Holi, The Hindu Celebration of Colour

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Holi

God Krishna playing Holi with Radha and other Gopis
Also called Festival of colours
Observed by Indians (mainly Hindus, Sikhs,Muslims, Buddhists and Jains), almost all Nepalese (mainly Hindus and a fair amount of Buddhists)
Begins Phalgun Purnima or Pooranmashi (Full Moon)
Date March
2009 date March 11
Celebrations 3 – 16 days

Holi, also called the Festival of Colors, is a popular Hindu spring festival observed in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and countries with large Hindu diaspora populations, such as Suriname, Guyana, South Africa, Trinidad, the UK, Mauritius, and Fiji. In West Bengal of India and Bangladesh it is known as Dolyatra (Doul Jatra) or Basanta-Utsab (“spring festival”). The most celebrated Holi is that of the Braj region, placed connected to Krishna – Mathura, Vrindavan, Nandagaon and Barsana, places which have become tourist destinations during the festive season of Holi, which lasts here to up to sixteen days [1].

The main day, Holi, also known as Dhulheti, Dhulandi or Dhulendi, is celebrated by people throwing colored powder and colored water at each other. Bonfires are lit the day before, also known as Holika Dahan (death of Holika) or Chhoti Holi (little Holi). The bonfires are lit in memory of the miraculous escape that young Prahlad had when Demoness Holika, sister of Hiranyakashipu, carried him into the fire. Holika was burnt but Prahlad, a staunch devotee of god Vishnu, escaped without any injuries due to his unshakable devotion. Holika Dahan is referred to as Kama Dahanam in Andhra Pradesh.

Holi is celebrated at the end of the winter season on the last full moon day of the lunar month Phalguna (February/March), (Phalgun Purnima), which usually falls in the later part of February or March. In 2009, Holi (Dhulandi) was on March 11 and Holika Dahan was on March 10.

I discovered Holi yesterday and have decided that I love the idea of it. I love faiths of all kinds and have tried to incorporate different traditions from different cultures in my life. So, when I discovered Holi, not only was I in love with the story and the celebration, but I loved how beautiful it looks hnd how well it would look in photos. My friends and I have decided to have a Holi type celebration. Sadly, it will be far too cold to do it during the traditional time, so we’re going to either do it in Septermber (the exact opposite day from the actual Holi day) or next year in late May early July. It depends on the fundage. The only requirement is to wear a plain white shirt. I think the colors will look even better when they’re on material. I am going to do my best to acquire a sari (finally) since I have been trying to do so for YEARS!

The following pictures I got from Photobucket. I did not take any of them myself.

Things I do / do not want for my Handfasting

WANT
Off white cotton/linen shift
A gold cord
Bonfire
Beach
Sunflowers and other Autumn colored flowers EVERYWHERE
Flower Garlands for all females, a huge one for me
Flower lei type things for all males
Ivy
Pagan Clergy
A home made, symbolic feast
Cherry Almond Cake
Wine, Juice, Punch and many mixed drinks
Many Vegetarian/Vegan dishes as well as meat dishes
Certain friends and family
Mom, Dad, Christy, Richard and Autumn (If they want to)
Granny & Gramps
Great One
Uncle Chris
Aunt Gwen, Jason, Nicole, Jeremy, Cindy
Aunt Colette and Charlie
Lisa S & Matt J
Dick & Noah Hufford
Amy, Michael, Andrea, Matthew, Alice
Anthony and Rachel
Jim and Barb
Care, Bobby, Billy
Trish & Jim Mian
Chuck Kohler
Kirk & Nancy
Carol and Gary
Jerry & Paula
Jenny, Steve, Justin, Emily & Nick, Brian & Val, Kait & Justin, Jessica & Scott, Michelle, Gabby, Cassie, David Lloyd, Corinne & Nik, Arielle, Annick and Michael, Tanja and Alex, Chrissy?, Megan & Sean, Cristin & Dave, Maria and Sheryl, Shawn, Rick M, Jessie Orr & John, Jessie Wheeler & John, Holly & Jim, Jenny Ohmann, Ed, Brit and Amber Orr, Wendi & Cheyenne, Kellie & Chris, Laura W, Lindsay & Jason
Tigger & Diane
Paul & Carrie Hinderliter
Mark & Sheri
Harry T & Kaitlin
George & Joanne S
The list will grow
A video of the whole day, from when I wake until the celebration ends.
All guests to participate
Jenny and maybe Shawn or Brian to officiate

DO NOT WANT
Shoes

A lot of jewelry

Walls

Modern music

A traditional ceremony

Traditional vows

Traditional anything

Catering

Gifts

Limo

Anyone from the Easton side of the family besides dad

ROSES

Makeup unless it’s light, simple and barely noticable

Trash
Recycle EVERYTHING
Composting

Soda or anything else that’s THAT unhealthy

Things I have never done

Broken a bone
Been a bridesmaid. I almost was for my SIL wedding, but I then decided to protest and stepped out.
Been arrested
Been on a road trip alone
Been asked for my number by someone I just met
Seen the movie “The Godfather”
Been in a limo
Taken any public transportation other than a school bus
Been on a train
Hailed a taxi
Been to a costume party. I tend to avoid them,
Participated in a large protest or demonstraition
Gone skinny dipping. For obvious reasons.
Stolen a street sign
Streaked. Again for obvious reasons.
Spent more than $100 on any piece of clothing
Changed a flat tire
Gotten straight A’s

