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What is the News?
The President has inaugurated the annual Madhavpur Mela in Gujarat and said that the cultural fair is a “festival of uniting people of the country through feelings”.
What is Madhavpur Mela?
Madhavpur Mela is a religio-cultural fair taking place every year in Madhavpur, a village on the Porbandar coast in Gujarat.
Madhavpur village has temples of Madhavraiji or Lord Krishna and his consort Rukmini, believed to have been built in the 15th century.
Purpose: The fair celebrates the marriage of Lord Krishna with Rukmini around 4,000 years ago, as per Hindu mythology.
The fair begins on Ram Navami, Lord Rama’s birth anniversary falling on the ninth day of the month of Chaitra in the Hindu calendar and culminates on Tryodashi, the 13th day of the month.
How is the Madhavpur Mela connected to the Northeast?
The Madhavpur Mela of Gujarat shares its connection with the Mishmi Tribe of Arunachal Pradesh.
The Mishmi Tribe traces its ancestry to the legendary King Bhishmak and through him to his daughter Rukmini and Lord Krishna.
The festival celebrates the immortal journey which Rukmini undertook from Arunachal Pradesh to Gujarat with Lord Krishna. Bhismaknagar, located near Rolling in the Lower Dibang Valley district also finds mentioned in Kalika Purana.
Source: This post is based on the article “Explained: Mythology, politics behind Gujarat’s Madhavpur Mela, and why CMs from Northeast are visiting it” published in Indian Express on 14th April 2022.
