To meet devotees and play colors
Dola Purnima is a very special and unique function, when the God comes out to meet the devotees and start the festival of colors - the most awaited festival for kids. The deities are taken out in procession in a very well decorated palanquin ( known as Vimana) and then devotees offer their prayers along with Sweets / fruits and natural dry colours (Abira). In villages this is a very grand ceremony, where many deities from different villages join together at a common place called Melana Padia (Meeting place). It almost spans the entire night with a very large procession including many different shows / action. Stiff competition happens among villages in decorating the Vimanas and showing their art and skill. And the God goes to each home in morning / evening hours before coming for this final meet at the common place.
But we kept it simple in our apartment society, in fact, this has been started just two years back. There is a lot of room for improvements and hopefully we will get it done better with contributions from devotees.
This small Vimana was very nicely decorated by our support staffs and kept ready by the evening, the event was planned to be started at 7 pm.
Then we carried the Vimana to the front of the society where the offerings were made by residents. The loud sound of Ghanta (a metallic gong) along with the blaring of conch shells reminds the residents to come out and meet the God in open, offer their prayers and sprinkle colors on him.
The Lord stayed for almost a hour there, and then taken back to the temple in a procession, going round the society.
With this festival, we welcome the spring, which is sometimes referred as ‘Basantotsaba’ - the spring festival. And this also sets out the spirit for Holi - the festival of colors which is about to happen in 2 days. And do you know this festival of colors is actually a festival of victory of good over evil, according to Hindu mythology ? Here is the full story :
There was a demon king, Hiranyakashyap. He was so egoistic that he commanded everybody in his kingdom to worship him.
But his son Prahlad became an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu and refused to worship his father. Hiranyakashyap tried several ways to kill his son Prahlad but Lord Vishnu saved him every time. Finally, he asked his sister, Holika to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad in her lap.
Hiranyakashyap knew that Holika had a boon, whereby, she could enter the fire unscathed.
Holika had to pay the price of her sinister desire with her life. Holika was not aware that the boon worked only when she entered the fire alone. Prahlad, who kept chanting Vishnu Nama all this while, came out unharmed, as the Lord blessed him for his extreme devotion.
Thus, Holi derives its name from Holika and is celebrated as a festival of victory of good over evil.
Mangoes
We used to hear these in our childhood, our bed time real stories as per mythology. And they were always teaching us that the good always wins over evil - an ethical learning. And did you notice the mangoes ?
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