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Activities & Events, Lord Krishna, Sawai Jai Singh II

Janmasthmi Celebrations in Jaipur/ why Jaipur loves Govind Dev ji ?

Below are few pictures from the walled city area of Jaipur during  Janmashtmi celebrations in Jaipur. These pictures were clicked  before the  grand procession of Janmasthmi  near the Govind Devji Temple which has a huge following, here in Jaipur.

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Idol of Krishna and Radha from the procession of Janmasthmi  at Govind Dev ji Temple, Jaipur
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Decorated elephant for procession on Janmasthmi celebrations in Jaipur. All set
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Decorated camels along with the entourage! Janmasthmi procession at Govind Devji temple, Jaipur
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Band man…waiting!! Janmasthmi celebrations in Jaipur at Govind Devji temple, Jaipur
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Making sure everything works! Janmasthmi celebrations at Lord Govind Dev ji temple, Jaipur
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waiting…..
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Festivities being announced with these banners in traditional markets of Jaipur along with light decorations on Janmashtmi

This picture shows how much this  kid is enjoying at a popular Lord Krishna temple in Jaipur- Ramchandra ji temple . He was enjoying these celebration in his own way – wheeling while people all around were busy in setting things up for the celebrations.

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Wheeling kid at another Krishna temple in the city on Janmashtmi!

Below picture was clicked at Sirehdyodi Bazaar near Hawa mahal and it shows the love of people for Lord Krishna. This is not a temple rather it’s a make shift temple under a tree. Someone lighted a diya (Indian version of candle but it uses oil rather than wax) and placed picture of Krishna along with it. Marigold flowers spread all around complete the setting.

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Lord Krishna is one of the most revered deity in Jaipur. There is a special relationship that people of Jaipur share with Govind Dev ji or Lord Krishna. This might surprise an outsider since Jaipur is vibrant place when it comes to religion. You will find temples of almost every God and Goddesses across the city. Not only that, there are many mosques, Gurudwaras and church as well. There is enough religious divergence in Jaipur

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Lord Krishna is one of the most popular deity  worshiped in Hinduism. I won’t get into the details of Hinduism since it’s quite vast subject in itself. The reason Lord Govind Dev ji is highly revered in Jaipur must be answered by delving into the history of Govind Devji Temple.

In 1727 AD  Maharajah Sawai Jai Singh II  founded Jaipur as a new capital of  Dhundhad region. Amer town preceded  Jaipur as a capital of Dhundhad. The Rajput Kachhawah rulers of Amer followed  Vaishnav sect of Hinduism.  It’s believed that Kachhawah Rajput were lineal descendants of Lord Rama through his son Kush.  As per religious and mythological belief, Lord Rama and Krishna are both avatars of Lord Vishnu. Maharajah Man Singh I who was the ruler of Amer, constructed Govind Dev ji temple in the holy city of Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh in 1590 AD. Govind Dev ji is one of manifestation of Lord Krishna. In 1669 AD Mughal ruler Aurangjeb who ruled vast tracts of India ordered destruction of all Hindu temples in North India. With these  orders in place, the idols at Govind Dev ji temple were  secretly shifted  out of Vrindavan to save them from destruction at the behest of  Amer rulers. Govind Devji temple  in Vrindavan was plundered & damaged by the  Mughal army. Few idols from the Govind Dev ji temple, Vrindavan found their way to Amer in due course. These idols were then established at the Radha Madhav temple in Kanak Vrindavan.  The popular theory goes that Lord Govind Dev manifested in the dreams of  Maharajah Sawai Jai Singh II who founded Jaipur and asked him  shift his idol to the current site of Govind Dev ji temple in Jaipur within the premises of royal abode. Maharajah Sawai Jai Singh II ensured the same. He  believed that real ruler of the Jaipur was Lord Govind Dev and he was merely his disciple. This belief got passed on through all his lineal descendants; they too built many other rich and grand temples dedicated to Lord Krishna. Maharajah Sawai Jai Singh II was an ideal disciple and his day would start with darshan of his Lord. When the king is so fond of his Lord it’s natural that people of Jaipur too would adore him as well.

