Let’s set aside all indifferences and be united this Holi.

Holi is one of the most revered and celebrated festivals of India and it is celebrated in almost every part of the country and has also spread to other areas of Asia and parts of the Western world. It is also sometimes called as the “festival of love” or “festival of colors” as on this day people get to unite together forgetting all resentments and all types of bad feeling towards each other. The festival signifies the victory of good over evil. It signifies the arrival of spring, the end of winter, the blossoming of love, and for many a festive day to meet others, play and laugh, forget and forgive, and repair broken relationships. It is the festive day to end and rid oneself of past errors, to end conflicts by meeting others, a day to forget and forgive. Holi also marks the start of spring, for many the start of the new year, an occasion for people to enjoy the changing seasons and make new friends.

The festival starts in the evening of Purnima or the Full Moon Day in the month of Falgun. It is celebrated with the name Holika Dahan or Choti Holi on the first evening of the festival and the following day is called Holi.

The vibrancy of colors is something that brings in a lot of positivity in our lives and Holi being the festival of colors is actually a day worth rejoicing. Holi is a famous Hindu festival that is celebrated in every part of India with the utmost joy and enthusiasm. The ritual starts by lighting up the bonfire one day before the day of Holi and this process symbolizes the triumph of good over the bad. On the day of Holi people play with colors with their friends and families and in the evening they show love and respect to their close ones with Abeer.

Legends

There is a symbolic legend to explain why Holi is celebrated as a festival of triumph of good over evil in the honor of Hindu god Vishnu and his devotee Prahlada. King Hiranyakashipu was the king of demonic Asuras and had earned a boon that gave him five special powers: he could be killed by neither a human being nor an animal, neither indoors nor outdoors, neither at day nor at night, neither by astra nor by any shastra, and neither on land nor in water or air. Hiranyakashipu grew arrogant, thought he was God and demanded that everyone worship only him.

Hiranyakashipu's own son, Prahlada, however, disagreed. He was and remained devoted to Vishnu. This angered Hiranyakashipu. He subjected Prahlada to cruel punishments, none of which affected the boy or his resolve to do what he thought was right. Finally, Holika, Prahlada's evil aunt, tricked him into sitting on a pyre with her. Holika was wearing a cloak that made her immune to injury from fire, while Prahlada was not. As the fire roared, the cloak flew from Holika and encased Prahlada, who survived while Holika burned. Vishnu, the God who appears as an avatar to restore Dharma in Hindu beliefs, took the form of Narasimha - half human and half lion (which is neither a human nor an animal), at dusk (when it was neither day nor night), took Hiranyakashyapu at a doorstep (which was neither indoors nor outdoors), placed him on his lap (which was neither land, water nor air), and then eviscerated and killed the king with his lion claws (which were neither a handheld weapon nor a launched weapon).

The Holika bonfire and Holi signifies the celebration of the symbolic victory of good over evil, of Prahlada over Hiranyakashipu, and of the fire that burned Holika.

In the Braj region of India, where the Hindu deity Krishna grew up, the festival is celebrated until Rang Panchmi in commemoration of the divine love of Radha for Krishna. There is a symbolic myth behind commemorating Krishna as well. As a baby, Krishna developed his characteristic dark skin color because the she-demon Putana poisoned him with her breast milk. In his youth, Krishna despaired whether the fair-skinned Radha would like him because of his dark skin color. His mother, tired of his desperation, asks him to approach Radha and ask her to color his face in any color she wanted. This she did, and Radha and Krishna became a couple. Ever since the playful coloring of Radha and Krishna's face has been commemorated as Holi.

Beyond India, these legends help to explain the significance of Holi (Phagwah) are common in some the Caribbean and South American communities of Indian origin such as Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. It is also celebrated with great fervor in Mauritius.

Other Indian religions

The festival has traditionally been also observed by non-Hindus, such as by Jains and Buddhists.

In Mughal India, Holi was celebrated with such exuberance that people of all castes could throw color on the Emperor. Grand celebrations of Holi were held at the Lal Qila, where the festival was also known as Eid-e-gulaabi or Aab-e-Pashi.
Bahadur Shah Zafar himself wrote a song for the festival, while poets such as Amir Khusrau, Ibrahim Raskhan, Nazeer Akbarabadi, and Mehjoor Lakhnavi relished it in their writings.

Sikhs have traditionally celebrated the festival, at least through the 19th century, with its historic texts referring to it as Hola. Guru Gobind Singh – the last human guru of the Sikhs – modified Holi with a three-day Hola Mohalla extension festival of martial arts.

Holi was observed by Maharaja Ranjit Singh and his Sikh Empire that extended across what are now northern parts of India and Pakistan. In 1837, Sir Henry Fane who was the commander-in-chief of the British Indian army joined the Holi celebrations organized by Ranjit Singh.

Despite having roots in Hinduism, Holi has been celebrated across all religious communities in India. It is not uncommon to see Hindus and Muslims open up their homes to each other for religious festivities. This is an occasion when we can keep all our hatred and past behind and come together to make India and our culture strong.

Happy Holi