Krishna Janmashtami Revels.org/education Worksheets Table of Contents Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document. 1. Krishna Janmashtami Facts 2. The Lord Krishna 3. Lessons from Krishna 4. Dressing for the Feast 5. Kolam Greeting Card 6. The Peacock Crown 7. Krishna Jhula 8. Let’s Eat Panjiri! 9. The End of Story 10. Krishna Festivals 11. Wordfind Revels.org/education Krishna Janmashtami Facts Krishna Janmashtami is a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of the god Krishna on the eighth day of the dark fortnight of the month of Bhadrapada (August–September). The number eight has another significance in the Krishna legend in that he is the eighth child of his mother, Devaki. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Janmashtami GENERAL INFORMATION & PRACTICES ● The Krishna Janmashtami festival is celebrated every year by Hindus all over the world over the course of 2–3 days. ● The first day of celebration is for Smarta Sampradaya and the second day is for Vaishnava Sampradaya. ● During the festival, artistic enactments of the life of Lord Krishna are played out in ‘Krishna Lilas’, followed by an all-night vigil with the singing of devotional songs, fasting, and a festival the following day. Revels.org/education Krishna Janmashtami Facts ● The celebration takes place in Mathura and Vrindavan, where Lord Krishna is believed to have been born and spent his years growing up. ● Devotees observe a fast and sing devotional songs for him as the clock strikes twelve since he was believed to be born at midnight. ● During fasting, devotees take Sankalpa after finishing morning rituals and perform Krishna Puja during Nishita Kaal which is midnight Baby Krishna with his mother as per Vedic time-keeping. Yashoda. ● Devotees also wash baby Krishna’s statue with panchamrit, then decorate it with new clothes and ornaments, offer flowers, fruits, and sweets. ● The human pyramid is one highlight of the celebration: a young boy, who stands right at the top, is elevated by the crowd to reach a clay pot filled with buttermilk (dahi). ● The boy then smashes the pot and the buttermilk spills when he reaches the top of the pyramid. ● Devotees then break their fast and share food and sweets such as panjiri, Makhan Mishri, kheer, and honey with milk, etc. Sankalpa – Mantra is used to refer to a life lived with heartfelt intentions through the meditation practice of repetition. Panchamrit – bathing the shivling with water, milk, and honey along with bel leaves. This is followed by applying vermillion to the shivling representing virtuousness. Fresh fruits are then offered to the deity in order to seek his blessings. Revels/org/education Krishna Janmashtami Facts ● On Janmashtami, children in the Meetei Vaishnava community play the Likol Sannaba game and their parents dress them up as characters in the legends of Krishna, such as gopis and as Krishna. ● Temples and community centers are decorated with flowers and leaves, and a lot of devotees recite or listen to the tenth chapter of the Bhagavata Purana, and the Bhagavad Gita. ISKCON temple in Delhi at Janamashtami ● According to India Today, Krishna Janmashtami wishes may consist of: ○ Let your life be filled with love and laughter with Lord Krishna's blessings. Happy Janmashtami! ○ May Lord Krishna always be with you and protect you and your loved ones.” Happy Krishna Janmashtami! ○ May Lord Krishna bless you with values and show you the right path on this auspicious occasion of Janmashtami! ○ Lord Krishna will give you the courage to fight the hardships in life. Happy Janmashtami! ○ May Lord Krishna give you lots of happiness on the holy occasion of Krishna Janmashtami! Bhagavata Purana – is a revered text in Vaishnavism, a Hindu tradition that reveres Vishnu. Bhagavad Gita – It occupies chapters 23 to 40 of Book VI of the Mahabharata about the dialogues between Prince Arjuna and Krishna, an incarnation of the god Vishnu. Revels.org/education Krishna Janmashtami Facts HISTORY OF JANMASHTAMI Mathura was ruled by the evil King Kansa. His sister Princess Devaki and her husband Vasudeva married and had children. However, a prophecy befell them that earned their ire of her brother that said the couple’s eighth son would cause Kansa’s downfall. This angered Kansa and he imprisoned Devaki and Vasudeva instantly. The king had their first six children killed. Their seventh child, Balram’s fetus is said to have been mystically transferred from Devaki’s womb to Princess Rohini’s, while their eighth child, Krishna, was rescued by Vasudeva and given to Nand Baba and Yashoda in Vrindavan. Vasudeva returned to Mathura with a baby girl and handed her over to Kansa. When the king attempted to kill the baby, she transformed into Goddess Durga, warning him