Radha Ashtami 2020: Muhurta, Rituals And Significance Of This Festival

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Radhashtami is a Hindu festival that is celebrated to mark the birth anniversary of Goddess Radha or Radhika, the consort of Lord Krishna. This year the festival will be celebrated on 26 August 2020. The festival is also known as Radha Jayanti as people believe that Goddess Radha was born on this day. Those who don't know more about this festival can scroll down to read more.

Muhurta For Radhashtami

Every year the festival is observed on the Ashtami tithi of Shukla Paksha in the month of Bhadrapada. This year the date falls on 26 August 2020. The Ashtami tithi will begin at 12:21 pm on 25 August 2020 and will end at 10:39 am on 26 August 2020. During this muhurta, one can observe a fast and worship the deity as per the rituals.

Rituals

• On this day, devotees should wake up early and take a bath.
• Wear clean clothes and offer Arghya to Lord Surya.
• Place a Kalash in your pooja room.
• Now place a copper vessel/plate on the Kalash.
• Offer a holy bath to Goddess Radha's idol with Panchamrit.
• Decorate the idol of the Goddess with new clothes, flowers, jewellery and other things used for decoration.
• Now place the idol of Goddess Radha on the copper vessel/plate kept over the Kalash.
• Offer the Prasad and other offerings to the Goddess and pray for yourself and your loved ones.
• Perform the aarti of the Goddess.
• Now distribute the prasad among the needy and loved ones.

Significance

• According to some scriptures, Goddess Radha is the incarnation of Goddess Mahalakshmi.
• However, people belonging to the Vaishnav culture believe that Goddess Radha is a separate Goddess that represents the divine power and strength.
• People often see her finite who merges into infinite i.e., Lord Krishna.
• It is said that Radha was born out of a divine lotus on the surface of the water and was later found out by Vrishbhanu and his wife Kamalavati or Kirti.
• Lord Krishna and Radha are seen as the symbol of divine and true love.