Happy Holi!

March 21, 2008

So I stole the colorful message at the end from my friend DJ but Shawn and I are in the thick of the celebration. (Hollie, you would love this as it is also your name). Holi is a spring festival which is celebrated by people throwing bright colored dye on each other and dancing in the streets. The dye symbolizes the colors of the spring flowers which by the way used to be used instead of chemical dye. I would prefer the natural and that is why I am avoiding being hit with color. People are generally pretty good here about this but I am finding out being with Shawn helps a lot.

Shawn got some nice green on his face and now his beard is green in places instead of white. I got close enough to get some great photos. I did get s sprinkle of pink on my arms which is not so bad.

We are leaving here tonight to go to Varanasi which I heard is crazier but we have a car from the guest house picking us up directly from the train station, so I am not concerned. We will use tomorrow to rest as Holi continues.

So we also took part in a self participator puja with Amma. It was to clear the negative aspects of Rahu(a planet in Indian astrology). It was very sweet. About 200 people sat on the floor each with their own little make shift alter made out of a banana leaf. We had these little pot with things lke ghee, candle oil, and camphor. We also had a banyan leaf and incense, and a ball of spice which I think is termeric. The spice was shaped into a snake by us. The gentle man who was leading us informed us not to get creative as iit was just a symbol. Shawn and I looked at each other with a big smile at that point because of course we were trying to make it look really cool. After that we used the lamp and incense for purify each thing. Finally we dripped the ghee on the snake as we chanted Om Siva Shakti Roopinyai Namah which is the Deity of the temple that was consecrated. Finally we took the banyan leaf(filled with a nut and maybe some coils if you chose as a offering to the guru) and the snake and proceeded in a very long line to the temple. Again we were to chant. It all finished as we made our way clock wise around the temple and throw the snake at the stone snake on one side of the temple statue alter. I missed and it the flowers. Too bad. It was very magical and I good ceremony for symbolically ridding myself of obstacles.

We were supposed to do a second puja at night for Saturn or Sani which is is call here, but the whole event was going to late and we had to get a train back to the city. The temple did our puja for us but I would love to know what we had to do as the items on our alter were all different.

So Happy Holi!

Love Tonya

Wish U a very Happy Holi.

May this Holi brings lots n pots full of joy and happiness in your life.

& may your life become as colorful as the colors of Holi