What is holi - all about the festival of colors and the festival of spring. Holiday festival Holi (India in March) What is the name when they throw dry paints

One of the brightest and most colorful events in the world is the Holi festival, held annually in India. This holiday marks the beginning of the spring season and the awakening from the sleep of nature, its roots go back centuries, it is part of the history of the country.

The history of the holiday

Every year the festival of colors is held on different dates, during the full moon period from February to March. This is a time of joy, fun and sprinkling each other with colored powders, starting with the ritual of burning an effigy, which is reminiscent of the Russian Maslenitsa.

The most common legend of the origin of this holiday says that the event was named after a beautiful girl whose name was Holika. In ancient times, a ruler reigned in the country, distinguished by malice. As a gift from the gods, he received immortality, after which he demanded from all people full worship to him. However, the king's son refused to recognize his power and remained faithful to his true God.

The young man was supported in everything by his aunt - Holika. In response to disobedience, the king ordered the rebels to be burned at the stake. Then the prince began to frantically beg God for salvation for his aunt, and he sent the young man a scarf dyed in different colors.

On the day of the execution, Holika was tied to a pole, the prince covered her with a cloth and sat down nearby. As soon as the fire was kindled, a strong wind arose, tore off the handkerchief and covered the young man with it. The young man tried to help his beloved aunt, but nothing came of it. While the fire covered her body more and more, her eyes, unblinking, looked at the prince, exuding love and affection.

Holika died, but the boy remained unharmed, only more strongly believed in God's grace. The Almighty punished the king a little later, piercing his evil heart with lightning.

Since then, the custom of smearing each other with paints, personifying the miraculous Holiki veil, has been firmly established in the country and is held annually during the Holi festival of colors.

patron saint of lovers

Another legend tells about the patron saint of all lovers - a deity named Kama.. Once there was a conflict between him and the supreme god Shiva, after which Kama was deprived of his body.

After some time, Shiva took pity on his companion and allowed him to have his own body, but not more than 3 months a year. This period affects spring time, general awakening and flowering. - it is also a celebration of the acquisition of the body shell by Kama. Representatives of all castes, estates and religions take part in it. And not only in India, but (especially in recent years) in other world countries.

beautiful legend

A very beautiful legend is connected with the origin of this custom.. Once the god Krishna fell in love with an ordinary shepherdess who did not pay any attention to him and did not want to communicate with him because of his appearance. Then the mother advised the young man to paint his own face. From here came the tradition of holding the Festival of Colors, full of bright colors and variegation.

The flirtation of the deity with the shepherdesses is a favorite theme of the dances of the holiday. The process itself looks like this: the young man calls the girl to dance, distracts her, after which he sprinkles with powder and sprinkles with water. Then the beauty pretends to be offended, to which the young man takes on the lobes of his own ears (a conditional request for forgiveness). Now it is her turn to powder the man and pour water on him.

This kind of flirting, a rare opportunity for flirting and playing between a boy and a girl, is usually not allowed in this country.

How do people prepare for the holidays?

Holi is a festival that is celebrated all over the country. It is distinguished by its beauty and diversity, like India itself.

Preparation for it begins 3-4 weeks in advance, when celebrations called Small Holi are held in the villages, within which they organize:

• ritual games;
• festive performances of groups;
• fundraising for those in need;
• preparations for the upcoming event.

The comprehensive organization of the holiday is important, what kind of holiday is it without many kilograms of colored powder? In addition, local residents are engaged in the preparation of firewood, brushwood and rags for future fires. The latter are lit to scare away evil spirits and cold air that lingered after the winter.

Stealing the raw materials needed to start fires is considered an achievement that causes universal pride.

Locals dress up all the buildings, painting them in bright colors and hanging flowers in the free space. People acquire spray guns to spray liquid and colored powder called gulal. It is created by grinding corn and dyed pink, red, green and yellow with natural substances. Ardent fans of the holiday create water cannons on their own, and make the coloring powder with their own hands.

All kinds of colors

How is the festival of colors Holi

Full moon night - it's time to start this magical holiday! People make a huge bonfire, on which an effigy or a specially decorated tree will be burned, symbolizing the passing winter, all troubles, sorrows and wicked deeds. There is a tradition to drive cattle through this flame and to walk on the coals with bare feet, because the ash gives people good luck.

