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Important Festivals

Hinduism almost certainly has a longer list of festivals than any other religious tradition, and there are considerable regional and denominational variations. Twelve of the more popular and widely celebrated events are listed below.

Purposes of Festivals

Festivals are generally times for celebration and remembrance. Other purposes are:

• To create a special atmosphere, diverting the mind from worldly concerns and joyfully focusing on spiritual matters.
• To invoke the soul's natural qualities by creating an environment replete with auspiciousness and the abundant gifts of nature.
• To give people spiritual impetus and inspiration, which helps them perform their daily duties.
• To dovetail the natural tendency for celebration with spiritual goals.
• To forge a healthy sense of belonging by peacefully bringing together individuals, families and communities.

Main Practices during Festivals

• Fasting and feasting
• Distribution of food (especially prasad)
• Giving in charity (to temples, saints, the poor, etc)
• Visiting the temple
• Visiting relatives
• Glorification of God (kirtan, bhajan, story recitals, dance, drama)
• Manufacture and worship of temporary deities
• Taking temple deities in procession
• Wearing new clothes
• Decorating houses, streets and temples with fruits, flowers, leaves and banana leaves

Types of Festivals

There are three main types of festivals:

1. Celebrating a significant event in the life of a deity e.g. Janmashtami is Krishna's birthday.
2. Celebrating a significant event in the life of a holy person e.g. the birthday of a particular guru.
3. Seasonal festivities or customs, e.g. spring festivals like Holi.

Festivals in the first category have become more universal and widely celebrated; the most important ones are Indian public holidays. Festivals in the third category are often exclusively regional, or regional variations of broader festivals e.g. Pongal in Tamil Nadu, which marks Makara Sankranti. Others, such as Holi, are celebrated internationally. Special days within the second category are often relevant only to a particular group (sampradaya) for whom the particular saint has significant relevance.

Twelve Important Festivals

The following is a list of twelve main festivals along with their corresponding deities and any related stories.

Festival	Month	Deity	Related Stories
Sarasvati Puja	January	Sarasvati	Saraswati curses Brahma
Maha Shiva Ratri	Feb/March	Shiva	Stories of Shiva
Holi	March	Vishnu (Narasimha)	Prahlad and Narasimha (and Holika)
Rama Navami	Mar/April	Rama	Ramayana, especially Rama's birth
Hanuman Jayanti	April	Hanuman	Ramayana, especially later episodes
RathaYatra	June/July	Jagannatha	The proud merchant
Raksha Bandhana	August	-	Indra wears a rakhi
Janmashtami	Aug/Sept	Krishna	Krishna's birth and childhood
Ganesh Chaturthi	Aug/Sept	Ganesh	How Ganesh received his head
Navaratri/Durga Puja	Sept/Oct	Shakti, Parvati	Durga kills Mahisha, and others
Dussehra	October	Rama	Ramayana
Diwali*	Oct/Nov	Lakshmi/Rama	Stories of Lakshmi/Ramayana

* Diwali usually spans five days and for many Hindus is the NewYear It includes a number of festivals, which some consider special days in their own right.These include (1) Govardhana Puja (worship of the sacred hill lifted by Krishna), (2) Annakuta (the offering of grains), (3) Go-puja (worship of the cow), and (4) Bratra-Dvitiya (sister's day).

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"Heart of Hinduism" is Copyright: ISKCON Educational Services, 2004