India is a multi cultured, multi-religion but secular country. People of all races, castes, creeds and religions reside in India. A number of festivals are celebrated with fervor in India throughout the year. There are some famous festivals like Diwali, Navratri, Holi, Ganesh Chaturthi, Durga Puja, Raksha Bandhan, Eid, etc. Every festival has its own significance and there is some story behind it. There is a reason for the celebration of any festival. Every festival is celebrated with full excitement and joy by Indian citizens because these are the occasions which bring friends and family closer. Let’s know about each festival one by one starting with Holi.

Holi is the festival of colors. It is a major Indian festival celebrated by Hindus mainly and by other people as well. It comes in the month of Falgun according to the Hindu calendar and in the month of March according to the English calendar. Holi is celebrated over two days. The legend behind celebrating holi is as follows: Holika, sister of demon Hiranyakashipu took Prahlad, the son of Hiranyakashipu in her lap and sat on fire to kill Prahlad. Holika had a boon of not getting hurt by fire. But at this time lord Vishnu came and saved Prahlad because Prahlad was a great devotee of lord Vishnu. Holika died in the fire. From that day, the tradition of Holika Dahan started. In celebration, the next day came to be known as Holi or Rang Panchami.

Children love the festival of Holi as they play with water balloons and colors. People smear each other with different colors. They are a sight to behold. Some of them drink Bhang, an intoxicating drink prepared for the day. Everyone gets together for lunch after playing with colors. The Holi celebrations in Vrundavan and Mathura in North India are very famous and people from all parts of India throng these places to participate.

Diwali- Diwali is the most famous Indian festival. It is also known as Dipawali or the festival of lights. The reason behind the celebration of Diwali is that thousands of years back, Lord Rama and his wife Sita returned to Ayodhya after 14 years of exile after a great victory against Ravana, the asura king. Diwali is the celebration that occurred in Ayodhya then. Diwali generally comes in the month of October or November.

Diwali is celebrated for five days according to Hindus and each day has its own importance. People do preparations for Diwali in advance. They do shopping, prepare sweets and different dishes to welcome the guests. Everybody cleans their homes and decorates them with Diyas (candles), electric lights and colorful rangolis for the five days. There is a significance of Laxmi – the goddess of wealth on Diwali. On Dhanteras, the first day of Diwali – it is a significance to buy gold. On the 3rd day, people do Laxmi pooja along with pooja of lord Ganesha on main Diwali day (also called as Laxmi poojan). This is to please the gods for prosperity and happiness. Read more about Indian festivals in part 2 of this article.

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Category: Culture
Keywords: festivals, india, indian festivals, holi, Diwali, Culture