I read all about this in one of Kanchi Mahaperiyava's discourses and I thought, why not share it with others!!
Ok, Rama Navami is when we get a chance to celebrate Lord Rama's birthday and Krishna Janmaashtami is when we celebrate Lord Krishna's birthday... Fine.. So, thats a reason good enough to party... But, apparently, there's more to it..Its not limited to the birthdays of a bunch of god-men :P
Ok.. Chill... Lord Rama was born in Treta Yuga (approx. more than 10,000 years ago), in the spring month of Chaitra ( also known as Chitra in Tamil, spans the period of 14 April-14 May every year) on the nineth day of the bright fortnight (Shukla Paksha Navami, nava=nine in sanskrit) when the moon was in the Punarvasu Constellation (Punarvasu Nakshatra) to King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya. Ofcourse his birth was preceded by auspicious signs and little Rama was born on midday at 12 P.M. There are no words to describe the beauty and the brilliance of baby Rama, and to commemorate the auspicious arrival of Rama, we still celebrate his Birthday!
Lord Krishna was born in Dwapara Yuga (approx. more than 6000 years ago), in the monsoon month of Shravana ( also known as Avani in Tamil, follows from mid-August to mid-sept) on the eighth day of the dark fortnight ( Krishna Paksha Ashtami, Ashta=Eight in Sanskrit) when the moon was in the Rohini Constellation ( Rohini Nakshatra) at midnight at 12 AM sharp to the Vrishni Clan's Chief Vasudeva and Mother Devaki. He's the charming thief who stole all hearts and was brought up by another Chief Nanda and Mother Yashoda. Krishna Vaasudeva's (Krishna's the son of Vasudeva and hence he's Vaasudeva) exploits and mischief are still sung today in every household.
Ok, we know that both Rama and Krishna were incarnations of Lord Vishnu, but why did they choose to be born on the eighth and the ninth day of the fortnight( apparently, Ashtami and Navami are considered inauspicious and anyone who knows this will never venture into any important work on a Ashtami or Navami) ? It is to symbolically show that all days are favourable for Gods and these folks knew that the only day they'll get all the attention is when all their devotees aren't engaged in any other business.. Clever Gods, eh?
Yes, God doesn't have reservations or apprehensions. He's everything and everything is unto Him. He's ready to offer himself to people who come to him. You take a step towards Him and He'll take ten steps towards you. He's not bound by time, people and of course, SIGNS :) but he's sure bound to devotion and you can take that word from me :)
The offerings that we make to Rama are more of an uncooked kind.. Paanakam(made out of water, ginger paste, jaggery) and uncooked pulsels (Bengal Gram and chiefly Green Gram),.. They say this is because Rama spent the most illustrious part of his life in Forest and so, to keep his body cool, we make these simple preparations as offerings. But, more than for Rama, we human beings need to consume these preparations because, come April and the temperatures soar sky-high and its not as difficult as Rocket Science to realise that we need to do the best to protect ourselves from the scorching heat. So God's offerings are for all of us; be assured.. :)
Krishna, as I told is known for his mischief. People still like his baby image more than his adult self. He's the darling of Vrindavan and butter is, his favourite dish, side-dish,dessert... All in one :) Besides, Murukku, Seedai et al ( for those not familiar with these names, they are famous traditional South Indian Savouries, made out of rice flour) are things that little kids find easy to hold in their hands and yummy to chew.. In the days when biscuits, cerelac and chocolate bars were not even remotely visualised, these preparations were given to kids when their teeths were coming up and they needed something to constantly chew upon.. And ofcourse, kids like a variety of dishes..And so butter, Seedai, Murukku and Appam are the most preferred offerings to Krishna on Janmaashtami. Yes, they are more for the human beings and less for the Gods.. Because, here also, the offerings will be consumed by you and me and scores of all other people who can lay their hands on these delicious eatables.. Mouth Watering, eh? Sorry, I can't help it either :)
Rama amd Krishna, wanted to convey the same message.. Each of them did that in a different way altogether. The more straight forward Rama was, equally clever Krishna was. The more difficulty that Rama faced in his life time, Krishna enjoyed doubly in his life time. They just appeared in different forms and names for the betterment of Humanity.
