Gudi Padwa Festival of South India
Name of Festival : Gudi Padwa Festival
Major Territory of Celebration
Gudi Padwa is one of the major festivals and celebrated by the people of South India like Maharashtra.
Time of celebration (Months)
This Festival is celebrated in the month of Chaitra (March-April).
About Festival
According to the lunisolar Hindu calendar it is celebrated on the first day of the Chaitra month to mark the beginning of the New year. The Hindu year begins on the first day, “shuddha pratipada”, of the month of Chaitra (March-April). It is one of the ‘Muhurat’ amongst the three and a half Muhurats that occur in Hindu calendar year. Gudhi Padwa is also celebrated in some states of South India, though the name (Ugadi) by which it is known there is different.
This festival also know as Samvatsar Padvo among Hindu Konkanis of Goa , Nav Varsha Samvat in the North Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Bihar , Nau Roz in Kashmir , Goru Bihu in Assam ,Vishu in Kerala and Naba Barsha in Bengal.
Gudi
Gudi, meaning Brahma’s flag (Brahmadhvaj) and it is hoisted by people on the day of Gudi Padwa, as a symbol of victory of good over evil.And people believed to ward off evil influences and bring prosperity and good luck into the house.
On the day of festival people made a Gudi by bright green or yellow cloth with thw adorned with brocade (zari), to a long bamboo.A silver or copper pot is placed in the inverted position over it. This gudi is then hoisted outside the house, in a window, terrace or a high place.
It is believed that Lord Brahma, created the world on this day and so he is worshipped specially at this time. Lord Vishnu too is said to have incarnated as Matsya, the fish, on this day.
The people of Maharashtra see the gudis as a symbol of victory associated with the conquests of the Maratha forces lead by the great hero Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
On the festive day people clean and plastered their courtyards in village houses will be swept with fresh cow-dung but in city people take the time out to do some spring cleaning. Women and children work on intricate rangoli designs on their doorsteps, the vibrant colours mirroring the burst of colour associated with spring. Everyone wear new cloths and it is a time of for family gatherings.
