Festivals and Holidays

Hindus make use of both solar and lunar calendars, as well as a calendar based on twenty­seven different constellations. All three calendars are consulted to determine when festivals and holidays will be observed.

Three popular Hindu festivals that are celebrated with many regional variations serve to illustrate the diversity of observances in Hinduism.

Navaratri and Dussehra

Navaratri (Sanskrit, “nine nights”) is a holiday cycle celebrating the end of the monsoon season in India. In some regions, Navaratri also commemorates the conclusion of a great war between Rama and the demon-king, Ravana. In other regions, such as southern India and in Bengal, the festival celebrates Devi’s battle against the buffalo-demon, Mahisha. To commemorate this conquest, altars are set up with images of the Goddess. For the first three days of the festival, devotees worship Devi in her manifestation as Durga. They then turn their attention to worshiping her as Lakshmi. On the concluding three days, she is worshiped as Sarasvati, the embodiment of knowledge. In Bengal, the eighth day is especially important, as it celebrates Durga slaying Mahisha and is marked with the sacrifice either of black goats or a substitute sacrifice of pumpkins. The festival culminates with street processions of large painted clay icons of Durga that are later dissolved in the nearby river or the sea.

Dussehra, also called Vijayadashami (Sanskrit, “victorious tenth day”), is celebrated on the day after Navarati throughout India as Rama’s final victory over the demon Ravana. Dussehra occurs annually on the day of the full moon in the Hindu month of Ashvin (and so, this also determines the calendar dates of Navaratri).

Diwali

Diwali, the five-day “Festival of Lights,” is celebrated between mid-October and mid­November (like Dussehra and Navaratri, the dates of Diwali are determined on the basis of the lunar calendar). For many Hindus, it commemorates Rama’s rescue of Sita and their heroic return to Ayodhya. Other myths are invoked as an explanation for the festival in different regions of India. During Diwali, oil lamps are set out on doorsteps and window ledges, and floating lamps are placed as offerings in rivers and reservoirs to signify the triumph of good over evil. Fireworks are lit on the night of the new moon, when Lakshmi is worshiped. The third day of Diwali marks the end of the harvest season, and Lakshmi Puja is performed to thank the goddess for the abundance that she has given. New clothes are worn and gifts are exchanged. Diwali is also celebrated by Sikhs and Jains.

Video: Diwali

Holi

The spring festival of Holi, always celebrated at the vernal equinox, is Hinduism’s most colorful holiday. Celebrated in late February or early March (commencing on the full moon day of this period), its festivities take place over two days. On the first night, bonfires are lit, and coconuts are offered as a sacrifice. The following day is a carnival celebration during which social and gender hierarchies are temporarily inverted, as crowds of young and old alike frolic in the streets, spraying colored water and staining one another with brightly colored powders.