How to Celebrate the Hindu Festival of Colors

Fun with Gulal

The Hindu Festival of Colors, also known as Holi or Phagwah, is celebrated in India on the first three days after the first full moon in early March (the date varies with the Hindu calendar). It is a type of harvest festival, celebrating the sprouting of seeds and the new growth that comes with the spring. The first two days of the festival tend to be religious in nature, but the third day is where the real fun begins as everyone goes a little crazy, getting into the spirit of this most festive time of year. Read on to learn how to celebrate the Hindu Festival of Colors.

Things You'll Need

• Book (or website) about the myths and legends of India
• Gulal (colored powder)
• Squirt guns
• Buckets
• Balloons
• White clothing
• Fresh mangoes
• Samosas and other types of Indian food
• Gujias and other Holi sweets

Instructions

1. Read about the legends that are linked to the Holi festival. One story concerns a woman named Holika (from whom the holiday is said to take its name) sister of the mythical King Hiranyakashipu who commanded everyone to worship him. His little son Prahlad refused to do so, and when Holika was ordered to kill him by walking into a fire with him, he chanted the names of Vishnu and was saved while Holika burned up. One of the ways people sometimes celebrate Holi is to throw dried cow dung into a fire and shout at it as if it were Holika.

2. Mix up a batch of colored water using the special colored powders known as Gulal. Then squirt it at your friends with a water gun, dump it on their heads from a bucket, or fill water balloons with the colored water and thrown them at people.

3. Dress in white clothing. That way, when you are on the receiving end of someone else's batch of Gulal, all of the colors will be sure to show.

4. Feast on fresh mangoes. This is one of the crops whose harvest is being celebrated today.

5. Open your home to visitors. Make them welcome by serving Indian treats like samosas, pakoras, and special Holi sweets like gujias (a candy often made with fruits and nuts) and gajar ka halwa (carrot pudding).

Tips & Warnings

• If you want to celebrate with Bhang (a liquid derivative of cannabis), be warned that, while traditional, it may not be legal outside of India.