The Holi Festival of Colors is a magnificent parade accompanied by national songs and dances. Participants in the action continuously shower themselves and other people with powders of different colors, after which they spray water into the air, which settles on those present.

Photos of this enchanting event reflect only a fraction of the crazy emotions of others.

As part of the holiday, the following events take place:

• competitions in skill in parkour and freerunning;
• fights in which paints act as projectiles;
• water battles.

A vivid sight can be seen in the historical homeland of the god Krishna, in the cities of Mathura and Vrindavan. On the steps of Hindu temples people dance, sing and have fun.

The period from 3 to 5 days of the festival begins mutual visits, during which plentiful feasts are held. There are always traditional Indian dishes and drinks on the tables. Bhang is popular, which includes juice or crushed hemp leaves and dairy products.

There are 2 types of this drink:

• bhang lassi, containing yogurt and hemp leaf juice;
• thandai lassi, which includes milk, spices, sugar, almonds and hemp infusion.

What date will Holi be in 2019? This magnificent event will take place between March 21st and 22nd, during the full moon.

Holi celebrations in different regions of the country

Not all Hindus are equally happy about Holi, this is influenced by the region of residence. Most of all, the festival is revered in northern India. On the days of the spring full moon, the cities are decorated with an abundance of flowers and decorations, white, pink, purple and red shades. Gray houses are painted with iridescent hues, and all surfaces are covered with bouquets.

Such a love for the holiday is due to the fact that the town of Vrindavan is located in the northern part of the country, where, according to legend, Krishna, the most revered God of Hindus, was born and lived. The festivities of the people do not stop for a moment, for several days, and a lot of time and effort is devoted to decorating buildings.

However, in Holi it does not have such a scope, young people and girls are actively having fun. Their parents at this time give gifts to children, and they do not go to visit for this, more often they are waiting for visits from young people at home. On the day the festival begins, mothers, according to tradition, prepare gifts for babies in the form of sweets and toys, and they present them the next morning.

fiery night

The apotheosis of the celebration of Holi is a bonfire in which an effigy made by local residents is burned. In addition, grain, flowers, fruits and other offerings for the gods fall into the fire. The flame is created to protect against evil spirits, it drives them away, causing fear.

Brave Indians jump over the fire, demonstrate their own courage, walk on still hot coals. A special place in the celebration is occupied by dances that are performed to the national Indian music: people dance, sing and independently play traditional musical instruments.

Dancing looks colorful, which are small performances during which young men get to know and flirt with girls. The finale of such a ritual is the mutual sprinkling of colored powder and splashing of water. All this is accompanied by a plentiful drink of the national drink - bhanga.

These days, Hindus glorify not one God, but all at once. Numerous figurines that are in their homes are taken out into the street and swing on a swing.

colored powder

On the second day of the celebrations, something interesting begins: mass sprinkling of people with colorful powders. They are absolutely safe, as they are made by Indians from self-tarred flour, dyed with natural substances. If earlier only such paints were used, now synthetic powders are being actively introduced that do not harm humans.

The sprinkling ritual begins with the head of the house, who has the honorable duty of "painting" each member of the family. Then this activity is picked up by all households, not forgetting about animals.

In the city of Gajurat, there is a tradition that on the Holi holiday, in addition to national rituals, a game called “Break the Pot” is always held. For this purpose, all young people line up in a kind of pyramid, and the young man standing at its very top must reach out with his own head and split the utensils hanging above him. This entertainment has its roots in ancient times, when, according to legend, Krishna stole in a similar way when he was still a child.

The end of the festival of colors

Every festival, even the most colorful, ends one day. On the third day of festivities, around 4 o'clock, Holi ends. Hindus leave the streets, returning to their daily routine.

Those of the people who managed to relax with their souls believe in the fulfillment of all their cherished desires expressed by them at the time of the celebration. As a memory of a grandiose event, paint remains on the body, which you have to get rid of, sometimes, within a few days.

The Holi festival charges Hindus with positive energy and kindness, sparkling fun and love for the whole year.

