Janmashtami 2020: The Significance Of Drawing Krishna's Feet On This Day

Janmashtami or Krishna Jayanti ushers in a mood of devotion and rejoice. Special pujas are offered to Lord Krishna on the occasion of Janmashtami.

Of the various aspects of the Janmashtami Puja, drawing the feet of Bal Krishna (Little Krishna) forms the most significant part of the worship of the Lord and the decoration of the pooja room. This practice of painting little Krishna's feet is followed by those who observe the puja across the country.

This year, in 2020, the Krishna Janmashtami will be celebrated on 11th August, Tuesday with great zeal and fervour across the country.

Ways to create impressions of Krishna's footprints.

On Janmashtami people usually draw or paint Lord Krishna's footprints from the entrance of the house to the Pooja room. There are different ways that people adopt to create the impression of the footprints on the floor.

People normally draw the feet on a plain paper and have them cut. They paint on the paper and stick on the floor to make impressions. The paper is then removed.

People also create impressions of the Lord's feet with the paste of limestone mixed with water.

Many others resort to the ready-made ones that are available in the market that stick on to the floor.

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The underlying essence of drawing Krishna's feet

On the more obvious front, creating impressions of Krishna's feet during Janmashtami is simply a sign of welcoming the Lord to one's home. The Lord is the form of all auspiciousness. Hence by doing so it is a belief that one attracts all goodness in life. It is believed to be the closure of the dark days and the break of dawn with Krishna making His entry.

The spiritual significance of drawing Krishna's feet delves deep, beyond all beliefs on the superficial level.

The footprints drawn from the entrance of the house to the puja room signifies an inward-turned mind. A mind that is focused outside of oneself is prone to get scattered. A mind that swerves is not liable to experience the peace within. With the focus turned inwards while involved in the day to day activities, helps the mind to be integrated thereby making way to bask in bliss.

The pooja room denotes the innermost part, the source of one's being. When the mind is turned towards its source, one invariably experiences the calmness of peace. The mind merged with the source is the goal of all spiritual pursuits which, is called Self-realisation.