About Krishna Jayanti

Synonyms: Krishnajayanti, Krishna Jayanthi, Janmashtami, Janmashtam, Gokulashtami, Shri Krushna Jayanthi, Krishnashtami, Kalashtami, Gopalkala.

Significance

    According to the Hindu lunar calendar, Lord Krishna was born on the eighth day (ashtami) of the second (dark) fortnight of the month of Shravana.

    Five thousand years ago, He incarnated, at the end of the third cosmic era, 'Dwapar Yuga' and the beginning of the present era, 'Kali Yuga'.

    The divine principle (tattva) of Lord Krishna is most active on this day of the year.

    Click here to read about His birth.

According to Numerology

    The number eight is a reducing number (kshayaank). According to numerology the number eight is responsible for generating revolutionary thoughts. It would not be wrong to say that Sri Krishna’s entire life was an era of revolution.

Celebration

• The birth of Lord Krishna is celebrated at midnight on Krishna Jayanti. At midnight, the ritual of waving lit lamps (aarti) is performed. (Click here for the science behind performing aarti.)

      His statue is placed in a swing and devotionally offered many sumptuous food dishes, in particular kheer (a sweet dish made from milk, sugar and rice/vermicelli) or halva/sheera (a sweet dish made from semolina, ghee and sugar).

      People incorrectly think that Lord Krishna loved butter and so offer butter to Him. In fact, He ate butter because the evil king Kansa taxed the people, and in order to pay their taxes, they were forced to sell butter. To prevent these civilians from suffering and caving into the unrighteous demands of the king, Lord Krishna would eat or spill their butter. In doing so, He taught the people to develop a fighting spirit (kshatravrutti) and not to tolerate injustice in any capacity.

• One should fast the whole day before the celebration at midnight. The fast is ended either at midnight by eating the Holy sacrament (prasad) or the next morning by eating an offering of a mixture (dahikala) of curd (yogurt with enzymes retained) with various eatables, milk and butter. When grazing the cattle along with the cowherds at Vraj (a city in ancient India – in modern day North India), Shri Krishna mixed the lunches of His companions with that of His own and ate it along with them. In keeping with this story, later it became customary to prepare dahikala and break a hanging pot containing curd on the day after Gokulashtami.

• Temples are decorated for the occasion. Kirtans are sung, bells are rung, the conch is blown, and Sanskrit hymns are recited in praise of Lord Krishna. At Mathura (a city in North India, near the birthplace of Lord Krishna), special spiritual gatherings are organized at this time. Pilgrims from all over India attend these festive gatherings.

    Fasting on this day as well as observing Rushipanchami, a vowed religious observance (vrat), reduces the effects of menses, impurity and touch on women. [The effects on men are reduced by performing acts of repentance (prayashchitta karma), such as shaving the head, etc. Performing the ritual of Udakshanti reduces the effects on the premise.]

Significance behind the celebration

    Krishna Jayanti is especially significant from the viewpoint of establishing Righteousness (Dharma), and surrendering unto The Lord.

Establishing Righteousness

    Since we are imprisoned in the Great Illusion (Maya), the Lord incarnates in this prison with us, establishes Righteousness and redeems us from the Great Illusion. We can only overcome and go beyond the Great Illusion if we surrender unto The Lord, as Arjuna did during the battle of Mahabharata.

    Where there is Krishna, there is dharma, where there is dharma, there is victory. Since Duryodhana, leader of the Kauravas, did not observe dharma, he did not have Krishna. No Krishna, no victory.

Surrendering unto The Lord

    During the battle Lord Krishna uttered 700 shlokas (holy verses) in the form of the 'Bhagavat Gita' to convince the reluctant Arjuna to fight his own kith and kin to reinstate Righteousness (Dharma). The Lord finally uttered the essence of His teachings in the following verse (18/66):

O Arjun! Forsake all your personal beliefs and surrender to me. Do not lament, for I shall deliver you from all sins.

    Therefore, to derive maximum benefit from Krishna Jayanti, devotees can daily make conscious efforts through spiritual practice like chanting* and prayer to surrender at the Lord's lotus-feet. Such spiritual practice would equip one to participate in establishing Righteousness. This is done by spreading the importance of Spirituality to others, removing misconceptions about it and helping curb incorrect practices, like irreverence to God or Deities through humor, commercial advertisements, etc., using Their Names, images, etc., as per one’s capacity.

Increasing devotion unto Lord Krishna

    Some of us are unable to perform the rituals and celebrate Krishna Jayanti as described above. Others of us wish to feel closer to Lord Krishna every day and not just on Sri Krishna Jayanti.

    Not only is His principle (tattva) most active on Krishna Jayanti, but in present times His energy is 100% manifest, and He rushes to the aid of the devotee who surrenders unto Him.

    The best solution to the above dilemmas is to repeat Lord Krishna’s Name as follows: “Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya.”

    Chanting (repetition) of His Name invokes His presence within oneself as The Lord and His Name are one. All of the qualities that reside in The Lord are there in The Name. Thus, repeating His Name will surely herald His presence and blessings in life.

    The Children’s Story in the Sanatan organization’s Weekly Online Issue 182, entitled “The thief’s reward.”

    We can also perform His aarti daily at twilight time, as explained above.

    Finally, we can read all about Sri Krishna in the Mahabharata, the Bhagavat Gita as well as the Sanatan organization’s Holy texts (compiled by His Holiness Dr. Jayant Athavale) and booklets. The Sanatan organization’s publications concisely list the special features of Sri Krishna, with Their implied meanings according to the science of Spirituality. Click here for a list of books and booklets.

* If one is not currently doing any spiritual practice, one can begin with the simple, but powerful spiritual practice of chanting or constantly remembering God's Name according to one's religion.

• Seekers in the initial stages of spiritual practice (less than one year) can repeat The Name of the Lord as per their religion (refer to Issue 3 Clarification of Doubts section for details).

• Those seekers who have been doing regular spiritual practice for over a year or so can determine the appropriate chant for them from the experiment given in Issue 124, Message to Seekers section.