Analogues of Holi in the world

The celebration of the festival of colors is common not only among Hindus. This event was adopted by other countries (in which numerous Hindu diasporas live):

• Nepal;
• Sri Lanka;
• Bangladesh;
• Great Britain;
• Suriname;
• Guyana;
• Mauritius;
• Young Africa;
• Fiji;
• Trinidad.

However, the Holi festival is actively celebrated not only by Hindus. Europeans gladly joined in the crazy atmosphere of a colorful holiday. Since 2012 it has been held in Holland and Germany, since 2013 in the United Kingdom of England. Local residents, following the example of India, are seeing off the winter they are tired of.

The festival of colors is also celebrated on a grand scale in Russia, unfortunately, so far only in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and their suburbs (for example, in Lyubertsy, Moscow Region).

Holi celebration in Russia

Holding the festival on the territory of the Russian Federation is a bright event that came to the country several years ago and won the hearts of local residents. The holiday is loved by young people and adults, children, for whom clouds of paint create an atmosphere of real magic.

Colorful clouds soar into the sky, hover overhead and scatter particles over the faces and bodies of dancing people. At the end of the festival, the streets of the city are overflowing with people, decorated from head to toe with all sorts of colors, happy and cheerful.

This event is very popular among Russians, in 2017, at least 10 thousand people visited the holiday. During the day, more than 10 tons of coloring powder were scattered.

All this enchanting action was accompanied by a concert where popular compositions sounded, and a special presenter commanded the guests of the festival, throwing colorful paints into the air. The spectacle is amazing, you should definitely come here, if not to participate, then just look from the side.

Many people specifically plan their own trip to India for the days of Holi in order to plunge into an unforgettable atmosphere of fun and madness.

For the safety of tourists, the following rules have been created:

• constant watering of all passers-by, most often done from the roofs of houses, requires the packaging of all digital media and other equipment in waterproof bags;
• in Delhi and other cities, many institutions, including shops, are closed during the festival, so it is important to purchase all the necessary things in a timely manner;
• people who do not want to be smeared with paint should not leave the hotel;
• bringing your own powders to the festival is prohibited, they can be purchased at the festival venues;
• those who come to have fun should choose clothes for the street, which, after the end of the event, it will not be a pity to get rid of;
• before leaving the hotel, you should treat your chest, neck and face with a greasy cream, otherwise the powder will be firmly absorbed into the pores of the skin and it will be quite difficult to get rid of it;
• in the presence of allergies, it does not hurt to get expert advice before visiting the holiday. If permission has not been obtained, but you want to get to Holi, you should wear dark glasses, tie a scarf over your face, protecting your nose and mouth from accidental inhalation of the powder;
• you should not carry valuable things and documents with you at the festival, if they are necessary, it is important to keep everything in front of you, because during this period there are a lot of thieves on the streets;
• Indians do not mind drinking alcohol, and in large quantities, so it is important to monitor your own behavior and not provoke unnecessary conflicts.

The most memorable festivals of colors are held in the cities of Mathura, Vrindavan,

Holi is an annual, one of the most popular Hindu festivals of spring, many call it the Festival of Colors, which is held in India. The colorful holiday is celebrated in late February - early March and lasts two days. Holi is a spring festival filled with spring light and a rich variety of colors.

As a rule, the celebration of Holi falls on the full moon, in the Hindi language Phalgun Purnima. People of all ages directly take part in the celebration of the Festival of Colors. Spring, when the weather presents its whims, even in India it is changeable and at this time such ailments as colds, acute respiratory infections and SARS spread. Therefore, festive sprinkling with powders from medicinal herbs, such as neem, kumkum, haldi, bilva and others, has a positive effect on the body. Even the sacred healers of Ayurveda recommend everyone to visit the Festival of Colors.

In fact, there are many legends associated with the origin of the holiday. The most popular is that the Holi holiday came from the name of the demoness Holika. The son of the evil king Prahlada, worshiped Vishnu, and nothing could dissuade him. Then the sister of King Holika, who does not burn in the fire, persuaded him to go to the fire in the name of God. To everyone's surprise, Holika burned down, but Prahlada came out unharmed. In memory of these events, on the eve of the Holi holiday, an effigy of Holiki is burned. It is this holiday that the Slavs consider related to Maslenitsa.

