Janmashtami 2024 Shubh Muhurt: Krishna Janmashtami, known as Krishnashtami, Gokulashtami, Ashtami Rohini, and Sri Krishna Jayanti, will be celebrated on Monday, August 26 this year. It is a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna, who is believed to be the eighth incarnation of Vishnu. The festival is celebrated every year on the Ashtami Tithi of Krishna Paksha in the month of Bhadrapad.
India will celebrate Krishna Janmashtami with considerable fanfare on this day, particularly in Mathura, the birthplace of Lord Krishna.
Krishna Janmashtami 2024 Time
Janmashtami celebrations usually begin with melodious singing of bhajans and kirtans on the eve of the festival. The auspicious time for Puja on Ashtami Tithi will start at 03:39 am on August 26 and end at 02:19 am on August 27. The exact time of Lord Krishna’s Janmotsav at midnight is estimated to be 12:23 am on August 27 this year.
#WATCH | Mathura, Uttar Pradesh: Morning aarti performed at the Shri Krishna Janmasthan temple on the occasion of Shri Krishna Janmashtami pic.twitter.com/4AgRTwVY29
— ANI (@ANI) August 26, 2024
Spiritual Importance
Krishna’s teachings in the Bhagavad Gita are central to Hindu philosophy. His life, depicted in texts like the Mahabharata and the Srimad Bhagavatam, serves as a guide to righteousness (dharma) and devotion (bhakti).
Cultural Celebrations
Janmashtami is widely celebrated across India with rituals that include fasting, singing devotional songs, dancing, and reenacting episodes from Krishna’s life, such as the Ras Leela and Dahi Handi.
Rituals and Traditions
Fasting: Devotees often fast until midnight, the time when Krishna is believed to have been born. The fast is typically broken with offerings of prasad after the birth rituals.
Midnight Celebrations
Temples and homes are decorated, and at midnight, special prayers and devotional songs (bhajans) are performed to celebrate Krishna’s birth.
Dahi Handi
In Maharashtra, a popular tradition called Dahi Handi involves forming human pyramids to break a pot filled with curd, symbolizing Krishna’s childhood pastime of stealing butter.
Janmashtami is celebrated with great fervor in Mathura and Vrindavan, the places associated with Krishna’s early life. Devotees also visit temples, participate in processions, and offer prayers to Lord Krishna on this auspicious day.