Some Indian Festivals and Their Importance.

 

We, in India celebrate lot of festivals. We inherited a rich culture through them. Most of the festivals we celebrate have seasonal elements involved in them, the rituals associated with them relate to that season. Many mythological stories are blended with the festivals. In India, god is only a personal belief. Some may believe and some maynot believe, every one is there for communal good. Let us discuss some festivals and their significance.

Let’s start with first festival of telugu calendar year, Ganesh Chaturdi. It occurs after the peak of monsoon and floods . The rituals are simple and related to nature. Puja is performed with 21 leaves collected from surroundings to a clay idol. Desilting operation is done to water bodies be it lake or pond or river during summer before monsoon. Fine clay is removed from the surface to accommodate more water. It should have been made a collective effort to bring the clay from water bodies and returning to their origins with some value addition. Leaves used during puja have medicinal qualities in them which will help treat the contaminated water bodies.

Ganesh chaturdi utsav organized at community level inaugurated by Bal Gangadhar Tilak as move challenging a ban on public gatherings by the British bring all sections of people together. But this could continued with clay idols and limited no of entities. We cannot afford to dump tons and tons of Plaster of Paris into rivers and lakes. Rather than having a Ganesh idol every for 100 m , if well coordinated within neighbourhood , a reduced number of idols is possible.

Now comes festival of lights, Diwali. It is the only festival celebrated on amavasya day which is followed by the holy kartika masam. Winter eventually starts after diwali. With our celebration we could throw away darkness to make  one new moon night  into a delightful night.

An array of diyas with sesame oil add heat to the atmosphere which is experiencing reduced temperatures . Lamping of light is continued for a month during holy Kartika masam. Lighting lamps at early morning 4 ‘O Clock is considered auspicious.  It is a usual practice for people in this country to wake up early in the morning to make use of day light for productive activities. When there was no electricity, days’s task were completed before the dusk settles down. Holy elements were brought in, so that shivering cold may cause deviation from the practice.

Fire crackers burned during Diwali are known to kill germs. Traditionally crackers were made at home, which are not harmful to human beings. Fasting during kartika masam is proven to have health benefits. Less digestive enzymes are produced during winter, fasting i.e consuming less will keep the digestive system intact.

Sankranti is the true festival of celebration. It is a festival of harvest. India is once agriculture based country. After months of hard work and receiving the crop, this festival is a gathering of happiness for agriculture based villages. Lot of cultural elements were included as part of celebration. Regional  Cuisines with the newly harvested crop are a speciality of Sankranti. Colourfull rangoli are made welcoming guests. Bommala koluvu showcases social events like marriage , etc in the form of idols and dolls. Cow dung balls  are arranged in the rangoli keep small insects away. Many people go to their native places to rejuvenate in villages.

Sankranti also signifies the movement of sun to ‘uttarayana’, i.e the movement of sun to summer solisitce starts on this day. This is the only festival celebrated as per solar calendar. It occurs on the same solar day every year. Season tends to change from this day. Uttarayan period is considered auspicious for performing marriages. Daskhinayan period is more prone to calamities like cyclone and floods. Uttarayan period is more favourable for event management. 

Telugu new year Ugadi occurs at the start of vasant ruthu marks a new beginning. As trees get new leaves and new life,  new energy pours in with a new beginning. Ugadi pachadi prepared on this event symbolizes life as a mixture of all emotions. Neem flowers cleanses the stomach. 

These are few examples , many more festivals are important form the perspective of  nature and its relation with human beings.