Celebrating the Lord’s Manifestation
Tiny pearl-lined footprints led from a colorful, intricately patterned Rangoli that welcomed devotees who had gathered to celebrate Krishna Janmashtami on August 14 at CMSJ. The footprints led to a beautifully decorated altar that was all set up and ready for Pandit Ravichandranji to perform the “Shodashopachara puja” that celebrates the manifestation of the Lord as the eighth avatar of Lord Vishnu – the most beloved form of the Lord as Sri Krishna.
The 16 steps of the puja indicate the 16 aspects of the Lord that indicate His incarnation as a Poorna Avatar. After about an hour of soulful bhajans sung by the Swaranjali choirs of San Jose and Fremont, Panditji performed a beautiful puja to welcome the Lord. After the puja, Swami Advaitanandaji, of CMSJ, addressed the gathering in his Anugraha Bhashanam with a beautiful message about the importance of Janmashtami.
Even though we celebrate the occasion as Lord Krishna’s birth, His is not a birth which implies a beginning and therefore an end; but rather, the Lord being eternal Existence-Consciousness, this day is a celebration of the Lord’s manifestation. Swamiji described Lord Krishna as “Ananda-Purushottama”, the personification of bliss, while Lord Rama was “Maryada-Prushottama”, the personification of Dharma. Lord Krishna’s smiling countenance and beautiful form never fails to bring a smile on anyone’s face. Despite hardships and troubles since the moment He was born, Lord Krishna was never without a smile, and thus teaching us a lesson by example about how to face our own life’s challenges.
Unlike Lord Rama, who went to great lengths to demonstrate his humanness, Lord Krishna demonstrated his “Ishwaratva” or divinity at every step. Swamiji concluded his message with a few beautiful bhajans that had the devotees swaying to his lilting voice and immersed in bliss as we celebrated the Personification of Bliss.
Hari Om