Vishwakarma Puja celebrated with Kites

On the occasion of Vishwakarma Puja, we held a kite festival for the children of Jan Seva. Looking up at the sky, one could see colourful kites everywhere you looked. We must admit that the adults were more excited than the children, with each teacher reliving their childhood days along with the children of Jan Seva. In this modern world where children are mainly engrossed either with television or mobile phone games, flying the kites gave them a taste of non technical play which required higher concentration along with a great hand and eye coordination and it was a fitting tribute to Lord Vishwakarma, the architect.

Vishwakarma Jayanti is a day of celebration for Lord Vishwakarma, a Hindu god, the divine architect. The festival is observed primarily in factories and industrial areas, often on the shop floor. As a mark of reverence the day of worship is marked not only by the engineering and architectural community, but also by artisans, craftsmen, mechanics, smiths, welders, industrial workers, factory workers and others. They pray for a better future, safe working conditions and, above all, success in their respective fields. Workers also pray for the smooth functioning of various machines.

There is a tradition of kite flying associated with the festival that goes back a few centuries. The art of kite flying caught up in Bengal in the 1850s. Some people showed off their wealth by affixing currency notes to their kites. But why are kites flown on Vishwakarma Puja? We have often read in our devotional storybooks and seen on television programmes based on such stories, the Gods navigating through the sky in beautifully decorated chariots. Well, Lord Vishwakarma was the designer of all those flying chariots. He is also the designer of all the flying chariots of the Gods and their weapons. As a mark of reverence for his divine skills of architecture and engineering, every year in the month of September, people pay tribute to the divine creator by praying on the day; and by flying kites.

Here are some glimpses from the fun-filled proceedings.