Fairs & Festivals Varanasi
Varanasi is the most popular pilgrimage place for the
Hindus. The rich cultural heritage and tradition of Varanasi
makes it the cultural capital of India. For ages, Varanasi
has been a center of learning of Indian philosophy, spiritualism,
mysticism and other branches of education. Varanasi is
essentially a melting pot of Indian culture. In Hindu
religion, it is believed that one, who dies and is cremated
at Varanasi, gets an instant gateway to liberation from
the cycle of births and re-births. Being associated with
Hindu traditions and religion, Varanasi is home to numerous
temples, muths and Ashrams. By virtue of its religious
and cultural importance, Varanasi is abuzz with fairs
and festivals all round the year. Almost every month,
some important festival is celebrated in Varanasi. Besides
festivals and holidays, many "Melas" or fairs
are also held at Varanasi. At Varanasi, fairs and festivals
are celebrated with traditional gaiety and fervor and
are symbolic of celebration of life at its best. The
festive atmosphere never seems to end in Varanasi. It's
not important to make itinerary according to the dates
and months as one can come and enjoy the festive season
of Varanasi anytime of the year!
Nag Nathaiya is yet another important
festival of Varanasi. Nag Nathaiya festival is a part
of the Krishna Leela ceremony, a mythological tradition
involving depiction of a famous episode in the life
of lord Krishna. The Nag Nathaiya festival of Varanasi
is held at the Tulsi Ghat. Lord Krishna jumps into River
Ganga for Nag Nathan. The Nag Nathaiya festival is famous
as Nag Nathaiya Leela. The Nag Nathaiya festival is
held during the month of Nov-Dec and a large number
of people gather to see the re-enactment.
Bharat Milap at Varanasi
Varanasi is a city of fairs and festivals. Almost every
month, a fair or festival is celebrated at Varanasi.
Celebration all round the year is another interesting
facet of the holy city, Varanasi. Bharat Milap, held
in October/November is an important festival of Kashi
or Varanasi. Bharat Milap is celebrated to commemorate
Lord Ram's return to Ayodhya after 14 years of exile
and his reunion with his brother, Bharat. The essence
of this festival is victory of truth over evil. Lord
Ram returned back to Ayodhya after spending 14 years
in exile. The story of Lord Ram is the main theme of
Valmiki's Ramayana and Tulsidas' Ramcharitamanas.
The Bharat Milap festival is held the day following
Dussehra. The Bharat Milap festival is held at Nati
Imli, Varanasi. The annual Dussehra festival and the
Bharat Milap festival is one of the greatest attractions
of Varanasi city. The people of Varanasi celebrate Bharat
Milap with great fanfare and devotion. Thousands gather
in the streets to see the procession of Lord Ram and
his reunion with younger brother, Bharat. People pay
their respect by putting Tilak on forehead and garlanding
Lord Ram and his brothers. Another interesting part
of the Bharat Milap celebration is the presence of Kashi
Naresh (former king of Varanasi) with all his royal
paraphernalia and regal finery.
Buddha Purnima festival is celebrated
to mark the birth of Lord Buddha. Buddha Purnima or
Buddha Jayanti is celebrated with traditional religious
fervor. Buddha Purnima falls on the full moon day in
the Hindu month of Vaisakh (April/May). Lord Buddha
was born on the Full Moon day in the month of Vaisakh
in 563 BC. Here, it is interesting to note that Buddha
achieved enlightenment and nirvana (salvation) on the
same day (the Full Moon day). Thus, Buddha Purnima also
marks the death anniversary of Gautam Buddha. Sarnath
holds an important place in Buddhism as Gautam Buddha
gave his first sermon at Sarnath. On the occasion of
Buddha Jayanti, a large fair is held at Sarnath and
the relics of the Buddha are taken out for public display
in a procession.
Besides Sarnath, the Buddha Purnima is also celebrated
with religious fervor at Gaya and Kushinagar and other
parts of India and the world. The Buddha Purnima celebrations
at Sarnath attract large Buddhist crowds as Buddhists
offer prayers in different Buddhist temples at Sarnath
on this day. Prayers, sermons, recitation of Buddhist
scriptures are other important religious activities
performed by the Buddhists at Sarnath. Monks and devotees
meditate and worship the statue of Gautam Buddha. The
Buddhist devotees also offer fruits, flowers, candles
etc to statues of Lord Buddha.
Hanuman Jayanti
Hanuman Jayanti is an important festival of Hindus (at
Varanasi) and is celebrated to commemorate the birth
of Hanuman. Hanuman Jayanti falls on Chaitra Shukla
Purnima (the March-April full moon day). In Hinduism,
Lord Hanuman is seen as the symbol of strength and energy.
Hanuman was a zealous devotee of Rama, and is worshipped
for his unwavering devotion to Lord Rama. Like all other
Hindu Gods, Lord Hanuman is also very popular among
Hindus.
The Hanuman Jayanti is celebrated with great fanfare
and feast at Varanasi. The main Janmotsava or bithday
celebration of Lord Hanuman is held at Sankat Mochan
Temple (Varanasi) for five days with cultural and musical
programmes by reputed artistes from all over India.
The devotees flock the Hanuman temples all over Varanasi
and apply Sindhoor Tilak on their foreheads from statues
of Hanuman. Laddoos (sweets) are also offered to Lord
Hanuman and distributed among poor people and other
devotees.
Mahashivratri in Varanasi
Since Varanasi is considered the city of Lord Shiva,
Mahashivaratri festival holds immense importance here.
Mahashivaratri (the great night of Shiva) falls on the
fourteenth day of the dark fortnight of Phalguna (February/March)
and is dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiva. Mahashivaratri
festival is purely religious in nature and observed
by all Hindus. On the occasion of Mahashivaratri, all
Shiva temples of Varanasi are tastefully decorated.
On the day Of Mahashivaratri, a marriage procession
of Lord Shiva is taken out starting from Mahamrityunjaya
Temple, Daranagar to Kashi Vishwanath Temple.
In Varanasi, people visit nearby temples of Shiva and
offer prayers in large numbers. The prayers and worship
continue late into the night. On Mahashivaratri, devotees
offer milk, Bhang, Dhatura, flowers, coconut, fruits
etc to Shiva statues and Shiva Lingams and sing bhajans
in honor of Shiva. They also recite shlokas (verses)
from scriptures, offer prayers in the morning and evening
and many devotees observe fasting throughout the day.
On the day of Mahashivaratri, the main center of religious
activity and worship at Varanasi is the Kashi Vishvanath
temple, where devotees throng in large numbers to offer
prayers to the residing deity of Varanasi, Lord Shiva.
In Hindu mythology, there are many popular stories
regarding the origin of Mahashivaratri. One legend traces
the origin of Mahashivaratri festival to the churning
of the Ocean of Milk by Devas (Gods) and Asuras (demons).
According to it, when both Gods and demons were churning
the Ocean of Milk to obtain amrita (water of immortal
life), they came across many unusual substances, including
the deadly poison. The moment they touched the poison,
it exploded into poisonous fumes that threatened to
envelope the entire universe by darkness. Seeing the
destruction of the universe inevitable, the Gods went
to Brahma and Vishnu, but none was able to help and
as a last resort they went to Lord Shiva, who condensed
the fumes by his trident. To save the Universe from
destruction, Lord Shiva swallowed the poison, which
left a dark blue mark on Shiva's throat.
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