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March 17, 2022
The festival of colours popularly known as Holi is celebrated during the month of February and March. This month is also marked as “Phalgun” in the Hindi calendar. There are several stories that revolve around the history of Holi celebration. One of the famous tales was the story about Hiranyakashipu. Hiranyakashipu was an asur (loosely translated to a demon) who desired that people would become his devotees and worship him. He wanted people to bow down to his enormous power. However his own son Prahlad, preferred to worship Lord Vishnu and not him. Agitated Hiranyakashipu wanted to punish Prahlad. He also asked his sister Holika to accompany and sit in the fire. Hiranyakashipu knew that Holika was immune to the fire. When she sat, the flames killed Holika and Prahlad was untouched and safe in the fire. Lord Vishnu came in the Narsimha Form and killed Hiranyakashipu. The event where Holika was burnt is termed as Holika Dahan. In several parts of India, Holi has a significant story.
The people in Mathura celebrate this beautiful festival by worshipping Radha and Krishna.However the post important thing about Holi is that it brings in a sense of collective belonging amongst several people and gifts them a beautiful smile.
By Subhechcha Ganguly
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