Janmashtami — History, Date & Significance

Janmashtami celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna, the eighth avatar of Vishnu, born at midnight in Mathura to Devaki and Vasudeva while they were imprisoned by the tyrant Kamsa. The birth is observed on the Ashtami (eighth day) of the dark fortnight of the month of Bhadra, when devotees fast until midnight — the hour of Krishna’s birth.

Dhaka’s Janmashtami procession is one of the oldest continuing traditions of the city, first taken out from the Dhakeshwari temple area in the sixteenth century. Suppressed at various points in history, the procession was revived in 1989 and today winds through Old Dhaka as the centerpiece of the national celebration. Janmashtami is a public holiday in Bangladesh.