Janmashtami--Celebrating Lord Krishna's Birthday

Janmashtami is celebrated as the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna, the incarnation of Lord Vishnu. It is known by different names all across the country like Krishnashtami,Saatam Aatham,Gokulashtami,Ashtami, Srikrishna Jayanti.

Raaslila is performed to recreate incidents from the life of Krishna and to commemorate his love for Radha.The idol of the infant Krishna is bathed at midnight and is placed in a cradle.Devotional songs and dances mark the celebration of this festive occasion all over Northern India.

The celebration of Janmashtami is at its peak in the city of Mathura – birth place of Lord Krishna. It is said that Lord Krishna was born around 5000 years back to put an end to the evils of demons.The city of Mathura adorns a complete festive look and the devotional mood reaches its pinnacle.The main celebration takes place at the actual place of birth,now converted into a big temple known as Krishna Janma Bhoomi Mandir.Lord’s idol is kept in a room also known as the ‘Garbha Griha’. Devotees keep a daylong fast and break it at midnight after the birth time of Bhagwaan Krishna.All through the day devotees remain immersed in the chanting of Shlokas and name of the Lord.

Janmashtami is one of the most popular festivals in the country and is celebrated almost everywhere. Mumbai celebrate this festival with breaking of Dahi Handi. Lord Krishna was also known as Maakhan Chor (Butter Thief).The image of Dahi Handi being shattered by the hero on top of the human pyramid became synonymous with Janmashtami.Chawls are the best place to enjoy the rawness of this festival in Mumbai.Nowhere else is Dahi Handi celebrated in a more desi fashion than here.A large Dahi Handi (a earthen pot / urn filled with butter milk) is hung at a fairly good height and participants are expected to make a human pyramid and break the handi.Hundreds of communities hang these handis to attract participants and in return they win prizes.Fat prize money is offered for this act.The youth that make up these teams are known as Govinda's (another name of Lord Krishna), and many of the younger ones who are not yet eligible to be a part of the human pyramid dress up as Lord Krishna (by painting themselves blue and wearing yellow clothes) and can be found travelling with the teams in their trucks.

 Adventure sport of breaking the Dahi Handi or bringing in baby Krishna at this auspicious festival?whatever your choice.Janmashtami spreads Happiness for one and all and also does Gayatri Mantra Lekhan.so log on  to www.gayatri-mantra.in  and seek the Devine's Blessing.

Wishing all a very HappyJanmashtami.

Good Luck,God Bless and Happy Writing  !!!

Raksha Bandhan---A Day Dedicated to the Ever Loving Brothers.

Raksha Bandhan--The chaste bond of love between a brother and a sister is one of the deepest and noblest of human emotions.

On this day, I would wake up early and prepare a pooja thali. This consists of tubs of kanku, chokha, the rakhi thread, diva lamp, agarbati and sweets.It was so special and so much fun. Firstly the kanku is placed on the forehead, and chokha is then stuck upon it. Rakhi thread is tied – as the Sun Shines Sunlight, I tie the Rakhi to you, my brother and wish that you live long  and I pray that this Rakhi never fails to protect you.Then i light the diva lamp and agarbati, performing the aarti on my brother. Then the sweets is offered to my brother.

 While tying the rakhi, the sister wishes for the brother’s well-being, success and protection. By giving a return gift, the brother acknowledges the love and promises to be by the sister’s side, through thick and thin. He wishes her a good life and pledges to take care of her. This day celebrates the brotherhood and sisterhood, their love and togetherness.Rakhi festival not only strengthens the bond of love and affection between brothers and sisters but also brings friends and strangers closer. When a rakhi is tied on the wrists of anyone it acts as a way to connect individuals on a new platform and brings them closer.

Rituals like Rakhi, help ease out various societal strains, induce fellow-feeling, open up channels of expression, give us an opportunity to rework on our role as human beings and, most importantly, bring joy in our mundane lives.

So log on  to www.gayatri-mantra.in and do the Gayatri Mantra Lekhan and seek the Devine's Blessing.

