Janmashtami to be celebrated over 2 days in Mathura-Vrindavan

The Hindu holy cities of Mathura and Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh are set to celebrate the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna over two days with extensive security arrangements being put in place officials saints and temple authorities said on TuesdayAccording to officials preparations are underway to celebrate the 5251st birth anniversary of Lord Krishna on a grand scale across BrajThe festival will be celebrated at the Shri Krishna Janmasthan in Mathura and other prominent temples on the midnight of August 26 while the Banke Bihari Temple in Vrindavan will observe Janmashtami on the night of August 27 Thus allowing devotees to enjoy the festivities on both daysEvery year the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna is celebrated on the midnight of Ashtami the eighth day of the dark fortnight of Bhadrapada monthThe following day Nandotsav a celebration marking the joy of Lord Krishnas birth is observed in temples where sweets are distributed and traditional songs are sungSaints indicated that this year the celebration of Lord Krishnas birth will take place in all temples and households across Braj on midnight on August 26Devotees will observe a fast during the day and at midnight they will celebrate the appearance of Lord Krishna symbolised by breaking a cucumber and offer panjiri made of coriander as an offering to conclude the fastMeanwhile in the Banke Bihari Temple in Vrindavan Janmashtami will be celebrated on August 27 instead of August 26 as per the temples tradition which follows the lunar calendar based on the sunrise on a particular dateMunish Sharma the manager of the Banke Bihari Temple said that all festivals and rituals in the temple are carried out according to the panchang Hindu calendar prepared by the temples priests at the beginning of the year This year as the sunrise of Ashtami falls on August 27 the temple will celebrate Janmashtami on that dayThe special Mangala Aarti a unique prayer once a year will be conducted at 2 am Sharma saidPrahlad Ballabh Goswami an expert on the history of the Banke Bihari Temple stated that the usual prayers and rituals will be conducted at the scheduled time on August 27This will be followed by the mahabhishek grand bathing ceremony of the deity at midnight which will not be open to the general public The Mangala Aarti will be held at around 2 am and the temple will remain open until 5 am for devotees he saidKapil Sharma the secretary of Shri Krishna Janmasthan Nyas said the Janmashtami festival will be celebrated on August 26 in the sanctum sanctorum Thakur Keshav Dev and Bhagwat Bhavan at the Shri Krishna JanmasthanSimilarly Rakesh Tiwari the Public Relations Officer of Thakur Dwarkadhish Temple confirmed that Janmashtami will also be celebrated on August 26 following the temples tradition and calendarIn other temples of Vrindavan including Thakur Radharaman Lal ISKCONs Shri Krishna Balram Temple and the Prem Mandir the Janmashtami festival will also be celebrated on August 26Senior Superintendent of Police SSP Shailesh Kumar Pandey said a request has been made to the state government for 2000 to 2500 police personnel and officers to ensure the safety of the large number of devotees expected to attend from across the country and abroadA detailed plan has been prepared and preparations are being made accordingly he saidThe SSP added that with Janmashtami celebrations taking place on two separate days in Mathuras Shri Krishna Janmasthan and Vrindavans Banke Bihari Temple it will be easier to manage the arrangementsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever