Introduction
India is a land of festivals, and some of them are so famous that they attract tourists from all over the world. These festivals celebrate various aspects of Indian culture, such as religion and tradition. Here is our compilation of 10 major festivals in India:
1. Ganesh Chaturthi:
The Ganesh Chaturthi festival is celebrated in honor of Lord Ganesha, the god of wisdom, prosperity, and good fortune. It is observed for 10 days from the Ganesh Chaturthi day. During this time, families clean their homes and decorate them with flowers and lights to welcome the arrival of Lord Ganesha. This symbolizes a new beginning and a fresh start in life.
As part of the celebrations, devotees visit a nearby temple dedicated to Lord Ganesha or take a trip to their hometown’s local temple where they offer prayers to him on his birthday – which falls in August or September every year according to Indian calendar
2. Diwali:
Diwali is the festival of lights, celebrated in the autumn season. It signifies the victory of good over evil, and light over darkness. The legend says that Lord Rama defeated Ravana, an evil king with ten heads who ruled Sri Lanka (Ceylon). He returned to his kingdom with Sita and Lakshmana after spending fourteen years in exile. Diwali is also considered the beginning of the new year by the business community in India. For the business community in India, Diwali is one of the major festivals.
It is also believed that Lord Krishna defeated Narakasura (the demon king) on this day.
3. Durga Puja:
Durga Puja is a five-day long festival celebrated in the month of Aswin (September-October) to welcome Goddess Durga back to her husband, Lord Shiva. The festival is celebrated to thank Goddess Durga for killing the buffalo demon Mahishasura.
The first day of this festival is known as Mahashashti or Maha Saptami and it marks the beginning of Navaratri or Dasara. On this day, people clean up their homes, and decorate them with flowers and light earthen lamps at night after offering prayers to Goddess Lakshmi (goddess of wealth).
4. Holi:
Holi is an ancient Hindu festival celebrated to rejoice in the arrival of spring. It’s also known as the festival of colors and marks the beginning of the season of spring in India. In other parts of the world, it’s known as a major religious holiday where people play with water guns and colored powders. Holi is recognized as one of the major festivals of India. The day starts with playing games like kite flying, singing songs, and dancing until sunset when everyone becomes thirsty from all that activity!
5. Dussehra:
Dussehra is one of the most popular and major Hindu festivals celebrated in October and November. The festival marks the victory of good over evil and honors Lord Rama for his triumph over Ravana, the demon king. It is celebrated as a nine-day long celebration, culminating in Vijayadashami or Dusshera, also known as Vijaya Dashami or simply Dasara (meaning “tenth day”). On this day, effigies are burnt symbolizing the death of Ravana.
Dussehra celebrations include colorful processions with people dressed up in their best clothes or traditional attires carrying swords and other weapons while shouting slogans such as Jai Shri Ram! (Victory to Lord Ram!). Some cities also have floats similar to those seen during Mardi Gras in Brazil.
6. Saraswati Puja:
The Saraswati Puja is celebrated on the fifth day of Diwali. It falls on the day after Lakshmi Puja and before Kali Puja. The Goddess Saraswati is considered to be a personification of knowledge, power, and music. She is also referred to as the goddess of wisdom and education.
The festival celebrates her arrival in heaven with her husband Lord Brahma after they were defeated by their enemies Shumbha and Nishumbha in an epic battle during which all Devas were defeated except Vishnu who came out victorious after taking up his Matsya Avatar (fish incarnation) to defeat his enemies on earth once again just like he did when he had taken up his Varaha form or boar avatar earlier during Satyuga at Prithvi’s request). It is believed that the souls of those who die during the year visit heaven after their death where they get advice from their family members who had passed away earlier before entering heaven according to Hindu scriptures such as Bhagvad Gita etc.
7. Navratri and Dasara:
As the autumn season approaches, you can make a list of things to do over the holidays. One of them should be to visit India and take part in one of its festivals.
In Navratri, people gather at temples across India to pray for protection from evil and misfortune. They also pray for health and prosperity by offering gifts of sweets or fruit to the goddess Durga (a manifestation of Shakti). Some devotees fast during these nine nights while others just enjoy delicious vegetarian food or meat dishes in honor of Mahishasura-Mardini (Durga).
The festival is usually celebrated over nine days starting on the first day after the full moon or Amavasya (no moon night) which falls within the Kartik Purnima date range according to the Hindu calendar. It ends with Vijaya Dashami when Goddess Durga visits her husband Lord Shiva before returning home with him after defeating the demon Mahishasur
8. Krishna Janmashtami :
Krishna Janmashtami is celebrated on the eighth day of Shukla Paksha in the Bhadrapad month of the Hindu calendar. The main celebration takes place on a full moon night and after that, devotees observe a fast by eating only fruits for a day or two.
9. Lohri Festival :
Lohri is celebrated in Punjab on 13 January, where people light bonfires and sing folk songs. This festival marks the start of the harvest season and also celebrates the beginning of spring. It’s thought to be a celebration of winter solstice, as it takes place around 21 December to 23 December.
The festival celebrates the birth of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, founder of Sikhism.
10. Onam :
The celebration of Onam is the state festival of Kerala, the southernmost state in India. Onam is one of the major festivals of India in the South. The festival is celebrated for ten days and it falls in the month of Chingam (August-September). It is one of the most popular festivals in Kerala and is celebrated with great enthusiasm. The highlight of this festival is a boat race held at Alleppey, which attracts many tourists to watch it.
The Onam festival also has cultural elements like dance performances, music concerts, folklore recitals and songs, etc., which attract people from all over India to visit this place during this special time.
These festivals are celebrated in India with great fervor and enthusiasm
These festivals are celebrated with great enthusiasm and fervor.
In this section, we discuss the ten major festivals of India. These festivals are celebrated with great enthusiasm and fervor by people from all walks of life in India.
Conclusion
We have seen the 10 major festivals of India. They all have one thing in common: they celebrate their culture, traditions, and beliefs through these festivals.
In today’s world when people from different religions live together peacefully, it is important that we understand each other’s religions and customs better. This will help us build good relations with each other based on mutual respect for our cultures instead of anger or violence when something goes wrong between us.
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