Here are few sms for Bengali New Year

Bengali New Year SMS

Tur eccha golo ura bayrak pakhna doti mala,
Dingoli tur jakna keta amni hasa khala,
Aopo-rno na thaka jano tur kuno shokh,
Ai kamonay bondo tuka Eid-Mubarak.

eso eso nababarsho
ano songe mrito bonge
nobo pran
nobo harsho,
utsobo nahi aar
jibono gurubhar
manober jibono bimorsho
eso eso nababarsho”

Tumi akhon bondo…amar khub Dear,
Amakeo rakho tumar… ridoyer Near,
God chara kaoka tumi…karona Fear,
Dekhba kovo jibona tumar…asbena Tear.

Notun bochor oguloke karuk Dhulissat,
Sukh,Anonda muche jak sakol Jatona,
Shubho Naba Barshe Sobar jonne Shuvo Kamona.
Shuvo Naba Barsho

May you come up as bright as sun,
as cool as water and as sweet as honey.
Hope this Baisakhi fulfill all your desires and wishes.
Happy Poila Baisakh!!

Tur jonna aanta pari akas thaka tara,
Tui bolla bachta pari oxyzen chara,
Prithibi takeo lutate pari bondo turi pai,
Abar tuie bol avaba koto r mittha bola jai!!

Dingoli jamoni houk thik e jai kata,
Tobe bolo lav ki porono sriti geta,
A Bochore puran houk tur sokol aasa,
New Year a Tur jonna ata e kori Prottasa

Maundy Thursday is the “Holy Thursday”, which is also known with the names of “Covenant Thursday”, Great and Holy Thursday and Thursday of mysteries and is written in the bible.

The Thursday which falls, before Good Friday is termed and tagged as a “Maundy Thursday”. Maundy Thursday always occurs in between March 19^th – April 22 every year and is celebrated as a day on which Christians feast.

Good Friday will be celebrated all over the world, on April 2^nd,2010 and so the internet surfers are busy searching for some cool short

messages and are searching with search terms such as “ Good Friday Sms”, Good Friday Greetings” and Good Friday 2010”.

Hanuman jayanthi is being celebrated on March 30^th, 2010, all over India and falls on the Pournami day.

so , on this occasion, most of the web surfers are searching for Hanuman Jayanthi wallpapers, Hanuman Jayanthi sms, Hanuman Mantra, Hanuman Chalisa and hanuman wallpapers.

Sri Rama Navami is being celebrated all over India and the recipe of Panakam and Vada Pappu, which is the Prasadam is on great demand.

Panakam Recipe- Panakam is a mixture of Jaggery mixed with Dry ginger, Cardomom, pepper and Somph.

Sriramanavami prasadam is a just Vada pappu, which is boiled form of Channa dal.

Sri Rama Navami is being celebrated all over Indian by Hindu religion followers. It is a festival which marks the marriage of lord Rama with goddess Sita. 

On the occasion of Ram Navami, the Badrachalam Temple, located in Andhra Pradesh, conducted the sacred marriage ceremony of Lord Rama with goddess Sita in between 10:30 am and 12:30pm at the Mithila Stadium on March 24^th,2010.

Sriramanavami Greetings, Sree rama Navami Sms are being circulated among the devotees of Lord Rama. Poojas and Rituals are being carried out in the bradrachalam temple and offering of Vepapuvvu Naivedyam to the sacred deities is also prepared. In Badrachalam, the festive fever has gripped the entire towns and cities surrounding this place and as per schedule Ankurarohanam was performed on March 20, 2010, along with Agnipratishta & Dwajarohanam on March 22,2010.

Edurkollu was also performed on March 23^rd and almost 20,000 devotees witness the Badrachalam Rama wedding ceremony withy Sita. Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh was also present on this occasion at badrachalam temple along with his family.

Sri Lord Rama’s Pattabhishekam and Rathothsavam will be held on March 25^th, 2010. Teppotsavam, Chorotsavam, Ujjavautsavam and vasantothsavaam will be following.

Gudi Padwa, festival will be celebrated on March 16^th,2010. According to the Marathi calendar, from this day, a new year starts for them and this month is called as Chaitra Maasa. It is also known as Ugadi and Samvatsar Padvo.

According to the vedic purans., this festival will mark the start of spring festival . There is a vedic puran in holy “ Brahma Puran”, that on the occasion of Gudi Pawa, lord Brahma, who is a creator of the world, created the earth after a big pralaya. So, this day is suggested to be an auspicious day for any new activity, according to Lunar calendar which is ‘ Sade Teen Muhurut’.