All two days you can count on receiving guests and go on a visit yourself, where you will definitely be treated to sweet dishes made from fruits, milk and sugar. Girls are given bright gifts and outfits. In the morning, tens of millions of Indians will throw handfuls of colored powder into the air - this symbolizes the outgoing worries of the past year and new hopes for a fertile harvest. It is as if all the streets are covered with rainbow dust, which easily takes off from the wheels of cars, and settles on clothes at every step. This colored dust is everywhere, both on the steps of temples and on the surface of reservoirs. There is so much of it that after a short period of time it becomes difficult to breathe.

Holi brings together all the people of India. And it doesn't matter whether you are rich or poor, official and commoner, everyone feels that he is a part of a single whole. Then everyone begins to pour water tinted with colored powder, six bright colors - red, green, blue, fiery, yellow and silver. They pour everything that is able to move and move, on the street you can find unthinkable colors of crazy cows or dogs. Everything is painted as if painted by drunken avant-garde artists.

On the Holi holiday, you can’t yawn, if anyone sees, then this person is allowed to bathe in a dirty puddle. And, as a rule, they are not offended for this, because everyone is already pumped up with the traditional festive hemp drink Bhang, which allows Indians to forget about their hard life and truly enjoy the holiday of Colors. It is not permissible to express one's anger and resentment at Holi, all colors are washed off very well. And for those tourists who want to take part in the holiday, it is better to wear something worse and leave all your valuables in the room. As a rule, tourists become easy prey for pickpockets and petty thieves, because it costs nothing to check your pockets in the crowd.

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Today, March 6, India celebrates the brightest and most colorful holiday in the world - Holi! Seeing it with your own eyes and plunging into the colorful whirlpool on the narrow streets of one of the Indian cities is absolutely unreal and mind-blowing emotions, this is a feeling of the most powerful energy of the holiday. It is absolutely useless to describe all this in words ... Visiting Holi in India is a must for everyone who is in love with this incredible country, as well as for those for whom travel is not a dull "beach mattress", but a bright adventure!

The corporate trend of this Friday is congratulations on March 8, but I want to congratulate everyone on the colorful spring holiday! Happy Holi friends!

In today's report, I will tell and show how Holi is celebrated in the small town of Vrindavan (Uttar Pradesh), 200 km from Delhi. This city is considered one of the main places of pilgrimage for the followers of Vaishnavism, Krishna spent his childhood here, and the Banke Bihari Temple is the main place for Holi celebrations in India. Before traveling to India for Holi, I read a lot of different tips and reports about a trip to Holi, without preparation and spontaneously, you can make a mistake and not see what you expect.

Which city should you visit for Holi?
- how to take pictures on the street and protect equipment?
- how does all this happen and what to be prepared for?

This is what we're talking about today...

What is Holi holiday?

Holi (Hindi होली), also known as Phagwah (or Bhojpuri) is an annual popular Hindu spring festival, otherwise known as the Festival of Colors. Lasts two days in late February - early March. In the Hindu calendar, Holi usually falls on the full moon (known in Hindi as Phalgun Purnima or Poornmashi). The date of the holiday is floating and differs in different years. On the first day of the festival, closer to the night, a fire is made, symbolizing the burning of Holika. On the second day, known as Dhalundi, the participants of the festival make a kind of procession before dusk, showering each other with powder or pouring water.

In some reports, they write that they celebrate here for several days. This is true, but, most importantly, what you need to focus on is the main date of the holiday and you need to come to it.

I want to see this:

By typing Holi into Google, you will most likely come across these stock pictures of synchronous ink tossing upwards. There is no such thing in India. These pictures were taken at one of the paint festivals in Europe or the USA.

This is, for example, the festival of colors in Utah in the States. In India, everything is different and everything is real!

Which city to go to?

Holi is a Hindu holiday, so you need to go to Hindu cities. In various reports, I met references to Mumbai, Varanas, Ahmedabad, in each of these cities there is a main place and a temple where a religious ritual takes place. The most interesting place seemed to me Holi in two small towns 200 km from Delhi - Mathura and Vrindavan, where, according to legend, Krishna spent his childhood. I think it would be cool to go to Varanasi for Holi, the narrow streets near the Ganges are ideal for the coloring process :)

We stayed with friends at a hotel in the town of Mathura, where there is a railway station and it is easier to get here from Delhi at any time of the day or night, and Vrindavan is only 10 kilometers from Mathura, so it was decided to get up early in the morning and try to catch an auto rickshaw to Vrindavan . The reports say that Hindus do not work on this day, and in principle it can be very difficult to find a working taxi, no one wants to wash their auto rickshaw from paint later. In fact, it turned out that there were no problems and at 8 in the morning we left for Vrindavan without any problems.

