Kids Learn of Indian Festivals
On October 12, Bal-Vihar celebrated Ganesh Chathurthi and Janmashtami. Mrs. Avantika Bhatnagar and Mrs. Meenakshi Iyer, two of Bal Vihar's teachers, organized the celebration. A large collage of the events in the lives of Lord Ganesh and Lord Krishna overlooked the celebration area. A swing representing Lord Krishna's cradle was also set. The students from Shishu Kaksha (lowest grade) to the 2nd grade were involved in the celebration. It was divided into two parts, where the Ganesh Chaturthi celebration was done first. The program started with Mrs. Bhatnagar and two volunteers from the audience explaining Lord Ganesh's birth and the story of how he received his elephant head. After the story, a dance on the Ganesh Stuthi was performed. Following the dance, shlokas were recited by students and bhajans were sung for Lord Ganesh.
The second part of the celebration was Janmashtami. The story of Lord Krishna's birth was told and a dance was performed on a song for him. After the dance the kids of the Shishu Kaksha sang a bhajan about Lord Krishna's various names. Following the bhajan the story of Kalia Mardan was told.
The program ended with the singing of an arti for both deities. Following the arti the children went and swung the swing representing Lord Krishna's cradle. Prasad was served afterwards. The students learned about the importance of Ganesh Chaturthi and Janmashtami and saw a glimpse of how both the festivals are celebrated.
- Mukund Jain
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