As the monsoon ends, there are many colourful festivals that are celebrated all over India. Janmashtami, Ganesh Chaturthi, the ten day Dasara or Mahanavami - it ends with the festival of lights, Deepavali that signals the shorter nights in the Northern hemisphere. Colourful decorations, traditional hymns, sweets & savouries accompanied with some stories about the origins of these festivals mark the trail. Join us and get a peek into the festivals of India.
Krishna Janmashtami(AUG_SEP)
The celebration of the birth Lord Krishna. Quite, like Jesus, Krishna's birth is prophetic and dramatic. He is an avatar(incarnation) of Lord Vishnu and throughout his life as a human, he's the supportor of the righteous.
Janmashtami or Gokulashtami is celebrated in South India with a colourful array of miniature dolls recreating the birth and life of Lord Krishna. It's also a culinary extravagance and treats children as Gods. Visit the homes and temples, appreciate the culture and learn a bit about South Indian religions and communities. |
Ganesh Chaturthi(AUG_SEP)
Lord Ganesh is probably the most popular God in India. The remover of our trouble and obstacles has a colourful birth. He's Elephant headed for a reason.
During this time, the homes worship Ganesh's idol but it's the colourful community festivals that are a sight to see. Huge makeshift pandals (structures) come up on street corners. POP statues of Lord Ganesh, his parents(Shiva and Parvathi), their home in Himalayas are all very colourful and decorated. Loud music - devotional and otherwise, sweets (laddoos are his favourite) are distributed with his blessings. Community events happen the entire week. Visit the community festivities, take the Lord's blessings and relish the sweets if you are here during this time. |
DASARA - MAHANAVAMI(SEP_OCT)
This festival, perhaps, is the most celebrated festival all over India & South East Asia. A nine day (navami) winter festival, it marks the ever running battle of Good and Evil, with Good winning in the end. On the tenth day(Vijayadashami), there are celebrations marking this divine victory.
Whether it is Goddess Durga killing the demon Mahisha in East India or Rama killing Ravana in the North or the huge military and cultural parade of Mysore, Dasara is colourful, with lot of pomp and extravaganza.
It was also a time, in olden India, to start a new military campaign either to safeguard or expand an empire. Learn of mythologies, history and culture during this time to India. And yes, the epitome of this festival in the South is the Mysore Dasara. It's also a precursor to the Mughal parades and later Independent India's Republic day parades.
Whether it is Goddess Durga killing the demon Mahisha in East India or Rama killing Ravana in the North or the huge military and cultural parade of Mysore, Dasara is colourful, with lot of pomp and extravaganza.
It was also a time, in olden India, to start a new military campaign either to safeguard or expand an empire. Learn of mythologies, history and culture during this time to India. And yes, the epitome of this festival in the South is the Mysore Dasara. It's also a precursor to the Mughal parades and later Independent India's Republic day parades.
