Today is Fagu Purnima: This is how the tradition of playing Holi started

KATHMANDU: MARCH 28 – On the day of Falgun Shukla Purnima, the festival of Holi is being celebrated in the Himalayan and hilly districts today.

With the advent of spring, the Fagu festival, which brings a message of mutual harmony & mutual reconciliation, is traditionally celebrated today with a variety of colours and lola games. This festival, which was celebrated in the Valley a few years ago, has become more civilized lately due to the activism of the police.

The process of painting and throwing Lola against the will of the pedestrians is being stopped. Even on the eve of the Fagu festival, dirty water is not seen in the streets of the capital. Like last year, Corona’s influence is growing globally, the administration has called for a ban on the use of water and paint during the Fagu festival. The administration has also requested everyone to celebrate Fagu Purnima with their family at home.

Especially, the girl was filled with water in Lola and sprayed for a week before, creating an environment where she could not go out psychologically. Sabita Ghimire, who came from Godawari in Lalitpur district to work in the private sector, said that she was able to walk easily even on the day before the Fagu festival this year.

On the occasion of this festival, the people present in Basantapur of Kathmandu today make the atmosphere colourful and burn the cracks buried there in Tundikhel with shield bajagaja. The ashes of the incision are vaccinated with the belief that they will be used for medicinal purposes.

On the day of Falgun Shukla Ashtami, in front of the Gaddi meeting at Basantapur, the Fagu begins after worshipping the dirt tree adorned with colourful flags. Tonight in Tundikhel, a monster named ‘Gurumapa‘ is fed ten pathis of rice brought from Itumbahal and a calf’s meat in a stream called ‘Jadhu‘ inside the military hospital.

In the Treta era, when Daityaraja Hiranyakashyapu forced his sister Holika, who had received the gift of not being touched by fire from Brahma, to enter the blazing fire with Prahlada with the intention of killing his son Prahlada.

It is believed that the tradition of playing Holi (Fagu) on the occasion of the death of Holika, a symbol of the sinful nature of abuse of power, has continued since that time.

Similarly, in the Dvaparayuga, the demon Putna, who was sent by Kansha to kill Lord Krishna, failed to suck his poisoned breast. Prada Ram Chandra Gautam, a theologian and chairman of the Nepal Panchang Judging Committee, said that the people of Braja have a tradition of celebrating the Fagu festival.

Since well-prepared colour and abir cures skin diseases, playing with these colours destroys the phlegm produced in the body in winter. This festival also has Ayurvedic significance as the smoke from the burnt rip eliminates the germs of many winter diseases.

The government has traditionally been giving public leave on the occasion of the Fagu festival. In the Terai region, this festival is celebrated on the day after the full moon. This year too, Holi is being celebrated on Monday in the Terai.

On the occasion of this festival, the use of drugs such as marijuana, cannabis, alcohol and other forms of hooliganism, the use of chemicals that adversely affect the body and hitting Lola in vehicles is also decreasing.

On this day, groups of men and women enjoy dancing in the area from morning to evening, eating food mixed with cannabis, dancing in various colours.

In this festival, the tired people get dressed in colourful costumes and compete with their families. In this festival which lasts for seven days, everyday brothers and relatives gather and enjoy sweet food.

Fagu festival is celebrated in a fundamental way in Nepal and other countries including India. Celebrated in Italy as Beliaconons, the festival is played with a variety of fragrant water-sprinkled grass ornaments. In China, this festival is celebrated for 15 days under the name ‘Chvez’. New clothes and jewellery are worn at this festival.

In this festival called ‘Hobo’ in the United States, people wear different types of humorous costumes and organize competitions and give prizes to the winners.

Similarly, worshipping fire in Java, Sri Lanka and Indonesia, worshipping water in Myanmar and Thailand, donating to monks in Buddhist temples, welcoming new grain to Japan and Indonesia’s Sumatra with dance, worshipping and dancing to the god Dionysius in Yunnan, China, and humour in Egypt. The festival is celebrated.

Even though it is celebrated under different names, the tradition of playing Fagu is found in many countries. This festival is celebrated with the main objective of promoting mutual harmony and social unity.