Holi Ke Rang Barse.......................

Holi khelen raghuveera avadh me,holi khele raghuveera...

The above song and many other such Holi-songs play loud on this day as the nation rises to celebrate Holi--The Festival Of Colours!!!
     I,though averse to colors and water thought of celebrating this festival in a different manner this year.How??? Well (apart from relishing my favorite Puran Poli),I tried reading about the traditional aspect of this festival.So here I present the various ways that this festival is celebrated all over India.It's not from my own mind but what I read about the festival from various sources.Just an amalgamation of all to one.

      Everybody knows the tradition behind the name of the festival.Hiranyakashyapu a demon king (and an enemy of Lord Vishnu) wanted his son Prahlad (who was a devotee of Lord Vishnu) to be sentenced to death.He therefore summoned his sister Holika to carry out the task for him.She was blessed with a boon that no fire could destroy her;and so with the evil intention of killing her nephew,she sat in the fire alongwith Prahlad.However the fire instead of hurting Prahlad reduced Holika to ashes thus marking the win of good over evil.Thus the festival gets its name Holi.So on the eve of Holi,people light bonfires in their localities and every household makes an offering to the fire God.
   There is also a reason behind celebrating this festival with colors.Lord Krishna who was very mischievous and was known for playing pranks on gopis once becam jealous seeing Radha's fair complexion(he himself being dark) and complained about this to his mother Yashoda.To pacify his little son,Yashoda asked him to go and apply color on Radha's face.The mischievous Kanha indeed heeding his mother's advice went and applied color on Radha's face making her look like himself.So this tradition of applying colors on this day.
  Moving on,this is one festival which is celebrated all over India be it North,South,East,West and is known by different names.
  Dulandi:-Holi receives this name in the state of Haryana.Here the bhabhi(elder brother's wife) gets an upper hand on this day and the devars (younger brothers) need to watch out.Bhabis sort of take revenge on their devars by making them pay a price for all pranks played on them.They roll up their saris and chase their devars.In the evening devars bring home sweets for their bhabhis.
  Rangpanchami:-Holi is popularly known as Rangpanchami in the state of Maharashtra.On the eve,the traditional bonfire is lit.The second day calls for some fun.People apply color and throw water on each other.The main delicacy for this festival is 'Puran Poli'(Ohho my favorite!!!!)
  Basant Utsav and Dol Purnima:-Holi is known by the name of Vasantotsav and is clebrated in grace and a dignified manner in the state of Bengal.It is known as the 'Spring Festival' and was started by Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore at Shantiniketan.Boys and girls welcome Spring with songs,dance and chanting of hymns in the serene atmosphere of Shantiniketan.Another name for it is Dol Purnima.Students wear saffron coloured clothes and wear garlands of fragrant flowers.Idols of Lord Krishna and Radha are placed in palanquins and processions are taken out on the streets.Throughout the procession,women dance and sing traditional songs while men spray coloured water or apply abheer to them.
  Lathmaar Holi:-Of all the places in India,Holi is celebrated with great fervour at the birthplaces of Lord Krishna and Radha .ie. Nandgaon and Barsana respectively.It was Krishna who started the tradition of applying color on Radha's face.So as a sweet revenge to this prank,women of Barsana fully charged with lathis(the name Lathmaar no doubt comes from the word lathi) in their hands thrash the men of Nandagaon and the men have to save themselves.Men are also made to wear female attire and are asked to dance in public.The next day the men of Barsana invade the  village of Nandagaon and drench its women with coloured water.All of this in the spirit of Holi.
  Hola Mohalla:-Holi gets this name in the state of Punjab.The festival is celebrated for three consecutive days(mainly in Anandpur village) in which members of the Sikh community display their physical strength by performing dare-devil acts like bareback horse-riding, standing erect on two speeding horses, Gatka (mock encounters), tent pegging etc,followed by music.Langars(community kitchens) are arranged by local people as a part of seva(service).Foodgrains,vegetables are provided by the villagers and women volunteer to cook and cleanse the utensils.Food is served to pilgrims who eat while sitting in rows on the ground.
  Shimgo:-The Goans celebrate Holi by this name.Here too people play with bright colors to welcome the arrival of spring which is followed by rich,spicy mutton curry called shagoti.A huge procession is carried out on the streets of Panjim with performances of troupes on cultural and mythological stories.People of all religions participate in this procession.
  Kaman Pandigai:-Known by this name in the state of Tamil Nadu,Holi is celebrated to mark the sacrfice of Kamdeva.Legend goes that after the death of Sati,Lord Shiva goes into deep meditation;due to Shiva's indifferent attitude,god become tensed and worried.Also Parvati is meditating at the same time to get Shiva as her husband.To get Shiva to this original self,gods seek the help of Kaamdeva--the God of love.He strikes the arrow at Shiva.Enraged and disturbed by this interference Shiva opens his third eye and reduces Kaamdeva to ashes.However the arrow produces it effect and Shiva agrees to marry Parvati.Rati ,Kamdeva's wife however gets sad at the loss of her husband and requests Shiva to revive Kaamdeva to which Shiva readily agrees.In Tamil Nadu,people sing songs depicting Rati's sorrow and apply sandalwaood to Kaamdeva to ease the pain of burning.People believe that Kaamdeva was revived on this day and hence the name.
  Kullu Holi:- Holi is known by this name in the state of Himachal Pradesh.Thousands of people gather at the shrine of Ponta Sahib in Sirmour district on the banks of Yamuna to gather divine blessings.Colours are mixed with snow making it an Ice-Holi.
  Phagwa:-Holi is known by this name or Phagu Purnima in the state of Bihar.Phagu means the traditional red powder and Purnima is the full moon day.It actually marks the end of one year and the commencement of new year.For this reason Holika Dahan here is also known as 'Samvatsar Dahan'.

  These are some of the traditions associated with this festival of colours.Indeed our country is vast and the traditions are wide-spread,such that Holi is now being celebrated even abroad.Proud am I to belong to such a great nation so rich in its culture.May the colors of this festival bring the colors of happiness and peace in everyone's lives. Wishing all A Happy,colorful and a safe Holi !!!!!!