You can imagine the amount of comments I received after posting this as my profile picture on Facebook. There were some who knew exactly what this picture was about and then there were those who were utterly clueless. It was funny to read the comments from those who were confused, but it was difficult to explain my picture to them.
Phagwah a.k.a. Holi is a Hindu festival in which we throw colored powder onto each other and into the air to celebrate the coming of Spring. . . That's the simplest definition I can use to describe the holiday to someone who previously knew nothing of it. But, even with this definition, it's hard for those to truly understand the essence of what happens during this holiday. It's probably even harder to imagine participating in this gathering when they most likely won't consider it "normal".
"Normal" it is to us to rub powder on a stranger's face and say, "Happy Holi," on this day.
I'm happy to have been born into this culture to celebrate Phagwah with nothing except comfort, love and excitement.
haha, it's so funny that you said what you wrote on your first paragraph because that was exactly what i was thinking! i think that's a great way to celebrate holidays because it lets you interact with people whom you do not know.. and it makes the holiday itself more personal.
ReplyDeletelol..I know exactly what you mean by that..Holi is celebrated in my culture as well. I didn't know that it was called phagwah too. A club from my previous school in Alabama used to organize a holi event where we put colors and splashed water to each other. It was fun for us, but strange to people walking by who had no clue what was going on.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a fun celebration. I have never seen or heard of such an event before but it would be great to experience.Its always great to see someone who enjoys their culture since there are some people who do not.
ReplyDeletePrinita, I'm glad to see you've enjoyed my blog entry but I must tell you that I was floored by yours! It's always so incredible to read about and see somebody who embraces their culture the way you do. Not many people actually take pride in such a different aspect of their lives and seek to educate others in what makes this way of life spectacular and just as special as something ordinary we typically see, so to speak. I, myself, have never heard of Holi but it really does sound like something so unique and worth learning a little more about.
ReplyDeleteall i have to say is that this looks awesome. i would love to witness this firsthand
ReplyDeletethis looks like it's fun! I'm with Ibrahim, I would like to watch this firsthand and maybe even join in!! =)
ReplyDeleteThis sounds and looks like alot of fun. Its a different but interesting way to interact with people.
ReplyDeleteI just learned a new thing that in some part of the world people celebrate the coming of the spring! This a fun of way of giving respect for nature!
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