CHHAPPAN BHOG
It is a common practice in Hinduism to offer food to idols of God. This is called bhog. While bhog is offered to all deities, the one offered to Sri Krishna is unique because it contains 56 types of food items. This is popularly called ‘chhappan bhog’, where chhappan means fifty-six. While different sources give a different list of what the individual dishes should be, they are all unanimous on the number 56. There is a story behind this.
When Sri Krishna was a young cowherd in Vrindavana, the residents used to celebrate a festival towards the end of the rainy season to honour Indra. He was the God of the clouds and of the waters. He sent clouds laden with moisture from which rain fell on the earth, helping grains and grasses grow, on which humans and cows survived. The cowherds used to hold this festival to thank Indra for the rains.
Krishna argued that they were cowherds, not cultivators of land or merchants. Their only wealth was cows, which grazed on the Govardhana Mountain. Thus, a proper divinity to be worshipped by cowherds would be Govardhana. What did cowherds have to do with Indra? The people of Vrindavana agreed wholeheartedly and offered worship to Govardhana and circumambulated it. Indra became extremely angry at the lack of worship for him. He sent down large clouds and a fearsome storm to Vrindavana. Lightning flashed, thunder roared, and an incessant rain poured. The cows and cowherds of Vrindavana became greatly oppressed by the rain. Soon, there was flooding everywhere, and if nothing was done quickly, the people and cows would drown. Krishna lifted the Govardhana Mountain in one hand and asked all the cowherds to enter beneath it, with their cows, for shelter from the rain. For seven days and nights, the rain poured, but the cowherds happily sang songs in the shade of the mountain. On the eighth day, Indra accepted defeat and ceased the rain.
In those days, time of the day used to be measured in praharas, with one prahara being equal to three hours. There used to be eight praharas in a day. Mother Yashoda used to feed Krishna every prahara, so he used to have eight meals a day. Krishna had stood lifting the mountain for seven days, making a total of 56 praharas. During this time, he did not eat or drink anything. To compensate for that, Indra offered 56 types of food for Krishna to placate him. Some stories say that Mother Yashoda fed 56 types of food to Krishna after he put the mountain down. Since then, Sri Krishna has always been offered a chhappan bhog.
