holiday
Holika Dahan: Celebration and Significance
The vibrant and colorful festival of Holi is really close and the preparations and celebrations are already at its high pace. With the increased craze and unity of diverse cultures, this festival is not only popular among Hindus but also among non-Hindus in many parts of South Asia, as well as in parts of Europe and North America.
Celebrations, however, start with a Holika Pujan on the night before Holi where people gather, sing and dance. This puja is a very significant part of the whole festival. Although it is usually associated with the bon-fire or Holika Dahan in the late pre-evening of Holi, it starts way before.
Focusing at the scientific importance of Holika Dahan, it is vital for cleansing the bacteria and germs generated in the mutation period of winter and spring. The high temperature while burning the woods i.e. almost 145 degrees Fahrenheit removes the harmful germs and bacteria from the atmosphere and also from our bodies when we revolve around it. It is the period when people feel lethargic and drowsy. Holi provides them the opportunity to wear off their laziness, by enjoying themselves thoroughly.
On this occasion, burning the Holika signifies an end to all the evil thoughts and getting rid of all the sins. Thus, at this time, if you ask for any good things while mother Holika is burning then they will come true. Various Indian cultures even consider it to be integral in the form of long-life of the husband and a prosperous married life. Not only this, the left over ashes from the dahan if collected by people on the next day constitutes of the actual holi-prasad and smearing it on limbs of the body purifies and heals them.
Thus apart from colors and fun filled-frolic celebrations, Holi and its traditions hold lot more for us.
Revering the God of Creativity:Lord Vishwakarma
The creative son of Brahma, lord Vishwakarma is the official creator of the magical residing palaces of Gods. He is the sole designer of the eternal Universe and maintains the unique connection between Earth and Heaven. The peculiar trait weapon and flying chariots of gods have also been innovatively designed by Lord Vishwakarma. The God of Manufacture is worshipped by the skilled class of devotees majorly being architects, engineers, craftsmen, potters, carpenter, goldsmiths, blacksmiths and other factory workers.
Day of Celebration:
Lord Vishwakarma is actually worshipped on the last day of the Bengali month i.e. Bhadra or Kanya Sakranti which falls on 17th September; but it is also celebrated on the fourth day of Diwali festival on Padyami. This festival has a major craze in Karnataka, West Bengal, Orissa, Bihar and Tripura, but widely celebrated by Indians globally.
Holiday for machines and equipment:
As the highest ranked creative God is being worshipped on this day and the entire industrial class revers him, this day is an official holiday for the industries. It is believed that the machines should take a peaceful rest on this particular day and let the glory of Vishwakrama fall upon them and make them more efficient. Factory owners also prefer buying new equipment or machinery on this day, as it is considered lucky and prosperous for their working.
Relevance of this day:
The day is not only auspicious for industries and machinery but also has further unique add on s. Govardhan Puja is also celebrated on this day to remember the miracles of Lord Krishna, when he saved the entire city of Gokul from the outrage of Lord Indra. To increase the bond of love between couples, Gudi Padwa is celebrated in which the newly wed couples are invited for special treats by the bride’s family.
This festival spreads the message of adoring creativity and boosting the talented God and his man power. It brings together people from the varied classes and leaves no distinction among them. When the entire working class comes together, it removes the pride of their ranks and they simply cherish their skills. Kite flying is also an important custom on this day, and Bihar and West Bengal arrange special kite flying festivals.
Architectural creations by Lord Vishwakrama:
The laurels of Vishwakarma’s innovation have been mentioned in mythology and Vedas. He has been credited for the flawless creation of God’s abodes in the four ‘yugas’.
‘Swarg lok’ or heaven has been created by the talented Lord Vishwakarma, which is the abode of Gods and is ruled by lord Indra.
During the ‘Treta yug’, Vishwakarma built the beautiful golden city for Lord shiva and Parvati. This was later demanded by Ravana in return of ‘dakshina’; since then it was called as the ‘Raavan’s sone ki Lanka’.
The city of Lord Krishna, Dwarka has been established by Vishwakarma in the ‘Dwapar yug’, which is now a renowned pilgrimage for Hindu devotees.
Lord Vishwakarma’s magic is also evident during the ‘kali yuga’, when the pandavas were ordered to live on a piece of land named ‘Khaandavprastha’. He transformed this barren land into a magical city of Indraprastha, which was known for its architectural beauty.
Contributed By: Meenakshi Ahuja
Different shades of Lights: Interesting facts of Diwali
The auspicious festival of light, Diwali means the ‘row of lighted lamps’ which symbolise the journey from darkness to light. The festival is a message to illuminate our inner true selves and cherish our illuminated soul in the eternal Universe (Brahman). Let us explore few of the interesting facts about this bright festival.
- The main festive day of Diwali in the five day celebration marks the beginning of Hindu New Year according to the Vikrama calendar.
- The craze for this festival is not only evident among Indians but also foreigners around the globe. Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, Malaysia, Singapore and Fiji have an official day off on Diwali.
- The Lord of Death, Yama is revered on this day by lighting a diya, to welcome the dead spirits back to their family.
- In Southern India, especially Goa and Konkan, people burn the effigies of Narakasura on the next day of Diwali. Naraksura, the demon was killed by Lord Krishna and 16,000 women were rescued from his captivity.
- The 12 years of banishment of the Pandavas ended on this day and they appeared on the Kartik Amavasya.
- Great Hindu King Vikramaditya was coroneted on this day, hence Diwali became a historical event.
- Lord Mahavira attained nirvana on Diwali day at Pavapuri thus highly celebrated by Jain community.
- Maharshi Dayananda, the founder of Arya Samaj attained his nirvana on this day and Shardiya Nav-Shasyeshti is celebrated every year from then.
- Bandi Chhorh Divas is celebrated by Sikhs on this day as the foundation stone for Golden Temple was laid in 1577. In 1619, Sixth Guru Shri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji was freed from imprisonment of Emperor Jahangir from Gwalior fort, on the same day of Diwali.
- On this day Lord Vishnu rescued Goddess Lakshmi (and married her) from the prison of Demon king Bali and therefore Goddess Lakshmi is worshipped on Diwali.
- The day is celebrated with Gambling as a way of ensuring good luck for the coming year and also to remember the games of dice between Lord Shiva and Parvati Ji.
- To welcome the Goddess of wealth, the entire house is purified and cleaned, and lighted with earthen lamps to brighten her way to our homes.
- This day marks the commencement of new Fiscal Year for Hindu Shop owners and Businessman so they usually begin their new records from then.
- Burning of crackers are the symbol of celebration after achieving enlightenment and the fumes released are beneficial for removing the insects and flies.
- ‘Shubh Deepavali’ is the ethnic and traditional greeting for Deepawali, meaning ‘Have an auspiscious Deepavali’.
To cherish the celebration of attaining good over evil and revering this special day, organize the Diwali puja at your home and book your puja package now: http://shubhpuja.com/Diwali-puja-organise-id-348501.html
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