Holi 2013
(CHAKRA) – Holi Hai!! Happy Holi! Also greeted in India as Shubh Holi and is the celebration of colours followed mainly in India, along with a presence in Nepal, US, Canada and UK. Holi is being celebrated on March 27th, 2013 across the world by Hindus and Non-Hindus around the world. Holi is one of the biggest celebrations for the Indian diaspora. According to the Hindu calendar, Holi is celebrated on the full moon day in the month of Phalgun.
Holika Dahan is being celebrated on the eve of Holi. The tradition behind the holika dahan is, demon King Hiranyakashyap asked his sister Holika to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad in her lap but Prahlad was saved by lord himself for his extreme devotion and evil minded Holika was burnt to ashes. People gather at streets, colonies, crossroads and light huge bonfires.
People of all ages celebrate Holi and paint each other by throwing colourful water with powder. This is why Holi is known as the ‘festival of colours’.
Many Hindus living in Islamic nations have called the ‘festival of colours’ as the ‘festival of fear’ as they refrain from celebrating any popular festival so local muslims do not find out that they are Hindu due to fear of segregation and attacks from extremists. The Daily Times published an article called the ‘Festival of colours or fear?’ highlighting the grave situation of Hindus in Pakistan and how they cannot celebrate Holi among other major hindu religious festivals.
The Chakra News team wishes everyone an auspicious and happy / shubh Holi as well as our prayers for Hindus living in fear during Holi due to religious bigots. Keep the world full of colour.
So Sad ! Hindus can’t even celebrate HOLI in many Muslim nations
KARACHI: Thirty-two year old school teacher, a Hindu widow Shanti Kumari named her second son Zafar when class fellows and friends of her elder son Prakash Kumar kept asking every time about Hindu gods and goddesses, they saw in Indian films.
“I never wanted my children to get segregated from their friends, so I simply gave him an Arabic name,” she said. Kumari is also not celebrating the colourful religious festival of Holi publicly, so that people in her neighbourhood do not find out about her religion. The festival of Holi, which is the festival of spring and is more cultural than religious will be celebrated on Tuesday (today) and Rangoli or the festival of colours, will fall on Wednesday.
She lives in an apartment building in Saddar town where residents belong to almost every religion; sect and ethnic background. Apartment buildings with mixed social groups are becoming popular, as people find it safer to live in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious set-up.
“I heard about many cases of blasphemy, and as a teacher, I know that religious education is a part of all educational institutes. I did not want to see my sons being discriminated against on the basis of their beliefs,” Kumari said.
http://dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013%5C03%5C26%5Cstory_26-3-2013_pg12_3
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The days prior to the last don’t have a lot happening exepct, the installation of the ceremonial pole called chir’, on the first day. It’s a bamboo pole, fringed with strips of cloth representing good luck charms. It is said to symbolize the tree on which lord Krishna hung the milkmaids’ garments while they were bathing, unseen as they thought, in the Jamuna river of northern India. As the pole is put up in the street at Basantapur, the festivities and worship commences for the week. At the end of which its taken to a bonfire.