North India as Janmashtami, in the South, the Iyengarscelebratetheestivalas Srijayanthi or Krisnajayanthi or also asSri Krishnajanmashtami and the [Iyers] observe the festival as Janmashtami or Gokulashtami.
In Karnataka in particular, Madhwas (Vaishnavas) (followers of Sri Madhwacharyaru) and Iyengars or the Srivaishnavas, (followers of their guru Ramanujacharya) make elaborate preparations for the festival. The idol of Lord Krishna is placed in a decorated mandapam (Wooden, square and open stand) with a checkered wooden ceiling on which the Bhakshanam (snacks and sweets in Tamil) that are specially prepared for the festival are suspended along with fruits considered the favorites of Lord Krishna. The pooja is performed late in the evening,[Particularly time when Moon rises this time will differ for different places this time will mentioned in hindu calendar (Panchanga)] as Krishna was born at midnight. Generally, most of the sweets and savories are prepared on that day only. Normally, a kolam (rice flour drawings on ground) drawn specially for the occasion, called ezhakoolam, decorates the front yard.Kolam in Tamil, also called Rangoli in the rest of India, is drawn using soaked rice ground to a fine paste and mixed with lot of water. A white cloth is used to soak the paste and make the drawing. Krishna’s feet are drawn from the front yard to the pooja room, indicating that the lord is entering the devotee’s home.
Vaishnavas perform pooja as usual in the morning. And In the evening when moon rises (time) Main pooja will starts that means upto evening all vaishnavas will be in fast (no one should take single drop of water) because after performing pooja and we make many types of sweets and all types of fruits for perform Naivedya to Lord Sri Krishna afterthat we should give Arghya pradana to Lord Sri Krishna. And after this only we should take food.