Raksha Bandhan

Raksha Bandhan

Raksha Bandhan is the name of the Hindu Festival, which basically is in place to celebrate the loving relationships between brothers and sisters. The celebration begins, November 8th, during the Hindu month, on every full moon of Shraavana, and the festivities begin by tying a rakhi (holy thread) on the wrist of the brother. In return, the brother gives sweets to his sister and she does so in return; they both promise to care for each other and look after one another, indefinitely. Interestingly enough, any male can become the brother figure, as long as a rakhi is tied onto the male's wrist. Indian history is chalked full of moments that women ask for protection, from not only relatives and fellow Hindus, but for those that are not connected to the religion in any manner.

The festival has its origin in the events of Indra's quarrel with Vritra-Indra, which ended with Indra's loss. Afterwards, the wife placed a thread of sorts around his wrist, thus giving Indra unrivaled, mystical powers for future battles. In addition to the unity brought out between brothers and sisters in the festival, a much broader union is also the desired effect of such a ceremony. Raksha Bandhan unifies the people of India. This gorgeous ceremony also helps to remember the tremendously important history of India. The unification expands through the barriers such as caste, religion, culture, etc. Nowadays, the thread tied onto the brother's wrist has become relatively trendy and now speaks to a modern tradition, one that embraces the past and infuses it with present morality.

Nowadays, the rakhi celebration takes place just about anyplace that the spirit takes shape, and normally the event begins with an enormous feast for its guests. The highlights of the celebration occur as guests give gifts to one another and add a variety of religious elements to the celebration. So the celebration is not exclusive to India anymore, as people across the globe are thrilled to engage in the celebration, mostly for the unification and peace that Raksha Bandhan represents.

More appropriate history is exposed in the Krishna and Draupadi, from the epic Mahabharat. The wife of Pandavus tore a piece of silk off of the sari and then tied it to Krishna's wrist in order to lessen the blood flow. Draupadi was so absolutely charmed by her loving actions that he found himself drawn immensely to her love. For the next twenty-five years, he put all of his efforts into repaying the debt, even though much of his energy and focus was with his band of warriors.

Another legend highlights the Raksha Bandhan tradition followed by Lord Yama, which refers to the lord of death as well as his sister Yamuna. Basically, Yamuna tied the rakhi onto Yama, thus bestowing immortality. As a result of this gratuitous action, Yama was entirely moved by the kindness bestowed upon him, so he proposed that anyone who receives a rakhi, tied upon the wrist by his sister, has to make a promise to protect her eternally. Furthermore, some historical accounts claim that the king of Greece, Alexander (known as Alexander the Great,) invaded India and married an Indian woman, Roxana. In order to fuse with his new Asian regions, he decided to marry her. Alexander's new wife delivered a special thread to Porus, which begged of him not to injure her new husband in battle. According to many Hindu customs, Porus reacted by giving the utmost respect to the rakhi. In those final moments of battle, as Porus began what may have been a fatal blow to Alexander, he refrained while noticing the loving rakhi placed upon his wrist.

It's interesting to take note that although the Raksha Bandhan celebration takes place throughout the entire country of India, and of course other areas throughout the world, different parts of India celebrate the day in slightly different ways, but they all happen to take place on the same day. For instance, the Rakhi Purnima takes place in both the North and South India; it enjoys the same celebratory festivities, but falls under a different name. Moreover, the Pavitropana takes place in areas of Gujarat, and on the specific day of celebration, the masses perform the grand pooja, which combines all of the prayers that take place throughout the year.