Wish You A Happy Holi | History & Significance
Holi is the time that ushers the welcoming of the spring season and ends the winter blues. Historically, it holds a lot of importance. From folklores to songs, you can find a lot of mentions of this festival. Many believe that the festival marks the celebration of good over evil. Holika Dahan, held a day before Holi resonates with the fact that evil cannot hold for a long time.
Largely celebrated in the northern part of the country, the festival of colours and love falls a day after the full moon. While a pious Holika bonfire is lit a day before the actual celebration, people come together to celebrate the victory of good over evil and splash colours of happiness around each other. No matter how you wish to celebrate, the feelings are all the same. Some splash around water pichkaaris, some use balloons, some use natural gulaal and flowers.
On Holika Dahan, a bonfire is lit and a special type of Puja is performed to mark the occasion and to burn evil spirits. On the day of Holi, people enjoy splashing colours over each other.
History
There are two very famous stories associated with the history of the festival. The first one being of demon king Hiranyakashyap. According to Hindu mythology, the king was given the boon that he could not be killed by either a man or any animal, that is why he wanted people to worship him. However, his own son was a devotee of Lord Vishnu and refused to worship his father. Getting angry at him, the king asked his sister Holika to hold his son and sit in a pyre. While sitting in the fire, Prahlad was saved by Lord Vishnu but Holika died, that is why the day is also known as Holika Dahan.
After that, Lord Vishnu took the avatar of Narasimha which was half-human and the half-lion and killed the demon king. That is why Holi is also known as the day when the good wins over the evil and people start afresh.
Significance of Holika Dahan
The celebration of Holika Dahan is carried in the remembrance of the Holika, the Demon King, Hiranyakashyap, wanted everyone to worship him, but his son, Prahlad, refused to do so, as he was a devotee of Lord Vishnu. The Demon King was angry and asked his sister Holika, to take Prahlad in her arms and enter a blazing fire. She had been granted a boon that had made her immune to fire but she got burnt to death as the boon was applicable only when she entered the fire alone and the Lord protected Prahlad.
It is also believed that Lord Vishnu appeared as half-man, half-lion and killed Hiranyakashyap at dusk and saved his follower Prahlada from pyre while Prahlada’s evil aunt Holika burned.
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