Janmashtami or the birthday of Krishna is renowned throughout India. This celebration is connected with one of the most charming trial in Krishna’s life. It is called “Govinda aala re aala”, which translates as Govinda has come. Govinda is another name of Krishna.

Celebration of Janmashtami

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), Juhu, is celebrating its yearly Sri Krishna Janmashtami Festival on Saturday and Sunday on a larger and grander scale than ever before in the last 25 years. Over ten lakh devotees are likely to have darshan over the weekend. The day-long festivities on Saturday will comprise of melodious kirtans, spiritual discourses depicturing the pastimes of Lord Sri Krishna, the abhishek of Lord Krishna, while the chanting of Hare Krishna Maha Mantra will echo over the entire temple. Worship of Lord Krishna (arati) will be held during planned hours of the day, there will be cultural performances, dramas, programmers for children (Bal Utsav) and prasadam sharing.

Krishna would enter the homes of the maidens of Vrindavan and take butter from the pots. The maidens got wise to his clowning around and began to hang the pots from the ceiling. But a minor safety measure like that did not deter Krishna and his companions. They would form a human pyramid and Krishna would climb to the very top and bring down the pot.

The day has an amazing cultural side to it. The cultural wing of ISKCON, Bhakti Kala Kshetra, and will characteristic Pandit Jasraj, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia and a dance recital by Hema Malini.

Modernism is communicable with this festival. Several of the groups are accompanied by a live band and almost all of them are sponsored by some shared body or political party. Women are not to be left behind and there are known to be a few all girl groups as well.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who in the mid-1960s brought the antique culture of India, the philosophy of Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam, to the western world. In just 12 years despite his complex age, Srila Prabhupada circled the world 14 times on lecture tours that took him to six continents and opened 108 temples around the world. Yet this dynamic plan did not slow his prolific literary output. His writings comprise of a real library of Vedic philosophy, religion, literature and culture.