Sri Krishnashtami is the eighth day of the dark half of Sravana, the night Krishna was born. Telugu homes mark it at the doorstep: small footprints are drawn in rice flour from the threshold to the puja room, as though the child had just walked in. The day is a fast, the birth is celebrated at midnight, and the next day is Utla Panduga, the breaking of the pot.
The story
Kamsa, king of Mathura, had been told that the eighth child of his sister Devaki would kill him, and kept her and her husband Vasudeva in prison. The eighth child was born at midnight under the star Rohini. The guards slept, the locks fell open, and Vasudeva carried the baby across the flooded Yamuna to Gokulam, where Nanda and Yasoda brought him up among the cowherds.
It is the Gokulam childhood that the festival loves: the boy who stole butter from pots hung out of his reach, and was tied to a mortar for it.
వసుదేవసుతం దేవం కంసచాణూరమర్దనమ్ । దేవకీపరమానందం కృష్ణం వందే జగద్గురుమ్
Son of Vasudeva, slayer of Kamsa and Chanura, supreme joy of Devaki: I bow to Krishna, teacher of the world
The opening of the Krishnashtakam
How it is kept
- FootprintsA child's footprints are drawn in rice-flour paste from the front door inward.
- The cradleAn image of the infant Krishna is laid in a decorated cradle and rocked at midnight. Children are dressed as Krishna and the gopikas.
- The offeringsButter, curd, milk, atukulu (beaten rice) with jaggery, and fried snacks such as chakralu.
- Utla PandugaA pot of curd, milk and coins is slung high across the street and jerked up and down on a rope while young men, drenched with water, try to break it.
- Fast and vigilThe fast is kept until the midnight worship.
Why this date
Sri Krishnashtami is the eighth tithi (Ashtami) of the dark half of Sravana. Krishna was born at midnight, so the calendar gives the day on which Ashtami is in force in the middle of the night.
Sri Krishnashtami in other years
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Friday | |
| 2026 | Friday | |
| 2027 | Tuesday | |
| 2028 | Sunday | |
| 2029 | Friday | |
| 2030 | Tuesday |
More Telugu festivals
28 AugustRakhi Pournamiరాఖీ పౌర్ణమి
14 SeptemberVinayaka Chavithiవినాయక చవితి
21 AugustVaralakshmi Vratamవరలక్ష్మీ వ్రతం
10 OctoberBathukammaబతుకమ్మ
29 JulyGuru Pournamiగురు పౌర్ణమి
18 OctoberSaddula Bathukammaసద్దుల బతుకమ్మ
Where to see Sri Krishnashtami
In the Telugu states
- Venkateswara Temple, TirumalaAndhra PradeshThe Gokulashtami court is held at night, and Utlotsavam, the pot-breaking, fills the temple streets next day.
- Venugopala Swamy Temple, HamsaladeeviAndhra PradeshThe old Krishna temple where the river Krishna meets the sea.
- Hare Krishna Golden Temple, HyderabadTelanganaIn Banjara Hills; open past midnight for the birth, with abhishekam and a swing for the child.
Across India
- Krishna Janmasthan, MathuraUttar PradeshThe birthplace, where the midnight abhishekam is watched by lakhs.
- Dwarkadhish Temple, DwarkaGujaratThe city Krishna ruled, on the western sea.
- Udupi Sri Krishna MathaKarnatakaThe next day is Vittal Pindi, with pots broken along the car street and dancers painted as tigers.
- MumbaiMaharashtraDahi Handi: teams of Govindas build human pyramids many tiers high to reach the pot.