Season of rains
Shravan Purnima is the full moon in the sacred month of Shravan. In the sub-tropical,
tropical and temperate regions of India, the months of Jyeshtha, Ashadh, Shravan,
Bhadrapad, and to a lesser extent even Ashvin, i.e. from June to nearly October,
are the months of rains.
The black koel sings its kuhu, kuhu, hidden in the verdant greenery of mango
groves in anticipation of rain; auguring the first raindrops, the beautiful male
peacock raises his many-splendoured plumage in a mating call to his partner.
The rains bring blessed relief from the dust and searing heat of the summer months.
There is a sense of joy and abandon as the choking heat is almost overnight replaced
by the cool freshness of the rains. The dry, parched earth responds with sheer abundance,
greenery sprouting overnight like a soft velvet carpet, as the woods are cleansed
of loads of dust, shimmering once again in pristine glory. Cascading streams and
waterfalls make their appearance in dry river beds as they emerge gushing from the
hills and mountains, just as the whole world seems to be caught up in the swirling
dance of the life-giving rains.
Advance of the season of rains over the length and breadth of the subcontinent is
gradual, so that in the southern peninsular part, including Mumbai, it begins in
Jyeshtha, when the Sun conjuncts the Mriga nakshatra around 7th June
each year. In the central plains of Madhya Pradesh, the dark clouds hover in the
skies in Ashadh, marking the season of poetic yearning for the absent beloved. Thus
the best-known Sanskrit poet, Kalidas of Ujjain, begins his epic Meghdoot
with the immortal lines, "Ashadhasya prathama divase" (On the first day of ashadh).
A yaksha demigod, finding himself banished from the ethereal realms, pleads with
the rain-bearing dark cloud messenger to carry his love lorn message to his beloved,
who is a celestial nymph
Especially on peninsular India, Shravan is the month when the peak paddy cultivation
season has abated and a lighter round of agricultural tasks has commenced, easing
the pressure of farming in rural areas. Work yields ground to cultural festivities
and ritual worship.
Holiest month of Shravan
It is the month of festivals and pious rituals that commemorate the precedence of
the sacred over all aspects of life and the living. It is the holiest month in the
year, when many penances, sacred vows and chanting are undertaken for the purpose
of earning spiritual merit. It includes celebrating Nagpanchami on the fifth day
of the bright half of the month, the day of ritual cobra worship.
Another major festival is Krishna Janmashtami, celebrated on the 8th
day of the dark half of Shravan, to commemorate the birth of Lord Krishna. This
again, is an inauspicious ashtami tithi (eighth lunar day), being the only one in
the year that is sanctified and holy instead!
The celebration reaches its peak at midnight, when the birth of Shri Krishna is
enacted in households and temples throughout India. Fasting is observed on this
occasion, and Shrikhand is the favourite flavour among the sweets for the festival.
The festival of dahi-handi is celebrated in public squares the following day, to
enact the pranks of the naughty boy Krishna, when young boys form
human pyramids to break a clay pot containing curds that is hung overhead.
Shravan is dear to all the gods, especially Shiva, and every Monday of the month,
devotees throng to Shiva temples throughout India to worship the sacred Shivalingam.
A major Hindu pilgrimage trek in Kashmir begins with the formation of the natural
stalagmite ice lingam in the Himalayan cave of Amarnath just before Guru Purnima.
It continues for a month until Shravan Purnima, after which the ice lingam begins
to melt
Women As Gauri, Parvati
Young girls observe strict fasting on Shravan Mondays to earn meritorious reward
in the form of a fine husband! Reading stories from the scriptures on the exploits
of Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati gains precedence in this month.
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