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Holika Dahan is a great ritual of the Hindu religion while celebrating the holi festival. It is a tradition festival which celebrates the Holika death and Prahlad safety by organizing the ceremony known as the Holika Dahan. This ceremony held according to the Muhurt by Hindu calendar which specially falls during night or late evening. It is a religious ceremony during which people roast the “Jau” in the fire of Holika and bring them to their home for the goodness of the family members. They burn 5 “Upali” in the fire as well in the myth of burning their all problems. Some people burn the waste of massage by the “Sarson Ubtan” in the fire in the myth of burning their all body problems and get blessed by the good health by the Holika Mata.
There are various mythological explanations which have been given in the historical books for the death of Holika and celebration of the Holi. Holika was burnt as Vishnu stepped in, She was booned the Brahma for never being harmed by the fire, she was just following order of her brother and knew everything, she had given her fire protective clothe to Prahlad and died herself, when it was firing Prahlad started praying Lord Vishnu then the fire protective shawl flown away to wrap the Prahlad from the Holika and so many reasons.
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Holi Dahan 2024: Date and Puja Timings/ Muhurt
Holi festival 2024 will be celebrated with great enthusiasm by the people in India as well as abroad on Monday 25th of March.
| Holi Festival 2024 | |
| Holi 2024 Date | Monday March 25,2024 |
| Holika Dahan 2024 Date | Sunday March 24, 2025 |
| Holika Dahan 2024 Muhurat | 11:13 pm on March 24 to 12:27 am, March 25 |
| Holika 2024 Purnima Tithi Starts | 12:24 AM on March 24 |
| Holi 2024 Purnima Tithi Starts | 2:59 AM on March 25 |
What time will Holika Dahan happen?
This year, Bhadra is observed from the morning on the day of Holika Dahan, raising concerns among people due to the prohibition of auspicious activities during this period. Consequently, there is confusion regarding the auspicious timing for performing Holika Dahan during Bhadra Kaal. The Holika Dahan ceremony for the year 2024 is scheduled to occur on Sunday, March 24, spanning from 11:13 PM to 12:44 AM, totaling a duration of 1 hour and 32 minutes. The auspicious window for performing Holika Dahan is determined to be from 11:13 PM to 12:32 AM.
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Holika and Prahlad Story
There is a great history behind celebrating the holi festival as well as burning Holika as Holika Dahan. Holika was a sister of the demon King, Hiranyakashipu and aunt of the Prahlad. The story of Holika Dahan is made around the Holika death and safety of Prahlad which indicates the victory of good power over the evil power. According to the Hindu mythology, a long ago there was a demon king, Hiranyakshyap having very powerful desire to be eternal always. In order to fulfill his dreams, he started doing Tapa of the Lord Brahma. One day he became successful and booned by the Brahma to be eternal and powerful man on the earth.
He was booned for the five special powers such as; neither he could be killed by any human being nor by any animal, neither he could be killed inside the door nor outside the door, neither he could be killed in day nor in night, neither he could be killed by any Astra nor by any Shastra, neither he could be killed on the land nor in the water or and air. Just after getting booned by such powers he started understanding himself superman of the earth and more than God. He wished to be only worshiped as a God by the people. He started punishing and killing people who were not accepting his orders. His son, Prahlad has also opposed his father orders and refused worshipping him as a God instead continued worshipping the Lord Vishnu.
Because of such as activities of his son, Hiranyakshyap became very angry and thought to kill his son. After a lot of attempts failed, he took helps from his sister, Holika. His sister was booned by the Lord Brahma for never being harmed by the fire and she had a special fire protective garment. She was ordered by her brother to sit in the fire with his son, Prahlad to kill him. However, as soon as the fire was roared, the special protective garment of the Holika flown away to cover the Prahlad. In this way, Prahlad was saved and Holika was burnt and died forever.
