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Holi (India)
In
India they’ve been throwing paint at each other for centuries – there
are references dating back to 300 BC. Why they do so? To celebrate. This
orgy of colour marks the beginning of Holi, a two-week religious
festival held around the beginning of March.
Originally the bright pigments were made from natural plants and herbs believed to have healing properties. Many myths surround the festival’s origins.
I didn’t hear from this festival, until one of my mailfriends from India sent me a colourful Happy Holi mail.
Festival Kyoto
The festival of cows (Nepal)
Gaijatra means ‘festival of cows’. The most enjoyable part of this weeklong festival is the procession of costumed revellers representing holy cows on the way to heaven. The Nepalese Hindus regard cows as guides for the departed souls to go to heaven. So the bereaved families worship the cow on this day to guide their departed relatives. Last year I was in Kathmandu and on my last day there I ended up in the procession, not knowing what was going on…
Chinese New Year, the year of the rat
Chinese New Year is the longest
and most important celebration in the Chinese calendar.
The Chinese year 4706 begins on Feb. 7, 2008.
Chinese months are reckoned by the lunar calendar. New Year festivities
traditionally start on the first day of the month and continue until the
fifteenth, when the moon is brightest. In China, people may take weeks
of holiday from work to prepare for and celebrate the New Year.
Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve came, and Buddha named a year after each one. He announced that the people born in each animal's year would have some of that animal's personality. Those born in rat years tend to be leaders, pioneers, and conquerors. They are charming, passionate, charismatic, practical and hardworking.
At Chinese New Year celebrations
people wear red clothes, decorate with poems on red paper, and give
children "lucky money" in red envelopes. Red symbolizes fire, which
according to legend can drive away bad luck. The fireworks that shower
the festivities are rooted in a similar ancient custom. Long ago, people
in China lit bamboo stalks, believing that the crackling flames would
frighten evil spirits.
In China, the New Year is a time of family reunion. Family members
gather at each other's homes for visits and shared meals, most
significantly a feast on New Year's Eve. In the United States, however,
many early Chinese immigrants arrived without their families, and found
a sense of community through neighborhood associations instead. Today,
many Chinese-American neighborhood associations host banquets and other
New Year events.
Chinese New Year ends with the lantern festival on the fifteenth day of
the month. Some of the lanterns are painted with birds, animals, flowers,
zodiac signs, and scenes from legend and history. People hang glowing
lanterns in temples, and carry lanterns to an evening parade under the
light of the full moon.
In many areas the highlight of the lantern festival is the dragon dance.
The dragon—which might stretch a hundred feet long—is typically made of
silk, paper, and bamboo. Traditionally the dragon is held aloft by young
men who dance as they guide the colorful beast through the streets.
Chinese New Year 2008:
Noruz
Noruz is the most cherished of all the
Iranian festivals and is celebrated by all. This occasion has been
renowned in one form or another by all the major cultures of ancient
Mesopotamia. What we have today as Noruz with its' uniquely Iranian
characteristics has been celebrated for at least 3,000 years.
Modern Iranians celebrate the New
Year for 13 days. It is customary for all to take a bath and cleanse
themselves thoroughly before Noruz. This is a purification rite.
New garments are worn. Noruz is a feast of hope and renewal.
Families stay at home and wait for the start of the New Year which
starts between the 19th and 21st of March.
Once the New Year is announced (on the radio or TV) younger members of
the family will pay respect to elders by wishing them a merry New Year
and sometimes they kiss their hands (a sign of ultimate respect).
Relatives kiss and hug and presents (traditionally cash or coins) are
exchanged. Sweets are offered to all to symbolically sweeten their lives
for the rest of the year. A small mirror is passed around, rose water is
sprinkled into the air and a popular incense is burnt, to keep the evil
eye away. In more traditional families, the father and the first born
son will walk around the house with a lit candle and a small mirror to
ritually bless the physical space.
The first few days of the festival period are spent visiting older
members of the family, relatives and friends. Children receive presents
and sweets and special meals are consumed.
Celebrating Noruz
More festivals? Send your colourful pictures and/or stories to: cedars@live.nl
