Krishna Janmastami Gaura Parva today

Hindus throughout the country are celebrating Krishna Janmastami or Krishna Jayanti, considered the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna on Wednesday.

According to scriptures, including Mahabharata, Krishna, revered as the eighth avatar of Lord Vishnu, was born to King Vasudeva and Devaki of Mathura in Dwapara Yuga on the eighth day of the dark half of Bhadra.

On the occasion, devotees throng to Krishna temples since early morning and make offerings of money, fruits, sweets, and clothes.

They observe a fast and sing devotional songs dedicated to Krishna until midnight, believed to be the time of Lord Krishna’s birth.

President Ram Baran Yadav today extended greetings to Nepalis living at home and abroad on the occasion of Krishna Janmasthami and Gaura Parva, which is mainly celebrated in the Far-Western Region.

“Festivals like Shree Krishna Janmasthami have helped the Nepali people enjoy various cultures and languages,” he said in the message.

On this day, people parade on the streets carrying idols of Krishna. A special religious ceremony also takes place at Krishna Mandir in Patan, Lalitpur, on the occasion.

Faithful throng Krishna Mandir from wee hours
Devotees are thronging the Shree Krishnamandir here since early morning today to pay homage to lord Krishna on the occasion of the Krishna Janmastami Festival.

Although the temple gates were opened at 4 a.m., a large number of devotees had started to queue up since 2 a.m. The number of devotees has been increasing. Groups of devotees can be seen singing hymns and giving homilies on the streets and squares around the temple complex.

The Krishna Janmastami Festival commemorates the birth of Lord Krishna. It is believed that lord Krishna was born on this day [the eighth day in the dark moon period in the month of Shrawan according to the lunar calendar] during the Treta Yuga.

Lord Krishna is considered as an incarnation of Vishnu, the Hindu god of protection. It is believed that lord Krishna was born to protect the world from vice and demonic forces. He is taken to embody the virtue of truth and dharma.

The Shree Krishnamandir in Patan, Lalitpur was constructed nearly 376 years and it is one of the finest examples of Nepali temple architectural design. The then king Siddhi Narsingh Malla commissioned the construction of this temple.

President pays homage to Lord Shree Krishna
President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav visited the Shree Krishna Temple at local Mangalbazaar this morning and paid homage to Lord Shree Krishna on the occasion of the Shree Krishna Janmastami festival.

On the occasion, the President talked briefly to the office-bearers of the Shree Krishna Temple Trust and observed the historic and archeological monuments including the three traditional stone spouts in the Patan Durbar Square area.

The Trust has been running the Shree Krishna Janmastami religious fair since it was started by renowned social worker Tulasi Mehar Shrestha some 83 years back.

There is a tradition of the Head of State attending the religious programmes at the Shree Krishna Temple on the occasion of the Shree Krishna Janmastami every year. With RSS inputs.

source: the himalayan times,28 August 2013