The following of Govind Devji or Lord Krishna among people  is as strong as it was some 300 years ago. Every Janmasthmi Govind Dev ji temple celebrates birth day of Lord Krishna with grandeur. The celebration starts much before the Janmasthmi  day.

Check out my earlier write-up on Govind Dev ji Temple. To view – click here.

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67 thoughts on “Janmasthmi Celebrations in Jaipur/ why Jaipur loves Govind Dev ji ?”

      1. Everything about India seems colourful, compared to the UK! For a start, our weather is mostly grey – grey skies, lots of rain and generally plenty of wind. During the few really warm summers we have, clothing becomes more colourful here, but not like in India with the bright, richly dyed clothing. Indian food is colourful, and so are the temples and shrines to (mostly) the Hindu gods. India looks stunning to us here, believe me! Exotic and very beautiful. Even the elephants and camels make it appear so. Your beautiful photos show all that – as well as the glorious sunshine. 🙂

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      2. I haven’t been to UK but yes from what I have read in literature and heard sunshine is something people look forward to. In fact weather is so often starting subject in Europe among strangers. In India weather is not a popular subject. Yes we get plenty of sunshine. I guess colors are quite ingrained in our life. That’s one of reason we don’t notice the way others do! Thanks for elaborating Millie! 🙂

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      3. You’re welcome. You’re right, so often we don’t notice things that are part of our daily lives. We just take them for granted. Visitors to our countries often see and remark on things and make us stop and think.

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      4. So true. we notice only things which are exception to what we’re used to! I’m sure I’ll find many great things if I were to visit your country! 🙂

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      5. Yes that’s for all the local men ( originally it started out by being a festival where mill workers and household help who lived in tenements and away from their families found this a great source of entertainment. The handi would actually have dahi in it and there would be a contributory cash prize and differed from tenement to tenement with the Govindas ( the men who made the pyramid) distributing the cash among themselves.
        Gradually it became a more organised activity with teams competing for the prize money …. Now of course it has become completely commercialised .

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      6. I know how most of are traditional festivals are being “hijacked” for commercial gains. just look at diwali..mithai to chocolate! people are looking at ways to make money out of every opportunity! if this is good or bad…that’s relative!

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    1. Both these cities are synonymous with Hinduism so certainly it’s more popular. Yes Jaipur may not be popular for Janmashtmi celebrations on national level but it ‘s celebrated with full vigour and zest.

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  7. Such colour and interesting history Arv! Learn something new every day! (ps..I’ve searched for those photo’s I told you about and can’t find them…I have a lap top that’s broken down and think they are on there, may be a while before I can get them off of it) That’s what I get for not doing back ups regularly! Great post! 🙂

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    1. Thank you for appreciating! It feels nice to know someone who ‘s away from the county enjoyed reading it. I’m taking a guess that you must be missing all this. You must be celebrating festivals among Indian diaspora though.

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      1. Yeah. Here in Nairobi there is are lot of North Indian temples but we miss the celebration of South Indian festivities. It’s always there, the missing. I actually have not seen this kind of celebration, wish to see them.

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      2. Kenya has large Gujarati diaspora, I guess Janmashtmi must be celebrated with full vigour? Even though we belong to same country but there’s large contrast in our festivals and celebrations. In some US cities the Indian communities celebrate all Indian festivals and comprises of various Indian communities. It surely helps when you’re away from your country. in many ways this is something all Indians residing in India should learn! Celebrating and participating in each other’s celebrations !

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      3. Yeah the Gujarati’s are a lot, settled here for almost three generations. As you say I haven’t attended these kind of festivals here. Will try to next time. True India is vast and each state has its own way of celebrating festivals. Good to know Jaipur’s way of celebrating.

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    1. Good to know that this post helped you revive memories! It’s a very popular temple, as you know Esha! Thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts here! 🙂

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    1. Thank You for sharing your thoughts. It’s true that Jaipur has tradition of celebrating things in it’s own style. While one can witness all this in the festival and events that are celebrated in Jaipur, the fall out has been that it has become one of India’s top wedding destination. Thanks for your visit! 🙂

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