Holi Essay

Holi is a very usual Hindu spring and near Moon festival. It is followed by Dhuleti, the festival of colors. It is renowned on 2 and 3 March, 2007. The two- mean solar day Indian festival of Holi is one of the twelve Full Moon festivals of the Indian lunar calendar. Each month begins with the unseasoned Moon and is divided into 2 fortnights, the bright half of the waxing stargaze and the dark half of the waning moon. The Full Moon (purnima) in the kernel signifies culmination and fulfillment the perfect time for a festivalHoli celebrates the Full Moon called the Holi Purnima, which occurs in the lunar month of Phalgun (February-March). Holi thus celebrates the coming of spring, which is enacted in a legend of fire. An evil demon, ruler of heaven, earth and hell, forced everyone to godliness him as a god. His little son Prahlad, however, remained faithful to Lord Vishnu. So the King wanted him dead. His wicked sister, the demon Holika (after whom the festival is named), could n ot be harmed by fire.Taking up Prahlad, she entered a bonfire. But through Vishnus intervention, she was the one who burned and the child remained safe. Bon fires commemorating this tale of devotion overcoming fifty-fifty the most powerful of obstacles atomic number 18 lit on the first day of Holi, the day of the Full Moon. People throw cow dung into the fires and bellyache obscenities at Holika. Where the spring element is more dominant, the first fruits of the harvest be offered to the cleansing fire. Embers are carried home to light fires in the houses.Holi is a tripping celebration of exuberance and cheer. There are wild processions to drum crush and dances to traditional Holi folk songs. People let go of past grievances an run across forward to a new beginning. The newborn are allowed to get intoxicated, exile rudely and play pranks. Everyone goes visiting, and guests are offered ghujias (sweetmeats made from flour, almonds and raisins) and cool thandais (a milk-based drink), which can be laced with small amounts of bhang, or marijuana.Holi is most known as a festival of colors. On the first day, the eldest male of the family sprinkles moody powder (gulal) and colored water on each family member. The colors, especially red, are made from flowers and signify blossoming. The second day is Dhuleti, when all hell breaks loose. Children, young men and women form separate groups and go out covering everything and everyone with colors. Holi is a celebration typical of Northern India, but it is so much mutant that most of India and Hindus all over the world celebrate it.