India is celebrating the festival of colours Holi, which is celebrated to mark the triumph of good over evil. This festival marks the beginning of the spring season and the end of winter. According to Hindu Calendar, it is celebrated on the full moon day at the end of the month of Falgun.
To celebrate this colour Holi, what is a better place than Radha Krishna’s Braj itself?
Holi is celebrated in the world for only one day, but in Braj it is celebrated for a full 40 days. It starts from Basant Panchami and lasts for two days after Holika Dahan. This celebration includes Latthmaar and Laddu Maar off Barsana, Lattmaar of Nandgaon Banke Bihari Temple in Vrindavan and finally the Huranga of Dauji is very famous.
The world’s most original Holi festival kicks up on Basant Panchami, when the pole of Holi is buried in Braj. From this day all the temples of Braj start to shower Abir Gulal or red colour on lord Krishna. Every day for the next 40 days, an activity known as Samaj Gaya is performed in the evening, during which time everyone actively participates in singing Holi songs together. About eight days before Holi that is on Ashtami of Fhagun Sukla Paksha, Radha rani’s village Barsana sends an invitation of ‘Faag’ to Krishna’s Nandgaao. Invitation to the festival is given by Barsana girls to the temple of Lord Krishna in Nandgaon.
Laddu Maar Holi
In Dwapara Yuga it is said that after accepting the Holi invitation of Goddess Radha, Lord Krishna sent his friends to Barsana, where his friends were welcomed by laddoos, due to the same tradition Laddu Maar Holi is celebrated in Barsana on the same day. In this Holi from around 5 PM many kilograms of laddus are looted among devotees from Shreeji’s temple.
Lathmar Holi
Lathmar Holi is a world famous tradition of Barsan. In Hindu mythology, Barsana is the hometown of Radha, consort of God Krishna. In Barsana’s Lathmar Holi women beat the men with sticks. According to Famous Hindu Legend, a love story between lord Krishna and the maiden Radha is associated with this ritual. The story goes one Krishna is believed to have blue colour skin so one day he and his friends visit the village where Ratna lives which is Barsana, Krishna smothers her in a pigment to try and change her Skin. Radha fights back,
she and her friends beat Krishna with sticks and drive him from the town. From then the Modern inhabitants of Nandagaon, the village where lord Krishna spent his childhood recreates this tale of a youthful prank in their playful stick beating Ritual.
Nandgaon Lathmar Holi
After Latth Maar Holi in Barsana Nandgaon also celebrates the same where the same traditions are followed by the women of Nandgaon. Nandgaon Erupts in a kaleidoscope of colours. People celebrate the festival with colours, flowers and a lot of love to each other and celebrate the ancient legend. Age, gender, nationality vanishes in the celebration of colour.
Baldev Dauji Huranga
Holi of Braj focuses on Lord Krishna, But on the other hand in Braj itself the Huranga of Dauji is focused on his elder brother Balram. Huranga is organised in the temple of Dauji situated in Daldeo on the very next day of Holi. Here only women and men of the Pandey community play this Holi. In this Holi only natural colours are used which are made from many kilos of Tesu flowers.
Along with this the holy of Braj also ends and because of such a vast celebration of Holi in Braj it is said “Sab Jag hori Braj me hora”.