Hence, the celebration of their birthdays is a remembrance of their lives as a message. Its never important to do a pooja in their names, or offer variety foods. Its important to dive deep into Bhakti and realise the lesson they had to give all of us.I bet that sounds a bit like Rocket Science ? :)
Ok, Rama Navami is when we get a chance to celebrate Lord Rama's birthday and Krishna Janmaashtami is when we celebrate Lord Krishna's birthday... Fine.. So, thats a reason good enough to party... But, apparently, there's more to it..Its not limited to the birthdays of a bunch of god-men :P
Ok.. Chill... Lord Rama was born in Treta Yuga (approx. more than 10,000 years ago), in the spring month of Chaitra ( also known as Chitra in Tamil, spans the period of 14 April-14 May every year) on the nineth day of the bright fortnight (Shukla Paksha Navami, nava=nine in sanskrit) when the moon was in the Punarvasu Constellation (Punarvasu Nakshatra) to King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya. Ofcourse his birth was preceded by auspicious signs and little Rama was born on midday at 12 P.M. There are no words to describe the beauty and the brilliance of baby Rama, and to commemorate the auspicious arrival of Rama, we still celebrate his Birthday!
Lord Krishna was born in Dwapara Yuga (approx. more than 6000 years ago), in the monsoon month of Shravana ( also known as Avani in Tamil, follows from mid-August to mid-sept) on the eighth day of the dark fortnight ( Krishna Paksha Ashtami, Ashta=Eight in Sanskrit) when the moon was in the Rohini Constellation ( Rohini Nakshatra) at midnight at 12 AM sharp to the Vrishni Clan's Chief Vasudeva and Mother Devaki. He's the charming thief who stole all hearts and was brought up by another Chief Nanda and Mother Yashoda. Krishna Vaasudeva's (Krishna's the son of Vasudeva and hence he's Vaasudeva) exploits and mischief are still sung today in every household.
Ok, we know that both Rama and Krishna were incarnations of Lord Vishnu, but why did they choose to be born on the eighth and the ninth day of the fortnight( apparently, Ashtami and Navami are considered inauspicious and anyone who knows this will never venture into any important work on a Ashtami or Navami) ? It is to symbolically show that all days are favourable for Gods and these folks knew that the only day they'll get all the attention is when all their devotees aren't engaged in any other business.. Clever Gods, eh?
Yes, God doesn't have reservations or apprehensions. He's everything and everything is unto Him. He's ready to offer himself to people who come to him. You take a step towards Him and He'll take ten steps towards you. He's not bound by time, people and of course, SIGNS :) but he's sure bound to devotion and you can take that word from me :)
The offerings that we make to Rama are more of an uncooked kind.. Paanakam(made out of water, ginger paste, jaggery) and uncooked pulsels (Bengal Gram and chiefly Green Gram),.. They say this is because Rama spent the most illustrious part of his life in Forest and so, to keep his body cool, we make these simple preparations as offerings. But, more than for Rama, we human beings need to consume these preparations because, come April and the temperatures soar sky-high and its not as difficult as Rocket Science to realise that we need to do the best to protect ourselves from the scorching heat. So God's offerings are for all of us; be assured.. :)
Krishna, as I told is known for his mischief. People still like his baby image more than his adult self. He's the darling of Vrindavan and butter is, his favourite dish, side-dish,dessert... All in one :) Besides, Murukku, Seedai et al ( for those not familiar with these names, they are famous traditional South Indian Savouries, made out of rice flour) are things that little kids find easy to hold in their hands and yummy to chew.. In the days when biscuits, cerelac and chocolate bars were not even remotely visualised, these preparations were given to kids when their teeths were coming up and they needed something to constantly chew upon.. And ofcourse, kids like a variety of dishes..And so butter, Seedai, Murukku and Appam are the most preferred offerings to Krishna on Janmaashtami. Yes, they are more for the human beings and less for the Gods.. Because, here also, the offerings will be consumed by you and me and scores of all other people who can lay their hands on these delicious eatables.. Mouth Watering, eh? Sorry, I can't help it either :)
Rama amd Krishna, wanted to convey the same message.. Each of them did that in a different way altogether. The more straight forward Rama was, equally clever Krishna was. The more difficulty that Rama faced in his life time, Krishna enjoyed doubly in his life time. They just appeared in different forms and names for the betterment of Humanity.
Hence, the celebration of their birthdays is a remembrance of their lives as a message. Its never important to do a pooja in their names, or offer variety foods. Its important to dive deep into Bhakti and realise the lesson they had to give all of us.I bet that sounds a bit like Rocket Science ? :)
