Festivals of North - East India

The mystic region of North East India comprises of seven states, popularly known as the seven sisters, which are Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Manipur and Meghalaya. These North East Indian states have always been abundant in nature. The tropical forests are full of vast species of Flora and Fauna. Scarcely populated and mainly full of tribal population, these states always are on a celebration spree.

Assam - A land nestled in myths and mysteries, lore’s and legends. Assam is almost another world, the gateway to the eastern states, the coloured wonderland of India. The most important festival of Assam is the Bihu, the Assamese New Year Celebrations. This major festival of Assam is celebrated in three forms, the Bohag Bihu or Rongali Bihu in April, Magh Bihu or Bhogali Bihu in January and Kati Bihu or Kongali Bihu in October/ November. The most colourful is the Spring-Festival, Rongali Bihu, celebrated in mid- April. Essentially a festival mar king the beginning of an agricultural season, the people of Assam enjoy it with dancing and singing. Bhogali Bihu, the harvesting festival is celebrated in mid- January by community feasts.

Arunachal Pradesh is one of the most sparsely populated States on the eastern tip of India, sharing its borders with China, Bhutan and Myanmar. Known as the land of rising Sun of India, it is a fertile land with five rivers flowing through the State. Mainly inhabited by various tribes, the festivals here are based on nature and agriculture and dance is the soul of all these festivals.

Mizoram is on the southern tip of the North eastern region clamped between Myanmar and Bangladesh. The Mizo community is mostly follower of Christianity. Among other festivals, Chapchar Kut or Spring Festival is the most popular festival, celebrated after completion of the most arduous t ask of jungle clearing for jhum operations. On this day, people of all ages, young and old, men and women dressed in their respective colourful costumes and head-gears, assemble and perform various folk dances, sing traditional songs, accompanied by the beating sound of drums, gongs and cymbals.

The predominantly tribal state of Nagaland is blessed with high mountains, deep valleys and rich flora and fauna. Nagaland being inhabited by as many as 16-odd tribes, it is the land of festivals. Some tribe or the other has a celebration throughout the y ear. Every tribe has its own festival. Several festivals are connected with agricultural activities such as reaping, sowing and harvesting. Moastu festival is performed by Ao Naga in the month of May, after the sowing. People worship the deity sacrifice animals and sing, dance and make merry during the festival.

Tripura is one of the tiniest states in the Indian subcontinent. Although there are many tribes settling in this tiny state the dominance of Hinduism is quite prominent. More so because of the immense Bengali population in this state. Many festivals are celebrated in Tripura out of which the Kharchi Puja, worshipping the 14 Gods, near Agartala is its specialty. Held every year in the month of July, it attracts people from all over India. 15 days after the Kharchi Puja is the Ker Puja. A unique festival performed for the welfare of the state and its people. It is performed within a specific boundary and no one is allowed to enter or exit that boundary till the rituals get over. Song and dance is very much essential part of these festivals.

Well known as the Paradise of eastern India, Manipur is where Mother Nature has bestowed her bounty extra generously. All that can fascinate a tourist is what Manipur is all about. The world famous Manipuri Dance has originated from the temples of this exotic state in the North east of India. Celebrated for five days commencing from the full moon day February - March, Yaoshang is the premier festival of Manipur. The Thabal Chongba - a kind of Manipuri folk dance is particularly associated with this festival. Cheiraoba - Manipur New Year is celebrated in the month of April. People clean and decorate their houses and prepare special festive dishes, which are first offered to various deities. A part of the ritual entails villagers climbing the nearest hill tops in belief that it will enable them to rise to greater heights in their worldly life.  This festival is celebrated by all irrespective of any religion. Other Hindu festivals such as the Durga Puja in October and the Jagannath Yatra in July also take place.

Meghalaya means the abode of the clouds and as the name suggests, Meghalaya gets torrents of rain. It is a region of great scenic beauty. The three important tribes of Garos, Khasis and the Jaintias have their own festivals, basically related to agriculture. Among the Garos, the most important festival is the Wangala or the Hundred-drum Festival held from November to December. This is a harvest festival celebrated in honour the Sun God. Nongkrem Dance is held annually for five days by the Khasis. It is a religious festival for thanksgiving to God Almighty for good harvest and to pray for peace and prosperity in the community. It is celebrated in the month of November. Behdienkhlam is the most important dance festival of the Jaintias and is celebrated after the sowing period is over. At Jowai town, this festival is celebrated in July.

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Festivals of South India

The southern region of India comprises of four states namely Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh and the union territory of Pondicherry. The weather in these regions is mainly hot and pleasant during winters. The coastal areas are pleasant throughout the year with heavy rainfall during the monsoons. South India follows the Dravidian tradition and has different ways to celebrate their own festivals.

