Holi - The world is in a color frenzy

People throwing powder at each other and then running away laughing. Children covered in paint and loud Indian music. It's that time again: Happy Holi!

No one in India is staying clean at the moment. The continent is celebrating the spring festival Holi - and extensively at that. The Hindu festival takes place every year on the day of the full moon in the Hindu month of Phalguna. For at least two days, liters of colored water are sprayed or people are pelted with colored powder. There are villages where the celebrations last up to sixteen days (Braj Holi, Uttar Pradesh).

Why do people celebrate Holi? The background.

Holi has its roots in Indian mythology. In many places, the festival of colors is associated with the legend of Hiranyakashipu. The king of demons with the difficult name wanted to kill his son Prahlada with the help of his sister Holika. Pahlada, a devotee of the Hindu god Vishnu, was placed on a funeral pyre with Holika. She wanted to protect herself from the flames with a cloak. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way: the cloak protected Prahlada from death by fire, but Holika died in agony. Later that night, Vishnu killed Hiranyakashipu, who had ordered the attempted murder. Thus, good had triumphed over evil. In some regions of India, a large funeral pyre is therefore lit on Holi.

In other parts of the continent, the story of Krishna and Radha takes center stage. The young Krishna, a deity considered to be a manifestation of Vishnu, spent a lot of time with Radha. However, she looked different from Krisha. While his skin was light blue, hers had a yellowish tint. Krisha complained to his mother Yashoda about the injustice of nature that Radha had such fair skin but he was so dark. She then told her son that he should simply color Radha's face. And that's exactly what the playful boy did. This is the origin of why people throw paint at each other.

Everyone is equal - at least during the festival.

Holi is not just about celebrating the arrival of spring or the victory of good over evil. It is also a festival of reconciliation and togetherness. That is why all Indians are treated equally during Holi. No matter which caste they belong to. Although any discrimination on the basis of caste was banned by the Constitution of the Republic of India in 1949, the reality is different. Dalits (also known as untouchables) are the lowest group in Hindu society. The estimated 160 million Dalit members still suffer from marginalization through racism and violence, especially in rural areas.

As with many exuberant celebrations, alcohol consumption also plays a role in Holi. However, this not only makes people more relaxed and cheerful. The inhibition threshold also drops rapidly. As a result, women are repeatedly assaulted and harassed during the harmless festival. One such incident was documented on video in two cities in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The blogger Tushar Shukla, who was present himself, shared a video of the harassment on the social media platform Instagram.

Is the powder dangerous?

At the festival of colors, the color is logically the most important thing. The powder is thrown into the air, smeared on cheeks and sometimes eaten unintentionally. This begs the question: what is it actually made of? In the past, the colors were obtained exclusively from natural substances. Green from neem leaves, yellow from turmeric, red from pomegranate, to name just a few examples.

However, this has changed. The colors of the gulal, as the Holi powder is called, are now produced more cheaply by using artificial ingredients. The result is even more intense colors. The ingredients from the food or cosmetics industry are mixed with corn starch or talcum powder and are then ready for use. In recent years, there have been several reports of people complaining of skin irritation, breathing problems or rashes after coming into contact with Gulal. Although some articles mention the use of lead, mercury and even asbestos in very cheap color powders, this could not be verified by sources.

However, the increased exposure to particulate matter during the Holi festival has been confirmed. This even leads to an increase in hospital admissions due to breathing difficulties and eye problems. You can view the results of the study from January 2019 here.

"Happy Holi" - also outside India.

The spectacle has now even made it to Europe. It is offered by several organizers and already has many enthusiastic followers. Although the religious festival is different in Europe, of course. Instead of burning a pyre, techno music is played by DJs and the clouds of color are fired over the spectators every hour using cannons. Incidentally, due to safety regulations, you are not allowed to bring your own color powder - it has to be bought on site.

Whether you're throwing colored powder at each other in New Delhi, Barcelona or Vienna, the fun is the most important thing!

So: HAPPY HOLI!