Gudi Padwa is celebrated as “Ugadi” in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Sindhi people celebrate this festival as Cheti Chand or the New Year day.

On the occasion of Gudi padwa, homes are cleaned well and are neatly washed and made tidy. People take a head bath on this day and wear new clothes and prepare a sweet with neem tree leaves, jaggery, tamarind and all kind of nuts. All the members of the family tastes this , which is good for health as well.

Guid Padwa Sms and Marathi sms are sent to the near and dear.

Rama Navami

Rama Navami is observed as a holy festival in India and is followed by Hindus all over the world. Previously it was only celebrated in India. But as the populace of India started to spread to other parts of world, the Hindu festivals are also being followed over there. This festival is celebrated in the grand way to celebrate the birthday of lord Rama and also the marriage day of Lord Sita.

Usually this festival occurs in the month of April and according to the Telugu calendar, the festival falls on the ninth day of Chaitra month which is also known as Chaitra Navami. The celebrations are celebrated for a period of 1-9 days on the whole.

Birth of Rama and the epic Ramayana

According to Ramayana, which was written by sage Valmiki, Dasaratha, the king of Ayodhya, had three wives with the name Kausalya, Sumitra and Kaikeyi. The king was depressed as he could not father a male child and so was worried about the future of his kingdom. Sage Vasistha who heard this issue and advised to perform a yagam called “Putra Kamesti Yagna” in order to make the king a father of a male child. The king herad the advice and immediately went to Maharshi Rushya Shrunga’s dwelling and asked him to perform this yagam with all credits. The yagna was performed perfectly and as a result the Yagna deva after getting satisfied with the offerings appears before the King Dasaratha and offers a bowl of liquid sweet and asks him to give it to his three wives as a Prasad gained from the yagna.

The liquid sweet or Payasam is given to the king who shares it with his elder wife Kausalya and younger wife Kaikeyi. Likewise the two wives share the payasam with the middle wife of Dasaradh named Sumitra.

After some time, the three queens conceive four children. On the ninth day of Navami, king dasarath’s eldest wife gives birth to Lord Sri Ram and youngest wife gives birth to a boy named Bharath., the second wife of king Dasaratha gives birth to twin boys named Lakshman and Shatrughan.

After some years, lord Rama is ordered by his father to leave the kingdom and to attend vanvas for 14 years. He is accompanied by his wife Sita and younger brother Lakshman and then the Ramayan saga continues. Raavana kidnaps Sita and in a look out for Sita Rama meets lord hanuman who is by birth a die hard devotee of Lord Ram. Then after a battle, again Sita is fetched back by Rama and the Ramayana episode takes a turn.

After inheriting the throne of the kingdom Ayodhya, Rama makes his wife Sita leave the kingdom when she is pregnant with his child. Twin babies are born to siat in forest who are named as Luv and Kusha. After uniting with their father Rama in their teenage, the twins inherit the throne of Ayodhya and lord Rama migrates to Vaikuntham along with sita which is considered as the home of lord Vishnu.

Significance of Rama Navami

Rama Navami is celebrated for the reason that it is considered as the birthday of Lord Rama who is also called as the incarnation of Lord Vishnu and at the same time the day also marks the marriage day of Lord Ram with goddess Sita who is treated as an incarnation of goddess Lakshmi. Lord Rama was a son of King Dasaradha who ruled Ayodhya. Since the festival occurs in the Shukla Paksha or waxing of moon according to the Hindu Lunar Calender, the Hindus credit it a as a season of Chaitra Maasa Shuklapaksha Navami and celebrate this festival for nine day.

Since the Rama Navami is celebrated for 9 days, this festival is also called as “Rama Navaratri”. The devotees recite the pages of the holy epic Ramayana on this day and the “Akhand Paath of the Rama Charitramanas is organized on these nine days and Bhajans and Kirtans are sung by the gathered devotees before the lord.

Fasting is observed till the Puja and Bhajans are performed and then feasting with the Prasad of Pulihora and Chekkara Pongali which are offered to the Lord Rama are then consumed.

Many small idols of Lord Rama are placed in small sized cradles and the cradle is rocked by married and unmarried woman. Since the birthday of Rama falls on this day, this ritual is performed and prayers are offered from the start of the day.

Some temples of Rama and Sita are packed with the devotee crowds who perform special Yagna’s and Chant Vedic mantras in order to please the Lord. Fruits, flowers and fasting are offered to god and are consumed by the devotees.

