HOLI SPRING FESTIVAL OF COLOURS
It is usual for people to dress up for a festival. To wear their best clothes. At the colourful Indian festival of Holi, however, it is the opposite. People put on their oldest clothes which will get soaked during the merriment..
Holi is commonly believed to have origins in the Hindu legend of Holika, the demon goddess in the 7th century Sanskrit drama, the Ratnavali.
Holika is said to have colluded with the demon king Hiranyakashyap to kill his son Prahlada who worshipped the God Vishnu, instead of his father.
CHILDREN CELEBRATE HOLI IN INDIA
A plan was hatched for Holika to sit Prahlada on her lap into the middle of a bonfire in the belief that he would perish and that she would survive.
But the reverse happened. Holika was consumed by flames and Prahlada was saved by Vishnu, the moral of the story being the triumph of good over evil.
Held in spring, the 11th month of the Hindu calendar, the festival celebrates new life and good fortune for the growing season.
On the eve of the full moon, many villagers build a bonfire with an effigy of Holika. Known as Holika Daha, it is a reminder of the symbolic victory of the forces of good over evil.
BONFIRES ARE BUILT ON THE EVE OF THE FULL MOON
While the theme is serious, Holi is filled with good humoured fun. Caste, age and religious differences are abandoned as revellers throng the streets singing and dancing and bombarding each other with water mixed with coloured powders.
Natural colours derived from burnt-yellow turmeric and ruby-red dhak have now been largely replaced by commercial pigments, but the effect is the same.
This is why Holi is known as the Festival of Colours: red for love, green for prosperity, orange for success and pink for happiness.
HOLI PROCESSION IN A TOWN IN UTTAR PRADESH
I was in Lumbini, Nepal, the Birthplace of the Buddha, while the colour festival was on. Even in that humble almost pre-industrial place, the sight was spectacular, with children turning out in large numbers to throw the coloured dyes over each other. A time of happiness and simple joy. Among Believers is a fascinating book by a fascinating and to my mind heroic author and photographer. An intrepid traveller, as described in her book Travels with My Hat, Christine Osborne has been more more places and seen more things than most of us will ever do. I thoroughly recommend Among Believers to anyone interested in the world beyond this world, or indeed this world. It is remarkable the variety of spiritual experiences, and I hope this book contributes to greater tolerance and understanding between the faiths, and between believers and non-believers.
Thanks John. May I in turn direct readers to your terrific website http://www.asenseofplacepublishing.com
Onwards and upwards for us both!
Holi is great to observe in Delhi and Rajasthan. Watch out if you’re offered bhang lassi to drink during Holi, it packs quite a punch.
Thanks Stuart.
For those who may not know: “bang lassi” is milk drink to which ghee, sugar and spices and crushed cannabis leaves are added. Bang (cannabis) has been used in India since Vedic times and “bang lassi” is a popular beverage at many Hindu festivals.
I saw some of this colour throwing when I was in India many years ago – what an experience especially when dodging out of the way! This book is excellent with stunning photos. It deserves to get lots of readers and I hope it does.
Thanks Ruth. Holi must have interested you being a colourist yourself. And yes, it’s a messy but fun filled festival.
Our newly formed University of the Third Age here in Sheffield, Tasmania has a course on World Religions. This shows the general interest in this topic. This book with its fabulous photos would make an ideal companion to this course.
Thanks for this Raewyn. Lets see what happens in the next weeks with the book. Perhaps I could fit in a talk to your group when I visit Tasmania.
I need to get my hands on this book. As always Christine Osborne fascinates me with what she has seen and done in her life. I went to Toronto library to see, listen and buy her book “Travels with my hat”. Her talk with slide show was marvellous and she signed my book. The experiences she has encountered, photographed and shared in her books are just great. I love her knowledge and the vibrant photos. Anyone who is travelling should buy one of her travel books as they give you a different insight into the country you are visiting. Christine’s book Middle Eastern Cooking has delicious recipes. I always love to see her books as writes about her experiences. Thank you for making them.
Gosh, that’s a lovely compliment Christine. And yes, I do write about people and travel experiences rather than “what to see”. I have run a specialist religions photo library for many years, but Among Believers is my first on world faiths. It has 360 photos, many also by my contributing photographers.