Religions of India

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This festival is also known by two other names: either Holaka or Phagwa. Although it is the least religious holiday, it still puts a lot of emphasis on spirituality. It is the celebration of the springtime and a very joyous and happy festival. Some call it the festival of love or the festival of color, it is one of the most popular Hindu festivals for Non-Hindus.. The celebration begins on the night before Holi actually starts, by lighting a special bonfire, where people gather to sing and dance in celebration of the defeat of evil. The next morning people celebrate Holi by throwing colored powder and colored water, some even use water guns and balloons filled with colored water. Often people gather in large crowds and participate in what Americans would call a color war. Participants end up covered from head to toe in all sorts of bright colors. The colors are one of the most identifiable aspects of Holi. This characteristic of Holi is most popular outside the religion and was possibly a big influence for color runs and color raves in America. There are people singing and dancing, playing drums and other musical instruments. Food and drinks are shared including some drinks that cause intoxication. There are several legends about the origin of Holi but the most popular involves the demon king Hiranyakashyap. The demon king wanted all in his kingdom to worship only him. Despite his wishes, his son Prahlad decided to worship Lord Naarayana instead of his father. Outraged by his decision Hiranyakashyap tried many times to put Prahlad to death, finally going to his sister Holika and asking her to enter the eternal fire with his son. The king knew she had a way to enter the fire unscathed, but when she tried to enter with Prahlad she burned. She had not realized that it only worked when she was alone. Prahlad survived, because he was saved by Lord Vishnu. The name Holi comes from Holika, and celebrates good conquering evil. (Holika)

The next popular Hindu festival is known as Diwali. It is the festival of lights and is sometimes referred to at Deepavali. It resembles Christmas in that everyone decorates their houses with lights and candles, and there is a visitor to each, but instead of Santa Claus it is the Goddess Lakshmi. Another similarity Diwali has with the Christmas season is that people spend a lot of money during this time. People buy new clothes and give gifts to family and friends. It is considered one of the happiest celebrations in India. During Diwali many Hindus celebrate by shooting elaborate fireworks. The Diwali festival lines up with celebrations of several other Indian religions. The Jains celebrate a light festival, Sikhs celebrate Bandi Chhor Divas, and even some Buddhists celebrate Diwali to remember how Ashoka converted to Buddhism, all of these celebrate the victory of good over evil. The most popular myth related to Diwali Is the story of Rama and Sita from the Ramayana. The story starts with Lord Rama being exiled with his wife Sita and his younger brother by his father. While in exile his wife is kidnapped bt the demon Ravana. With the help of the monkey god hanuman Rama defeated the demon Ravana and rescued Sita. They then returned to the homeland. This is remembered during diwali because the good Rama defeated the evil Ravana.

The last festival and one of the largest gatherings of people in the world is the Kumbh Mela. This festival is held every four years with a special celebration on the twelfth year. The celebration is held in four different cities on the banks of the holy rivers. The four cities are Allahabad or Prayaga, Trimbak or Nashik, Ujjain, and Haridwar. In 2013 more than 120 million people attended the festival (Kumbh Mela). The festival is actually the largest religious pilgrimage, where Hindus go and bathe in the sacred rivers. The Kumbh Mela has been going on for so long that there is no record of when the first took place. The myth of the Kumbh Mela starts with gods and demons living on the earth. The gods had been cursed and were growing weak and dying. In order to preserve their lives they had to create an elixir of immortality. They went to the demons to ask for help with the elixir and the demons agreed. After the elixir was made, the gods decided to keep the elixir for themselves and not share with the demons. When the demons found out about the plans of the gods they were outraged, and decided to attack. The gods, who were in a weakened state and could not take on the demons, turned and ran with the elixer to hide. The gods ran for twelve days and nights and drops of the elixir fell in four locations. That is where the 12 years and four locations of the festival came from.(History)