frolicking on the banks of the Yamuna river. In later life, he leaves Braj to take
up residence in Dvaraka, which lies on the coast in the contemporary state of
Gujarat. In this song, however, Krishna is enjoined to go to the city of Benares,
famously situated on the banks of the Ganges River well to the southeast of Braj,
a city that has been associated primarily not with Krishna, but with Shiva (Eck
1982: esp. 94–145). Krishna traditions also tend to associate Krishna with the
goddess Radha, widely understood to be not Krishna’s wife, but his lover: their
relationship is an illicit one, for Radha is married to another. But in this song,
Krishna is a new groom, enjoined to come join his bride in their nuptial bed and
to decorate her body “gently” (dhı ̄re se) with the adornments that mark her new
status as a suha ̄gin, an auspiciously married woman. Furthermore, the bride in
question is not Radha: it is Tulsi, the basil plant widely associated with the
worship of Vishnu and his forms as the deities Krishna and Ram.
I recorded this song in the city of Benares in the autumn of 1998, during
the lunar Hindu month known as Ka ̄rtik. I had returned to Benares for the third
time in the space of four years to complete research on the religious dimensions
of Ka ̄rtik, particularly focusing on women’s devotional traditions associated
with the month.^2 During Ka ̄rtik, many Hindu women living in and around
Benares gather together in groups along the banks of the Ganges River and
perform ritual devotions that they refer to collectively as Ka ̄rtik pu ̄ja ̄(Ka ̄rtik
worship). It is in the context of these devotions that I heard female devotees sing
this song, beseeching Krishna to come to Benares and join his new bride, Tulsi,
in their marital chamber. The image of Krishna as Tulsi’s gentle groom and the
nature of women’s religious practices concerning this sacred marriage are
deeply embedded in broader devotional traditions pertaining to Ka ̄rtik.
Ka ̄ rtik as a Sacred Month
When measured against the solar calendar commonly used in the West, the
first day of Ka ̄rtik in Benares usually falls sometime in mid-October, although
this varies from year to year.^3 Ka ̄rtik is considered the second month of the
two-month autumn season and the last month before the onset of winter.
Sandwiched between the hot and humid rainy season and the chilling cold that
often comes in late December and January, Ka ̄rtik is widely associated in Benares
with pleasant and hospitable weather. From the perspective of traditional Indian
medicine, the change of season that occurs at this time of year is unhealthful,
leaving the body vulnerable to illnesses, and in Benares I heard people attribute
all kinds of medical problems to the change in the weather. Yet many people
also declare that autumn is the best season and that during Ka ̄rtik the climate
is more pleasant than at any other time of year.
In addition to being welcomed for the change of season that it marks, Ka ̄rtik
is also one of the most religiously important months in the Hindu calendar. It is
associated primarily with the worship of Vishnu and hence is most meaningful
328 tracy pintchman