Preparation for the holiday

My advice:

1. Dress in clothes that you will throw away without regret. Since the paint will be everywhere, in the smallest details and seams.
2. It is advisable to put on a bandana that will cover your hair and ears (!), Getting paint-powder out of your ears is not very pleasant later. Although on the street a bandana can be torn off you, pouring paint over your head. This is fine:)
3. Be sure to wear sunglasses or clear goggles. Powder in the eyes - it's kapets how unpleasant.
4. Put all paper money and documents out of your pockets, take a minimum of things. Be sure to put your phone in a waterproof case. During the holiday, you will be completely doused with water and more than once.

But the main thing is to properly protect photographic equipment.
We bought the simplest waterproof cases ($5-15) from some Chinese online hardware store. Naturally, with such a case, I will not dare to dive under the water, but to protect the camera, this is it:

The ambush is that the case is not suitable for large lenses, it did not suit me, but it sat perfectly on the Canon 650D with Sigma 28-200:

But, IMHO, shooting in a case is absolutely inconvenient, so take cling film, tape and scissors with you. With them, you can almost perfectly protect the equipment, while fully preserving the functionality of all the necessary buttons.

In the process, I do not recommend changing lenses. Set yourself up to shoot with one thing. Paint in liquid form or powder can be poured at any time in any seemingly safe corner, so changing lenses can be very expensive.

I shot with two cameras - a Canon 5D Mark II with a 70-200mm telephoto lens and a Fuji X-Pro1 mirrorless camera.
Be sure to tightly wrap the strap also, except for the camera itself, you won’t wash it off the paint later:

BEFORE and AFTER it looked like the picture below:

A full day of filming was handled well by the cameras. The lenses were wrapped with a regular protective filter, which I wiped many times with the edge of a T-shirt moistened with water. Be sure to bring a bottle of water with you to clean the lens and eyes that the powder gets into.

There is also a GoPro, but it is already protected by a case:

So let's go to the party!
The main rule on the way - while in an auto rickshaw, do not relax and do not lose vigilance. You will be bombarded with paint insidiously and right in the eye if you gape! From around the corner, from the window of an oncoming rickshaw, whatever!

Paints are of three types:

1. Powder. This is the cheapest option, usually a bag costs 10 rupees. This option is available to everyone, it is happily scattered around the streets, almost every passerby you meet will come up to you, generously smearing the powder on your face and neck with the words Happy Holi and a kind smile

2. Liquid paint. This option is mainly used from the upper floors or from the GDR pistols.

3. Paint-gel in cans. This is a very unpleasant mass, but this is the most expensive option and ordinary Indians do not often spend money on it.

But there is another paint option, the most insidious, but it is rare, about it below :)

This is a page of the in-flight magazine on an AirIndia aircraft. Even on board you can buy paints, gloves and a special tool for spraying paints on the Holi holiday, in the lower right corner is some kind of festive jewelry option:

A motor rickshaw in Vrindavan will bring you to the city center, but further to the Banki Bihari temple you need to walk another 15 minutes on foot. This is where the fun begins!

To fully enjoy the holiday, you need to completely immerse yourself in the atmosphere, relax and open up. You are being painted and you are painting everyone! Smile, congratulate everyone!

From the upper floors they pour liquid paint or just water:

Come on, son, charge those white uncles!

Oh yes, well done!

You look at these faces, emotions. It's such a crazy atmosphere! Real India!!!

The religious ritual itself takes place in the temple of Banki-Bihari. Come here as early as possible at 9-10 in the morning, because later the number of people becomes unrealistically huge, on the one hand it is a crush where you need to be extremely vigilant and careful, but on the other hand, it's just crazy energy inside the temple!

You can take pictures of everything except the altar, they follow this and make a remark. You can also go up to the second floor, be sure to go up! This is something absolutely unreal in terms of sensations and emotions!

