Holi - A Celebration Of Colour, Joy And Springtime

Holi is also known as the festival of love, and is a Hindu spring festival of joy, dancing, and most of all COLOUR. You might otherwise know it as the "paint-throwing festival".

It's also celebrated by non-Hindus all around South Asia, is primarily observed in India, Nepal and is found in many other areas with a significant population of Hindus or people of Indian origin. It takes place on the approach of the Full Moon, typically around the beginning of March, and celebrates the triumph of good over evil.

A good reason for a party!

Throwing paint and partying to prevent sleepiness?

A spring celebration of love, fun and colours, Holi comes at a time in the year when people in India are starting to feel more sluggish and sleepy due to the change from the cool weather of winter to the warmer (and frankly very hot) weather of the summer.

It's a natural reaction for the body to begin feeling tired and lacking in energy due to changes in the weather, and many people believe that this festival's timing is partially designed to reinvigorate the body and mind, through fun, frolics and of course the adrenalin of having water and paint thrown at you and the rejuvenation of the body through dance, music and song. Something we can all relate to!

Spring cleaning time

Holi not only celebrates the onset of the warmer weather - the end of winter and beginning of summer - it also heralds the time of the Spring Clean, much as we have in the UK, cleaning out the dust and mess of winter, to get rid of beasties, bed bugs, and other pests, and to clean the air in the house after the winter "pollution season". A clean house inspires positive energies and makes the inhabitants feel good and energised.

What the party looks like

The Holi celebration day itself is a phenomenal explosion of colour and noise. The traditional greeting of the festival is by taking a handful of paint and daubing it on others' faces, but of course the reality is that everyone is fair game for a soaking and a paint-splattering. Rich, poor, boss, employee, man, woman, children, elders... all are in the firing line from pots of colour, handfuls of paint powder, water pistols, water balloons filled with dye, buckets of coloured water...

Holi is also known as a festival of new starts and forgiveness, and originally comes with the aim of ritualising and increasing harmony in society. A new dawn, and a new day. And for that we should all celebrate!

The after-effects:

 The cumulative effect of a day of dipping hands in paint powder:

 Hmmm, maybe wearing glasses wasn't such a good idea: