Discover the Significance of Holi 2023: The Festival of Colours

One fine day, you wake up to people running after one another with hands full of colors. If you see people making merry while splashing and whipping each other in the water and the rest other their music, special snacks, and bhang. Know that it’s Holi.

And If people drag you in their color play, through you in water, and get you high on bhang, please don’t mind. Instead, join them with all your heart and have fun because - Bura Na Mano Holi Hai.

Holi, which is usually known as a festival of colors is celebrated with great pomp and energy in every street of the country. It is loved by everyone regardless of age, gender, caste, creed, community, or religion.

But what happens on Holi, other than color play and water splash? Why is it celebrated? And how is it one of the major festivals in India?

Like every festival in India, Holi is a social festival. But the difference is that Holi brings people a little too close and makes everyone a little too happy. Hence, it is a favorite festival of most.

But apart from the social festival, Holi is also a time of delight for farmers as their ripe crops are ready to harvest after months of hard work and patience.

Holi is also a full stop to cold, chilly, and harsh winter weather as the spring grows in its full.

With everything jolly happening at once, Holi is surely one of the happiest times of the year in India.

But is that it? Just like every other festival, is there no story or legend behind the festival of Holi?

Yes, there is...

In fact, there are not one but three stories to this festival of colors.

Holi has various mythological stories attached to it.

Spoiler Alert: All the legends of Holi have the same ending to it, that is, the good shall always overcome the evil that is present.

According to one legend, there was once an Ogress called Dhundhi in the kingdom of Prithu (or Raghu). Dhundhi used to trouble little children a lot and they were fed up with her.

It is said that Dhundhi carried a boon from Bhagwan Shiva that no gods or man can kill her. And that she could never be harmed by heat, cold, or rain. Due to this boon, she almost became undestroyable.

But with her boon, Bhagwan Shiva also cursed her. He said that she would be in danger from little children going about crazy. And since then, she started pestering small and adolescent children.

Deeply troubled by this female monster, the King of Raghu consulted his priest. The priest suggested that on Phalguna 15 when the season of cold vanishes and summer start...

The children should carry the bits of wood in their hands and get out of their house to collect a heap of wood and grass.

They should then make a heap of it and set it on fire while chanting mantras and clapping their hands. The children should do three rounds around the fire while doing so.

He said that listening to children’s singing, dancing, and laughing, the ogress would die.

The legend has it that on the day of Holi, the children of the village had displayed their united might and chased Dhundhi away with a blitzkrieg of shouts, abuses, and pranks.

Owing to this legend the children are allowed to make mischief and usually no offense is taken about their silly antics. And this is also the reason why children also enjoy the blazing of Holika.

Another legend is that on this day Bhagwan Shiva opened his third eye and killed Kamadeva, the God of Love by burning him. So, on this day the devotees offer mangoes and sandalwood paste to Kamadeva.

The most famous legend is that of Krishna and Radha. It celebrates their ever-lasting love. Krishna used to play pranks on all the Gopis by throwing colors at them. This is the reason why Holi is celebrated with great enthusiasm in the streets of Mathura where everyone throws colors and flowers.

The celebration of Holi begins a fortnight before when a large bonfire is placed. This bonfire is a mark of the evil leaving our lives. This is called ‘Holika Dahan’. But wait, the name is just to fancy a bonfire. There is a legend behind the name.

A long time ago, there was a king named Hiranyakashipu.

He didn't want anyone in his kingdom to worship Shri Vishnu.

But much to his surprise his own son, Prahlad was the most ardent devotee of Shri Vishnu.

Hiranyakashyap asked Prahlad to stop idolizing Shri Vishnu. But Prahlad did not pay any need to his father’s instructions and warning. At last, the king decided to get his own son killed. He made attempts to do so but failed every time.

One day, Hiranyakashyap’s sister Holika was visiting him. And after listening to her brother and the king, Holika volunteered to kill her nephew, Prahlad.

Holika had the blessings of the Agni Dev, so the fire could never burn her. She could walk in the middle of fulling, blazing fire and yet come out of it unscathed. She decided to rely on this boon to kill Prahlad.

To the witness of everyone in the kingdom and her brother, Hiranyakashyap, she sat on an ignited platform with Prahlad on her lap. While sitting there, she was confident that Agni Dev would shield her. She also believed that Prahlad would turn into ashes.

But much to everyone’s surprise and shock to her dear brother, Holika got burnt into ashes while Prahlad emerged out of the fire unharmed.

To mark this episode, people today gather around this fire. They call it Holika Dahan and celebrate the end of all the negativity in their life. They sing, dance, and take rounds around the fire to remove all the undesirable energy from their lives.

Drinking bhang is also one of the most famous traditions on this day. People, who even avoid drinking it throughout the year, consume it on this day and allow themselves to enjoy this festival to its maximum capacity. All the social barriers are broken on this day as everyone celebrates the day with great zeal and pomp.

Holi is not restricted to only one festival, it brings everyone together. Small kids start preparing for this festival by keeping their water balloons and water guns ready. They start plotting their plans and gathering their mischief equipment, at least a week before the actual date.

During the evening, people visit their relatives and friends and spend some time with them. They exchange sweets, greetings, and gifts that are specially made for this festival.

Holi is not only celebrated in India but also across the world. During this festival, even foreigners get caught in color, zeal, and enjoyment. Apart from India, Holi is a major festival in Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Srilanka, Bali, and other Asian countries and cities with Hindu influences. People also celebrate Holi in the UK, US, Australia, Canada, South Africa, and other big nations of different continents.

Interestingly, Holi is celebrated in different ways in different parts of India. Every part of the country has a unique way of celebrating Holi.

Holi is called 'Rang-Panchami' in Maharashtra. In Mathura, Holi is celebrated for more than a week. People celebrate this festival with not only colors but also with flowers and lathis. It is also called 'Lathmar Holi'. There is a tradition that on this day women use lathi and hit the menfolk with it.

In Bengal, it is called ‘Basant Utsav’. They celebrate it by welcoming the arrival of spring and do it by chanting hymns in the environment of Shantiniketan.

‘Hola Mohalla’ is celebrated on the day after Holi in Punjab. Langar is organized during this day and they all celebrate it through martial arts and by engaging themselves in small playful fights.