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Holi, the 'Festival of Colors'
is celebrated in India to welcome the season
of spring and end of winters. It is a two-day
long festival celebrated with lot of gaiety
all over India but special mention should be
made of Holi of Mathura, the birthplace of Lord
Krishna. On the eve of Holi, people gather to
light a huge bonfire of the dried leaves and
twigs. On the morning of the festival, people
meet each other to apply dry and wet colors
each other, play with water and eat sweets together.
According to Hindu mythology, the roots of the
festival of Holi can be traced to the story
of Hiranya Kashipu. He was the demon king in
the
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ancient times
who had got a boon from Lord Shiva that nobody
could kill him. After being granted the boon,
he considered himself to be equivalent to God
and insisted that his subjects should worship
him rather than the Gods. His son Prahlad, a
strong devout of Lord Vishnu objected him. This
angered Hiranya Kashipu and he tried to kill
Prahlad many times but the child always came
out unhurt. One day, Hiranya Kashipu decided
to set fire to Prahlad who was seated in Holika's
lap, Hiranya Kashipu's sister. Although Holika
had the boon that the fire cannot burn her,
she was the one who died in the fire and Prahlad
was not hurt at all. Thus, Holi is celebrated
as the victory of good over evil.
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Holi, the 'Festival of Colors'
is celebrated in India to welcome the season
of spring and end of winters. It is a two-day
long festival celebrated with lot of gaiety
all over India but special mention should be
made of Holi of Mathura, the birthplace of Lord
Krishna. On the eve of Holi, people gather to
light a huge bonfire of the dried leaves and
twigs. On the morning of the festival, people
meet each other to apply dry and wet colors
each other, play with water and eat sweets together.
According to Hindu mythology, the roots of the
festival of Holi can be traced to the story
of Hiranya Kashipu. He was the demon king in
the
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|
ancient times
who had got a boon from Lord Shiva that nobody
could kill him. After being granted the boon,
he considered himself to be equivalent to God
and insisted that his subjects should worship
him rather than the Gods. His son Prahlad, a
strong devout of Lord Vishnu objected him. This
angered Hiranya Kashipu and he tried to kill
Prahlad many times but the child always came
out unhurt. One day, Hiranya Kashipu decided
to set fire to Prahlad who was seated in Holika's
lap, Hiranya Kashipu's sister. Although Holika
had the boon that the fire cannot burn her,
she was the one who died in the fire and Prahlad
was not hurt at all. Thus, Holi is celebrated
as the victory of good over evil.
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| » Raksha
Bandhan |
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Celebrated on the full-moon
day of the Hindu month of Sravana (July/August),
this festival celebrates the love of a brother
for his sister. On this day, sisters tie rakhi
on the wrists of their brothers to protect them
against evil influences, and pray for their
long life and happiness. They in turn, give
a gift which is a promise that they will protect
their sisters from any harm. Within these Rakhis
reside sacred feelings and well wishes. This
festival is mostly celebrated in North India.
The history of Rakshabandhan dates back to Hindu
mythology. As per Hindu mythology, in Mahabharata,
the great Indian epic, Draupadi, wife of the
Pandavas had torn the corner of her sari to
prevent Lord
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Krishna's wrist
from bleeding (he had inadvertently hurt himself).
Thus, a bond, that of brother and sister developed
between them, and he promised to protect her.
It is also a great sacred verse of unity, acting
as a symbol of life's advancement and a leading
messenger of togetherness. Raksha means protection,
and in some places in medieval India, where
women felt unsafe, they tie Rakhi on the wrist
of men, regarding them as brothers. In this
way, Rakhi strengthens the bond of love between
brothers and sisters, and revives the emotional
bonding. Brahmins change their sacred thread
( janoi ) on this day, and dedicate themselves
once again to the study of the scriptures.
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| » Id-Ul-Zuha |
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Id-ul-Zuha (Bakr-Id), is a festival of great
rejoice, special prayers and exchange of greetings
and gifts mark this festival of Muslims. Id-ul-zuha,
the festival of sacrifice is celebrated with
traditional fervor and gaiety in India and the
world. It is called Id-ul-Adha in Arabic and
Bakr-Id in the Indian subcontinent, because
of the tradition of sacrificing a goat or 'bakr'
in Urdu. The word 'id' derived from the Arabic
'iwd' means 'festival' and zuha comes from 'uzhaiyya'
which translates to 'sacrifice'.
According to Islamic belief, to test Ibrahim,
Allah commanded him to sacrifice his son Ismail.
He agreed to do it but found his paternal feelings
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hard to suppress.
So he blindfolded himself before putting Ismail
on the altar at the mount of Mina near Mecca.
When he removed his bandage after performing
the act, he saw his son standing in front of
him, alive. On the altar lay a slaughtered lamb.
Joyous festivities and somber rituals mark this
event. Every Muslim owning property worth 400
grams of gold or more is expected to sacrifice
a goat, sheep or any other four-legged animal
during one of the three days of the festival.
This symbolises devotion to Allah and his desires.
The sacrificial meat is then distributed and
partaken of after the Id prayers.
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