Radha Ashtami / Radha Jayanti (29-Aug-2017)

Radha Ashtami venerates the birth anniversary of ‘Shri Radha Rani’, the consort of Lord Krishna. She is known to be an ‘avatar’ of Goddess Lakshmi. It is celebrated on the ‘ashtami’ (8th day) of the Shukla Paksha (the bright fortnight of moon) during the month of ‘Bhadrapada’ in the Hindu calendar. In the Gregorian calendar, it falls during the month of August-September. Radha Ashtami is also known as ‘Radha Jayanti’ or ‘Radhashtami’ and Hindu devotees worship Goddess Radha with utmost devotion and zeal. This day also honours the selfless bond of love between Sri Krishna and Radha, a unique relationship between human and God.

Radha Ashtami is celebrated 15 days after ‘Janmashtami’, the birth anniversary of Sri Krishna. On the occasion of Radha Ashtami, special pujas and prayers are held in Lord Krishna temples, especially in North India. ISCKON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) temples all over the country as well as abroad observe this festival with gaiety. The celebrations are even grandeur in Mathura, Vrindavan and Barsana, the birth place of Radha.

Radha Ashtami Story

Radha Ashtami story is associated with the birth of Goddess Radha. Radha was born as a daughter to Vrishbhanu Gop. Her mother’s name was Kirti. According to Padma Purana, Radha has been said to be King Vrishbhanu’s daughter. According to Padma Purana, Vrishbhanu received Radha when he was cleaning the floor for organizing a Yagya. Vrishbhanu considered Radha to be his own daughter and took care of her.

It has also been mentioned in Padma Purana that Lord Vishnu asked his family members to come to planet Earth as incarnations before being born as Lord Krishna. Therefore, Goddess Laxmi who is Lord Vishnu’s wife incarnated as Radha. According to Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Radha was a friend to Lord Krishna. She was married to a person named Rapan or Rayan. Radha is also considered to be Lord Krishna’s lover.

Rituals on Radha Ashtami

On the day of Radha Ashtami, devotees rise before sunrise and spend the day worshiping Goddess Radha. Some devotees also observe a fast for this occasion to show their devotion to Goddess Radha. Prayers are offered to Radha along with Lord Krishna. The worship of Lord Krishna is incomplete without worshiping Radha Rani.

The idol of Goddess Radha is bathed and an abhishek is performed with ‘panchamrit’, at noon. The idol is then adorned with new clothes and fresh flowers. The devotees offer shringar items, dhoop and bhog to Radha. After this Radha’s aarti is sung and the prasad is distributed among devotees. On the day of Radha Ashtami, devotees recite different names of Goddess Radha and also chant the ‘Radha Gayatri Mantra’.

In Barsana, which is the birthplace of Radha, taking a bath in the holy Radha Kund is strictly prohibited. On any other day, even chanting the name of Radha is not allowed as it is considered discourteous for the Goddess. But on the day of Radha Ashtami, the devotees need to wait till midnight to take a dip in the holy waters of the Radha Kund and receive Her divine blessings.

Significance of Radha Ashtami Vrat

Radha Ashtami is an extremely joyous occasion held every year. This festival is celebrated with the same zeal as Lord Krishna’s birth anniversary. The love between Radha and Krishna is eternal and can only be understood after overcoming all the worldly impurities. This unique unison symbolises how an individual soul merges with the supreme soul. Radha signifies individual soul and Lord Krishna is the universal soul. It is known that Radha and Krishna exist together and are referred as ‘Radhakrishna’.

It is mentioned in the Hindu scriptures, the observer of the Radha Ashtami vrat will be blessed with a prosperous and happy life. the person will overcome all his obstacles, attain the materialistic desires and finally attain salvation. It is believed that after observing the Radha Ashtami fast and worshipping Goddess Durga, the person will be freed from all their sins. Their minds will be cleared from negative and bad thoughts and he/she will attain spiritual bliss.