about the impending doom for which he was fated. Meanwhile, Lord Krishna grew up in Vrindavan in the care of Nand and Yashoda and was a naughty child. He loved makhan (white butter), curd, and milk and would often steal butter from their neighbor’s homes. His mother Yashoda would often have to tie him up to stop his antics. *The women residing in Vrindavan soon stored their freshly churned butter at a height to prevent Krishna from reaching the pot of the treat, but he and his friends would form human pyramids to extract the butter from the pot hung at an elevation. *The Dahi Handi festivals ritualized every year on Janmashtami are thus an imitation of Lord Krishna’s efforts. The preparation of white butter, curd, and milk as well as the human pyramid was attributed to him. Revels.org/education NAME: THE LORD KRISHNA Why is Lord Krishna very highly regarded by the Indian people? Get to know about his life. BIRTH: ________________________ PARENTS: ______________________ INCARNATION: __________________ OTHER NAMES: _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ ROLES OF KRISHNA: __________________________________________ __________________________________________ __________________________________________ __________________________________________ __________________________________________ DEATH: ___________________________________________ ___________________________________________ ___________________________________________ _______________________________________ KRISHNA JANMASHTAMI WORKSHEETS Revels.org/education THE LORD KRISHNA ANSWER KEY BIRTH: 3,228 BCE PARENTS: Devaki and Vasudeva INCARNATION: 8th avatar of Vishnu OTHER NAMES: 108 names including Gopal, Govind, Devakinandan, Mohan, Shyam, Ghanshyam, Hari, Girdhari, Baanke Bihari, etc. ROLES OF KRISHNA: Krishna's dual role is the punisher of human deeds but also a bringer of enlightenment. He is perceived by most Hindus to be an avatar (incarnation) of Vishnu, who is regarded as the highest avatar. It is believed that all other deities are manifestations of him. Krishna is considered by Hindus to be a warrior, hero, teacher, and philosopher. DEATH: Krishna was cursed by Queen Gandhari, which led to his death and the destruction of his dynasty. This was a 36-year prophecy of a grieving mother. He died in Bhalka, Saurashtra. KRISHNA JANMASHTAMI WORKSHEETS Revels.org/education NAME: LESSONS FROM KRISHNA Blessed with divine knowledge and wisdom, Krishna has endowed the faithful with the lessons he imparted. Translate the following lessons in your native language. कमर्म赍येवाधकारते मा फलेषु कदाचन | मा कमर्मफलहेतुभूर्ममार्म ते स敍गोऽ配वकमर्मण karmaṇy-evādhikāras te mā phaleṣhu kadāchana mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr mā te saṅgo ’stvakarmaṇi ___________________________ ___________________________ ___________________________ ___________________________ क्रोधा饍भवत स륍मोह: स륍मोहा配मृतवभ्रम: | मृतभ्रंशा饍 बु饍धनाशो बु饍धनाशा配प्रण�यत krodhād bhavati sammohaḥ sammohāt smṛiti-vibhramaḥ smṛiti-bhranśhād buddhi-nāśho buddhi-nāśhāt praṇaśhyati ___________________________ ___________________________ ___________________________ ___________________________ Discuss these lessons with your partner. Wisdom is the Excellence of There are three removal of false character arises gates to ideas of multiplicity from disregard of self-destruction and & realizing the unity worldly hell: Lust, Anger & of the self. considerations. Greed. KRISHNA JANMASHTAMI WORKSHEETS Revels.org/education LESSONS FROM KRISHNA English Translation कमर्म赍येवाधकारते मा फलेषु कदाचन | मा कमर्मफलहेतुभूर्ममार्म ते स敍गोऽ配वकमर्मण Do your duty and be detached from its outcome, do not be driven by the end product, enjoy the process of getting there. क्रोधा饍भवत स륍मोह: स륍मोहा配मृतवभ्रम: | मृतभ्रंशा饍 बु饍धनाशो बु饍धनाशा配प्रण�यत Anger leads to the clouding of judgment, which results in bewilderment of the memory. When the memory is bewildered, the intellect gets destroyed; and when the intellect is destroyed, one is ruined. Wisdom is the Excellence of There are three removal of false character arises gates to ideas of multiplicity from disregard of self-destruction and & realizing the unity worldly hell: Lust, Anger & of the self. considerations. Greed. KRISHNA JANMASHTAMI WORKSHEETS Revels.org/education NAME: DRESSING FOR THE FEST What would be the best clothes to wear during this festival? Find out what Indian people wear during these holidays. Paste your favorite designs below. MEN Children Adults Elderly WOMEN Children Adults Elderly KRISHNA JANMASHTAMI WORKSHEETS Revels.org/education NAME: KOLAM GREETING CARD Let’s create a greeting card, Janmashtami style! This time, however, use your art materials to color this Kolam art. It is recommended to print this page on thicker paper (or cardboard)