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Colors Festival Holi: Significance, Dates, Special Rituals

Holi, commonly known as the festival of colors is the main Indian festival. There are many festivals such as Diwali, Mahashivratri, but Holi is one of the most beautiful festivals of India. It has its own importance and is considered being one of the most important festivals in India. Now it become very popular among Canadian people because there is a huge Indian population in Toronto, Brampton, and other popular provinces of Canada. Many special rituals and activities are performed on this day. It is not even a one-day festival but is actually celebrated for two days. It is celebrated for many reasons and on this day, people celebrated the win of good over evil. It is also celebrated for Lord Krishna. Holi with its own significance is celebrated with great joy and enthusiasm. All the temples dedicated to Lord Krishna and all the big temples dedicated to him are decorated with flowers and other decorative. Holi is not having any permanent dates every year and has some special dates. The dates vary from year to year. Cities like Udaipur, Jaipur, Mathura, Hampi, Vrindavan, Delhi, West Bengal, Mumbai, and other southern parts of India celebrate this day with great joy. If you really want to take the best experience of Holi then you must definitely visit Mathura and Vrindavan. The way of celebrating Holi depends upon the destination. All the rituals and activities vary and are different and unique in their unique way.

Related: Top 5 ways to celebrate green Diwali

Following is an article that contains all the information and details about Holi one should know.  

Significance

Since it is already mentioned that Holi is one of the main festivals of India, therefore it has its own importance. It is celebrated in India for many reasons. One of the main reasons is to celebrate the win of good over evil.

King Hiranyalashipu was always jealous of Lord Vishnu since he always considered himself as the supreme power and god. He always ordered his kingdom public to worship him and not any god. He declared himself a god. But his own son, Prahalad was one of the devotees of Lord Vishnu. He asked Prahalad to stop worshiping Lord Vishnu but he never stopped. King Hiranyalashipu gave the order to his sister, Holika to kill his son Prahalad. Holika was immune to fire and asked Prahalad to sit on her lap and then she set herself to fire. Everyone thought that this is the end of the life of Prahalad but he walked out of the fire without any scratch and the evil Holika died inside the fire. Therefore, since then people create a bonfire and burn to represent the win of good over evil.

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The festival is also celebrated as a thanksgiving of spring. It is celebrated at the beginning of the spring season. It is thanksgiving for sun, earth, and rain for their blessings to harvest and crops. Holi is one of the prank activities Lord Krishna performed during his childhood with his friends. He and his friends use to color the girls with water.  So, if you really want to gain the best experience of how Holi is celebrated then you must definitely visit Mathura and Vrindavan, the hometowns of Lord Krishna.

Important Dates

In terms of the English calendar, the Holi falls in the month of March or April. The dates aren’t permanent and vary from year to year. In fact, this auspicious Indian festival is celebrated in many other regions of different countries. They start celebrating Holi week before the actual dates. In fact, Mathura, the hometown of Krishna starts celebrating the festival a week before the actual dates. Generally, it comes in mid of March month every year.   The celebration of Holi is celebrated by Holika Dahan in most of the places.

Related: 8 Safety Tips to Enjoy Every Colour of Holi With Your Child

Special rituals To Follow

Although the special rituals performed on this auspicious day vary from place to place. The general way of celebrating Holi is to smear the colored powder or water to each other. People party, dance on music and color is the main object used in the festival. The way of celebrating Holi depends from destination to destination. The following are some of the places and destinations which celebrated this auspicious Day of Holi in their own way.

  1. Shantiniketan: different cultural activities are arranged for students such as poetry, music, dance, drama, and much more. Every student takes part in these cultural activities to celebrate Holi.
  2. Punjab: Punjab is already known as a state of bravery. Many great and brave leaders were born in Punjab. The Holi here is celebrated by performing different activities such as poetry on wars, sword fights, mock wars, and other activities related to wars.
  3. Cities like Mathura, Vrindavan, and Hampi celebrate this festival in name of Lord Krishna with music, color, and dance. They also decorate the temples and start celebrating the festival a week from actual dates.
  4. Barsana: you may find it weird but yes, in Barsana women actually beat males with large heavy sticks and through sweets on each other. Many tourists visit Barsana to see this unique way of celebrating Holi.

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Related: Indian Festival Lohri: Tradition and Rituals of Celebration

Conclusion

Therefore, Holi has its own significance and is one the most beautiful festival in India. There are numerous reasons for the celebration. Many cities that are considered being the hometown of Lord Krishna celebrate this festival of color with great enthusiasm. So, if you really want to gain the best experience of the Holi and actually want to know how Holi is celebrated then you must definitely visit cities like Vrindavan and Mathura. The way of celebrating Holi is different in various regions. The date of Holi varies from year to year and according to the English calendar usually falls in the month of February and March. The reason and significance behind celebrating Holi are also very unique. It is celebrated to thanks rain, sun, and water for blessing all the humans and letting their harvest and crops survive. It is also celebrated to show that evil will always lose from the good and that people who are with good and truth are always more powerful than evil. It is also celebrated because of the pranks done to girls by Krishna and his friends.

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