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JULY, 1877.]
ON THE KRISHNAJANMÅSHTAMI.
179
image of Vasudeva which, after a prerious anga- stress is, at all events, to be laid on the fact that pujá, being covered with clothing, is to be in the Vardha Purana the birth-festival of Krishna placed over a pitcher (ghata), to be worshipped ¡ appears as a single link of an entire series of with perfumes, flowers, &c., and then to be such festivals to be held on the twelfth, and presented to a Brâhman. The legend on the addressed to the ten, or rather eleven (!) ava. birth of Krishna recited by Darvâsas, who táras of Vishnu as fish, tortoise, boar, man-lion, appears as the narrator, is entirely divested of dwarf, Bhargava (i.e. Parasurama), Rama, the usual additions, and simply states that,- Krishna, Buddha, Kalkin, and as Pad. “Nárada once came to the house of the Yâdavaman a bha (sic). With the general calendar this prince Vasudeva, who had no children by his single festival had to be barmonized. || Therefore wife Devaki, and reported to him what he had this description does not exclude the possibility just seen in heaven: The earth stepped into that in other quarters it was contemporaneously the assembly of the gods complainingt that it celebrated also according to the manner known could no longer carry its burden, and pleaded to us, which finally become the only acfor relief. Then the gods turned their thoughts knowledged one. In the festival-calendars of to Narayana, who immediately arrived in person other nations similar differences are also fcand and promised them to assume the human form: to occur by the side of each other. I am more. "'The woman who will with her husband fast over inclined to recognize an after-effect of this during the white half in Ashadha, into her festival described by the Váráha Purana, in that womb shall I enter." Then the gods dispersed, form of the Janmashtami celebration which and he (Nârada) immediately hastened to this (see above, p. 178) likewise, as is done here, place.' Accordingly Vasudeva conformed him- requires the worship of the god over a pitcher self herewith, fasted on the 12th of the We shall return to the probable reason for this Ashddha, and obtained Krishna for a son, and manner of adoration in § 2. I have finally great glory. And so also now the celebration to state an extremely peculiar fact, in the above of this festival secures the birth of a son."
discussed (p. 169) modern Vrishnava ritual M., Here the idea at once suggests itself that an which breaks off in our MS. at the representaolder narration is before ns, and this the more tion of the Janmáshtami (fol. 329-336), we find no as the Varáha Purana in general seems to an exposition also of this festival of the Váráha contain rather old material. Wilson (Vishnu Purana, and that shortly before it (fol. 25a-26a), Pur. I. lxxi. ed. Hall) places it in the early part under the very name of Jayanti, or rather Jayanof the twelfth century," and mentions also just tímahadvadasivratam, in such a manner, however, the very absence of the Janmashtami in it as a that the description entirely agrees in the essen. sign that the work belongs " to an earlier stage tial points with that of the Janmashtami itself of Vaishnava worship." In other words, he con- (except the erection of the sútikágriha, which sidered this festival to belong to a later time. is here wanting), so that the defect at the end That he was, however, mistaken herein, apart | may be considered quite supplemented by the from the other points involved in this question, former description. We have here, then, a pecuis evident from the simple fact that a century liar commingling of the view of Madhava, aclater Hemdri uses the Bhavishya Pur., the cording to which Jayanti and Janmdshtami are Váhni Pur., &o. in his description of the festival. two special vratas (the month-date whereof, how. Accordingly, as with regard to the total omis. ever, is the same), with the divergent month-date sion of it in the Bhagavata Pur., so we must of the Pardha Purana,-in such a manner, how. here also look for an explanation of this indica- ever, that whilst according to M. the Jayanti tion of a different date, resting on a basis other is the richer form of the festival, here rather the than & chronological one. There might exist Janmashtami appears as such. This is, how. for it many geographical, religio-historical, or ever, probably quite a secondary arrangement, other reasons the particular details of which as it cannot as yet be traced to other sources, escape our notice. In the first place special There is, besides, yet a third date, though of a I Conf. Vishnu Pur. V.1, Wilson, p. 493.
pitcher, watching through the night, the giving away of In reality all these duadas celebrations are held the idol in the morning, these are, throughout, the ontirely in the same manner on the festival day, fasting, separate stages of the celebration. bathing, angap djd of the god, worship of this idol over a