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After getting failed his next attempt of killing his son, Hiranyakshyap became very angry and tried another terrible attempts. Once, he tied his son to a pillar and said that call your Lord to save you. Prahlad said that my Lord exists in everything, even in this pillar. His father started laughing and soon Lord Vishnu came out of the pillar in the form of Narasimha (first half lion and other half human) in front of him, saved Prahlad and run towards Hiranyakshyap. Lord Narasimha caught Hiranyakshyap at a doorstep and killed him by his big and sharp nails. When he died, it was dusk (means neither day nor night), doorstep (means neither inside the door nor outside the door), lap (means neither land nor water and air), killed by lion claws (means neither Astra nor Shastra) and Narasimha (means neither human being nor animal). In this way, Prahlad was saved by his Lord and became the king of his demon power free kingdom. This story indicates that, truth and good power would always win over the false and evil power.
At some places of the country, holi is celebrated by burning Pootana or Putana instead of Holika. Once, there was a demon king called Kansa (uncle of Krishna) had fear of his life from getting killed a day by the Lord Krishna. He sent her demon Putana to kill Krishna through her poisonous breast milk. She came to baby Krishna and started feeding of her poisonous milk. Baby Krishna started sucking forcefully and she felt a big pain and came in her original form. Finally she died and baby Krishna was saved but got dark blue skin color. From then, people started celebrating Phagwah by burning the Putana. Because of his dark skin he always despaired of the fair skinned Radha and Gopikas. On the day of Holi celebration, because of his desperation his mother asked him to go near Radha and color her face into any color. After doing that both of them became good friend and couple. To commemorate that event, people play holi every year by coloring the face of each other.
Rituals of Holika
Women doing round at Holika
Married women perform a ritual in the afternoon before the Holika Dahan. They take bath and prepare a puja thali for worshipping the Holika. Puja thali contains Roli, Haldi, Wheat flour, 5 co-dung uple having hole, mauli (red thread), Jal and 5 or 7 jau bali. Women perform this puja of Holika for the wellness and bright future of their kids. They make round of the Holika heap collected on the crossroads in the nearby regions. They offer jal to the Holika while making round for 5 or 7 times. They also offer red thread while making round for 5, 7 or 11 times of the diameter of the Holika. There is a great significance of offering haldi powder, wheat flour powder, jau bali and co-dung uple for the wellness and long life of the kids. By offering many things to Holika women seek blessing for the prosperity and health for the whole year in their home.
Women worshiping Holika
Some women bring roasted jau bali to their home by roasting the raw jau bali in the fire of Holika during Holika Dahan in evening in the myth that all the negative energies and diseases of home gets burned with Holika. There is also a tradition of offering a new clothe or sari to the Holika when any woman give birth to the son. Later the clothes are taken by the Pandits or priests of region.
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Holika Dahan Images
This is a big heap of light and heavy woods and co-dung cakes collected by the people in the mid of the crossroads for the purpose of Holika Dahan. People would get together here at the time of Holika Dahan in the evening to celebrate the ritual of Holika Dahan.
Nearby people of the colony are gathered here to flame the collected big heap of woods at the crossroad as Holika Dahan in the myth of burning Holika by having safe Prahlad in her lap.
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Importance of Holika Dahana
Holika Dahan, also known as Holika Bonfire, holds significant cultural and religious importance in Hindu tradition, particularly during the festival of Holi. This ritual, which typically takes place on the night before Holi, involves the burning of an effigy representing Holika, the sister of demon king Hiranyakashipu, who tried to kill his son Prahlad due to his devotion to Lord Vishnu.
- The importance of Holika Dahan lies in its symbolic representation of the victory of good over evil and the triumph of righteousness over malevolence. The bonfire signifies the destruction of negativity and the purification of the soul. It serves as a reminder of the power of faith, devotion, and truth in overcoming adversity.
- Moreover, Holika Dahan marks the beginning of the joyous festival of colors, Holi. It brings people together to celebrate the arrival of spring, renewing bonds of friendship and camaraderie. The ashes from the bonfire are often considered sacred and are believed to possess purifying properties, which are used for rituals and auspicious ceremonies.
- Beyond its religious significance, Holika Dahan fosters a sense of community and unity as families and communities gather around the bonfire, sing traditional songs, exchange greetings, and share sweets. It is a time for forgiveness, reconciliation, and spreading love and happiness.
- In essence, Holika Dahan serves as a profound reminder of the eternal battle between good and evil, the importance of faith and devotion, and the celebration of life’s vibrancy and renewal.