In the whole south India, the day marks the marriage day of lord Rama and Sita and the wedding ceremony of Rama and Sita is performed which is called as Sita-Rama Kalyanam. The marriage is performed with the Vedic mantras and then the Rama Nama Smaranam is performed.

The main celebrations of Rama navami is observed in Ayodhya which is located in Uttar Pradesh. The whole north Indian celebrates the festival after the Puja is completed in Ayodhya which is marked as a birth place of lord Rama.

While the people in Andhra Pradesh celebrate this festival as the marriage day of Lord Rama and a marriage ceremony is organized in the place called Badrachalam which is in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Rameshwarm which is located in Tamil Nadu is also well renowned for its celebration of Rama Navami. Thousands of devotes throng the temples of Rama and Rath Yatras as well as Shobha yatras of lord Rama, Lakshmana and Sita are observed.

Taking a dip in the river Sarayu which is near to Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh is considered as a sacred deed before offering puja and prayers on the occasion of Rama Navami.

Facts about lord Rama and Rama Navami

• Lord Rama was born in the afternoon when the sun god was at his peak.

• Hanuman Jayanthi or the birthday of Hanuman is celebrated exactly after 7 days from Rama Navami.

• During the ruling of Rama, the kingdom of his was filled with only peace and prosperity.
• Sir-Rama-Navami
• Sir-Ra
• Sir-Rama-Navami picture

Raksha Bandhan

Raksha Bandhan, which is a Hindu festival, is celebrated for the relationship of brother & sister. Raksha Bandhan is also known as Rakhi Bandhan which is also pronounced as same in Punjabi, Oriya, Assamese and Hindi. Rakhi festival is celebrated in the month of Shravan Purnima i.e. on a full moon day.

The festival is celebrated in a grand fashion through out India and is marked by the tying of Rakhi or the sacred thread to a brother by his sister. In return, sister gains some gifts or vows from brother and them both share sweets then after.

Rakhi can be tied to a blood brother or to adopted brother. Cousins, good friends and any male who is seen as a brother from a girl’s point of view can become a brother through this Rakhi Bandhan.

Scriptures written which essay the history of Rakhi reveal that women usually demand for a protection from their Rakhi brother who vows to protect them from all forms and kinds of evil forces. According to an ancient Purana, this Rakhi celebration was also carried out among other religions like Muslims and Sikhs. When ever a king used to go on a war, his wife or his sister used to tie the band of Rakhi in order to keep the death god away from the king.

In sixteenth century, Rani Karnavati who used to live in Chittor sent a sacred band of Rakhi to the Mughal King Humayum. Rani Karnavati was threatened by the Bhadur Shah of Gujarat and as soon as Humayum listened to the dismay of Rani Karnavati, he moved his entire military in rescue of Rani Karnavati

History of Rakhi Bandhan

Raksha Bandhan is referred in the scriptures such as Vaishnava theology and some of the facts are revealed in this theology about the Rakhi Bandhan.

Indra’s loss in war- the leader of all gods, Lord Indra Deva lost a war with Vritra which was a humiliation to him. Then Wife of Indra tied a wrist band to him which was made powerful with the help of divine powers. This band helped Indra in winning the battle and retains his supremacy among the gods.

Krishna Charitra- it is in scripted in the Mahabharata that Lord Krishna saved Drauapadi from humiliation when the Drauapadi –wife of Pandavas vastrapahara (forcefully removing clothes) was ordered in the kingdom. This help was rendered to Drauapadi by lord Krishna due to the fact that many years back she tied him a cloth on his wrist when blood was flowing when he met with an accident. Drauapadi after tying the silk cloth in order to stop the blood flow took a promise from lord Krishna that he would save her when in need. So to keep up that promise, Lord Krishna saved her from being humiliated in public when her clothes were being removed forcefully. So, the prominence of Raksha Bandhan is famous from the Krishna Yuga itself.

King Bali and Raksha Bandhan- once upon a time they lived a demon king Bali who was fortunately a great devotee of Lord Vishnu. Bali was awarded with a boon that his kingdom will be protected by Lord Vishnu who left Vaikunta in order to keep up his promise. Goddess Lakshmi felt alone in Vaikunta and wanted to accompany her husband. She immediately disguised herself as a Brahmin lady and went to Bali for refuge.

Fortunately the season of Shravan Purnima entered and Lakshmi tied the sacred thread to King Bali. She also revealed her original identify and Bali was touched to hear it, he heard about his Lord Vishnu’s work of protecting his kingdom and was moved. He immediately sacrificed his whole kingdom in order t please the deity couples.

