Janamashtmi - The celebration of love.

Today is Janamashtmi , the birthday of Lord Krishna.

Some one sent this delightful notice he saw outside one of the temples in Pune.
(The temple is closed due to the outbreak of swine flu. )

The notice reads : “Lord Krishna will not be born today because of Swine flu.
So devotees are requested not to come to the temple to celebrate”.

It reminded me of another very funny notice I had seen in a temple in Birmingham in the UK.

“ You are not allowed to touch the Gods. Only the priests.”

As a child i still had faith. Lord Krishna was my favorite god. He is the symbol of Love. Also,He has that peter pan image. He never grows up. My grandmother used to narrate stories of his mischief and how he teased and flirted with the gopis. It all made very colorful listening. I specially loved the part when he stole butter and ate mischievously blaming others.

I can close my eyes and remember the countless nights in the open yard where we slept during summers. No Studies.The cool breeze, the open sky and the shining stars above and my grandma's emotion choked voice as she narrated.It was Magic.

I remember the dahi handis back then. The handi is a clay pot filled with buttermilk that is positioned at a convenient height prior to the event; the topmost person on the human pyramid tries to break the handi by hitting it with a blunt object, and when that happens, the buttermilk is spilled over the entire group, symbolizing their achievement through unity. The crowd meanwhile tries to stop them by using water jets.
Its all very messy but fun to watch.

Various Handis are set up locally in several parts of the city, and groups of youngsters, called Govinda, travel around in trucks trying to break as many handis as possible during the day.

I am not a very religious guy. My God died young.

But then a dear friend tried to instill my faith back.

Last week , Caroline visited my apartment for extermination. She too advised that in these tough times its better to keep your faith alive.

I am trying.

I did visit the local ISKON Temple. It was soothing.

This year I plan to visit Vrindavan. Maybe I will celebrate my Janamashtmi then.

Festivals are a state of mind.

Diwali is when your pockets are full. Else its Diwala.

I am sure God will understand.

Happy Birthday Lord Krishna. Eat as much Butter as you can!