Holi or Holika Dhahan – Holi and its importance

Holi festival is full of colours and happiness. It is a very big festival in India which is celebrated with great enthusiasm. Children and elders together believe in this festival with a sincere heart and people meet with each other after ending their rivalry.

Holi festival includes many things like Holika Dahan, Chhoti Holi, dulhandi etc. It is celebrated in the month of Phalguna on Purnima or full moon day. On the arrival of this auspicious day, only colours are seen in the markets. All the shopkeepers set up colour shops.

Holi is known by many names in every state like Lathmar Holi, Dhundi, Rangpanchami, Basant Utsav, Fagu Purnima, etc.

Why Holi is celebrated?

There is a mythological story about why Holi is celebrated. There was a king named Hrinyakashyap and he wanted everyone to worship him. The king also had a son named Prahlada who was a great Vishnu devotee. 

The king wanted Prahlada to help him become a god, but Prahlada suggested his father worship Lord Vishnu. Prahlada asked his father to follow the path of truth and religion. Hrinyakashyap was very angry with this and planned to kill Prahlada.

Hrinyakashyap had a sister named Holika. He plans to kill Prahlada together with Holika. Holika got a boon that fire cannot kill her. So the king asked his sister to sit in the fire with Prahlad on her lap.

Holika did exactly that but when she sat in the fire, she got burnt and Prahlad survived. Holika did this by taking advantage of her boon wrongly and without realizing its importance, and Prahlad saved his life by worshipping his god.

Lord Vishnu protected Prahlada and evil was destroyed. After this event, people do Holika Dahan on Holi every year and consider the victory of good over evil. 

On the next day of Holika Dahan, people play with colours and meet each other, which is known as Dulhandi.

• Holi festival is very important because this festival shows the victory of truth.
• On Holi, many types of programs also organized, in which there are music and different type of dishes.
• Through this festival, it can be understood that if you are truthful and walk on the right path, then God helps you in every way.
• On Holi, everyone's life becomes colourful in colours. People remove their evils and hug each other. Many types of dishes prepared and all the people go to each other's house and remove the shrieks.
• Thandayi prepared on the day of playing the colour, which is from cannabis. On this day people spend their happiness after drinking thandayi.
• This festival makes people of India join together and become one of the religions.
• On this day, people pray for their lives to be colourful and remove all problems.
• Women prepare many types of dishes and all the people to wear new clothes and go to each other's house to meet Holi.
• During this festival, the crops of the people are ready for which people pray for the good harvest this year.

RITUALS

• As we all know that holi festival lasts for two days in which the first day celebrated as Holika Dahan or choti holi and the second day celebrated as holi.
• On Holika Dahan, people collect different type of woods and prepare a bonfire. After preparing the bonfire, people worship and then burn it that shows the victory over the evil of truth.
• After Holika Dahan, the next day is the festival of Holi, on which day worship is done in the early morning. After the pooja, all the people go out to play colours and many types of dishes prepared at home.
• Children and older people play colours together and wish for peace, positive thinking and happiness.
• After playing the colours, all the people take a bath and wear new clothes and meet each other and end their old rivalry, negative thinking and enmity.