Lord Sri Krishna was born on
Ashtami day
or the
eighth day after Raksha Bandhan during the Hindu month of SHRAVAN. As the story
goes he was born in the dark half of the month and at the darkest hour
of midnight. But the birth of Vishnu's incarnation
was to bring joy and give security to the
suffering humanity.
He is considered to be
one of Lord Vishnu's most glorious incarnations.
He is popularly known as a naughty child, an inspired cowherd, a destroyer of
demons, an enthralling flute-player, a divine lover, and a clever diplomat -
all rolled in one.
He is also considered to be
the Hindu God of Music
and is the patron god of Indian musicians .
Krishna is always shown with his flute or "Bansuri". Sri
Krishna is also known as Govinda, Gopala and Kanhaiya.
Sri Krishna is Lord Vishnu's eighth avatar (incarnation) on
earth. The main object of this incarnation of Vishnu as Krishna, was to destroy
the cruel King Kansa of Mathura.
Kansa, the king of
Mathura was a very cruel tyrant. His tyranny spared no one, even the sages had
to bear the brunt of this. Finally the Gods could tolerate no more and in a
dream Kansa was told that his evil reign would be brought to an end by his
sister Devaki's son who would kill him. The cowardly tyrant immediately threw
his sister Devaki and her husband Vasudev in prison so that he could kill all
the sons born to Devaki.
In captivity Devaki bore
six sons, each of whom were promptly killed by Kansa.
When Devaki gave birth
to her eighth child, the newly born baby changed himself into the form of
Vishnu and commanded Vasudev to carry him to Nandgaon and place him besides
Yasodha. That night the prison guards fell into a deep slumber and the doors
were unlocked. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Vasudev slipped out of the
prison and whisked away the God-child to the safety a neighboring kingdom which
was ruled by king Nanda. King Nanda's domain lay across the Yamuna river.
At that time the river Yamuna was
high, but when Baby Krishna's feet touched the waters , the waters parted making a channel for Vasudev to pass.
He was also asked to
bring back the baby girl whom Yashoda had delivered. The generous king Nanda
gave away his new born daughter to Vasudev knowing fully well what fate
awaited her at Kansa's hands. Vasudev brought back the baby girl. Seeing
the baby girl, the enraged King Kansa smashed her on the wall
but she escaped his hands and flew away to heaven announcing -"Beware, your killer
is alive".
At Gokul, under king
Nanda's protection, Krishna got the loving affection of King Nanda's Queen
Yashoda whom Krishna looked upon as a mother. Days passed with fun and frolic,
while the child-Krishna grew up. Krishna grew up happy
in Nandgaon amongst cowherds. His flute-playing enthralled the young girls or
"gopis" who danced around him. The cows gathered with his sweet
flute playing. But one day rumors reached Kansa that Devaki's son had somehow
escaped his clutches and was living in Gokul.
You will notice that
the theme of "Krishna with his Gopis" is a favorite among many
Rajasthani paintings.
Krishna was ideal in all his
human relationships - a darling son to his parents, an endearing friend and
comrade, a devoted disciple, a loving husband and a trusted brother. There are
many stories that tell about his superhuman qualities and mystical
achievements. In spite of this Sri
Krishna never appeared distant to any of his fellow human beings, in fact he was
dearer to them than their own nearest kith and kin. The shadow
of his greatness never marred these bonds of the heart. To the Hindu, he is
the supreme statesman, warrior, hero, philosopher, teacher and god
himself.
A
major event in Krishna's later life was that he was the adviser
to the Pandavas during the Great Mahabharat War between the Pandavas and
Kauravas. He was Arjuna's charioteer.
His teachings or preachings to Arjuna during this epic war is the "Bhagvad
Gita" itself
which means 'the
song of the divine'.
The Bhagvad Gita is written in the form of a spiritual dialogue between
Lord Krishna and Arjun. It has 700 verses and captures the essential
teachings of the "Upanishads".
No other scriptural text propounds all the
various paths to Divinity in such a profound and yet such a concise and easy manner
for the commoner to understand and comprehend as the Bhagvad Gita. The setting of the Gita
is also wonderfully unique - set in the Kurukshetra or battlefield representing the eternal battlefield
of the human soul.
