Janmashtami is the eighth night of the dark fortnight of Bhadraba by the Odia count of months. Jagannath is Krishna, so the birth is celebrated in the temple at Puri as an event in the household of the gods, with the episodes of his infancy enacted over the following days. At home a cradle is hung, a fast is kept until midnight, and the next day is Nandotsava.
The story
The Odia Bhagabata of Jagannatha Dasa, written in the sixteenth century in a simple nine-syllable metre, made Krishna's story the common property of every village; it is still read aloud each evening in the Bhagabata Tungi.
At Puri the days after the birth bring Krishna Lila: the killing of Putana, the lifting of the cart, the dance on the serpent Kaliya.
How it is kept
- FastKept until the midnight birth.
- The cradleAn image of the infant is rocked and sung to.
- BhogaButter, curd, sweets of chhena, and many kinds of pitha.
- NandotsavaThe next day, with the breaking of curd pots.
Why this date
Janmashtami is the Ashtami of the dark fortnight, in the month the Odia calendar calls Bhadraba, on the day it covers midnight.
Janmashtami in other years
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Friday | |
| 2027 | Tuesday | |
| 2028 | Sunday | |
| 2029 | Friday | |
| 2030 | Tuesday | |
| 2031 | Saturday |
More Odia festivals
17 AugustGamha Purnimaଗହ୍ମା ପୂର୍ଣ୍ଣିମା
4 SeptemberGanesh Pujaଗଣେଶ ପୂଜା
5 SeptemberNuakhaiନୂଆଖାଇ
18 JulyGuru Purnimaଗୁରୁ ପୂର୍ଣ୍ଣିମା
14 JulyHari Sayana Ekadasiହରି ଶୟନ ଏକାଦଶୀ
7 OctoberMahastamiମହାଷ୍ଟମୀ
Where to see Janmashtami
In Odisha
- Jagannath Temple, PuriOdishaThe birth and the Krishna Lila are performed as temple ritual.
- SakhigopalOdishaThe temple of the Witness Gopal, between Bhubaneswar and Puri.
- ISKCON Temple, BhubaneswarOdishaThe midnight abhisheka draws the city.
Across India
- MathuraUttar PradeshThe birthplace, with the midnight bathing of the infant.
- MayapurWest BengalThe centre of the Chaitanya tradition.
- DwarkaGujaratThe city Krishna founded and ruled, on the western sea.