Janmastami Festival

Our local temple held a grand Janmastami Festival, to celebrate the appearance day of Krishna. It was filled with many events, fun, and food. Here are the highlights...

The House of 10,000 flowers was unveiled first and was totally breathtaking. The pictures didn't do it justice. All the caring hands that went in to making all the fresh flower garlands really did an amazing job. There were so many flowers that I couldn't fit them into one picture.

Steven and I worked on the giant diorama at the base of the alter. Steven laid actual sod down to create the base and we recreated the pastimes of Krishna in miniature. It was a fun service and allowed us to put on our creative hats to figure out how to depict some of these stories.

The kids joined in the fun by participating in a fashion/costume show, dances and plays. I got to help get not only my boys ready but my best friend's youngest son and daughters as well. It was fun transforming them into their different roles. Here are some of the shots I got of them.

Thad & Ashton as Balarama & Krishna

Hal as Bhima

Laura as Hidimba the Deamon

Emily as a Bharata Natyam Dancer

The children really enjoyed the activities. I will post Emily's dance video as you will see they are very expressive, not only with body positioning but their hands and facial expressions.

Here are some pictures from the play that was put on by the kids and a few fun loving adults.

We did lots of singing and dancing! You can see from the pictures below there was music both inside and out!

There were hundreds of people through out the evening during this celebration which is by far the biggest we have ever attended. Here are some of the pictures from various points in the evening.

Thank you Boise Hare Krishna Temple for making this event possible!