Karnataka celebrates all the national festivals and other religious festivals. But the most famous of them all is its special Dushera, popularly known as the Mysore Dushera. The Kannadigas celebrate this festival with pomp and glamour and dedicate the festival to Goddess Chamundeshwari. It is a 10-day long festival which falls in the month of October. On the last day of Vijaya Dashami, a colourful procession of caparisoned elephants carrying the idol of goddess Chamundi is taken through the gaily-decorated streets of the city. The festival was started by the Maharaja of Mysore and is being continued till date. The palace is illuminated every night and on the last day the former Maharaja leads one of India's most colorful processions.  People from all around the world gather to watch the pomp and show exhibited in Mysore. The festival is celebrated in a grand style with scores of cultural performances in the great Durbar Hall of the Maharaja's Palace. Indeed a unique celebration of the common festival of Dushera.

Another unique festival of Karnataka is the Karaga which is celebrated in Bangalore in the honour of the queen of Pandavas, Draupadi. Karaga is celebrated on the full moon day of April, the first month of the Kannada calendar.

Yugadi is the New Year celebration in Karnataka. This falls on the day after the new moon day in April, the month of Chaitra. The formation of the Karnataka State is celebrated on the 1st of November and is a state festival.

The state of Andhra Pradesh lies on the south eastern side of India. The Telgus, as the people of Andhra are called, are religious and celebrate the festivals with great enthusiasm. Hyderabad being the capital of this state, which was ruled by the Nizam, has seen the state celebrating the Id festivals with great fervour. Biryani and Haleem preparations are the specialty of Telgu Muslims during Ramzan.

The festival of Makar Sankranti holds special place in Andhra community. This harvest festival is celebrated for 3 days in Mid January. The first day is Bhogi that is spent with gaiety. The second day is Sakranti. Many families arrange a doll show and invite their friends and give alms to the poor. The third day is Kanuma when they acknowledge their gratitude to the part taking of the animals. They decorate and worship their cattle.
The New Year falling in the month of April is called the Ugadi and celebrated with new clothes and sweets. The birthday of Lord Ganesh, Vinayak Chaturthi, falling in September is celebrated with great enthusiasm. Huge idols are installed and worshipped and on the last day they are immersed in the water.

Kerala, famous as God’s own country, is famous for its back waters and boat races. This small state has nearly equal population of Hindus, Muslims and Christians staying and celebrating their festivals in harmony. Vishu is the New Year of the Malayali people, which falls every year on 14th of April. The Keralites believe that they should see the best things when they wake up in the morning. Huge flower decorations and other goodies are kept in front of the deities and worshipped. Sweet meats are prepared out of jaggery, rice and coconut.

Another important festival is the Onam. Onam falls in August – September. This day is celebrated in the honour of the King Mahabali who once ruled Kerala. His period is believed a have been the golden age in the history of Kerala. He was a threat to the Gods and so they got him killed. But since he had proved to be a good king he was allowed to return to his country once a year. Onam is that day of the year and the people of Kerala rejoice the homecoming of their King. Elaborate flower motifs are made in front of their houses to welcome him and a fully vegetarian feast is cooked to satisfy the Kings palate. The Malayalis wear their traditional dresses, laden with gold ornaments and exchange gifts.

Trichur Pooram is celebrated in the sweltering heat of the summer season at the Vadakkunathan Temple in Trichur. It is believed that on this day the respective deities of other temples visit Vadakkunathan temple. Nine Deities from the neighbouring temples pay homage to Lord Shiva at the Temple. Processions of beautifully caparisoned elephants provide a magnificent spectacle. The festival is rounded off at night by dazzling firework displays. It is only on the day of Trichur Pooram that the non-Hindus are allowed to enter the ancient temple of Vadakkunathan.

The southern most state on the eastern coast of India is Tamil Nadu. This southern state is popularly known as the temple state of India. The main local festival celebrated here is the Pongal. Pongal is the harvest festival celebrated for three days in Tamil Nadu. Bhogi is celebrated on January 13, Pongal on January 14 and Mattu Pongal on January 15 every year. During this time people wear new clothes and draw beautiful motifs in front of their houses with rice flour. The cattle too is decorated and rested during this time. Sweet made of the first rice is cooked, which is known as the Pongal.

Commonly known as the Float Festival, this magnificent festival is celebrated in Madurai. On the night of the full moon in January, ornamented icons of goddess Meenakshi and her consort are taken out in a colourful procession to the huge Mariamman Teppakulam. The icons are floated in the tank on a raft decked with flowers and flickering lamps. The Meenakshi Kalyanam is a ten day festival, which takes place in April – May at Madurai. On this day the Goddess Meenakshi is wedded to Lord Shiva. The deities are taken out in the decorated chariots and the festival is celebrated with lot of pomp and show.

The Karthigai Deepam festival can be termed as an extension of Diwali in Tamil Nadu as it falls just after the main festival of Diwali. It is the festival dedicated to the immortal light created by lord Shiva. Many houses add one lamp for the day from Diwali and by this day the houses are full of Lamps. The lamps are worshipped and they burn day and night also on the streets.

