The fortnight long ‘swing festival’ has begun with Hariyali Teej in Vrindavan. Most of the Vrindavan temples have been bringing the Lordships from the garba griha or the inner sanctorum to jagmohan or sanctum sanctorum and the deities are being placed on swings made of gold, silver, wood etc. The outfits of the deities are very intricate and contains jewellery like garlands, flutes, anklets and crowns.
This festival is also known as the Jhulan Yatra and it commemorates the romance of Lord Krishna with his divine consort, Radha Rani, sitting on the swings in the forests of Vrindavan during the monsoon season. There is a lot of singing and dancing going on that makes the atmosphere even more jubiliant in the Radha Raman and Radha Ballabh temples.
Thousands of people visit Vrindavan for Hariyali Teej as Thakur Bankey Bihari is adorned in spectacular clothes and placed on a golden swing that is studded with jewels. The devotees queue up outside the temples since the morning and the gates are opened around 4 in the evening. Bhajans and kirtans are sung and aarti isperformed in all the temples in honour of the Lordships.
