Holi: The Festival of Colors
A look at the Hindu Festival of Colors and how it is celebrated at home and abroad.
If you live in a large, multi-ethnic city virtually anywhere in the world it is a possibility that in the last week you have seen groups of people in parks merrily spattering each other with paint. While you might be excused for thinking that it is a new form of corporate team building – and what a great one that would be – you would be wrong. The throwing of multi-colored water and powder is in fact the popular Hindu spring Festival of Colors, also known as Holi.
The clothes start out a the beginning of the day as pure white cotton, although this adherence is often left to the middle classes. A few hours later, there is no white left to be seen. This festival has been conducted in India and Nepal for hundreds of years but as the Hindu diaspora grows other countries as far afield as the UK and the US are getting involved in the fun. Fun, of course, but like Christmas in as much as it has some serious religion at its heart.
Holi takes place in the month of Falugna and always on the first full moon day. In western terms that means that it takes place either in late February or early March and Holi this year fell on the eleventh. The fun starts the day before, however, with the Holika Fahan. This is the celebration of the miraculous esacpe a young boy, Prahlad, had from the demoness Holika. Holika was a devotee of Lord Vishnu – the supreme god in Vaishnavite Hinduism and he was carried in to the fires by the demoness. She was burned but due to his devotion, young Prahlad escaped unharmed.
Prahlad was actually the son of the king of demons, Hiranyakashipu making Holika his aunt. Hiranyakashipu was annoyed that despite his orders to the contrary, Prahlad continued to pray to Vishnu – hence the fire episode. When this did not work, Vishnu later came down and killed the almost invincible Hiranyakashipu by what amounts to assassination by sleight of hand.
The greater emphasis of this spring festival is the Holika, or the holy fire and the bonfires represent the burning of Holika and other such demons. Yet, Holi is a festival of Teja, or radiance, the waves of which travel the universe and bring forth the colors that feed and complement the elements of the atmosphere.
Holi is celebrated with varying differences throughout the Hindu diaspora. In Nepal it is combined as a national festival. In the Punjab the celebrations are on such a grand scale that people travel from all over the world to participate. In Uttar Pradesh, again a vast celebration, women get the chance to beat up men with sticks to celebrate the festival. The men sing bawdy songs in an attempt to lure the women away from purity and the women, in return, beat them with sticks. Fortunately, the men do get to protect themselves with shields (see above).
As with most spring festivals throughout the year, the changing seasons signify change in other areas of life. In many Christian festivals it is associated with rebirth but in traditionally Hindu areas the spring season with the associated changes in the weather, is believe to bring with it colds and viruses. So, the throwing of different colored water and power represents the medicinal cure for these illnesses – people are literally wishing each other well.
Of course, when you are young and male, holiday festivities like this are always a good excuse to go out, carouse, get drunk and drive four on a motorcycle in search of fun.
Street vendors sell the traditional medicinal herbs that make up the colors for the Holi festival. If you were to say this was the before shot…
Then the above is most certainly the one marked after. As with Christmas this festival has become more and more commercialized over the last few decades. While traditionally the colors are produced by using medicinal herbs such as Neem and Bilba, more and more people buy ready made mixtures which have been found to contain scarily high amount of toxins. The holika bonfires are also said to have greatly contributed to deforestation in some areas.
The festivals can now be seen throughout the world as the Hindu minority in many western countries gain confidence in their right to express their unique religion and culture. The picture above shows celebrations in the Netherlands. Although it would add to the commercialization of the holiday, it would be huge fun if the holiday was extended to encompass the wider communities there too.
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User Comments
Glynis Smy
On March 15, 2009 at 10:42 am
What a fun festival! Lovely article photographs, good info.
Anne Lyken Garner
On March 15, 2009 at 11:09 am
I’ve played a lot of Phagwa in my time. This is a very exciting celebration.
Emma C S
On March 15, 2009 at 12:28 pm
Wow fascinating, and such lovely pictures.
thestickman
On March 15, 2009 at 1:03 pm
kewl
C Jordan
On March 15, 2009 at 1:05 pm
Great information and stunningly colourful pictures.
Sam Down
On March 15, 2009 at 1:41 pm
Great pictures and a very well written article. Thanks for sharing!
PropTrader
On March 15, 2009 at 2:21 pm
hey………..great article…..and pics
Liane Schmidt
On March 15, 2009 at 3:11 pm
Very interesting – - I’ve never heard of this before.
Blessings.
Sincerely,
-Liane Schmidt.
Jo Oliver
On March 15, 2009 at 3:45 pm
Sounds like a fun time. I bet the dry cleaners love to see this festival date come..LOL!
s hayes
On March 15, 2009 at 5:48 pm
Looks like great fun – I inadvertantly went out looking like one of these festival revellers the other day when we had a power cut and I had to put my make up on in the dark !
Great Article x
maranatha
On March 15, 2009 at 6:22 pm
This was all new to me. Excellent article and wonderful photos. Thank you.
Kate Smedley
On March 15, 2009 at 7:31 pm
Very informative and educational. Excellent article.
Alvin Lim
On March 15, 2009 at 7:50 pm
Very nice pictures. Never heard of this before. I only know there’s a water festival in Thailand. Hmm, but this color festival does seem pretty interesting too.
nutuba
On March 15, 2009 at 10:03 pm
This is fascinating — I had never heard of this before!
Juancav
On March 15, 2009 at 10:24 pm
Festivals like a rainbow,fascinating.
Ruby Hawk
On March 15, 2009 at 11:20 pm
It looks like so much fun. Love your pictures too. They add so much to the story.
stephencardiff
On March 15, 2009 at 11:27 pm
This looks like a great festival.. wish we had these where I live… I’ll try and get some for St Patricks Day Parade and start it off… great article and im stumbling it too.. Much better than the other few Ive read on digg..
Mr Ghaz
On March 16, 2009 at 12:15 am
awesome! What a magnificent piece. colorful festival ever..Thanks for sharing
RJ Chamberlain
On March 16, 2009 at 12:18 am
Have not experienced this myself but would love to. Nice work.
RJ
Betty Carew
On March 16, 2009 at 5:49 am
Fantastic, looks like lots of fun RJ. Great article very informative and well written
Nosa
On March 16, 2009 at 8:55 am
Exceptionally brilliant and educative as usual-Thanks
Bill M. Tracer
On March 16, 2009 at 1:49 pm
Brilliant and colorful. Well presented.
angryanarchistrants.blogspot.com
On March 16, 2009 at 4:03 pm
Nice! I’m gonna go throw some green jello at my neighbor!
Lauren Axelrod
On March 16, 2009 at 6:56 pm
That looks to funny. I love being covered with paint. I guess it’s the kid in me.
CutestPrincess
On March 17, 2009 at 7:03 am
That looks like a great fun! nice article…
Akhil Tandon
On March 17, 2009 at 2:16 pm
This article is actually acurate. I hardly see any articles on SocyBerty actually written accurately with good sources!
Yovita Siswati
On March 18, 2009 at 5:18 am
fascinating festival! I never knew this before.
Unofre Pili
On March 21, 2009 at 8:51 pm
A frolicsome and fascinating.
Brian Daniel Stankich
On May 20, 2009 at 8:39 pm
so informative
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