We were friends somewhere at noon, lost in the crowd and someone covered them with green paint! This is real tin. If all this colorful mix, in principle, can be washed off within 2-3 days, then the brilliant green is very stable, especially in the hair:

You can hide and rest only in some kind of patio or doorway, but even here some little boy with a bag of green paint can suddenly cover you:

And in the afternoon everything ends, in the afternoon no one throws paint and the city returns to its normal rhythm of life!
Vrindavan is located on the river, you should definitely take a boat ride at sunset - it perfectly relaxes and puts your thoughts in order after such a crazy morning:

Happy Holi friends!!!

See more reports from India

Not everyone knows that the largest festival of colors Holi can be seen in India. Holi is a national holiday in India, the traditions of which they have been observing for more than three hundred years and are not going to abandon them in the near future. The festival of colors symbolizes the arrival of spring and the end of a long winter.

There is no exact date for the Holi Festival of Colors. It can be held in February and March, it all depends on the full moon - the day after it begins the festival.

History of Holi

The first mention of this holiday appeared in ancient Sanskrit, as well as in the Vedas (these are collections of ancient Hindu scriptures in Sanskrit). Another proof of the existence of this holiday is a stone inscription made three centuries ago.

The origin of this festival is explained by several legends that have come down to us through many generations.

The first legend says that the name of the holiday was given in honor of the demoness, the sister of the strict and evil king Hiranyakashipu. The ruler gained the opportunity to live forever and therefore began to consider himself a god, and after that he forced everyone to worship only him. The son of this king, Prahlada, recognized only one of the divine beings - Vishnu, and no one could convince him of the power of other deities.

So the king's sister - Holika - decided to kill her nephew who did not believe in her father. To do this, she told Prahlada to climb the fire, thus paying tribute to the god Vishnu. Everyone believed that the demoness did not burn in the fire. It turned out to be quite the opposite - the sister burned down, and Prahlada was saved by the god Vishnu and came out unscathed from the fire.

There is another version of the legend, according to which the king was still endowed with eternal life and demanded complete worship of his personality. But even in this story, the son did not worship his father, and the king's sister Holika supported Prahlada. Therefore, the ruler decided to punish his sister and son for disobedience - to burn them on a sacred fire.

To save his aunt, Prahlada turned to Vishnu, who gave him a sacred colorful scarf. This scarf was considered a gift from all the Gods, they had to hide Holika in the fire itself. The prince did so, and he himself sat down near his aunt, preparing to die. But when the fire began to spread, the scarf flew off Holika and covered Prahlada. This event further strengthened the faith of the heir in Vishnu.

After some time, the king was punished. When he was near his castle in the evening, God sent a deadly lightning into his heart. Thus, evil was punished and justice was restored.

Holiday customs

This tradition is most revered in northern India.

A few days before the start of the Holi holiday in India, they paint the walls of houses, arrange many flower arrangements in the rooms, purchase powder, dyes and special sprays.

Two weeks before the festival, preparations are underway for it at the city level - artists perform to raise funds for the event; firewood and brushwood are being prepared for the festive fire.

The fire itself, on which the effigy of Holiki is burned, is lit at night. After that, cattle are led through the fire, and then they are forced to walk on the remaining coals. The Indians themselves also walk on them. By this, the participants of the festival show their courage and courage. The inhabitants of India believe that the ashes bring good luck, and the smoke from the fire dispels all the bad things that have accumulated over the winter. Not only firewood is thrown into the fire, but also fruits, vegetables, flowers, grain and other offerings to the deities.

The festival is held with a huge number of songs, dances, playing national musical instruments and unrestrained fun. Participants of the event throw colored powders at each other. They are obtained from finely ground corn, painted in different colors.

The traditional drink of the Holi festival is tandai with bhang. It is made from milk (or dairy products) and juice (or hemp leaves).

On this night, Hindus roll figurines of different gods on a swing, showing them their respect.

This holiday is especially to the liking of children, because it is on this day that they are allowed any pranks. But not averse to take a break from the soul and adults who throughout the year worked and were engaged in raising children.

At the festival, you need to wear those things that you would not be sorry to throw away after the holiday, since there is a high probability that the paint will not wash off.