Lord Yama’s boon for Raksha Bandhan. Lord Yama-the god of death had a sister called Yamuna. When she tied a Rakhi to her brother, Yama was moved with the festival and its prominence. He immediately gave a boon to all the human kind and said that all those sisters who tied Rakhi to their brother’s n this occasion would make their brothers immortal.

Celebration of Raksha Bandhan

Raksha Bandhan is celebrated as Rakhi Purnima in north and south India. Since the word ‘Purnima’ itself suggest about a full moon night, the Rakhi festival has obtained in the name of Rakhi Purnima.

Certain populace in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand and Bihar celebrate the Rakhi festival as Kajari Purnima also. This day has a prominence for those farmers who have a son and on the ninth day of Shravan Amavasya, a coconut is before lord Vishnu for the good health of the son.

This festival is also called as Nariyal Purnima in Maharastra, Gujarat and Goa. A coconut is offered to the sea and as a mark of respect for the lord Varuna. It is believed that Lord Varuna will save the fisherman from drowning from sea and unlimited fish are obtained as food from sea god.

In certain parts of Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, Lord Shiva is worshipped on this festival and is offered fruits and flowers as offerings.

On this day, it is believed according to the Puranas that Lord Ganesh and Saraswathi send their blessing in more frequencies which can be received by the brother and sister.

It is a fact that the divine energy in a woman is passed on to the man who gets tied with a Rakhi from the woman. Such is a divine energy which is passed over on the Raksha Bandhan day.

Nowadays Rakhis are being decorated with different forms of symbols and deities such as hanuman, Cartoons and much more. But according to the sages and gurus, this has no significance and the rachis tied with these symbols on will be of no use. Commercialization in production of Rakhi has increased and so when the buying of such rachis stops, the making also stops.

Conclusion

Raksha Bandhan is a festival which is respected by the Muslim community and also in the Christian community. As a mark of respect, the government of Indian has declared it as a national festival and a national holiday has been declared to educational institutions and government offices but from the past five years, it has been declared as an optional holiday. However, educational institutions remained closed through out India.

Nag Panchami is well renowned all over India and is celebrated by Hindus residing in India. The festival is celebrated in the Shravan month of Panchami day and is the day on which the Naga Devta is worshipped.

The state government as well as the central government has declared this day as an optional holiday to all government institutions and also to educational institutions. It is a general belief that the snake god will give away boons on this day to all devotees who worship him with all rituals and utmost devotion.

The devotees offer milk, raw eggs, and silver jewelry to the Nag Devta in order to please the Nag Devta who will ward off all evils from his devotees. According to the Vedic rituals, it is believed that on this day, Lord Krishna who is said to be an incarnation of Lord Vishnu achieved victory by defeating serpent lord Kalia and so, as a mark of joyous celebration this festival is celebrated.

Significance of Nag Panchami

It is a fact that Hinduism is well known for worshipping different gods and goddesses with immense faith. The Hindus always follow the way of life and the fellowship of truth. Hindus always worship the five forces of nature, deities, local cults and flora and Fauna.

In the same way, Nag Panchami is celebrated on the fifth day of the Shravan Masam which always occurs in July or august month. It is a fact that in this season or months, the serpents mellow out of the holes as their mud dwellings are inundated with the rain water. So, the serpents reach the homes of the humans or their habituated places and pose a danger to the humans and their cattle.

So, for this reason, in order to please the snake god and to ward off any kind of danger from them, the populace of Indian worships the snakes in order to protect the whole mankind from the danger of venomous serpents. it is believed that the snake god was worshipped since the Vedic scriptures were written and the ritual continues.

History of Nag Panchami

Nag Panchami is celebrated by all Hindus and the festival is celebrated as a respect given to the snake god. According to the Vedic puranas, it is believed that there are five varieties of Nags on the whole world. Ananta, Vasuki, Taxak, Karkotaka, and Pingala. There is a brief story written in the Puranas which says that Lord Brahma had a son named Kashyap who had four wives. The four wives gave birth to children and were in the according way.

The first wife of Kashyap gave birth to Devas, second wife gave birth to Garudas, the third wife gave birth to Nagas and the third wife gave birth to Daityas. Since the third wife Kashpa was also known with the name Kadroo, the Nagas who were born from her were also known with the name of Kadrooja. The Nagas were the rulers of the Patala- Loka till the start of Kaliyuga.

It is believed that during the 3000BC, there was a clan called Nagas existing on earth and there were the people who worshipped the snake god immensely. As time passed on and centuries passed away, this ritual is being followed by the Hindus and is believed to be a ritual followed from the Puranic history in India.