The state of Gujarat
is the abode of Lord Krishna. The town of Dwarka comes
alive, with major celebrations and hordes of visitors. The
temples of Vrindavan witness an extravagant and colorful celebration on
this occasion. Celebrations are held on a grand scale in all Krishna
temples all over India, especially the ones in Vrindavan, Mathura in the state of Uttar Pradesh
and in Dwaraka
in the state of Gujarat. Other regionally famous Krishna temples also
celebrate Janmashtami with pomp and splendor. Celebrations are also held in many Hindu
Temples here in the US. Like the Krishna
Janmashtmi Celebration at
Barsana Dham and Shree Raseshwari Radha Rani Temple in Texas. Many
more Hindu Temples around the US celebrate this festival.
On this
auspicious day of Janmashtami the idol of infant Krishna is bathed at
midnight and is placed in a cradle. It is then adorned with flowers, jewelry
and a small "mukut" or crown. It is then placed in a
cradle. Everyone swings the cradle to the tune of bhajan's or songs of
praise.
The atmosphere is filled
with joy and exultation
as everyone rejoices the birth of Vishnu's incarnation who has been born
to give security to the
suffering humanity. Then "Naivedya" is offered to god and then
distributed to all. This Naivedya or prasaad is a of a mixture
of puffed rice, milk, curds and sugar. In addition,
plenty of milk products especially butter, which was Sri Krishna's favorite
childhood food, are given as offerings. A wide variety of fruits are also
offered to god.
Plenty of Indian sweets are
made during this festival. Among these are Laddus, Payasam or Kheer,
Shrikhand and so on.
Exactly at
midnight, Krishna's birth is announced with ringing of bells and blowing
of conch shells.
Many women
observe fast for the whole day and partake food only after Krishna's
birth. In temples "Bhajans" - recitation of devotional songs
and "Kirtans" - religious discourses - start early in the
evening and continue till midnight - the hour of the Lord's birth.
Singing and music continue throughout the night. The following morning
"NAND-MAHOTSAV" is celebrated in praise and gratitude to Nand,
the ruler of the cowherds of Nandgaon where Krishna grew up and lived in
his childhood.
In the houses,
mango leaves are tied to the doorways to mark the auspicious occasion.
Colorful "Rangolis " are drawn on the front yard. Inside the
house, a small wooden mandap is erected and decorated with flowers and
plantain leaves. An idol of a crawling baby Krishna is placed in a
silver cradle which is then placed in the mandap. Lord Krishna's
idol is decorated with flowers and a crown and jewelry at times.
Most
families keep a "vrat" or fast on this day. The fast is done
all day and then one meal is had during the day. This is known
as phalar, and consists of fruit, mithai, curd, (kuttu) Singhare-ki-Puri.
This phalar is taken in the afternoon (around 2-3 p.m.) along
with tea and coffee. During this fast, consumption of tea and coffee is not forbidden and can be taken at any
time of the day.
In the evening, the
family members gather together and sit down in the decorated room and sing
" bhajans" or devotional songs in praise of
Lord Krishna, like "Om Jai Jagdish Hare."
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Swami jaya
jagadeesha hare
Bhakta janana ke
sankata
Dena janana ke
sankata
Kshana mei dura
kare
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Jo dya wei phala
pawei
Dukha veenashei
manaka
Swami dukha
veenashei manaka
Sukah sampati
ghara awei
Sukah sampati
ghara awei
Kasta mitei tana
ka
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Mata pita tuma
mere
Sharana gahoon
kisakee
Swami sharana
gahoon kisakee
Tuma binna aura
nadooja
Tuma binna aura
nadooja
Asha karoon
jisakee
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Tuma poorana
paramatma
Tuma antarayamee
Swami tuma
antarayamee
Para Brahma
parameshwara
Para Brahma
parameshwara
Tuma sub ke swami
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Tuma karuna ke
sagara
Tuma palana karata
Swami tuma palana
karata
Mein sewaka tuma
swami
Mein sewaka tuma
swami
Kripa karo bharta
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Tuma ho ek ago
chara
Subake parana pati
Swami subake
parana pati
Kisa bidi miloon
daya maya
Kisa bidi miloon
daya maya
Tumako mein kumati
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Deena bandhu dukha
harta
Tuma rakshaka mere
Swami tuma
rakshaka mere
Apaney haatha
uthao
Apaney haatha
uthao
Dwara para tere
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Vishaya vikaro
mitao
Papa haro deva
Swami papa haro
deva
Shradha bhakti
barhao
Shradha bhakti
barhao
Santana ke seva
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
Jaya jagadesha
hare
Prabu jaya
jagadeesha hare
Bhakta janana ke
sankata
Dena janana ke
sankata
Kshana mei doora
kare
Om jaya jagadesha
hare
The birth of Krishna is
welcomed at midnight by the gentleman or the lady of the house by
applying the teeka and then doing puja to Lord Krishna. Prasad and
"charnamrit" are then distributed to all
present.
