Krishna Janmashtami – Birth Festival of Lord Krishna

It’s was almost 7pm. Maya and her friends were busy ornamenting the living room of her home. Long threads of garlands made from colourful flowers dropped hanging from the wall in a wave pattern; a small table covered with red velvet cloth, miniatures of animals placed randomly on the table with the beautiful Lord Krishna’s idol in the centre. In the centre of the hall-way, a matki (earthen pot) was hanged filled with dahi, milk and coins. The milieu was filled with the aroma of the Prasad her mother-in-law was making. Soon all was done and it was time to get her son Ayush ready. And in no time, he was. Looking strikingly cute and adorable, dressed as Lord Krishna, he wandered in the room mesmerizing all. Women from the neighbourhood began to flock at Maya’s place and at around 10:30 in the night, the dancing and singing of bhajans began. With the melody of dhols and majiras, it was almost a trance like state. The clock struck mid-night and it was time of Krishna Janma. Lord Krishna was born. The milieu resonated with the sounds of ‘Nand Ghar Anand Bhayo, Jai Kainaiya Lal ki’. Little Ayush who was dressed as Krishna then was lifted up by his father so he could reach the matki, which he got it down and broke it.

What a beautiful and mesmerizing vista which is to be seen on the day of Krishna Janmashtami. Celebrated day of Ashtami of Krishna Paksh or on the 8th day of the dark fortnight Bhadon month of Hindu calendar, on a small and large scale at homes and temples across India, it marks the birthday of Lord Krishna – the incarnation of Lord Vishnu. In India, there are many places like Mathura, Gokul, Dwarka and Kurukshetra that mark the presence and tell many tales of Lord Krishna. He played different roles in different stages of his life, but the most admired is his childhood.

According to the Hindu mythology, a prophecy was made that the 8th son of Vasudev and Devki will kill Kansa. He has been brutal towards his subjects. Everyone in Mathura was being oppressed by his rule. Hence Lord Krishna took birth as the saviour who would eventually kill his uncle and free everyone from his unrelenting rule. His birth is marked by victory of good over evil.

On this day, the devotees of Lord Krishna assemble in various temples or at home and celebrate his birth with joy and happiness. The Krishna puja and celebrations begins at mid night at 12. Day before the temples is beautifully decorated with lights, garlands, and their aroma is spread all around. For the entire day a range of competitions and programs are held at various places. One of the most interesting features is the display of life events of Lord Krishna in the form of “jhankis. Such displays are visually appealing at the same provide with the life history of Lord Krishna. Young children dress as Krishna to be part of costume and fancy dress competitions. All the temples have music and dances about Krishna. A lot of men and women also observe fast on this day.

When the clock struck 12, proper puja and welcome of Lord Krishna is done. The abhishekh of Lord Krishna is performed with honey, curd, milk, and Gangajal. Later he is dressed in his new dress just like a newborn baby and decorated with precious jewels and garland. The “prasand” is made of peanuts bharfi, coconut bharfi and milk. Thousands of people gather in various temples to be part of this grand event.

Janmashtami is a very important festival for all the Vaishnavites. It is celebration of welcoming and acknowledging Bal Krishna and His Leelas.

Source: https://www.wheresmypandit.com/blog/krishna-janmashtami-birth-festival-of-lord-krishna

Narali Purnima

Narali Purnima is the festival celebrated primarily by the fishermen community of Maharashtra on the full moon day of Shravan month according to Hindu calendar. This day marks the end of monsoon in this region and the beginning of the fishing activity and observed by the people living in the coastal regions of Maharashtra and South India primarily Tamil Nadu and Kerela with great fervour and zeal.

The word ‘Naral’ means coconut. The fishermen offer their prayers along with coconuts to the sea on this full moon day to seek the blessings from the sea-God, Varuna, hence the festival is known as ‘Narali Purnima‘.

The reason of celebrating this festival holds a great significance in fisher-men community. The fishermen abstain themselves from fishing for the period before this festival as it is the mating season for the fish and also due to rains. This festival marks an end to this abstinence from fishing which starts again following this day. The coconut is thrown into the sea at the high tide. It is considered as an offering and a gesture to calm the ferociousness of the sea. However, if the sea is not nearby, they visit the nearby river or pond for offering the coconut to the water body. The coconut is offered as it has three eyes and is associated with three eyes of Lord Shiva as per Hindu mythology. The fisher-men believe that after this day the direction and the strength of the wind changes to favours them.

