Guide To The Vibrant Festivals Of India
Celebrate the Colorful Festivals of India
India is renowned for vibrant celebratory festivals where you can see the cultural and traditional aspects of life in India. Each festival is celebrated with high spirit and vast numbers of people participating. The colorful dances, melodious songs and delicious feasts are all integral parts of Indians fairs and festivals. People without the barrier of caste and creed indulge in the celebrations with lots of enthusiasm as they celebrate the festivals forgetting all sorrows of the past. The most famous fairs and festivals of India include:
Holi
The exuberant and most anticipated festival Holi is a color festival that starts by throwing and smearing colors on each other’s face. Holi basically falls on the full moon day in the month of Phalgun. It comes at the end of January and the beginning of March. Before a day of Holi a big bonfire is lit on the Holi eve. Holi brings peace and harmony between various classes of society that displays unity between others. At the day of Holi people smear colors on each other, and children are busy playing with colors with their neighboring friends. The traditional drinks are taken on this occasion such as Bhang that enhances the spirit of Holi. You can see a true essence of Holi in Uttar Pradesh like Mathura and Varanasi where people play Holi with lots of excitement.
Diwali
One of the greatest, pulsating festivals of India is Diwali, celebrated always with great enthusiasm. This festival of light falls exactly after 20 days of the Dussehra festival on Amavasya. Each festival has its own way to celebrate. Diwali is the festival that is celebrated with firecrackers, diyas and sweets. This is a five day festival that is dedicated to Lord Rama. According to legend this festival is celebrated because Lord Rama was returned to Ayodhya with his wife Sita after spending 14 years in exile. In this holiday the houses are cleaned and in the evening a special preparation begins to worship Goddess Lakshmi – the goddess of wealth and prosperity. Candles and diyas are illuminated in each corner and roof. Doors of houses are decorated with plenty of diyas. Diwali is a festival of blessing your property, wealth and health.
Dussehra
Dussehra is another big festival of India that is also known as Vijaya Dasami as a triumph of good over evil. According to myth, this day Ram killed Ravana a demon of Lanka who abducted Rama’s wife Sita. Dussehra is the last day of Navaratri that comes on the 10th day of the waxing moon. At the first day of Navaratri there is waited for Dussehra and the tenth day festival is Dussehra. Dussehra is known as Durga Puja also in Bengal while Garba and Dandiya are famous in Gujarat that starts at the first of Navartara where people are in different costumes and dance with sticks to hit another’s sticks. It is also believed that the warrior Goddess Durga killed the buffalo demon Mahishasura.
Onam
The harvest festival Onam is most renowned in Kerala and is also called by different names in different areas. This great festival is linked with the legend of the mythological king Mahabali who arrived here to conquer the place. In this festival rice pudding are made from fresh harvested rice, jaggery and milk. This is a four day festival that is held on the 15th of January every year. On the occasion of Onam, the houses are cleaned and decorated as well as it is also the best time for the fantastic boat races at Alappuzha in Kerala.
Eid
Eid is the most prominent festival for Muslims and is celebrated all over the India. This festival is also celebrated across the globe and it is also known as Id-Ramzan and Eid-ul-Fitr. Eid is celebrated with reading a spiritual and holy Namaz in the mosques. Eid is a festival of exchanging gifts, donning of new clothes and dabbing of attar or rose essence. In each Muslim family you will find the sweetmeat that is commonly associated with Sevai and other sweets. With a great spirit not only Muslims even, Non-Muslims also participate in Eid celebration in India.
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About The Author: Puja Yadav is a festival lover who would never miss any opportunity to participate in any event. She loves indulging in any festivities program and enjoys all the moment with Great Spirit. Interacting with people and experiencing their culture and traditions are her passions. Now she is going to share her personal experience of festivals in India with readers. She happily shares her personal experiences with the readers through her creative India Blog and articles.
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