What is Holi?
Holi, also known as the Festival of Colors in India, is unlike any other festival you’ve ever attended. People from all over India celebrate this Hindu festival. The revelers throw coloured powder to celebrate the victory of good over evil. Holi is now celebrated with more passion in Mathura, the Hindu God Lord Krishna’s birthplace. Holi is a beautiful Hindu festival that takes place every year across India. It is a celebration of the victory of good over evil which precedes the coming of spring. The majority of Indians observe Holi even though it is a Hindu festival.
How can you not want to be a part of the Festival of Colors, which is such a vivid and festive event? On the day of Holi in India, people of all castes, creeds, and religions come together as one to throw coloured powder and water through the air. Rainbow colors are all over their skin, hair, and clothes making them look the same. It gives a sense of belonging. When celebrating Holi it’s important to fill up your belly with energy food to keep up with the long celebration. On this day, one of the best places to celebrate Holi and enjoy different colors of veggies is to visit an Indian vegan restaurant. Its refreshes your health and mind to keep up with the long festival.
When is it celebrated?
Holi will be celebrated on the 28th and 29th of March in 2021. Since we celebrate it on the eve of the full moon and the full moon day of the Hindu calendar month of Phalguna, the dates of Holi celebrations adjust every year (March). This day symbolises the arrival of Spring. However, the festivities continues several days in advance. The colour powder and water are being spread in full force for four days before the Holi festival in India, with music blasting and people dancing in the streets.
Why is it celebrated?
People gather wood for large bonfires on the eve of Holi, known as Holika Dahan, for several days leading up to the Holi festival. Every year on the evening of Purnima in the Hindu calendar month of Phalguna, Holi Dahan takes place. Holika Dahan symbolises the death of Holika, a Hindu demon, and the triumph of good over evil.
In Hinduism, the demon Holika was the sister of Hiranyakashipu (Hiranyakashyap), the Demon King who was granted fire protection by the Gods. Hiranyakashipu requested that Holika burn his son Prahlada alive. He despised Prahlada for his loyalty to Lord Vishnu, the Hindu God, and attempted to kill him many times. Prahlada, on the other hand, was avoided.Since Holika was immune to flames, she attempted to kill Prahalada by sitting in a fire with him, attempting to burn him to death. Instead, Holika was punished by the Gods for abusing her abilities. Instead, she was burnt to death, while Prahalada lived to be a wise lord.
People converge in the evening of the Holika Dahan festival to light fires to commemorate the victory of good over bad. People are out partying and singing into the early hours of the morning when the fires flame late into the night. India as a whole is bristling with strength.
Where is it celebrated?
People from North India widely celebrate Holi, but it is also catching on in other parts of the country and even all around the world.
- Since it is the birthplace of the Hindu God Lord Krishna, Mathura is the most famous place to celebrate Holi.
- On the eve of Holi, the elephant festival is happening in Jaipur.
- The streets of Udaipur, India’s most beautiful city, come alive during the festival.
- South India does not celebrate Holi as much as the north, but it is popular in Goa because it is a tourist destination.
- Hampi is one of our favorite locations in India has begun to celebrate in order to appease visitors.
- The Holi Pot competition to become the Holi King is held in Mumbai, which is another wonderful place to celebrate Holi.
- During this season, in Delhi, the Holi Cow festival brings a lot of people to the city.
- In West Bengal, the focus is on celebrating Radha and Krishna’s everlasting romance.
- If you happen to be visiting India’s most popular attraction, The Taj Mahal, you will partake in the celebrations in Agra, Uttar Pradesh.
How do people celebrate it?
- People celebrate it in India regardless of where you are.
- Visit local parks and residential areas, or inquire at your guesthouse about Holi celebrations in the region.
- Wearing something you want to hold is not a good idea. It’s easy to damage your clothing during the celebration. So wear something you wouldn’t care to have colors on.
- Wear long trousers and long-sleeved tops to show as little skin as possible.
- Wear shades to cover your eyes, but buy inexpensive ones that you won’t mind discarding. Remove all jewels and watches.
- Holi is a messy festival, so just use waterproof camera equipment. It’s a dense powder, not just vapor. It has the ability to hurt cameras. Place all in waterproof dry bags and then take them out when needed. Even Go Pros are susceptible to damage.
- Wear your hair back or cover it with a scarf, girls.
- Don’t have any valuables with you.
- Finally, all relatives, friends, and neighbor’s can have a delicious blast from an Indian restaurant. As we are now in a pandemic situation, we can order Indian food online and share gifts and sweets or food items like Holi specials.
The Cultural Background Of Holi
Holi is a celebration on the basis of Indian mythology that celebrates the victory of good over bad. Colors, water, and even flowers are thrown while people mix and mingle to just have a good time. Holi is now celebrated not only in India but all over the world as a way for people to welcome Spring and happiness by throwing colors around. The festival is also known throughout the world as the festival of colors, is celebrated with water, gulls (pink colored birds), and even flowers. Holi, a Hindu festival with roots in Indian mythology, has a lot of cultural importance in India and is observed in a variety of forms throughout the world. Color vibrancy is something that brings a lot of positivity into our lives. Holi, as the festival of colors, is a perfect example of it now.
Significance Of Colors In Holi Festival
Coloured water, launching coloured water balloons, and flipping fistfuls of powdered colours at friends, families, and even strangers. It is not disrespectful but the festive part of the festival. Children and teens gather at convenient vantage points, armed with buckets of coloured water and small water balloons, ready to target unsuspecting visitors. In the Indian psyche, each colour has its own meaning. Red, for example, is a token of matrimony. Brides in India often wear red at their weddings because it represents youth, passion, elegance. Married woman, wearing red powder-Kumkum on the top of their forehead is customary in Hinduism.
A red dot worn between the brows symbolises blissful matrimony. Another significant colour in the Indian psyche is yellow. Turmeric is almost synonymous with yellow, a colour associated with auspicious occasions in both faiths. It is even perhaps more revered because of its long history of medicinal use. Turmeric is still in use to cure inflammatory and intestinal conditions. Blue, the colour of Hinduism’s beloved deity, Lord Krishna, is another colour that teases the sky on Holi. Green is the holy colour of the Muslim faith in India, and it represents new beginnings, harvest, and fertility. Hinduism, piety, and bravery are all synonymous with saffron.
CONCLUSION
Holi is one of India’s most important festivals. Children play with colours and receive blessings from elders. We celebrate Holi, every year on the full moon day in the month of March. It’s also a celebration of peace, passion, joy, and triumph. We bring a lot of colour to this festival. We dress up in vivid and attractive colours for this festival to share our love and happiness for one another. It has its own significance, as well as a variety of explanations, legends, and values to support it.