“Lohri is essentially a harvest festival of the land Punjab. It is now celebrated with enthusiasm and fanfare throughout India”.
The festival of Lohri is not only celebrated in India but also in the other north Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Haryana. This festival is celebrated with a lot of excitement and utmost cheerfulness.
The Significance of Lohri Festival lies in the fact that it marks the end of a cold winter that is generally considered colorless and depressing. Lohri welcomes the season of fruitfulness, spring the New Year. It has been believed that night of Lohri is the longest night of the year. After that, the days began to turn longer and the nights started to become shorter.
For individuals of Punjab, the celebration of Lohri holds incredible significance. It denotes the Harvesting season in Punjab and the finish of the winter season. The headliner is the creation of a colossal campfire that represents respect to the Sun God for acquiring warmth.
Celebrated on 13 January consistently, Lohri merriment is related to the gathering of the Rabi crops.
There is an exceptional significance connected to the festival of Lohri as on this day, the sun enters the Rashi (zodiac) of Makara (Capricorn).
Significance of Lohri Festival:
The Significance of the festival Lohri lies in the fact that it is celebrated with great enthusiasm and energy. Talking about the significance of Lohri festival, there are many beliefs related to the origin of Lohri.
The Lohri festival is linked to atmospheric physical changes. It generates a lot of Bonhomie and the people sit around the bonfire, talking and praying for prosperity. All these references point to the significance of saluting the sun. The main objective of a bonfire is to sanctify the endeavor for a good life and destroy evil spirits on the other.
How Lohri is Celebrated:
Lohri is primarily a community festival. It can be celebrated with family, friends, and relatives. On this day a strong community bond is generated as people come together and have fun. Since it is a harvest festival but it is primarily meant to be observed by farmers. Thus, Punjab is an agricultural land so almost everyone becomes a participant in this festival. The main attraction of Lohri is a huge bonfire.
The people gather, sing, and dance around it. Also, several rituals are performed by people like throwing sesame seeds, jaggery, sugarcane sticks, Rewaries, and many more. They throw these items into the fire and then start dancing around it. People wear festive clothes, exchange greetings, and wish each other a happy and prosperous year.
On this day, people dance to the beats of the drum or dhol or do the Bhangra. It is considered one of the best exciting dancing styles and people wear the most vibrant colors to mark the occasion.
The History of Lohri Festival:
The Importance and significance of the festival Lohri is a joyous time to celebrate by eating peanuts, gur, singing songs, and sharing the warmth of a bonfire with your near and dear ones. A week before Lohri, children start gathering near the firewood and hunting the logs that burn well. The festival Lohri binds the community together and every person takes pride in making the biggest and grand bonfire in their neighborhood.
In the evening of Lohri, the fire bonfire blazes a high circle of warmth, and people stated surrounded by it. The people start gathering around and their faces glow red and gold. It is an essential festival which is dedicated to the sun god. As the sun started moving towards the Uttarayan, the new configuration bestows warmth to mother earth.
Lohri is an essential festival that brings the entire community together and each of the family contributes sweets made of gur, peanuts, and many other homemade delicacies. The Guru Granth Sahib praises this auspicious time and says the person who meditates before a fire will be blessed. The festival Lohri remarks the highest point in winter and is considered especially important for the newborn babies who are taken around the bonfire.
On this day, the people pray for prosperity, and even as they make offerings of peanuts, beaten rice in front of the burning embers. As per the rituals- The festival Lohri sets the tone for the whole year ahead. More the joyous and bountiful occasion is, the greater will be the peace and prosperity. Most people have a belief that both Holika and Lohri were sisters. On the other end, the formers vanished into the fire, and Lohri survived and lives on.
5 things that you can do at Lohri Festival!!!
If you live in North India then you will be much familiar with the festival Lohri. It is a festival that people generally cannot ignore. Thus, whichever part of India you are in, drag your friends out of their houses and plan for your own Lohri celebrations.
Here are the best five things that you can try to get the perfect traditional Lohri this year.
1: Fly Kites:
Now please don’t say that you wouldn’t have any idea how to fly kite! Look up the sky and you will see dozens of kites flying over the sky. You can invite your friends or join your neighbor’s kids for a kite fight. And those who are beginners or flying kites for the first time then you will most likely to find a new hobby today.
2: Have Sarso da Saag and Makki di Roti:
Food- the be-all and end-all of the Punjabi existence! The winter season gives you the perfect time to binge onto a heavy-duty while serving Saag and Makki di Roti. Moreover, you won’t think anything else while having this dinner tonight!
3: Light up a bonfire:
It happens sometimes that you should probably be off to look for the wooden logs to light up for Lohri evening. Even at the same time, you can lay your hands on a few packets of Rewari, Gajaks, peanuts, etc. A cold breezy night with a comforting bonfire lit up and you will surely need these munchies. Apart from it, the good old cheat of throwing moongfali shells into the bonfire and make this night more remarkable.
4: Trick and Treat:
As we all are familiar that Lohri is one of the most fun festivals in Punjab. The Lohri celebration sets the perfect mood for games, tricks, and pranks. You can try your own customized version of the traditional game of young children by tricking for the Lohri items.
5: Games:
In the end, you can get a Dhol from somewhere or connect your iPad or iPhone to the speakers and start dancing to Bhangra beats. Also, you need to remember that you can fail matriculation but you cannot fail at the “Balle Balle dance”.
Conclusion:
On the festival Lohri, the huge bonfire is set to lit up in the harvested fields or either in front of the house. For this purpose, the logos of wood are piled up together. Once the bonfire starts burning then the people go around the fire at least three times.
It starts offers giving popcorns, peanuts, ravyeri, and furthermore sweets. Thus, everyone starts dancing to the beats of dhol. On this day the people say a slogan while throwing rice and popcorns in the burning flame. They also said, “Adar aye dilather Jaye”. This means” May the honor come and poverty gets vanish”.
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