Shetan
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हैप्पी होली कोमलजीHoli- a few words,
Holi is one of the few surviving spring festivals that were celebrated in ancient India. It is difficult to say when the celebration of Holi began. There are clear references to both the festival of burning heaps (the Holi of bonfires) and the festival of spraying colours (the Holi of colours) in Sanskrit and Prakrit texts dating back thousands of years. Some older texts offer clues to both festivals. This article presents a summary of direct and indirect references to Holi in ancient Indian texts, which will help us get an idea of how Holi was celebrated in ancient India.
Origin of the word
The word 'holi' used today comes from the Sanskrit word holaka. While this may be a word imported into Sanskrit, Sanskrit dictionaries derive it form the root 'Hu'. The root means "to offer", particularly to offer an oblation to a deity by putting it in fire during a yajna. The popular word ahuti (oblation offered in fire) comes from the same root. The word holaka then means "that which receives oblations", a reference to the bonfire lit on Holi.
The Holi of bonfires is alluded to in a verse (18.12) in the 'Parishishta' of Atharva Veda: "Now, holaka is on the full-moon night of the Phalguna month."
As the text mentions the night, this is understood to refer to the Holi of bonfires. The burning of heaps of wood and/or cakes of cow-dung on the full-moon night of Phalguna month continues to this date. Interestingly, this verse is a part of a section on the "calendar of royal ceremonies", indicating that the Holi of bonfires may have been a royal celebration in ancient times. While direct references to the Holi of colours in the Vedic texts may not exist, a verse (1.3.5) in the 'Taittiriya Aranyaka' gives a description of the spring season with some resemblance to the Holi of colours.
The passage says that spring season is "skilled in water". The commentary by Bhatta Bhaskara says that spring is "skilled in water" since people are fond of water in spring. Sayana’s commentary adds that the clothes are coloured by agents like turmeric powder. It is possible that the Holi of colours, where people spray coloured water on each other, is alluded to or was inspired by this passage.
In addition, there is mention of holaka in the 'Kathaka Grihya Sutra' associated with the Krishna Yajurveda. The sutra (cryptic formula) simply says that Raka (the full moon deity) is the deity for holaka. While commentaries explain the formula differently, it is certain that the 'Grihya Sutra' associates the full moon night with the festival of Holaka.
