New Delhi, Mar 14 (EFE).- India on Friday celebrated the Hindu festival of Holi, a popular holiday in which thousands of people get together to throw colored powder and water at each other in anticipation of the arrival of spring.
“Heartiest greetings to all countrymen on the auspicious occasion of Holi, the festival of colors. This festival of joy gives the message of unity, love, and harmony. This festival is also a symbol of India’s precious cultural heritage,” Indian President Droupadi Murmu wrote on X.
Holi is celebrated every year coinciding with the first full moon night of the Hindu month of Phalgun, usually falling in March, and its origins date back to various Hindu mythological legends.
One of the most common stories about its origin revolves around the Hindu god Krishna and his immortal love, Radha, on whose face, it is believed, he applied color to darken it since she was fairer than him.
To the sound of drums and chants, audible from early in the morning, India revives this legend in its streets, where acquaintances and strangers alike throw water and “gulal,” the traditional colored powder used on this festival, at each other.
Some people also commonly consume “bhang,” a drink made with milk, spices, nuts and the leaves of cannabis on this day.
Images released by the Indian news agency PTI showed Holi celebrations in several towns across India, where thousands of people appear completely covered in colored powder, which often proves difficult to remove from clothes.
New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is one of the popular gathering places for Holi celebrations in the capital.
Every year, it brings together hundreds of young people who, for one day, break the rigid social norms that prevail in India.
On the eve of Holi, large pyres are often lit in many parts of the country to symbolize the triumph of good over evil, as told in the legends associated with the festival. EFE
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