Holi - The Traditional One
As the month of Phagun, full of color, enthusiasm, and waves, along with the light pink cold and changing weather of the spring season, sets its foot on the earth, it seems as if the fragrance of flowers, the humming of bees, the waving crops, new shoots sprouting from trees and plants, waterfalls from the mountains, and rivers all are heralding the arrival of Phagun with the beauty and joy scattered in the atmosphere. When Phagun scatters its lovely charm and awakens the heart with the beat of the dholak, the shower of abir-gulal colors, and the fragrance of tesu and saffron, the magic of spring speaks to the whole earth. Along with this, melodious, enchanting, ancient, and traditional songs are voiced.!! The Radha-Krishna Ras Leela and the installation of the Holika-Dahan pillar at every crossroads begin with laughter, dance, music, satire, and amusement.
Perhaps due to the multifaceted importance of this festival, it has been celebrated as a music festival since ancient times, but the Radha-Krishna Leela has influenced Holi and Holi songs so much that the Phags soaked in their love and ras-rang have become synonymous with Radha-Krishna and have dominated the public consciousness to this day, such that the unique stream of love's essence still seems to flow in Braj and Barsana on such festivals. In these songs and ras-rangs, besides love and teasing, the description of abir-gulal and tesu colors is so joyful that every single word delights the mind - Let's go with Kanhaiya now, friend, to play Holi Color, gulal, abir, argaja, chanan, kesar rori. Snatching the yellow cloth from the waist, she bid farewell by smearing rori on the cheeks. Dancing with her eyes, she said with a smile, "Lala, come again to play Holi."
Folktales and songs related to Holi have also made this festival so colorful by giving the credit of playing Holi with colors first to Radha-Krishna, but there is no special mention of the prevalence of colors on Holi before them. Yes, there is the episode of Holika in the story of Hiranyakashyap, in which after Holika is burnt to ashes in the fire, her lover Sambhrasur goes mad and, wrapping her ashes on his body, also throws Holika's ashes and dust on the people celebrating the victory of truth. Due to Sambhrasur throwing dust in this way, Holi was first named Dhulhendi. The colors played on Dhulhendi, i.e., Holi, the day after Holika Dahan, are probably the heritage of those cultural values that inspire the masses to struggle hard for the establishment of truth and be victorious, and to be determined by burning the demonic tendencies of the body and mind in the fire.
Today, with the passage of time and the decline in values, the traditional Holi with its decorum is not to be seen. The case of Barsana is different, where Holi, with the blows of sticks, showers love and music with a splash of colors, becoming a medium of Radha-Krishna's Ras-Krida, showering रस (nectar). Where रस still rains in the sticks of the Gopis of Barsana on the Hariyars of Nandgaon, in the cities, in the name of observing tradition, throwing colors and water in balloons, fake pistols, and water guns, along with playing Holi with soot, paint, and mud, has become the destiny of this festival. Under the guise of Holi's love and ras-rang, most men seem eager to apply color to women's cheeks and even below their necks, on the pretext of teasing and joking in traditional relationships, as if they have been eagerly waiting for this time all year!! Now, what can anyone say in such a situation? And what's there to feel bad about? It's Holi, after all..!! Today's youth considers satisfying their frenzied tendencies under the guise of Holi to be the main purpose of celebrating the Holi festival. Not only this, but in place of the dignity of the dholak, cymbals, and folk songs, the commotion to the tunes of film songs playing on stereos and tapes has become the joy of Holi. In some places, the freedom of Holi ends with drinking alcohol here and there, followed by forcefully applying color, and the fights and quarrels that follow. Thus, this festival, which gives joy, has a sad end in many places.
How good it would be if on this festival of joy and celebration, we and you do not become so frenzied that this festival loses its originality..!! We should at least preserve our cultural heritage to such an extent that our coming generations do not find our festivals and the concepts associated with them to be frivolous and stale.