Every year, the winter blues give way to new hues of color and light in preparation for spring. That’s the theory, at least; Boston weather has been notoriously moodier this year. Thankfully, the cold has been giving way lately, and just in time for the increasingly popular Holi Festival. Hosted by the BU Hindu Student Council, Boston University’s festival is one of many around the country and throughout the world.
Holi, thought to have ancient origins, is mentioned in early religious Indian scripts and is explained with several different stories and legends that began the tradition. One of the most popular stories is that of Prahlad and Holika. Prahlad, a man who refused to worship his father, a demon king by the name of Hiranyakashyap, had a warrant out for his death as a result. Every attempt his father made at killing him was thwarted by Lord Vishnu, a Hindu god, because Prahlad instead chose to devote himself to Lord Naarayana and not a demon. Desperate to get rid of his own son, Hiranyakashyap asked Holika, his sister, to trick him using her ability to survive the touch of fire. Holika did get Prahlad to enter the fire with her, but she didn’t realize that her power only worked when she entered fire alone, and she perished while Prahlad was saved with his ardent prayer to his Lord. So “Holi” comes from the name Holika, and at its core has been a festival celebrating the triumph of good over evil. Now, the day before Holi, participants burn a huge fire to reenact the legend.
Another legend tells the tale of Krishna, who was jealous of his friend Radha’s complexion, one much paler than his own blueish skin. He was consoled by his mother, who said he could go color Radha’s face any color he wanted. He took this literally and playfully applied all sorts of colors onto Radha’s face on the day of Holi, introducing the now famous aspect of the festival.
Throughout the years, the idea of good trumping evil is still alive during the celebration of Holi, and in its popularity around the world, it’s also adopted the idea of celebrating the end of winter for the newly revived colors of spring. Every year thousands participate in dancing, running and eating, ready to welcome the return of sunshine by literally painting themselves and others dryed color powders or dyed water guns. In many places, this means anyone is fair game when colors are being thrown around, be it friends, strangers, children or older people—no one is safe! All of it inspires a complete celebration and throwing caution to the wind in preparation for the prosperity to come.
This year, BU’s Holi festival is slated to be one of the biggest in all of Boston. The BU Hindu Student Council’s Facebook page invites BU students and general Boston students to come and enjoy the festivities on April 11th. Come join the festival of colors!