On this day, ‘Naraali bhaat’ or Coconut rice is prepared in the homes and distributed as prasad. The whole fishermen community celebrate this day with great fervour and jubilance. They ask the Sea-God, Varuna to bless them with the fruitful fishing season ahead. Women drape themselves in Nav-vari Maharastrian saree and perform the Koli dance at the sea-side. They also decorate their boats with different colourful flags and paint them in different colours. All the fishing equipments are also worshipped as a good gesture to start off with the fishing practice from the day. It has been an occupational and seasonal festival ever since the fishing trade came in existence. The festival is also called Shravani Purnima or Rakhi Poornima. The celebration of this festival marks the end of the Shravan month according to the Hindu calendar.

Further, the festival of Raksha Bandhan is also celebrated on this day in most parts of India which revels the sweet bond between a brother and a sister. On this day, sisters tie a silk thread on their brother’s wrist and pray for their well-being while the brothers pledge to take care of their sisters in all the troubles of their life.

Raksha Bandhan

Today with the electronic and print media,our television and newspapers have been recently advertising sale, package deals and other such offers with a caption hinting a brother’s gift to a sister and vice versa. The markets are already ready with their stock of rakhi threads and cards for the season, and, most importantly, with all of those sweet chocolate boxes and other gifts!

But as keen as we all are on celebrating Raksha Bandhan, do we know how it all started, and when? What is it about the whole ritual of tying the knot of protection that makes this festival so popular and so significant?

While there are many episodes in the Hindu religion which hint at the inception of the festival of Raksha Bandhan, the most famous of these seems to be the story of Goddess Lakshmi and King Bali. Legend states that King Mahabali had been a great devotee of Lord Vishnu, and impressed by his devotion, Lord Vishnu pledged to protect his kingdom, thus leaving his normal abode in Vikundam to move to Bali’s kingdom. Goddess Lakshmi, the wife of Lord Vishnu, was upset at this prospect because she wanted her husband to stay with her. Disguised as a Brahmin woman, she went to King Mahabali’s place to seek refuge. On the day of Shravana Purnima, she tied a rakhi or a knot of protection on King Mahabali’s wrist and revealed her true identity. On knowing the truth about this Brahmin woman, the king was immensely touched by the affection and care he and his kingdom had received from the Gods and he thus requested Lord Vishnu to accompany his wife back to Vikundam.

This episode, thus, established the trend of a sister tying a rakhi on her brother’s wrist, every year, on the day of Shravana Purnima. Since then, the celebration of this festival involves very simple, yet significant rituals.

There are so many other episodes in the history and mythology that has depicted the significance of this simple celebration of affection between a brother and a sister – Whether it is Draupadi tying a piece of torn saree to Krishna and Krishna saving her grace in the shameful act of Cheerharan carried out in the middle of court or Rani Karnavati tying a rakhi on Humayun wrist seeking his help to save her son from the vicious attack from neighbouring enemies after the death of her husband. Many such examples are available that rejoices and provides testimony of this special bond.

This festival is celebrated on the full moon day, that is, the Shravan Purnima, of the Shravan month of the Hindu lunar calendar. It is also said that on this day, frequencies of Lord Ganesh and deity Saraswati reach the earth in greater quantities, benefitting both the brother and the sister. Varying from household to household, the celebration is often started by offering prayers for protection of both the brother and the sister, followed by the ceremony followed by the rituals that have a lot of significance in them.

It begins with sister tying the rakhi onto her brother’s wrist, and in return, the brother promises her to protect her throughout their lives, and, gives his sister a small gift as a token of his love and affection. The rakhi symbolises this promise and also a symbol of purity of the relationship. While the brother promises to protect his sister, the sister, in return, promises to always pray for the protection of her brother.

Onam / Varalaxmi Vratham

Onam or the harvest festival is the main festival celebrated in the state of Kerala. It is celebrated during the first month of the Malayalam calendar which coincides with the month of August or September. It is a ten days long festival which is celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm and fervour.

The legend goes that it is during these ten days that the King Mahabali, grandson of Prahlad, visits the earth. It is said that Mahabali was a great and a just king and everyone was very happy under his rule. He is said to have become so popular that he soon started ruling the whole universe. With the power, Mahabali became so pompous that he started to think that he was the greatest among all.

Feeling challenged by the growing popularity of Mahabali, the gods asked Lord Vishnu, to aid them win their kingdom back, and return the balance that Mahabali had disturbed. It is then that Lord Vishnu incarnated as Vamana, a small Brahmin boy. In Vamana avatar, he went to Mahabali and asked for as much land as his tiny feet would cover in three steps. Mahabali could never disagree to this humble request so he consented to grant the land. It is then that Vamana took the form of a giant, filling the whole of the world. He took the first step from heaven to earth the second from earth to hell. When he had nowhere to put his third step, Mahabali asked him to step on his head, hence fulfilling his request. When Lord Vishnu stepped on Mahabali he was plummeted into ‘Patala’ or hell. Seeing his devotion, Lord Vishnu appointed Mahabali as the ruler of Patala and gave him the boon to visit his people once every year. It is during Onam, that Mahabali comes to visit his people, whom he loved dearly.

