One day while channel surfing I discovered a documentary on Holi. At the time I was too young to understand the full beauty of Holi but the bright colors peaked my interest and has stayed in the back of my mind since. It seemed that the festival was like color personified. Holi, also known as Holika, is a colorful festival celebrated in Northern India during the end of February or early March and lasts a day. During this time people dance and sing as they cover one another with colorful powders and colored water. During Holi, all are equals as everyone celebrates the triumph of good over equal just like in the “Legend of Holika and Prahalad”. Holi is a festival that is not only appealing to the eye but to the heart as well as it ties people together through legend and love.
Holi is said to have originated in the 7th Century in India and is inspired by the “Legend of Holika and Prahalad” (Holi festival.) In the legend Hiranyakashyap, the demon king, resents his son, Prahalad, because Prahalad will not worship him. Prahalad, a devotee to the god Vishnu, tries to make his father understand that only God is the “greatest” (BBC) and unintentionally enrages Hiranyakashyap. Hiranyakashyap planned various traps to murder his son but somehow Prahalad managed to come away unharmed. Frustrated by his failed attempts and of his son’s disloyalty, Hiranyakashyap conspires with his sister, Holika, to finally get rid of his son (BBC.) It was then decided that Holika would sit in a fire with Prahalad in her lap. Holika had a special gift that was supposedly given to her by the gods at birth, this gift was her immunity to fire. However, since Holika was using her gift in vain she was burned alive in the fire while Prahalad was protected by Vishnue...
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...ful festival. It seems the only thing that has stayed with people is the love and positivity among lovers, friends and family.
Holika is a celebration that has deep ties to it’s culture's legends and has a heavy influence on it’s festival goers. Although Holi is holy day it is not spent praying, it’s spent singing and laughing with those you love. It teaches the importance of social ties and what a blessing they can be. Holi is a vibrant festival that not only focuses on the beauty of one's heritage but the love that goes into making it strong.
Works Cited
"Holi - Holi Day,Holi 2014,Holi Festival India." Holi - Holi Day,Holi 2014,Holi Festival India. Society for the Confluence of Festivals in India, n.d. Web. 4 Feb. 2014.
"Orgins of Holi." BBC News. BBC, 30 Sept. 2009. Web. 27 Jan. 2014
"Holi." : Hindu Festival of Colors. Religion Facts, n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2014.
You can see that, why New Orleans is called Festival capital of USA. Though all the festival are for your enjoyment, but some of them are very popular. They are –
Las Posadas is a Mexican holiday that is like Christmas for the United States. It was originated in Spain and lasts for nine days. This holiday begins on December sixteenth and ends on December twenty-fourth. This is also a catholic holiday but most people in Mexico celebrate it. This holiday was thought to be started in the sixteenth century by “St. Ignatius of Loyola or Friar Pedro de Gant in Mexico.” In Mexico they have a tradition where they put a candle in a paper lampshade. Then they would take the lampshade with the candle inside it and went outside to sing a song, allowing Joseph and Mary to be recognized and allowed to enter the world. This is still a tradition today but one thing has changed from around when it was started. It, for some people, celebrated it in a church instead of the family’s home. There is a thing that is common for both the United Stated and Mexico. They both sing Christmas carols, they go along to houses or in a church and sing Christmas songs. On these days the children will break piñatas to get the candy and prizes inside. They also so another thing ...
...an that everyone from this culture could actually experience love, peace, and community for three days. Despite the rain, lack of toiletries and toilets, and lack of food most of the youth at the festival stayed throughout the whole thing.
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...ure and the Hindu religion. Played in temples, events and religion holidays the dholak continues to bring joy to members of the West Indian community and inspiration for the younger generation. Indian music has been redefined throughout the years, so it’s important to revive it and preserve it. Lal revives the Indian music by re-singing old music and adding a different beat when playing the dholak. The West Indian community has helped revive Indian music by singing live with the dholak. Members preserve the Indian music by oral traditional, which meant that the lyrics of the song are unchangeable. Singing the original song with traditional instrument will help preserve the Indian music. The dholak has related to the West Indian culture and the Hindu religion by adding entertainment to their culture and helping integrate the religion songs into traditional music.
Rawlinson, J. (2013). Music Festival Tourism Worldwide - International - June 2013. Retrieved 02 28, 2014, from Mintel Report: http://academic.mintel.com/display/643783/
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