As mentioned earlier, there is scriptures which prove that the Nagas clan had different sects in them which are named as Anant, Vasuki, Sheh Nag, Padma , Kanwal, Karkotaka, Kalia, Aswatar, Takshak, Sankhpal, Dhritarastra and Pingal nags. But it is believed from the scriptures written in Vedic puranas that the Naga kings with the above mentioned names used to exist and not the snakes on these names.

Nag is said to be believed to be a disciple of Lord Shiva and is worn around his neck as an ornament,. So, in order to seek the good will of Lord Shiva, the Nag Panchami is celebrated by the Hindus.

Celebration of Nag Panchami

Nag Panchami is celebrated in a grand way in south India and in some parts of North India also. Normally the Hindus visit the temples of Nag Devta on this day after taking the holy bath and then the Nag Devta is offered milk, rice and flowers and his blessings are obtained.

In a village named Baltis Shirale which is 400 Kms from Mumbai, a largest collection of snakes is done during this festival. Visitors take part in the grand celebration held in this village every year from all parts of world. Many venomous snakes such as King Cobra, rattlers, spectacled cobra are brought to the festival with their venom glands totally removed. However, the snakes develop the glands again after a period of 3 months and so the gland removal is not objected by the government. Some snake charmers do not take the venom glands, but the snakes have never bitten any human on this festival and this is a fact in the village.

This festival is said to be banned after some years as a legal case is pending in high court which was filed by the animal welfare organization which has an opinion that the snakes are being harmed on the name of this festival.

The snake god is called with different names in south India and some of the names are mentioned now.

• Adishesha in Andhra Pradesh
• Hardevja in Jaipur
• Nagathamman in Chennai
• Nagaraja in Kerala

Many temples of Nag Devta which are located all over India celebrate this festival in a grand fashion.

Rituals performed on Nag Panchami

On the occasion of Nag Panchami, the captivated cobras brought by the snake charmers are bathed in milk and food like rice and jaggery are offered to the cobra god. Usually the food is offered in front of the snake and then is distributed among the Hindu devotes and consumed as Prasad.

Many ant hills which are believed to be the dwellings of snakes are worshipped with milk, flowers and eggs as this is said to be a ritual which pleases the snake god.

Mansa, which is the goddess of snakes worshipped in west Bengal is decorated with jewelry and devotes throng to have a darshan of the goddess and believe that all the obstacles will be cleared by the goddess.

In the Punjab state, a large snake made up of Dough is created and is paraded through the streets of Punjab and devotees pray to the snake which is said to remove all the evil effects fro their lives.

Unmarried girls worship the Nag Devta in order to obtain a future husband who has all the good qualities. In south India, fasting is kept by young girls in order to please the snake god who in-turn blesses them with a boon.

Mahavir Jayanti

Mahavir Jayanti is celebrated all over India the Jain community and is considered as an important religious festival. The festival is declared as a national holiday and is celebrated as a birth of Mahavira who is a descendent of Tirthankara. Mahavira was born on the rising moon 13^th day of Chaitra masa in 599 BC and 615 BC. There is a religious difference in the birth year of Mahavira as there are two sects in the Jain community known as Swetambara and Digambara sect.

According to the Mahavira Digambara school of Jainism, lord Mahavir was born in 615 BC and according to the Swethambara sect, it is believed that lord Mahavir was born in 599 BC.

However, the difference in between both the sects is on the birth year and not on the birth of Mahavir as both the sects known as Swethambara and Digambara believe that Mahavir is the son of Siddhartha and Trisala.

There is a story according to the puranas of Jainism religion and that goes on like this. Devananda, who was a wife of a well versed Brahmin named Rishabhdeva, conceived him. The gods cleverly migrated the growing embryo into the womb of Trisala who was the wife of Siddhartha.

Here there is a difference between the two sects on the dreams dreamt by the expectant mother. According to the Swethambara sect, the expectant mother had 14 auspicious dreams and according to the Digambara sect the expectant mother dreamt about 16 auspicious dreams. Many well versed astrologers predicted that the birth of the child will bring happiness to the couple till the child enters into teenage. They also predicted the future of the child and said that the growing child may become an emperor or a Thirthankara.

The Mahavir Jayanti is always celebrated in the month of March or April and is celebrated on a grand fashion by the Jain community.

Celebration

On the occasion of the Mahavir Jayanthi, the Jain temples are decorated with the orange flags.

The idol of Mahavir is bathed in milk, honey, curd, tulsi water, rose water and so on. This bath is called as Abhishek and the members of the Jain community consume the liquid obtained from Abhishek as theertham.

