When is Ramdev Jayanti and Teja Dashmi?
Ramdev Jayanti and Teja Dashmi is a regional public holiday in the Indian state of Rajasthan on the tenth day of the month of Bhadrapad in the Hindu calendar. This means it falls in either August or September in the Gregorian calendar.
Traditions of Ramdev Jayanti and Teja Dashmi
This public holiday combines the festivals related to two important Hindu folk deities of Rajasthan.
Ramdev Jayanti
Baba Ramdev is a Hindu folk deity from Rajasthan, India. He was a fourteenth-century ruler, said to have miraculous powers, who devoted his life to the upliftment of the downtrodden and poor people of society. He is regarded as an incarnation of Krishna.
On Ramdev Jayanti, the birth date of Ramdev, a fair is held at the Ramdevra temple, the resting place of Ramdev, attended by hundreds of thousands of devotees, both Hindu and Muslim.
Teja Jayanti
Veer Teja or Tejaji is an even older Rajasthani folk deity. He is considered one of the major eleven incarnations of Shiva and worshipped as a deity in rural Rajasthan.
Veer Teja was born in the mid-13th century in Khadnal, Rajasthan. Teja was the son of King Baksaji.
Legend has it that Teja died in 1304 from wounds inflicted while trying to rescue a herd of cows from a group of raiders. The story says that while he lay dying, he allowed a snake to bite his tongue, which was the only part of his body undamaged in the fight. In return, the snake promised that no person or animal would die from a snakebite if they sought the blessings of Teja.
