The festival of Raksha Bandhan is similar to Karthikay
in Kartika (October-November) in South India. On this
day, sisters offer food to brothers to wish them a long
life. The festival is an occassion to strengthen the
bond between a brother and a sister.
In South India, The Raksha Bandhan full
moon day is a household festival for the men, where
the sacred thread is ceremoniously changed.
Raksha Bandhan is based on an ancient legend.
The legend goes that the gods were having
a war with the demons. The god Indra got help from his
wife. She tied a piece of silk around his wrist to ward
off the evil demons. With the silk around his wrist,
Indra beat back the devils and got back his home in
the heavens. Today, Hindu girls with brothers give them
special bracelets woven of silk (called rakhi) on this
day.
The rakhi are made of red and gold thread.
They are a symbol of the bond between brothers and sisters.
When the sisters give their brothers the rakhis, they
give them candy to eat as well. The brothers give their
sisters little gifts in return.
Narali Purnima
On the full moon day of Shravan, after one or two months
of heavy rains and strong winds, the sea becomes calm.
On this day boats are allowed to launch into the sea
again. But before doing so the sea is worshipped by
throwing a coconut (“naral”) into the water. In this
way Varun, the god of the water, is worshipped.
The Coconut as “Prasad”
The coconut is a fruit full of symbolism. It is known
as “Shriphal”, or “divine fruit”. Within its hard shell
it contains food and drink, the two essential elements
God has placed in creation for man’s nourishment. The
hard shell expresses God’s desire that man should enjoy
the fruits of the earth through personal effort.
The coconut is the most common fruit
used as an offering to God. The effort needed to break
the shell represents the element of sacrifice. The kernel
and the water are first offered to God and then shared
with all those present, and also taken home to be shared
with relatives and neighbours as “prasad”, or food blessed
by God.
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