Moonlight and Faith: The Legacy of Nalbari Raax

Neelim Akash Kashyap

(neelimassam@gmail.com.)

When the cool autumn breeze drifts through Assam, the moon seems to pause above Nalbari—as if listening to a forgotten tune. That tune is the whisper of Raax, a festival where faith dances in rhythm with devotion, and mythology steps into the light of everyday life.

The Raax festival of Nalbari is not merely a celebration; it is a retelling of a timeless connection between the soul and the divine. At its heart lies the image of Krishna, the eternal flutist, whose melody stirs the spirit of the Gopis—symbols of human longing seeking union with the infinite. The dance they perform around Krishna is not a worldly act but a metaphor of realisation—the soul circling its source, losing itself in light.

This grand expression of devotion found its first heartbeat in Nalbari in the early 1930s. It began with a few visionaries—Amar Kundu, Naren Basu, and several culture-loving locals who dreamt of giving their town a spiritual festival. In 1933, their dream blossomed at the Puroni Hatkhola premises, where the first Raas Puja took place in Nalbari.

As years passed, the crowd grew, and so did the devotion. A larger ground was needed, and with the support of Sub-Deputy Collector Krishna Ram Medhi, a new plot was secured. There, in 1946, the Hari Mandir became the festival’s permanent home—a sanctuary built not with stone alone, but with faith gathered from thousands of hearts.

The temple’s foundation, laid in 1939 with timber donated by Priyanath Kabiraj, marked the beginning of a sacred chapter. Later, the efforts of Damahuram Mahajan and other devotees helped shape the mandir that stands today. Over the decades, the three-day gathering transformed into a fortnight of devotion, art, and celebration.

Each year, Nalbari turns into a landscape of devotion—streets glowing with lamps, idols of Radha and Krishna sculpted with care, and music flowing like prayer. It is a festival where time feels still, where the flute’s call reminds every pilgrim that faith is not a ritual but a journey inward. The Raax of Nalbari remains what it has always been—a dance of the eternal within the human heart.