Krishna Jamastami Celebrations

Think of Lord Krishna, you remember a natkat (naughty) child who won everyone's hearts young and old. The best of this remembrance is Lord Krishna birthday which is celebrated as Krishna Janmashtami. It is celebrated in different ways across India and the world.

Lord Krishna who is the Supreme person has the ability to provide the ultimate spiritual experience or moksha as we know it in India He can help us reach our goals and raise above all our sorrows and pains. For me the celebrating Lord Krishna's birth is one of the most awaited festivals.

The preparations for the festival in our house starts a week before as the required raw materials like rice flour, besan flour, butter, urad dal flour, coconut, groundnut and a lot more ingredients for making delicious sweets and savouries for the Lord. Some of the delicacies are prepared before the day of the festival as it is a custom to make 5, 7, 9, 11 or 21 - odd number of sweets and savouries for pleasing the Lord.

On the day of the festival, lots of different colour flowers from the fragrant jasmine to red kanakambari to the sunflower to tulasi and many more are purchased and used for decorating the Lord. The Lord's footsteps are put on the floor with rice floor paint from the front door to invite him and taste all the goodies created for Him and bless us and our home.

We also visit the Krishna temple near home to see the Lord decorated in all His splendour for a week starting from the day of his birth every year. The temple is beautified with a lot of flowers, idols of Krishna Leela depicting His various deeds and past times on Earth. It is always nice to see young children dressed as Krishna and Radha and looking cute and ready for a photo shoot.

We have our own photoshoots at home dressed in new clothes and waiting to receive the blessings of the Lord. Once all the lamps are lit for the God, we say a lot of shlokas and songs to remember the Lord. My favourite one being

"Hare Krishna Hare Krishna,

Krishna Krishna Hare Hare,

Hare Rama Hare Rama,

Rama Rama Hare Hare"

Jai Sri Krishna - you will always fill our hearts with joy.