This week, I decided to venture out and learn more about Holi, the festival of colors. This festival is celebrated annually and signifies the victory of good over evil, the arrival of spring, end of winter, and for some, love. I decided to read more about what exactly this festival signifies, how it is celebrated in different parts of the world, and how it connects to the history of the religion of Hinduism. I only have a limited knowledge on Holi, and was curious to know even more!
(Image Information: Holi | Festival of Colors 2014
Steven Gerner Source: Flickr)
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From this article, I clicked on a link to Songkran. This seemed interesting because it was a link to an article about a similarly celebrated festival in another country. When I clicked on it, I found out that this festival is celebrated in Thailand. This word "Songkran" is inspired by the Sanskrit word "Samkranti" which means astrological passage. This is the Thai New Year's festival usually celebrated on April 13th with water fights.
(Image Information: Songkran in Ayutthaya
JJ Harrison Source: Wikipedia)
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From this article, I was intrigued by the Hindu harvest festival called "Makar Sankranti". This is the festival that inspired the name of the Thai festival I came across above. This festival is to celebrate Surya, the Indian sun God. It marks the end of the winter solstice, and the beginning of longer days. This festival has lots of melas (fairs), and one of the biggest ones, Magha Mela, is mentioned in the Indian epic the Mahabharata.
(Image Information: Sankranti Book Cover Page
Lalita Chithoor Source: Wikipedia)
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Finally, I clicked on the link that lead me to know more about Makara. Makara means Capricorn, and this is my astrological sign, so I wanted to know what this meant in Hinud religion. Makara is a sea-creature and is seen as a half terrestrial animal in the front, and an aquatic animal in the back. It is the vehicle of the goddess Ganga, and the sea God Varuna.
(Image Information: Makara at Krishna Temple
Soham Banerjee Source: Wikipedia)
Sonali I loved reading your post about Holi! Holi is something that I have always wanted to go to, I am so obsessed with all the beautiful colors and how the celebration has many different meanings. I think that your post about Holi did a great job at explaining what it means and what people do at Holi. I do not know how after looking at pictures people could not want to go to Holi!
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