“ May all be happy
  May all be free from ills
  May all behold only the good
  May none be in distress.”
 
Wishing all a very Happy Raksha Bandhan.

Good Luck and God Bless and Happy Writing  !!!

A Magic, A Miracle

Since childhood I have seen my mother writing the GayatriMantra,it always fascinated me.My Mother said doing the Gayatri Lekhan will always keep you happy in life and thus started my journey with the GayatriMantra.

When I dwelled deeper to learn more about the Gayatri Mantra I realized how blessed I am, for Gayatri Mantra was the first mantra to be taught in schools in the olden days as it enabled the students attain righteous and far sighted wisdom and energized them to absorb the onerous studies ahead of them.

It is said that “Gayatri completely purifies the soul. By the glorious power of Gayatri deep-rooted defects and vices are cleansed”. Maharishi Vyasa says “Just as honey is the essence of flower, ghee of milk, in the same way Gayatri is the essence of all the Vedas. Gayatri is like kamadhenu for one who has acquired proficiency in it. Ganga purifies the sins committed by physical body but Gayatri, the Brahma Ganga purifies the soul. 

Gayatri miraculously transforms the mental framework of a person to a systematic, healthy, righteous and balanced personality. The well developed mind produces thoughts leading to action resulting in happiness. His work becomes excellent and his well intentioned thoughts radiate happiness, contentment and peace! Gayatri worship results in extraordinary benefits to its devotees. Numerous persons over thousands of years have achieved material and spiritual benefits by worshipping Gayatri.

Gayatri is Vedamata, the mother of all Vedas. A person totally devoted to Gayatri can achieve great success in the path of self advancement. The Gayatri Mantra inspires wisdom in us. In very basic but beautiful language, it says "May the divine light of the Supreme Being illuminate our intellect, to lead us along a path of righteousness". The Vedas say: To chant the Gayatri Mantra purifies the chanter. To listen to the Gayatri Mantra purifies the listener. But the mantra does more, as I found out. It opens up your heart. And how well we know, when both our minds and our hearts open, we open ourselves up for new possibilities.

One interpretation is that the word Gayatri is derived from the words: gaya, meaning “vital energies” and trâyate, meaning “preserves, protects, gives deliverance, grants liberation”. So, the two words "Gayatri Mantra" might be translated as “a prayer of praise that awakens the vital energies and gives liberation and deliverance from ignorance”.

Today, the Gayatri Mantrais chanted, meditated to, and sung around the world with reverence and love. It is often compared to The Lord’s Prayer in significance and impact. The beautiful and soothing ancient sounds, the flowing rhythmic patterns, and the powerful intent make the Gayatri Mantra a wonderful part of one’s daily spiritual practice. Because it is an earnest and heartfelt appeal to the Supreme Being for enlightenment, it can be universally applied. It really doesn’t matter what your religion, your color or your ethnicity is – what matters is your intent, and your authenticity, and your willingness to be moved.

Each time one does the  Gayatri Mantra Lekhan, One discovers a new meaning and feel which is beyond the ability to express in words. It has helped by

a. Eradicate fear, frustration, tension, doubts and miseries

b. Revival of peak enthusiasm and vigour

c. Realignment of priorities and goals

d. Emergence of new improved ideas, plans and visions

e. Sense of extreme peace and love with self and world and

 f.All wonderful things you can think of and aspire for!

Hence Request one and all to start the Gayatri Mantra lekhan.Log on to www.gayatri-mantra.in Register yourself and begin the beautiful journey.You can write the Mantra as many a times you want and at whichever time u feel comfortable. In two to three weeks, you will find a tremendous change in you in terms of sharpened thinking process, intuitiveness, enhanced feeling of confidence and self-sufficiency, things going right much more in life, better inter-personal relationships, enhanced magnetism in personality and a lot more.

This is not magic or miracle in conventional sense. What you would have done in this process is to align yourself with your natural path and derive best benefits from Law of Karma. You have performed a cleansing action on your mind to eradicate negative thought patterns and replaced with the most positive vibes.

Good Luck and God Bless and Happy Writing !!!