People in Kerela celebrate Onam with great fervour. They have to show their king how happy they are. There is dance, music, games and every other sort of festivities. The men play games while the women take part in cultural activities.

The tradition of making Pookalam or flower rangoli, which was originally made with 10 flowers known as ‘Dashapushpam’, to please their lord continues since forever.

One of the biggest attractions is th

The thirteen course scrumptious meal called Onasadya is prepared during the festival for a feast which is gorged on upon a traditional platter of banana leaf.

Onam is a very colourful festival that includes dance, music food and joyous celebrations in which people partake from all around the world as a reminder of the golden era of Mahabali’s reign.
e ‘Vallamkalli’- the snake boat race which takes place with great zest. There are about 100 oarsmen in each boat who rigorously row the huge narrow boats which make them glide on waters which great speed.

Incarnations and Names of Lord Ganesha

According to the Hindu Mythology, Lord Ganesha is the God of intellect and wisdom and the destroyer of pain. Ganesha Purana is the religious text dedicated to this mighty lord. According to this text, Earth is blessed with four incarnations of Lord Ganesha in four different millennia namely, namely Satyuga, Tretayuga, Dwaparyuga and Kaliyuga. The four incarnations of Lord Ganesha are:

*  In the Satyuga, Lord Ganesha was known by the name ‘Mahotkata’, taking a seat on the lion’s back, he incarnated to kill two demon brothers named Narantak and Devantak. Born to Sage Kashyap and his wife Aditi, he instated Righteousness in the world.
*  In Tretayuga, he was known by the name ‘Mayureshwara’, consort of Shiva and Parvati, he incarnated primarily for the purpose of killing the demon Sindhu. He is seen mounted on peacock and at the end of this incarnation, Ganesha gives it away to his younger brother ‘Kartik’, who rides it as his vehicle thereon.
* During Dwaparyuga, he was again born to Parvati and Lord Shiva and known by the name ‘Gajanana’. Seen at most fierce self with red complexion and riding a mouse, Ganesha is incarnated during this yug for killing the demon Sindhura, post which he is also known as ‘Sindoora’.
* Further, according to Ganesha Purana, Lord Ganesha will be incarnated as ‘Dhumraketu’ at the end of the present era, Kaliyuga. Adorning the colour of ash and riding a blue horse, he would be responsible to put an end to all the prevalent evil practices to set up a new world.

However, we also have a parallel religious text, Mudgala Purana, according to which Lord Ganesha had eight incarnations. They were:

*  ‘Vakratundya’, the lord with curved trunk, who killed the demon of drunkenness, Mada.
*  ‘Mahodara’, the lord with the huge-belly who had a battle with the demon of illusion, Moha.
*  ‘Gajanana’, the elephant-faced lord, who killed the demon of greed, lobha.
*  ‘Lambodara’, the huge-bellied lord, who mastered the demon of anger, krodha.
*  ‘Vikata’, ‘the lord who over-ridded misshapes’, who subdued the demon of desire, Kamasur.
*  ‘Vighanraja’, the lord king of obstacles, who destroyed the demon of ego, shasha.
*  Finally, ‘Dhumravarna’, who killed the demon of self-infatuation, Ahamkarasur.

Major Names of Lord Ganesha

According to the religious text, Ganesha Purana, Lord Ganesha had been given 108 names, out of which there are 12 significant names. Lord Ganesha is honoured with all these names across India. These names have been attributed to him considering various characteristics that Lord Ganesha has. They twelve names of Ganesha are:

*  Sumukha, the graceful lord.
*  Kapila, God with tawny colour.
*  Ekdanta, the one-tusked lord.
*  Lambodara, lord with huge-belly.
*  Vikata, the ferocious and dreadful God.
*  Gajakarna, the elephant-eared lord.
*  Ganadhipa, the protector of Gana.
*  Dhumraketu, the lord of smoky colour.*  Ganadhyakshya, the minister of Gana.
*  Bhalachandra, the lord who wears crescent moon on his head.
*  Gajanana, the elephant faced lord.
*  Vighananasaka, the destroyer of all the obstacles and evils.

Source: https://www.wheresmypandit.com/blog/incarnations-and-names-of-lord-ganesha