Traits Inherited from my Parents

Father
Inpatience
Moody
The need for instant gratification
The love to drive
The love of nature and animals
Loyalty
Prone to *********
Must ALWAYS be right
Goofy
The love of measuring and calculating
The love of salt
Cooking
The need to be outside
Stubbornness
My driving skills

Mother
Doesn’t like beer
Loves to read
Can’t sing
Love of Cat Stevens, Don McLean, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young and Simon & Garfunkle
Love of horror movies
Prone to *********
The love of coloring
Forgetfulness
Goes off wildly
The love of being w/ friends
The love of music

Things That Went Wrong For My Wedding

- Constant fighting w/ my MIL (This is FAR before we liked eachother) Because of a fight w/ her, Ted ended up having to knock his dad out from coming after me with a closed fist because he didn’t like me talking back to his wife.

- MIL and GMIL made sure to tell the priest that I was Pagan so that the wedding wouldn’t be a Sacrament for Ted.

- Because my in-laws were paying for a part of the wedding, my MIL refused to let me choose a LOT of my own wedding.

Bridesmaids dresses were hideous. Maroon and shapeless
Maroon dresses, red roses
Sterling Lavender Roses in bouquet, Red roses for bridesmaids

- A week before invites were to go out, the apartment flooded and they were ruined.

- Because of all of the fighting with my MIL and her constant threats to “pull funding”, Ted and I cancelled the cake, the reception hall / catering and the videographer (everything she was paying for) and uninvited 150 guests two weeks before the wedding.

- Wedding coordinator sold MY dress and replaced it with a dress that someone hand made that was 18 inches too short before I put on shoes. She did this between my last fitting and the wedding. I found out 4 days before the wedding and couldn’t afford to buy a new one. She tried to convince me that this WAS my dress.

- Two words. Ruffles and Bows.

- Wedding coordinator lost my shoes, crinoline and nylons on the morning of my wedding. I had to wear white slippers, white tights and a hoopskirt that made my dress a good 2.5 feet too short. Fat girls should NEVER wear hoopskirts!

- In trying to convince me that my antique gold necklace that my grandmother gave me that she and my great-grandmother wore on their wedding day didn’t go with my dress, she lost it. I am devestated to this day that I don’t have it.

- Three words. WORST . HAIRDO. EVER. Done by the coordinator who was also my MIL’s hairstylist. It took 2 hours and three bottles of conditioner to get all of the ratting out of my hair.

- Coordinator made me dress at her house and ride in the front seat of a tiny car in a hoopskirt that was over my head from New Baltimore to Royal Oak.

- Went to pick up one of my best friends for the wedding and he was still asleep and didn’t hear us pounding on the door so he missed the wedding.

- Because of the last 2, I was 20 minutes late for my own wedding ceremony and Ted thought I stood him up at the altar.

- My granny and gramps were too sick to travel that far for the wedding. We decided to have our honeymoon there so we could show them the video and make them a part of the wedding anyway.

- MIL wore black to the wedding and wouldn’t stand for the Blessing.

- Back of the church roof caved in during the ceremony. Too many Pagans in a Catholic Church I guess.

- My aunt, who was taking over for the videographer we cancelled, only taped five minutes of the ceremony. She stopped right before my daddy gave me away. At the end she filmed her daughter and grand-daughter for 6 minutes.

- The church didn’t tape the wedding like it was supposed to. I got screwed on seeing my wedding or taking it to my grandparents for them to see.

- My “wedding dress” fell apart at the reception. The sewing was so shoddy that the train, once bustled, was too heavy for the stiching at the waist and the seams broke.Thank God I had other clothes with me.

- My dress got mud on it from the rain and snow.

- Ted got sick at the recetion and we had to leave early from our own reception.

- No sex on my wedding night.

- People kept showing up at our house that night.