As soon as the festival ends, people begin to visit each other, take fruits and vegetables as treats. Girls receive gifts from fans, and husbands on this day present gifts to their wives in the form of a beautiful dress. The holiday usually ends on the third day.

Video

Video taken from open source from the YouTube site on the channel

If you live in a city that is large enough and definitely multicultural, you may have seen groups of people splashing and splashing paint on the streets in early March. You probably thought that all this was done for fun, just for a good mood, or that you were watching another flash mob. If so, then you were wrong. Throwing colored powder and pouring paint is actually the traditional spring festival of Holi, originally originating in India, and has recently spread to other countries of the world.

Photo: Thomas Hawk / Flickr


Photo: Thomas Hawk / Flickr

The Spring Festival of Colors was first celebrated in India and Nepal hundreds of years ago, but the Indian diaspora has now spread almost all over the world, so that Holi began to be celebrated in many other countries of the world, including European and American states. Nowadays, pouring colors began to be arranged even outside the Indian community, and participants in such events are most often not aware of the religious roots of the tradition, mistakenly believing that a colorful holiday is some kind of another fun concert in honor of the coming of spring.

Photo: satyamjoshi / Flickr


Photo: jpereira.net / Flickr

Every year, the festival dates fall at the end of February and the beginning of March, and according to tradition, they should coincide with the full moon. All the fun begins on the night before the holiday, when the effigy of the demoness Holika is burned. According to the myths, the villainess died on a funeral pyre, in which she tried to kill an innocent boy named Prahlada. The young man eventually escaped.

Photo: On The Go Tours / Flickr


Photo: Thomas Hawk / Flickr

According to legend, Holika and her entire family were opponents of Vishnu himself, the supreme deity in the Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. However, Holika's nephew, the young Prahlada, was a devoted devotee of Vishnu. The guy's father, Hiranyakashipu (Hiranyakashipu), was the king of demons, and he was terribly angry that his own child worshiped and prayed to Vishnu. That is why King Hiranyakasipu and Aunt Holika tried to kill the rebellious young man by throwing him into. Prahlada appealed to Vishnu and was saved, while the villainess Holika burned to the ground, despite having previously possessed supernatural protection from fiery heat. Later, Vishnu descended to Earth and killed the almost invincible Hiranyakasipu, resorting to divine cunning. Thus good overcame evil, and justice prevailed.

Photo: Chris Chabot / Flickr


Photo: Pison Jaujip / Flickr

The main focus of all this annual celebration is usually the burning of Holika and the holy purifying fire that delivers people from the power of demons. By the way, Holi coincides with a whole series of festivals dedicated to the full moon, the goddess Parvati (Parvati) and her reunion with Shiva (Shiva). This festive season is called Hartalika Teej, and in its honor people wear colorful clothes, symbolizing the radiance that travels in the form of waves throughout the universe and brings colors to Earth that nourish and sustain our life.

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In southern Asia, Holi is celebrated in different regions in different ways and with some differences. In Nepal, the festival is recognized as a national holiday. In Punjab (Punjab, a state in northwestern India), it reaches such proportions that literally people from all over the world come there to take part in such a colorful and emotional celebration. In Uttar Pradesh (Uttar Pradesh, a state in northern India), Holi also plays a very important role in the lives of citizens, because only once a year local women traditionally get a chance to beat men with sticks in honor of this holiday. Men sing lustful songs, trying to seduce innocent girls, and they in response beat them with sticks or douse them with buckets. Offenders are allowed to defend themselves with shields, so "fights" are usually fairly innocuous.

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As with many other spring festivals, the change of seasons is closely linked to changes in many areas of life. In Christian culture, Easter falls on this season, symbolizing rebirth through the resurrection of the Messiah. However, for the Hindus at this time, on the contrary, there comes a time of cold weather and seasonal illnesses. Spreading multi-colored powder and dousing with tinted water symbolizes the treatment of ailments - they literally try to wash away illnesses and wish each other good health.

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Many festival participants, especially young men, do not miss the opportunity to just have a good time these days - drink, get on a motorcycle and rush off into the distance in search of adventure.

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Like Christmas, Holi has become a highly commercialized event in recent years. Initially, paints were made from medicinal plants, including Azadirahta indica and