Govardhan Puja - Significance and Celebration Tips

Lord Krishna is revered as an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the preserver among the Tridevas or the trinity. He is one among the Dashavatara of Lord Vishnu. Lord Krishna is called Leela Purushottam, which literally translates to the best among the men in playful activities (or can say divine play). Lord Krishna taught us many important life lessons through his leelas only. Leela is a Sanskrit word that means playful activity or divine play. Many of his leelas are common knowledge in the households of India and even all around the globe, while some remain lesser known, known only to the ones who indulge in spiritual reading.

Govardhan puja celebration started as a result of one such leela of Lord Krishna, known as Govardhan leela. Govardhan leela is known to almost every Indian, and also to the spiritually inclined foreign nationals. Govardhan Puja is a significant Hindu festival which is celebrated  on the pratipada tithi of Shukla paksha in Kartika month as per the Hindu calendar. The Govardhan puja celebration falls a day after Diwali which is celebrated on the Amavasya tithi of kartik month of Hindu calendar. Govardhan puja was celebration was done on November 2, 2024, marking Lord Krishna’s divine act of lifting Govardhan Hill. Govardhan puja celebration, this year will be done on October 22, 2025.

Now, having known all that, many questions arise like why Lord Krishna lifted up the Govardhan Hill? Where is this Govardhan hill? Why he did not use any other way to protect the people from the torrential rains? Why a hill is being worshipped? Etc. Let’s find the answers to all these questions.

Govardhan Hill, which is also known as Giriraj, is a sacred site in Hinduism located in Mathura district, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is about 21 kilometres (13 miles) from Vrindavan, the village where Lord Krishna spent a major period of his childhood. The Govardhan hill is revered as a natural form of Lord Krishna, and devotees often perform a parikrama around it as an act of worship. The name Govardhan literally translates to the one who causes growth of cows, and cows were the main assets of the people in the village around as they depended on selling cow milk and milk products for their livelihood.

There are many legends behind the Govardhan puja celebration but the most commonly known one goes like that: the people in Vrindavan used to pray Lord Indra, the Go d of rains, for sending out timely rains that helped them to grow their crops and to do other chores. This made Lord Indra arrogant and so full of himself. Lord Krishna took this opportunity to teach Lord Indra a lesson and convinced the people in Vrindavan to worship Govardhan Hill instead as he provided the food and fodder etc. This made Lord Indra angry and he sent torrential rains to Vrindavan. There was scary storm, lightning, thunder and heavy rains. Vrindavan started flooding and people were afraid for their lives and families. Lord Krishna said that Govardhan will only protect us and he took all the people and animals from Vrindavan to Govardhan and raised a hill on his little finger. This lasted for around seven days, and finally Lord Indra realised his mistake and pleaded forgiveness from Lord Krishna.  Lord Krishna could have directly stopped the rains by revealing his true self to Lord Indra and ordering him to stop the rains, but such leelas make a lasting impression on the mind of common people and celebrating it every year reinforces the teachings that Lord Krishna wanted us to follow. So, this whole act of Govardhan Hill uplifting by Lord Krishna was his leela or divine play to prove the following points:

1. Devotion always wins over pride.

2. Natural resources should be cared for and protected as they provide us with many things.

3. The divine always helps people who believe in it. 

4. The Govardhan puja celebration also highlights the importance of nature and land, especially for farmers.

Govardhan puja is celebrated all over India but majorly in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab and Maharashtra. The rituals of the Govardhan puja celebration are more or less same with slight variations. The celebration of Govardhan puja is done in the following way.

First, the devotees make small replicas of Govardhan Hill using cow dung and decorate them.

Then , the puja is performed which includes offering of sandal, flowers, incense and prasadam etc.

The devotees then perform parikrama around the replica of Govardhan hill. Devotees walk around the replica of  hill as a mark of respect and devotion.

A grand feast is prepared  which includes Chappan Bhog (56 Delicacies) and offered to Lord Krishna.

This bhog is served to everyone present as the divine prasadam.

Devotees sing Bhajans & Recite Krishna’s Leelas. Devotional songs and stories of Krishna’s Govardhan Leela are shared.

So, this is a detailed idea of the Govardhan puja celebration. India being a spiritual marvel has many more such celebrations and legends that are quite interesting and explore worthy. Let’s celebrate India and its vast cultural and spiritual heritage and feel proud in that. Keep on exploring as exploration is what makes us better than what we were yesterday.

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