Then the idol of Mahavir is kept in cradled and is rocked by the unmarried girls and married woman.

After this ceremony, the idol is kept in a chariot shaped vehicle and a ceremonious procession is taken around all in the neighborhood.

Usually the devotees offer milk, rice, fruits, fresh water, lams, incense to the people who take part in the procession.

Donations are collected in large quantities in order to save cows and goats from the slaughter houses. The Jain community purchases the cows and goats from the slaughter houses and releases them into forests and villages so that they can live their life peacefully.

People spend time in large groups and give lecture to the community members on the ongoing donations process, the development programs taken up for the development of community.

The ancient Jain temples in Girnar and Palitana which are located in the Gujarat state are thronged with crowds.

The Jain community believes that their Lord Mahavir always taught to the mankind that following the path of truth will always lead to happiness and Non-violence always makes the man reach the heaven. Austerity is considered as a path in achieving Salvation and Spirituality and so the people must takes certain strict decisions while building their decisions of their future.

Coincidentally, the Mahavir Jayanti falls sometimes on the same day of Mahavir Hanuman Jayanthi. Lord Hanuman who is famous as a devotee of Lord Rama in Tretha Yuga is considered as an equivalent of lord Mahavir.

Facts about Mahavir Jayanthi

As modern times are emerging, the procession of Mahavir Jayanti is taken in a very lavish way. Chariots which are pulled by horses or camels are being hired by the Jain community and the procession is being taken in a 5 kilometer radius.

The Jain community people do not allow other community, religion or caste people to enter their temples. They restrict the visitors of other religions, castes and communities till the gate and they do not allow them into the temple.

The Jain community people cover themselves with white clothe and this is only being practiced by sadhus and sadhvis of their communities these days.

This community sadus and sadhivis cover their mouth with a white piece of cloth in order to avoid bacteria from entering into their mouthy. They practice this in order to avoid any kind of bacteria entering into their mouth and being killed.

From the day of Mahavir Jayanti, till a period of 10 days, Bhajans and Kirtans are organized by the elders of the Jain community and are attended by the young brigade of the Jain community. Usually, the Bhajans are composed in the form of Cinema songs and the community elders encourage the young members by giving away gifts and novelties to all those who participated.

They only consume only some particular vegetables in order to avoid those which consist bacteria.

The Jain community people usually built Jain community halls with Marble stones, as they consider the marble as a scared stone. Usually, the Jain temples and halls are elevated with Marble stone in order to highlight it in white color.

According to the Jain gurus, ceremonies like Marriage and birthdays are celebrated in the Jain community halls to which all the community members are invited. Distribution if food, gifts and flowers takes place on the day of celebration.

Nowadays, the Jain community is picking its growth in south India as the community members who are generally businessman are purchasing many houses and lands are building temples, community halls and lodges for the benefit of their Jain community.

The Jain community is also being respected in the society and the principles followed by them due to their Lord Mahavir have obtained value in Hinduism and Islam. These two communities respect the Jain communism as the preaching’s of Lord Mahavir are impressive and inculcate good and healthy ideas into the human’s mind.

Politically, the value of Jain community is also growing as many regional parties are shaking hands with the Jains in order to gain the confidence and sympathy of the whole Jain community.

Yet the prominent persons in the Jain community stay away from actively participating in the Indian politics. But nowadays, the new blood in the Jain community is eager to enter politics in order to build a health and corruption free society.

Krishnashtami or Janmashtami

Krishnashtami or Janmashtami is a Hindu festival which is celebrated on the occasion of the birthday of Lord Shri Krishna. This festival is celebrated through out India by the Hindus and is marked as a government holiday to government offices, business establishments and educational institutions.

This festival is celebrated for 2 days and the birthday of Lord Krishna comes in the Bhadrapada maasa, according to the Hindu calendar. This festival is also known as “Saatanam Aatham”, “Gokulashtami”, “ Ashtami Rohini”, “Srikrishna Jayanthi”, “Sree Jayanthi” and “Dahi Handi” which reveal about Lord Krishna who is a incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

Janmashtami is observed on the Ashtami Thidhi which falls on the eighth day of Krishna Paksha of the month of Bhadra pada. This season in which Rohini Nakshatra is n ascendant form is also coincidental to it. Aldebaran is the name known in the western region of the globe which is the other name of this Rohini Nakshatra. Usually, Lord Krishna is famous for his Rasa Lila which is dramatically enacted in the regions of Mathura, Vrindavan and Vaishnavism in Manipur.

