Manual of Hindu Festivals - eBook
niceties of
Hindu Festivals
भारतीय त्योहार
Hindu Festivals
भारतीय त्योहार
Introduction…
India, also known as Hindu Desa or Bharatha Desa is the land of God; religion, temples, sacred scripts, great sages; saints; philosophers; scientists, history, great rulers, traditions, festivals etc. incredibly rich in culture and heritage. Indian culture is unique culture. Since yore, several civilizations have come into being and later came to an end but, Hinduism is still flourishing. It is the oldest civilization on earth. Human excellence depends on the development of culture. Many small civilizations were formed but were confined to small regions. Only Indian civilization and culture has spread across the world and can be called as the first world culture. That’s why people from across the world will be longing to visit India to study and learn the great Indian culture.
Indian culture is human culture the one that focuses on inculcating human values in a man. Culture of India refers to the way of life of the people of India. Indian culture often labelled as an amalgamation of several cultures spans across the Indian sub-continent and has been influenced by a history that is several millions of years old.
Every school of thought is a part and parcel of Indian culture. In the words of Max Muller (German Indologist) “If I am asked which nation had been advanced in the ancient world in respect of education and culture then I would say it was India”
Utsava' is Sanskrit word for Hindu festivals; it refers to religious practices, customs & traditions. Sanskrit word Utsava comes from the word "ut" meaning "elimination" and "sava" which means "worldly sorrows" or "grief". Other names for Festival are Thyohaar, Parvan (Parva means sacred day).
Utsava (Ut+Sava) is Parva-dina the observance of which as per the laid down norms eliminates worldly sorrow/grief and paves way for spiritual awakening and an opportunity to take a step forward in the direction of understanding the Supreme Reality.
Repetition of these events is only to remind mankind their significance as they have become navigators of the great Hindu culture and heritage called Hindu Dharma also known as Sanatana Dharma.
India is a country flooded with spirituality, culture, heritage, traditions. Ever since epic days it is reflected through various events and festivals of unique Hindu calendar with a sacred message always concealed behind them.
Festivals in India are of various types such as, social, religious and national festivals celebrated in different parts. Focus of this study/document is confined to only traditional Hindu religious festivals which are again broadly classified as,
Lunar based – As per Lunar calendar based on Thithi like, Yugaadi, Vijaya Dasami, Ganesha Chaturthi etc. As per Lunar calendar there are 16 thithis (Lunar days) out of which 14 gets repeated twice in a cycle of 30 days starting from Prathipada (Paadyami) and ending with Chaturdasi. Other two thithis that occur once in a month are Pournami and AmaAvaasya.
Thus, there are 15 thithis in each fortnight one ending with Pournami called as Sukla Paksha (bright fortnight) and the other ending with AmaAvasya called Krishna Paksha (dark fortnight). Each thithi (lunar day) is associated with some or the other festival in Hindu religious calendar.
Solar based: As per Solar calendar based on transit of Sun like, Bhogi, Makara Sankranthi, Uttarayana;
River based: Pushkara, Kumbha Mela, Maagha Mela,
Pouranic based: Sri Rama Navami, Sri Krishna JanmaAshtami;
Temple based: Brahmotsavam, Ratha Yaathra, Car festivals,
Pithru related: Mahalaya Paksha (related to fore-fathers)
Culture based: RaAkhi, Holi,
Regional based: Mysore Dasara, Bathukamma (Telangana), Onam, Vishu (Kerala); Pongal (Tamil Nadu) etc…
Season (Ruthu) based: Vasantha Panchami, SharanNavarathri,
Above list is not exhaustive – only indicative.
With more than 12 years of experience as a Hindu religious and spiritual Blogger, having published in social media hundreds of articles on various topics, felt the need to consolidate them for the benefit of devout/novice society useful as a ready reference.
With this background a sincere attempt (as per my yogyata) has been made through this book-let titled “Hindu Festivals” to bring out in detail the concept, significance, technicalities, customs & traditions of some of the major festivals with its anusandhana mentioned as per Madhva sampradaya. Links have been provided for couple of indexed topics which are already covered in detail and published/uploaded.
I am confident that, devout society would make best use of the information provided and also share with likeminded.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nJ4n4ENXai6N2XXVO6KwSFPMhWcyoi8m/view?usp=sharing
You are an amazing contributor for todays social media living. From the time I have started following you and Sri Naraprasanna Vittala Dasa on Twitter, my doubts have cleared-started understanding the rituals and adapted in daily/monthly /annual routines-with meaning. You and NPVD are my go to person for clarity.
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