Holi, A Festival of Fraternity

God in colors! God, our creator, alive in red, yellow, blue, green and thousands of blended colors! Sharing the joy of peace and merry making! How wonderful it is! Yes, It is Holi, the festival of colors! As the great Indian national poet Bharathiyar invokes God in colors with these words, “O Krishna! how wonderful are you in your blue black color!,” Holi is a festival searching and reaching God joyfully in everyone in innocent playing! It is the heart of Hindu Dharma.

Sharing Joy: The Dharma of Hinduism

“I am god; you are god; every being is god,” that is the philosophy of Hinduism. Karma is our existence and sharing joyfully wherever we are and whatever we have is the Dharma of every existence. This joyful sharing is celebrated in Hinduism in various festivals in different names in different areas. As one of the major festivals of Hinduism, Holi is celebrated in North India with great enthusiasm and gaiety on the full moon day in the month of Phalgun which falls in the month of March. Holi festival may be celebrated with various names by different people of different areas following different traditions. But what makes Holi so unique and special is the spirit of it which remains the same throughout the country and even across the globe, wherever it is celebrated.

Holi: The Festival of Finding God in Colorful Nature

This festival of joy, mirth and buoyancy is celebrated when both Man and Nature cast off their winter gloom. Holi heralds the arrival of Spring – the season of hope and new beginnings and marks the rekindling of the spirit of life. Gulmohurs, corals, silk-cottons and mango trees start flowering, gardens and parks present a glorious spectacle of a riot of colors – crimson, red, pink, orange, golden yellow, lemon and a variety of glittering greens. Men who remained indoors during the cold months of winter emerge out to see a new sparkling world of color and gaiety. The flowers breathe out their fragrance into space and brooks and streams leap in the valleys, Men rejoice with brilliant light of day and the eloquent silence of night. And then the joy bubbling in their hearts find expression in dance, drama and music.

Welcoming God in The Blooming Nature

Everybody gets delighted at the arrival of Holi as the season itself is blossoming in so many colorful shades! Holi is also called the Spring Festival – as it marks the arrival of spring the season of hope and joy. The gloom of the winter goes as Holi promises bright summer days. Nature too, as it seems, rejoices at the arrival of Holi and wears its best clothes of different shades. Flowers bloom everywhere exposing the Dharma of Nature filling the air with joy. Fields get filled with crops promising a good harvest to the farmers with hopeful dreams. Holi also puts an end to the days of trials and tribulations for the poor who remained ill-clad and without adequate shelter during the chilling cold of the winter season.