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Holi
is all about having fun, playing with color and getting
doped, all with the permission of the Gods!
The
sternest of Gods would forgive you any number of indiscretions
on Holi. After all, it commemorates the day when Kamadeva
(the Lord of Love) dared to strike Lord Shiva's (Lord
Shiva forms a part of the holy trinity which include
Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu) heart with one of his
arrows. It is the universal day of goodwill and the
refrain of "don't mind, it's Holi" fills the skies
along with colors that the festival is associated
with.
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Holi,
more than any other festival, spells pure fun. You
can take a pichkaari (a water gun) and drench
the pretty neighbour that you have been eyeing for
many months, and she's not going to take offence.
You
can hide on the rooftop and throw balloons of colored
water on passers-by. At the very least no one will
mind if you put a tika (a long bindi on the
forehead) of colored powder (gulal or abir).
You can even visit the neighbours and polish off the
sweets that are made for the occasion.
The
festival typically begins on a solemn note on the
previous evening with a bonfire, and carries on to
the next day till about mid-afternoon, when people
return to their houses awash in colors. After that,
you can expect retribution for any unwanted pranks.
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Kama
got his dues when The formidable Shiva, angered at being
disturbed while meditating, opened his famous third eye
and reduced him to ashes. But he was brought to life again
when his wife, Goddess Rati, implored Shiva for mercy.
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That
is only one of the legends that surrounds this colorful
festival. Another one revolves around Prahlad, a devotee
of Lord Vishnu. His father, who did not approve of
his worship, tried to kill him by various means. When
all else failed he told his sister, Holika (who was
supposed to be immune to fire) to take Prahlad in
her lap and sit in the fire. The fire reduced Holika
to ashes, while Prahlad remained unharmed. Thus the
ritual of lighting a bonfire on the eve of Holi.
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Many
legends revolve around Lord Krishna, the eternal prankster
and the Casanova from amongst the Indian pantheon of Gods.
When Putna, the she-demon, was sent by the cruel king Kamsa
and Krishna's uncle to kill the child Krishna under the
guise of feeding him, he sucked her to death instead, and
her death is celebrated as Holi. Those who attribute the
origin of festivals to seasonal cycles maintain that Putna
represents winter, and her death the cessation and end of
winter.
Legends
also associate this festival with the later years of Krishna's
amorous life. Depicted in miniature paintings as a festival
popular amongst Krishna and his gopis (milkmaids),
Holi has been instrumental in providing color in many lives.
An
amazing number of paintings, sculptures and other art forms,
especially of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries celebrate
Krishna and the gopis (milkmaids) passion for each
other. The Rangamala miniature paintings found in Rajasthan
depicting Krishna with the gopis, and especially
with Radha (his favorite), constitute one such rich collection.
Holi is an ancient festival and ancient scriptures like
Dashakumar Charit and Garud Puran mention
Holi. Ratnavali, a drama written by Harshdev in 7th
century, contains descriptions of Holi. It was celebrated
as Vasantotsav (the festival of spring) or Madanotsav (the
festival of love) in the play Mrichhakatikam written
by the sanskrit playwright, Shudrak.
Rich
with possibilities of romance, intrigue and sensuality,
the festival was used in the main plot by numerous ancient
Indian playwrights like Bhavbhooti and Kalidasa.
Celebrated
in Maharashtra as dhooli vandan (greetings with dust),
the festival is, in many ways, a celebration of three elements:
water, earth and fire. Celebrated over two days, where the
first day involves a bonfire and the second playing with
water, color and dust (colored powder), it is truly a spring
festival.
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The
Right Time For Colors
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It's
that time of the year when winter has just passed
and there are tiny green leaves on trees. There are
shades of red and yellow everywhere and the just-bloomed
Gulmohurs (red flowers), silk cottons and mango trees
add more color. In many parts of India tesu flowers
(red in color) are soaked overnight so that the water
turns red. This water is used instead of color.
The
month is that of Phagun (spring), and there
is a whole school of semi-classical genre of music
that revolves around the festival. The tithi
(date) is Dwadashi, the twelfth day of the waxing
moon of the month of Phalgun.
