Lifestyle

Janmashtami 2017: know more about Date, Time and Significance of the Lord Krishna Jaynathi

Janmashtami 2017: know more about Date, Time and Significance of the Lord Krishna Jaynathi

Janmashtami 2017 is a Hindu Festival which is also known as Shri Krishna Jayanthi. According to the Hindu calender, this festival is celebrated on the Ashtami or the eight day of Krishna Paksha(Dark fortnight) in the month of August which is also called the month of Shravana or Bhadra and this year it is being celebrated on 15th August, 2017. The festival Janmashtami is celebrated as the birthday of Lord Krishna who is believed to be the eight re-incarnation of Lord Vishnu who give the vital message of the Bhagat Gita which is the guiding principle of every Hindu.

On this day, there are different ceremonies and prayers are dedicated to Krishna and the day before may consist of fasting and prayer up to the midnight as it is believed that Lord Krishna was born in the midnight. As per the tradition, it is said that Krishna was born in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh and therefore it is one of the biggest and most celebrated festival of that region. People of Mathura make a performance of Krishna Lila that is a folk drama consisting of scenes from Krishna’s life.

With the development of different states in India, there have been development in the customs of the people. For instance, it is said that Krishna was fond of butter and milk so much that his mother used to keep these things out of his reach and this story is recreated at almost every region of India with the famous game called ‘Handi For’. In this game boys dressed like Krishna try to climb making human pyramids and passersby throw water to them and whosoever reaches the pot tied up gets money and other contents in the pots.

In Maharashtra, where the festival is known as Govinda, pots containing buttermilk are suspended high over streets. Teams of boys then form human pyramids competing against each other to see who can break the most pots.

Lord Krishna had many colors in his life and he is proclaimed as a prankster in his childhood days. He is often shown dancing joyously and holding a ball of butter in his hands as a part of his fondness.  As an adult, he is depicted as a dancer and a lover too who used to often play flute and was surrounded by his gopis(adoring women).

We wish all our readers a very Happy Janmashtami!!

About the author

Priyanka sarangi

Journalist by profession, music lover by passion. Love to write and edit content on different topics of entertainment beat. Love to travel but only with my favorite people.