Significance of Gokulashtami

According to the Gregorian calendar, which is a internationally accepted civil calendar, Krishnashtami usually occurs in Mid august or in Mid September months and is celebrated in a grand way.

As detailed earlier, this festival is the birthday of lord Krishna to the king Vasudeva who later on migrates the child Krishna to a place called Gokul and places him besides a lady called Yashoda in the pretext of midnight. So, on the before day of Janmashtami which is on Sapthami , the seventh day of Bhadra Pada, the devotees stay on fasting and vigil.

Janmashtami Pooja Items

Gokulashtami Pooja requirements

Gokulashtami is said to be a happiness filled festival and the pooja is also performed in temples and homes. Lord Krishna’s birthday is said to be celebrated by singing and praising the Gokul’s Krishna. The festival celebration takes place in a grand way with the following items

• Lord Krishna’s Idol and a cradle which must have a conch.

• Newly stitched clothes which are decorated with jewels, stones and some golden threads.

• A pooja Thali which has all the ingredients such as Kumkum, incense sticks, flowers, ghee, supari, Paan Leaves, elaichi, rice and a diya with a cotton wick and some oil in it.

• The necessary arthi hymns and mantras.

• A panchamrith milk curd with Gangajal, honey and ghee.

Janmashtami Pooja process

The devotees bathe the idol of Lord Krishna in milk, curd, ghee, sandalwood paste and coconut powder and place the idol in the cradle in order to ritually worship him with utmost respect. The idol is adorned with some lavishly designed clothes and mainly Yellow color is given importance as a cloth cover. The clothes are also adorned with some diamonds and beads in order to give it a rich look. Then the Idol is offered with a Bhog of Prasad which consists of Lemon rice, curd rice, fruits, kheer, butter and other milk products. It is a necessary to offer 56 varieties of eating dishes to the Lord Krishna. But these days the devotees are just managing to offer only 11-15 varieties of dishes. When the whole Pooja ritual is completed, the Aarthi is carried on and the fast observed by devotees is left by consuming the Panchamrith.

Ritual of Krishna Leela

This is a mandatory ritual which is observed by all devotes of lord Krishna. In the early morning before sunrise, the ladies draw the foot steps of a kid which symbolizes the entry of Lord Krishna into the home of Yashodara which is a foster home for him. It also symbolizes the Raas Leela in between Krishna and his Radha and the love in between them.

The ritual of breaking a pot which is hanged high above starts. This is apart of Raas Leela of Lord Krishna and the young men and boys form a Pyramid human shape by standing on the top of one another until they form a human Pyramid which is enough to break the pot hanging above. The breaking of the pot is considered o be auspicious on the occasion of the Raas Leela.

Devotees throng the Krishna Temples which are near to them and chant hymns, bhajans and perform pooja in order to get the blessing of Lord Krishna.

Functions and prayers are organized by the Krishna Temple committee members and devotees participate in them with utmost devotion.

Hence, the festival is celebrated by children and elders with great joy and happiness and togetherness.

Lord Krishna’s decorative items

Janmashtami is celebrated on the said date annually, but the devotees of Lord Krishna usually worship the Nandh Gopal through out the year. The devotees usually keep the idols of Lord Krishna in different forms.

• Idol and sculptures- beautifully carved idols and sculptures are said to be the most importantly worshipped items. Though the regular Pooja is not offered to the idols, or the sculptures the normal praying and chanting of hymn is done in order to get the lords blessings.

• Wall hangings of Krishna- it is considered as a mandatory ritual for all painter s to draw lord Krishna’s picture once in a lifetime. The wall hangings and the wall papers created by the painters are also source of worship to the Devotees.

• Thoran of Krishna- on the day of Janmashtami, it is considered as a good deed to decorate the door of Lord Krishna with the picturous thorans.

Janmashtami and the prominence of Bhajans

Janmashtami is said to be famous for the Bhajans and is incomplete without singing the hymns and bhajans in order to praise Lord Krishna. It is believed that Lord Krishna gets pleased with the Bhajans and gives boons to his devotees.

Janmashtami Aarthi

Aarthi is said to be a very important ritual in the pooja ceremony and the ritual is taken to ward of any kind of Bala from Krishna. Incense sticks and Diyas are used to give Aarthi to the Lord Krishna who is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

Conclusion

Although the festival is celebrated in different parts of India with different traditions, the main conclusion is to please the Lord Krishna who is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The birth of Lord Krishna was to protect the mankind from the evil demons who once ruled the earth.

Puri Jagannath Rath Yatra

Puri Jagannath Rath Yatra is a well renowned festival which is celebrated by Hindus in India. This festival is marked as a national holiday by the government of India and is mainly held in Puri area which is located in the state of Orissa, India.

