Story behind Holi
Holi is celebrated as the victory of good over evil. Asura King Hiranyakashipu was blessed with a boon, which made him feel that he would never die. This made the king arrogant, and he demanded even gods should worship him.
King Hiranyakashipu’s son, Prahlada, never supported his father and worshipped Lord Vishnu with utmost devotion. This made the king annoyed, and he decided to kill Prahlada. King’s sister Holika had a boon, that she cannot be burnt in a fire.
King asked Holika to sit on a pyre with her nephew Prahlada, but when the fire was lit, it roared heavily leading to the death of Holika. Moreover, to the evil king’s surprise, Prahlad survived. Hence, the triumph of good over evil.
Festival of Colors
The festival of colors, Holi, is the most vibrant of all Hindu festivals. It marks the end of winter in India and welcomes the spring season. On this festive day, people play with colors, meet, and greet one another and create new beginnings.
Like every other festival in India, Holi is also associated with popular legends. There are extremely interesting stories behind this colorful festival too.
Story of Lord Krishna and Radha
In the region of Braj (where Lord Krishna grew up) in Uttar Pradesh, Holi is celebrated until the day of Rangpanchmi as a huge festival, in memory of the devotional love of Krishna and Radha.
A local legend is associated with this as well. When Krishna was a baby, he acquired a distinctive blue skin color after drinking the poisoned breast milk of the she-demon, Putana. Later, when he became young, he would often feel sad about whether the fair-colored Radha or other girls in the village would ever like him because of his dark color. Giving in to his desperation, Krishna’s mother asked him to go and color Radha’s face with any color he wanted to.
So, when Krishna applied color to Radha, they both became a couple, and since then, people started playing with colors on Holi and wishing each other happy and prosperous Holi.
Holi celebration in india
Celebrating the colorful festival of Holi involves several rituals:
- Preparation of Holika Pyre – Days before the festival, people start to collect wood and other inflammable material for the bonfire. On top of the bonfire, an effigy of Holika is kept, this effigy should get burned with it, as per the legend.
- Holika Dahan – This is the first day of the Holi festival and is also celebrated as Chhoti Holi. After sunset, people gather around the pyre, perform puja (prayers) and then light it. People even sing and dance around the pyre, as it symbolizes the triumph of good over bad.
- Rangpanchami or Playing with Colors – The second day of Holi is called Rangwali Holi, Dhuleti, or Badi Holi. This is the day when people apply colors to one another, party and enjoy. Children and youngsters play in groups with dry colors and water guns, water balloons filled with colored solutions and other creative things. They dance with drums and other musical instruments, dancing and singing their way from one place to another. Wishing each other, Happy and Prosperous Holi.
- The after-party – After playing with colors during the day, people clean themselves up, bathe, sober up and get dressed. They then go to visit their relatives and friends and greet them for the festival.
May this Holi Festival mark the beginning of a new phase of your life, filled with success, prosperity, and unlimited happiness.
Team Blossom Inc
Team Blossom Inc wishes all their customers, partners, system integrators and resellers, “Happy and Prosperous Holi to you and your family!!”
