Krishna Janmashtami 2020: Significance, puja timings and rituals

Youths topple over after a pyramid at a celebration in Dadar falls. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

Krishna Janmashtami or Gokulashtami is the annual Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna, believed to be the eighth avatar of Lord Vishnu. When one thinks about Janmashtami, all one can picture is govindas forming a human pyramid to break the handi (earthen pot) filled with yogurt amidst a crowd cheering, "Aala re aala! Govinda aala!" But Janmashtami festival is much more than that as its spiritual aspect makes the festival worth celebrating.

With the spread of COVID-19 this year, the festival is being celebrated in a low-key manner.

According to mythology…

As the name suggests, Janmashtami celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna, one of the most powerful avatars of Lord Vishnu, which is one of the important events in Hindu mythology. Mythology has it that Lord Krishna was born to Devaki and Vasudev in a prison in Mathura. Fearing a threat to the child's life under the regime of King Kansa, immediately after his birth, his father Vasudeva took Krishna across the Yamuna river and gave him to his foster parents in Gokul - Nanda and Yashoda.

Customs and traditions

Devotees spend the night before the Janmashtami festival in fasting. They sing bhajans and share stories of Lord Krishna till midnight when he is birth. At that time, the idol of Lord Krishna is washed and placed on a cradle, symbolic of welcoming the deity into their homes, after which the devotees break their fast by distributing food and sweets. A platter of fruits and sweets is offered to the deity.

Many communities, especially in Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Bihar and Tripura, stage Krishnalila, also known as Raslila, a play depicting the events of the birth of Lord Krishan. Many temples are also known to organise recitations of Bhagwad Gita before Lord's Krishna's birth is declared at midnight.

Illustration: Atul Jain

Janmashtami 2020: Day, date and puja muhurat

Janmashtami tithi - August 11

Ashtami tithi begins at 9:06 am on August 11

Ashtami tithi ends at 11:16 am on August 12

Nishita (midnight) puja time - 12:21 am to 1:06 am on August 12

Dahi Handi - August 12

Janmashtami vrat and puja

No grains are allowed during Janmashtami fast, which is much like the Ekadashi fasting rules. The time of puja is during Nishita Kaal, which is near about the midnight. Devotees make 'jhankis' - an artistic creation of a village scene that shows baby Krishna with Yashoda in Vrindavan. Janmashtami offerings for Lord Krishna are prepared with milk and butter. The food offerings to the Lord also include kheer, panchamrit, panjiri and halwa.

Pyramids of excitement

Mimicking Lord Krishna's act of stealing butter with his friends, devotees form a human pyramid to 'steal' the earthen pot filled with butter, that is hung at a certain height. For a typical Dahi Handi, one would find a team of boys to form the pyramid and break the pot, while the women and girls gather around to cheer for them.

Breaking the barriers of gender and physical disabilities, teams of Govindas representing social clubs, housing societies or even families try to achieve new heights. Every year, competitions are organised where a pot is hung at a fixed height and many teams of Govindas are up for the challenge to achieve the feat.

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