This most popular ceremony of Dahi-handi takes place on the second day
of celebrations. The celebration of Krishna's birth is also known as "Dahihandi".
An earthen pot or "matka" or "handi" filled with curds, milk, curds,
butter, honey, fruits and "jvari" is tied from a high rope about 20 to 40 feet high. The
rope also has prize money tied to it. This prize money is distributed
among those who participate in the building the pyramid. It is a
spectacular sight to see.
Young men form a human
pyramid to break the pot. To do so they climb, constructing a human pyramid by standing over each other's shoulders till
the pyramid is tall enough to enable the person at the top to reach the pot
and claim the contents after breaking it.
A popular
image of Krishna was and still is......Krishna stealing dahi or butter from an
earthen pot. During his
childhood, the naughty and adventurous Lord Krishna along with his mates used to raid the houses of
his neighbors in search of milk and butter, they too would build a human pyramid and plunder
the pots of milk and butter. This ceremony
replicates Krishna's love for milk and butter.
Once the pot is broken,
the contents are eaten as "prasad" amidst
acclamations of "Govind" which is another name for
Krishna.
As Krishna loved song
and dance, one of the main celebrations during this festival is "RASLILA".
According to the Bhagwat Purana, Shri Krishna along with the gopis had danced
the Raas on the banks of the Yamuna at Vrindavan.
When the gopis felt
conceited about Lord Krishna dancing with them, he disappeared from their
midst. In the agony of separation from their beloved Krishna, the gopis
recalled and enacted his lilas or divine episodes of his life - which in course
of time came to be known as the Raaslilas. No other God in the
Hindu pantheon, or for that matter in any other religion, is associated with so
many romantic tales and so fully radiating with all the divine attributes as Sri
Krishna.
The Dandiya or Garba
dances of today originated from that "Raslila in Vrajbhoomi" on
banks of river Yamuna.
250 grams
Beaten rice
1 Coconut (fresh and grated)
100 gms Cucumber
60 grams Curd
2 Green chillies
1 tbsp Ghee
1 tsp Jeera (Cumin seeds)
1/2 inch Ginger
1/2 tsp Sugar
Salt to taste
Soak Beaten Rice for 10 -15 minutes. Roughly chop the cucumber and
finely chop the green chillies and ginger. Melt ghee in a small
pan, add jeera, green chillies and ginger. Pour over the Beaten
Rice and add in the remaining ingredients. Mix well.
Singhare ki
Poori
1 Cup Singhara
Flour
1/4 Cup boiled, mashed Potatoes
1/4 Cup Chopped Spinach
1 tbsp oil
2 chopped green chillies
2 tsp Ajwain Seeds
1/4 Cup Coriander Leaves
1 tbsp Red Chilli Powder
Salt to taste
Oil For Deep Frying
Mix all the ingredients thoroughly. Knead the dough and make small
pooris with hand or a rolling pin. Add less quantity of water as
compared to what used while kneading wheat flour. Add cooking oil in
a pan and fry pooris till dark brown and crisp. Serve it with curd
and pickle.
Kheer
1 cup Basmati rice
1 cup condensed milk
1 tablespoon custard powder, dissolved in warm milk
3-4 cups of whole milk, diluted with 1-2 cups of water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp raisins
1 tbsp cashewss, dry roasted.
1 tsp powdered cardamom
Pour milk in a pan and add rice to it. Boil rice and milk in the pan
on medium flame until completely cooked (appx. 25-30 minutes). Add
custard powder to milk and stir continuously. Add condensed milk,
sugar and stir till sugar gets completely dissolved and the mixture
thickens.
Add nuts and raisin. Sprinkle it with powdered cardamom for extra
flavor.
Can be served both hot as well as cold.