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You
wear the oldest clothes you can lay your hands on.
Unless you are a part of the Hindi filmdom - then
you wear the crispest of whites. The Holi celebrations
at late Raj Kapoor house, the showman of Hindi cinema,
are still famous.
Gods
too indulge mortals completely, as this festival does
not require the worship of any of the vast Indian
pantheon. One of the rituals includes gallivanting
around the neighborhood with a group of friends and
visiting people's houses to have sweets made for the
occasion.
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Then
there are rituals that have been made up over the years:
like throwing everyone who comes to play Holi to your house
into the big tub of water and color kept just for that purpose
in the yard; like being doped on Bhaang mixed in
thandaai (a drink made of pepper, milk, saffron,
khus-khus and almonds) and like being beaten up by sticks…but
we will come to that later.
Each
State has its own rituals like any other Indian festival.
In Bengal, they place the child-god Krishna in a cradle
in front of the bonfire and worship him. On the day
of the festival, known as Dol Jatra or Dol Purnima,
the idol of Mahaprabhu Chaitanya (a saint of Bengal)
is taken round the main streets of the city.
In
the south of India, where legends about Kamadeva are
prevalent, Holi is known by three different names
- Kamavilas, Kaman Pandigai and Kama-dahanam.
In
North India and Uttar Pradesh, effigies of Holika
are burnt in huge bonfires, a tradition even followed
in Gujarat and Orissa. Gram and stalks from the harvest
are also offered to Agni (the Fire God) with all humility.
In Dulandi Holi played in Haryana, the sister-in-law
beats her brother-in-law with her sari rolled up into
a rope.
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In
Maharashtra, Holi is also known by the name of "Shimga"
and Rangpanchami. The fisherfolk celebrate it on a large
scale with some hilarious singing, dancing and merry-making
thrown in.
But
the most famous Holi has to be that of Barsana, (a small
town in the Northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh) the
house of adolescent Krishna's love, Radha. Romance is not
quite what comes to mind when you see men from Nandgaon
(Krishna's home) being beaten up with sticks from Radha's
village, after they have been provoked by the colorful language.
Celebrations
start a week earlier than the rest of India. Men of Nandagaon
raid Barsana with hopes of raising their flag over Shri
Radhikaji's temple. They receive a thunderous welcome as
the village women greet them with long wooden sticks. The
men are soundly beaten as they attempt to rush through the
town and reach the relative safety of Shri Radhikaji's temple.
Men are well padded with foam, since they are not allowed
to retaliate. In this mock battle, the men try their best
not to be captured. Unlucky captives can be forcefully lead
away, thrashed and dressed in female attire before being
made to dance!
Poets
like Surdas, Nand-das, Kumbhan-das and others have recounted
tales of Krishna being captured and forced to wear a sari,
make-up and then dance before being released by the gopis
of Vraj.
The
next day, men of Barsana reciprocate by invading Nandagaon.
Clouds of pink and white powder mark the frenzy of activity
taking place in its narrow streets. The women of Nadagaon
beat the invaders from Barsana. There are even vantage points
for tourists who choose to look on. A large open ground,
on the outskirts of the town, is specially set aside for
the most magnificent display of the festivities.
The
next day, the temples in Vrindavan (close to Mathura) celebrate
the festival. The temple of Bakai-Bihari, the beloved lord
of the 15th century saint Haridas, is at the center of the
festivities. Clouds of pink and white descend upon the pilgrims,
as the Lord of Vrindavan plays Holi with all his visitors.
The
festival moves on to other parts of Vraj. Gulal-Kund in
Vraj is a beautiful little lake, set in delightful groves
near the mountain Goverdhan, in the Mathura district. Here,
the festival is commemorated on a more regular basis. Pilgrims,
who visit the Holy Land of Vraj, can see the re-enactments
of Holi throughout the year. Local boys, acting in the Krishna-Lila
drama troupes, re-enact the scenes of Holi for the pilgrims.
The
next day onwards it's business as usual in both God's houses
and men's. And spring can be a hard taskmaster. One returns
to the business of living with fun to last a year.
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