From the past twelve years, the various temples of lord Jagannath Yatra located through out India are also celebrating this festival in a grand way. Earlier, this festival was observed in a grand way only in Puri in Orissa state. Jagannath Swamy is said to be an incarnation of Lord Krishna and this festival is commemorated when the Lord visits his aunt’s house.

Puri Jagannath Yatra’s Significance.

The Puri Jagannath Yatra has a great significance among the Hindus in orissa and is also called as a Festival of Chariots of Lord Jagannath. This festival usually occurs annually on the Dwitya Day of Shukla Paksha and occurs in the Ashada Maasa. The sacred idols of Lord Jagannatha, Lord Balarama and Lord Subadra are taken out in a procession which is a ritual performed on a specially built chariot. This chariot is drawn by thousands of devotees and the whole ritual is performed in Bada Danda and is in lead to the grand avenue of Gundicha where Sri Mandira, who is an aunt to Lord Jagannatha resides. From the Jagannatha swamy’s temple, the procession is taken and the idols are kept for seven days in his aunt’s temple. Then again the procession starts to his abode.

This procession is believed to end the cycle of birth and death in the lives of Human Beings as the glimpse of Vamana, who is also a Dwarf avatar of lord Krishna is said to be a sacred source of delight.

This Jagannath swamy Rath Yatra which also names such as Gundicha jatra, Ghosa Jatra, Navadina Jatra, Dasavatara Jatra is considered to be a grandest festival as it is said to emancipate humanity fr all kids of sufferings in the Kali Yuga. All that devotes who visit the Jagannath’s swamy’s yatra are said to get a boon from the Yama who is a god of death. There is a saying that this festival offers sanctity to the humans who touch the rope or the chariot or at least have the glimpse of the Lord Jagannath.

Chariot of Lord Jagannath.

This festival will have three chariots which are assigned to Lord Balarama, goddess Subadra and Jagannatha and the chariots are constructed every year with specific wood gained from tree species of Phassi, Dhausa and other specie of tress which are said to be favorable and sacred to construct the Chariot.

The wood from the above mentioned trees is brought from the temple appointed carpenters from the ex princely state of Dasapalla. The appointed carpenters are those who have gained this opportunity as an hereditary from their ancestors. The obtained logs from the trees are floated on the rive Mahanandi and are collected near Puri to get transported via road to the temple.

The work of building up the chariots begins on the day of Akshaya Trthiya which is on the third day of the bright fortnight of Vasiaka masam and takes place with a ritual of worshipping the fire in front of King of Puri who stays in front office of Puri temple. As the occasion is said to be auspicious, the farmers also start ploughing the felids and the sandalwood Jatra or the Chandan festival also begins.

The three chariots are constructed in a span of 45 days every year and are decorated with colors which are being followed from centuries. The main colors are Black, blue and yellow which are full draped to the three chariots which are lined up at the Main door or gate which is also called as Simhadwara.

Out of the three chariots, the chariot bearing lord Jagannath is called as ‘Nandighosa’ which is 45 feet tall and 45 feet in square with 16 wheels which are 7 feet in diameters. He entire Rath is decorated with red and yellow cloth and the lord is dressed up in golden robes which is also called as Pitambara.

The Lord Balarama chariot is said to be ‘Taladhwaja’ which has a palm tree printed on its flag. The chariot has 14 wheels which are 7 feet in diameter. The chariot is made 44 feet in height and square.

The chariot of Subadra is known as ‘Devadallam’ and is 43 feet in height and square. The chariot has 12 wheels which are 7 feet in diameter and the chariot is decorated with red and Black cloth. Nive Parsva devtaas are also carved around the chariot and four horses are carved in front of the chariot. The horses color also varies traditionally as white horses are assigned to Balarama and black ones are assigned to Jagannath. Red horses are assigned to Subadra. The three charioteers are also named as Matali for Jagannath, Daruka for Balarama and Arjuna for Subadra.

Jagannath Rath Yatra is taken Worldwide

Jagannath Rath Yatra is being celebrated worldwide from the year 1968. the ISKCON Hare Krishna movement made this possible as the festival is being celebrated in almost 100 cities world wide. London, Paris, Montreal, New York, Singapore, Toronto, Venice, Canada, Texas, Wisconsin, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and in New Zealand.

The festival which is being celebrated from decades is being broadcasted worldwide through the national channel. The Yatra is as special as the devotees all around the world view the procession on the television and feel sanctified.

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