People across India and the world celebrated Holi. The celebration in the neighborhood, or society, that I am staying in began Saturday night. My host mother and my roommate and I were all invited to the bonfire ceremony.The ceremony was the construction of the goddess Holi with wood, leaves, etc. and her subsequent burning. Holi is a phoenix goddess. Hindus who worship her during this ceremony are symbolically giving her their woes and evils, and in her fire she burns them, transforming them into a new season of blessings. Holi also coincides with the change of season, from the rainy season into the hot season, or from winter to summer, where Nature is born again, new sprouts raise up, animals are born, etc.
At the ceremony there are usually also drums, and once the fire is lit, each participant makes offerings to and prays to Holi. This is done by walking around Holi, the fire, in a clockwise circle once, and then tossing the offering, be it a coconut, food, papers, etc. into the fire. Some participants also pour water on the ground as they walk around the circle. As the participants walked around the fire, an older male family member would shout, in Marathi "End to Corruption" and then the rest of the family and participants would make a fist, open them mouth slightly, and quickly put the top of their fists on and off of their mouth, to make a noise signifying agreement.
The next morning the children of our society invited my roommate and I to another art of the Holi celebration- water play. At 7:00am armed with green water squirt guns and two packets of water guns my roommate and I entered into battle. For over an hour the children played, and everyone got soaked. Having changed our clothes we went to classes. While Maharashtra, the state Pune is located in, usually practices color play for Holi five days after the water play, some people play with colors the day after the fire ceremony, as do most Northern Indians. During lunch and after classes we were pelted with rangoli colors. The college campus on which we attend classes is next door to another college, and so all on BMCC Road and FC Road Alliance students and Ferguson College students played Holi, throwing colors on each other, and water. I had a great time and I felt renew. Holi, to me, is a beautiful celebration of life.
Photo Courtesy of Lily Stern
At the ceremony there are usually also drums, and once the fire is lit, each participant makes offerings to and prays to Holi. This is done by walking around Holi, the fire, in a clockwise circle once, and then tossing the offering, be it a coconut, food, papers, etc. into the fire. Some participants also pour water on the ground as they walk around the circle. As the participants walked around the fire, an older male family member would shout, in Marathi "End to Corruption" and then the rest of the family and participants would make a fist, open them mouth slightly, and quickly put the top of their fists on and off of their mouth, to make a noise signifying agreement.
The next morning the children of our society invited my roommate and I to another art of the Holi celebration- water play. At 7:00am armed with green water squirt guns and two packets of water guns my roommate and I entered into battle. For over an hour the children played, and everyone got soaked. Having changed our clothes we went to classes. While Maharashtra, the state Pune is located in, usually practices color play for Holi five days after the water play, some people play with colors the day after the fire ceremony, as do most Northern Indians. During lunch and after classes we were pelted with rangoli colors. The college campus on which we attend classes is next door to another college, and so all on BMCC Road and FC Road Alliance students and Ferguson College students played Holi, throwing colors on each other, and water. I had a great time and I felt renew. Holi, to me, is a beautiful celebration of life.
Photo Courtesy of Lily Stern
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