This festival is celebrated as a remembrance of the victory of Lord Rama (an incarnation of Vishnu) over Ravana, the king of Lanka who had abducted Sita, wife of Rama. And also to commemorates the victory of the goddess Durga (an incarnation of Parvati, consort of Shiva) over the demon Mahisasura. It
Dussehera is celebrated at the end of Navaratri, a nine-day festival. Images of Durga are worshipped during the Navaratri festival and stories related to the goddess and to the conquest of good over evil are told. Navaratri is celebrated with great enthusiasm in Gujarat, Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Prayers, devotional songs and colorful rituals mark the occasion of Navaratri and Dussehera. Ramlila is another exciting feature of this festival where the story of Rama, the God King of Ayodhyaya is depicted in a dance-drama form on all ten days of celebration.
On the 10th day i.e. the day of Dussehera, buffaloes representing the buffalo-demon Mahisasura are sacrificed to the goddess. The evening of Dussehera sees the burning of the colorful effigies of Ravana, complete with 10 heads and curling moustaches, and those of his son and brother. This spectacle is marked by setting off of a fusillade of firecrackers and the triumph of good over evil is commemorated once again.
Deepawali is a festival of lights symbolizing the lifting of spiritual darkness. It is a family festival, which is celebrated 20 days after Dussehera. Continuing the story of Rama, this festival commemorates his return to Ayodhyaya after completion of his fourteen-year exile and after his victory over the evil king Ravana. Twinkling oil lamps or diyas light up every home and firework displays are common all across the country.
The goddess Lakshmi (consort of Vishnu) who is the symbol of wealth and prosperity is also worshipped on this day. This festive occasion also marks the beginning of the Hindu new year and Lord Ganesha, the elephant god, the symbol of auspiciousness and wisdom, is also worshipped in most Hindu homes on the Deepawali day.
The occasion of Deepawali sees the spring-cleaning and whitewashing of houses and decorative designs or rangolis are painted on floors and walls. New clothes are bought and family members and relatives gather together to offer prayers, distribute sweets and to light up their homes.
Jainism, which is based on an appreciation of the hard reality of life and an emphasis on salvation, does not lend itself to colorful celebration and gaiety. Deep Diwali, marking Mahavira’s liberation from the cycle of life, is celebrated ten days after Diwali. Lights and illumination are an endeavoring to mitigate the darkness, supposed to have been caused by the passing away of the light of the world.
It is celebrated on the full moon day in the Hindu month of Phalguna (February/March), usually lasting for a night and a day. Holi symbolizes the victory of good over evil, the arrival of spring, and a time to forgive and forget past wrongs. During the festival, people throw colored powder and water on each other, sing, dance, and feast. It is a time of joy, unity, and forgiveness, and is widely celebrated in India and other countries with a Hindu population.
A wonderful serenity has taken possession of my entire soul, like these sweet mornings of spring which I enjoy with my whole heart. I am alone, and feel the charm of existence in this spot, which was created for the bliss of souls like mine. I am so happy, my dear friend, so absorbed in the exquisite sense of mere tranquil existence, that I neglect my talents.
I should be incapable of drawing a single stroke at the present moment; and yet I feel that I never was a greater artist than now. When, while the lovely valley teems with vapour around me, and the meridian sun strikes the upper surface of the impenetrable foliage of my trees, and but a few stray gleams steal into the inner sanctuary, I throw myself down among the tall grass by the trickling stream; and, as I lie close to the earth, a thousand unknown plants are noticed by me: when I hear the buzz of the little world among the stalks, and grow familiar with the countless indescribable forms of the insects and flies, then I feel the presence of the Almighty, who formed us in his own image, and the breath of that universal love which bears and sustains us, as it floats around us in an eternity of blis
Vishnu is invoked in his human incarnation as Krishna on his birth anniversary in the festival of Janmashtami. The temples of Vrindavan witness an extravagant and colorful celebration on this occasion. Raslila is performed to recreate incidents from the life of Krishna and to commemorate his love for Radha. The image of the infant Krishna is bathed at midnight and is placed in a cradle. Devotional songs and dances mark the celebration of this festive occasion all over Northern India.
In Maharashtra, Janmashtami witnesses the exuberant enactment of the god’s childhood endeavors to steal butter and curd from earthen pots beyond his reach. A matka or pot containing these is suspended high above the ground and groups of young men and children form human pyramids to try and reach the pot and eventually break it.
Guru Nanak’s Birthday
Nanak Jayanti or Guru Nanak’s birthday is widely celebrated by the Sikhs in India. Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh faith was born in Punjab in 1469.
His birth anniversary is marked by prayer readings and processions, especially in Amritsar in Punjab and Patna in Bihar.
This festival usually occurs in the month of November.
Christmas
Christians in India celebrate their festivals broadly on the pattern adopted worldwide. However some influence of local Indian tradition is evident among Syrian Christians who use elephants, umbrellas and traditional music as accessories to their festivities and celebrations. Christmas is a major event in all-Indian Christian households and one can see Catholic Goa come to life at this time of the year.
The Carnival, preceding the Lenten period of penance is the most important event at Goa. Similar to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, it is an extravagantly colorful occasion. A carnival parade, full of color and zest, it is virtually a celebration of life itself.
Muharram
Muharram is not a festival in the celebratory sense as it mourns the Kerbala tragedy when Imam Hussein, grandson of Prophet Muhammad, was martyred in the early days of Islamic history. Profusely decorated taziahs (bamboo and paper replicas of the martyr’s tomb), embellished with gilt and mica are carried through city streets. Mourners beat their breasts lamenting and grieving over the murder, accompanied by drumbeats. Wrestlers and dancers enact scenes depicting the battle at Kerbala and at each step young men beat their breasts crying “Hussein! Hussein!” in collective sorrow.
Some mesmerizing processions can be witnessed on the occasion of Muharram in the cities of Agra, Lucknow, Delhi and Hyderabad.
Shivaratri
On a moonless night in February or March every year, occurs the night of Shiva, the destroyer.
This is the night when He is said to have performed the tandava or the dance of primordial creation, preservation and destruction. Devotees of Shiva fast during the day and maintain a long vigil during the night.
In temples all across the country, bells ring, and sacred texts are chanted and traditional offerings of leaves and milk are made to the shiv lingam, the phallic symbol of the god.
Pongal
Certain Hindu festivals are associated with the annual cycle of seasons. Pongal in the South and Sankranti in the North are celebrated to mark the withdrawal of the southeast monsoons as well as the reaping of the harvest. Pongal festivities are spread over several days. Like Deepawali in the north, the advent of Pongal is associated with spring-cleaning and burning of junk, symbolizing the destruction of evil. Decorative designs or rangolis are traced on floors and on the day of the Pongal, the newly harvested rice is cooked in homes to acclaim the bounty of the gods.