Situated on the Coromandel Coast, about 160 km south of Chennai, lies the Union Territory of Pondicherry. The French ruled this territory for 300 years, and today, it stands as a living monument of the French culture in India. Festivals are organized nearly every month in Pondicherry. With the still persistent French influence, the festivals although similar, have a slight difference from the rest of India. Pongal of Tamil Nadu is celebrated with equal fervour in Pondicherry. The Masimagam festival in mid March is a huge celebration when deities of around 50 odd temples from nearby reach Pondicherry. A sanctimonious sea bath is then held on the beach. Thousands come to witness and participate in this festival.  The Veerampattinam and the Villianur Car Festival are held in July and May respectively. The deities of these temples are taken out on carriages, which are drawn by devotees. Masquerade, held in March - April, is a popular mask festival, during which brilliantly costumed and masked people of Pondicherry, dance down the streets to the music of trumpets and accordions. During the Eve of the Bastille Day in July, retired soldiers parade the streets in war finery, singing the French and Indian National Anthem.

Festivals of India (Part 4)

September, October and November are the three months in the Indian calendar when festivals are followed by other festivals and rejoicing never ends. The weather starts cooling by this time. The rains have just stopped. The nature is in its full bloom. Flowers, fruits and vegetables are in abundance and of course that gives a reason to rejoice in forms of various festivals. Every state individually have heir own festivals and some festivals are common.

NAVARATRI:

By the end of September and in the beginning of October comes the nine day and nine nights’ festivities called the Navaratri. This festival is celebrated for nine continuous days. These nine nights the people worship the Shakti and her forms. Temples are decorated and deities are worshipped. Some people also keep fast for nine days and some refrain from having non vegetarian food and alcoholic drinks. The festival is celebrated all around the country although in different ways and is termed differently; the basic reason remains the same. Actually India celebrates two Navaratris. This one is known as the Sharadiya or the Akalbodhan. Legend says that Goddess of Shakti is to be worshipped during the Vasant Navaratri. But Ram wanted to worship the Goddess at this time, a wrong time of the year, before his war with Ravan. So he invoked the Goddess and worshipped her. Since then this Navaratri has become more famous. More so as Ram won over the demon king Ravan on the tenth day.

GANDHI JAYANTI:

The birthday of the great Indian leader, on October 2nd, called as the father of the Indian Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, is the third and last national festival celebrated by India. Homage is paid to the great leader by various dignitaries on this day. All religion prayers are held and people enjoy a holiday.

DUSHERA:

The grand finale to the nine day festivities of Navaratri is the Dushera. It is said that Prince Ram of Ayodhya won over the demon King Ravan on this very day. This is also considered as the last day of exile of the Pandavas in the epic of Mahabharat. It is celebrated all over India as one of the most pious days according to the Hindu religion. Huge effigies of the demon King Ravan and his son and brother are made and then burnt. People wear new clothes and rejoice and make sweets and distribute them. It is known Dasara, Vijaya Dashami and Duserah in various parts of the country but celebrated with equal enthusiasm. The festival marks the win of good over the evil.

DIWALI:

The most famous and also the most awaited festival of the Indians falling in late October and early November is the festival of lights, Diwali or Deepavali. This festival of lights means triumph of the good over the evil. It falls in late October or early November every year and is celebrated by all with great enthusiasm. People specially buy new clothes, renovate or colour their houses. A variety of dishes, sweet and spicy, both are made. People burn crackers and hang lanterns in front of their doors. According to legends after killing the demon King Ravana, Ram, came back home after an exile of 14years. That was the time during Diwali. It is also said that Krishna also killed Narak, the demon on this day.

The Goddess of wealth is worshipped on this day. This festival falls on the darkest night of the year; therefore innumerous lamps are lit all around India to wipe out the darkness. Two days later falls the festival of Bhai Duj, Bhai phota, or Bhau bij. The sisters worship Gods and pray for their brothers’ well being on this day. A celebration of lights, sweets and colours is what Diwali is all about.

GURUPURAB:

The first full moon night falling after Diwali is the Guru Nanak Jayanti; that is the birthday of the first Sikh Guru. The Sikh community all over India celebrates this festival with great exuberance. They burn crackers and decorate their houses with lights.

RAMZAN ID:

This festival celebrated by the Muslims varies in dates. Sometimes it may fall in summer while sometime in winter. It is believed that God conveyed the message of Koran to Hazarat Mohammed through Gabriel in the days of Ramzan. The whole month of Ramzan is sacred. All through this month the devout Muslims keep strict fast during the day. After sunset, Namaz is offered and then the fast is broken. It begins with the new moon and terminates with next new moon. The last day is known as the Id – ul- fitr. This day is celebrated by the people. People wear new clothes, prepare sweets and greet each other.

The month of December is the coldest all over India. But the southern parts of the country and the coastal areas are soothingly pleasant and cool. December mostly does not have any religious festival other than Christmas. But all over India some or the other cultural festival is on during this time of the year. The schools organize picnics and sports and cultural festivals. The crisp air rejuvenates the spirits and people wait eagerly for the New Year to come.

CHRISTMAS:

The only religious festival falling in the last month of the solar calendar is Christmas. The festival is the celebration of the birth off Jesus Christ to Virgin Mary. The Christian community of India celebrates this festival with all the glitter and glamour. Churches are lighted up, bakery shops and houses are decorated. People buy new clothes and eat goodies. Carols are sung and Santa Clause entertains children. Mass and sermons are held in the Church and whole air is filled up with festivity which in some places lingers till the New Year dawns.