If I had Children…

I will give them cool, original earthy names. Hopefully they will not get teased.
I will encourage them to get dirty.
I will encourage imagination and creativity.
I will let them choose how they want to decorate their room.
I will let them choose their own clothes, no matter how young and no matter what color or pattern combination they choose.
I will teach them that books are their friends.
I will teach them the importance of honesty, but also, the gracefulness of tact. Too many parents forget that part.
I will show them and well as tell them that I love them. The words are not as important as the deeds.
I will expose them to culture at every given chance.
I will teach my children traditions of our heritage. If adopted, I will teach them ours and also learn theirs.
I will read to them nightly from BIG books, not just baby books. I will continue doing so long after they have learned to read for themselves.
I will ask them to read to me as well.
I will listen and hear and not be so quick to respond.
I will try not to protect them from ALL bad experiences. After all, how else will a person grow to be strong unless they deal with some hardships?
I will make NO subject taboo.
I will talk to them freely and without prejudice.
I will talk to them about ANYTHING, no matter how painful.
I will act silly with them.
I will play with them all the time. I wish my mom had played house with Christy and me.
I will teach them that beauty comes is all shapes, sizes colors and nationalities and that ugly is not a description for someone’s physical person.
I will encourage active participation in hobbies.
I will encourage them to try things that they’ve never tried before.
I will Encourage them to be artistic.
I will never, ever, fight in front of them.
I will rarely feed them anything canned, packaged and NEVER from a drive-thru.
I will talk to them and try my hardest never to yell.
I will NOT allow them to sleep with me on a regular basis. Nap time occasionally or for the once in a while nightmare (not every nightmare though) is okay.
I will cuddle them every day.
I will NOT spoil them.
I will teach them the value of a dollar, but not make them “earn” an allowance doing chores that they should do with being paid to do so.
I will take pictures of them constantly.
I will make sure that there are always pets in the house. It teaches responsibility and about death at the worst moments.
I will not allow Barbies, Brats or any other toy that I deem demeaning to any person or ideal.
I will do crafts with them.
I will home school, but make sure that they are a part of many outside activities to maintain their social health.
I will cook with them.
I will teach them the importance of good nutrition and healthy cooking.
I will travel with them no matter how short the trip is.
I will not allow my children to have their own cell phone, pager, computer, or laptop until they are 17 or going to college. Whichever comes first. Then, when they do, they will have to pay the bills themselves.
I will built forts, pitch tents and if possible, build a tree house with them.
I will buy toys that run on imagination instead of electricity.
I will not allow my children to be raised by the television. TV will be for special occasions only.
I will make my children spend as much time outdoors as possible. I will be with them as much as possible.
I will not choose my children’s religion. I will teach them Ted’s beliefs and my beliefs, but I will not baptize or choose that religion for them.

Things I love / Hate about my apartment

Love

It’s the perfect size (in total)
It’s close enough to the city to have all of the cool city amenities, yet far enough away (3.5 blocks out of down town) to be quieter and calmer.
You can get to almost anything on foot and if you can’t, then there is a bus line right here that will take you anywhere else.
You can see the fireworks from my yard.
We can have pets.
The city is an art center.
We have an awesome balcony garden.
We have a huge bathroom.
We have a decent sized kitchen.
We have tons of cabinet space.
We have a big yard.
Our landlord is easy to talk to and very understanding.
We don’t have to pay utilities.
We have excellent neighbors. (mostly)
The neighborhood is nice.

Hate

No screens in 4 of the 7 windows.
The porch gets REALLY hot because it’s over a tar roof.
The yard isn’t fenced in, so the dogs need to be on their “chain” or we have to be with them to keep close eye on them.
No washer and dryer. We have to go to a laundry mat and that not only costs a lot of money, but also abuses the earth.
The bedroom is really small.
It also has a strange “box” sticking out from the wall that supports a heater vent. This “box” makes it very difficult to place furniture in the way we want.
The heating vents act as intercom speakers so we can hear:
Our neighbors having sex (And I am POSITIVE they can hear us)
Their horrid collection of Hanson, Back Street Boys, ‘N Sync, etc. CDs
Their arguments that consist of screaming, crying (usually him) and the throwing of what I have to assume are very large objects… or eachother.
His renditions of “The Sign” and other Ace of Base songs.
When he wacks it to Asian Lesbian Porn. How do I know this? Because apparently he can’t hear the TV over his own moaning, so he turns the TV up and I can hear both CRYSTAL CLEAR.
The video games played by the front neighbor.
The vents also serve as a great way to smell your neighbors, bringing into our home the lovely bouquets of:
Burnt toast and popcorn, several times a month.
David’s cologne that gags me nearly every morning. Why he puts it on so heavy is beyond me, plus, Stephanie is supposed to be VERY sensitive to strong smells.
The previous neighbor’s attempt at “indian food” that smelled of old, burning, stinky cheese and fish.
The even more previous neighbor’s garbage that she forgot to take out before her 30 day stint in rehab. Rotten meat isn’t too pleasant even after a week. Try 30 days.
The smoke alarms aren’t actually smoke alarms, they are heat detectors and are all placed within three to five feet of the oven, thus going off every time I cook.
Speaking of heat; We live in an old house that has been split into 3 units and the heat is controlled by the back neighbor. They don’t like to adjust the heat so that all three units are happy. Thus our apartment is either stiefeling or freezing.
Not enough windows and the ones I have are too small.
The outside wooden staircase that climbe to the 2nd floor is falling apart. One of my friends broke a step on his way down.
Not enough ooutside lighting. I mean we ARE close enough to the city for us to need adequite outside lighting.
The house across the street has band practice in the basement from 7pm until 2am on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. It’s loud enough to make the glass in our windows shake.