Pro Tips for Attending Holi — Meaning "Burning" or "The Festival of Colors"

March 28th, 2009 will mark my 4th consecutive year attending The Festival of Holi [pronounced Holly] at the Spanish Fork Krishna Temple. Here is some free advice if you are planning to attend for the first time:

10 Tips For Attending Holi in Spanish Fork, UT

1. Plan to travel  on the back roads.  Don't take main street in Spanish Fork; take the backroad. Ask me individually for further directions. I don't want my secret to become too popular. Or plot it out yourself. If you are worried about getting lost, drive down on Friday to case out the joint. They're open all day and they will even sell you colored powder and event t-shirts in advance.


2. Wear "camping clothes." My clothes get trashed every time. Usually, the colors come out in the wash, but last year I had to just throw away my sweater. (The experience is always worth it though.)


3. Bring your own colors if you can. For the last few years, they've sold tiny, homemade bags for $1 and authentic, scented ones for $2.   In 2008, they sold out and many people waited in line for 2 hours didn't get any. (Rumor has it that this year, in an effort to cut down on lines, bag prices are going to be jacked up from $1-2, to $5 for the homemade bags and $10 for the high-grade scented bags.)


4. Go with friends. It's all about the memories.


5. Camera Caution.  Bring a camera or video recorder only if you are willing to seriously mess up the lens. Professional photographers capture the festivities from the upper level of the temple.  You could also shoot from inside a clear, protective case. Be cautious with phones.


6. The indigo, high-grade bag is the BEST! I think this color is more vibrant and contrasting than any of the other colors sold.  If you are only going to buy one color—go indigo.


7. Share your paint/chalk with a friend; You never use you whole bag. You just end up wasting the last 1/3 of it by dumping in on your friend.


8. Check out the schedule. The festivities begin at 4pm and the bonfire and color-throwing typically commence at 5:45pm. They also offer traditional food for a recommended $6 donation—it's good.


9. Wear protective eyewear.  I saw a girl who had to go to the ER in Pason and get her eyes flushed because some random attendee dumped his dregs on her face.  You may consider mouth and nose protection too if you are sensitive.


10. Don't wash your hair immediately afterwards.  Shake out as much as you can first. It should come right out.  The dye in the paint sets when wet.  A girl had to live with pink hair for her wedding a week after Holi because there was absolutely nothing her hair stylists could do about it after the dye had set.

If you want a taste of what it will be like, here is a FOX News 30-second clip of the 2008 festivities. (In this shot, I was standing by the effigy in the distance.)

Meaning Lost in Translation:

I am saddened by how irreligious we have acted as guests of the Hare Krishnas in recent years. Students of Utah Valley are the main attendees of the event.  This carefree demographic (mostly Mormon) also seems to be generally ignorant of other faiths and cultures here in the Valley—I think it's fair to assume the true meaning of the festival is lost among most attendees. Most of the UVU and BYU students I observe in attendance treat the celebration as if it were a "drug-free" rock concert, with no understand of what is being celebrated.

The Festival of Holi is a moment in time to lose ourselves in traditional song, dance, drama, and culture, with the focus on expressing gratitude for the change in season and deliverance from evil. Granted, everyone has the right to express their joy in their own way, but it is my opinion that crowd surfing and acting like drunkards should not have a place in this year's religious celebration.

I felt terrible last year when a crowd of rowdy teens and college students disrespected the ritualistic Indian dancer by yelling and rough housing to the point that she was almost crowded off the stage. We need to hold ourselves responsible, as welcomed guests, for our conduct at these events. Ignorance perpetuates impropriety.

It is time now to uncover the actual meaning behind the festival's origin. In Christian terms, Holi is the conglomerate story of Daniel and the Lion's Den (Daniel 6) crossed with King Nebuchadnezzar and Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego (Daniel 3), crossed with King Saul and David (1-2 Samuel).

Why do they "Burn the Witch" just before everyone gets pummeled by colored powder?

The literal meaning of the word 'Holi' is 'burning'. There are various legends to explain the meaning of this word, most prominent of all is the legend associated with demon king Hiranyakashyap. The "burning of the witch", as Americans think of it, is actually the ancient legend of this demon king that gradually gained popularity with the people and became a tradition.

Hiranyakashyap wanted everybody in his kingdom to worship only him but to his great disappointment, Prahlad (Hiranyakashipu's own son) became an ardent devotee of Lord Naarayana. In spite of several threats from Hiranyakashipu, Prahlada continued offering prayers to Lord Vishnu. He was poisoned but the poison turned to nectar in his mouth. He was ordered to be trampled by elephants yet remained unharmed. He was put in a room with hungry, poisonous snakes and survived. All of Hiranyakashipu's attempts to kill his son failed.

Finally, Hiaranyakashyap commanded Prahlad's sister, the demoness Holika, to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad in her lap. Prahlada readily accepted his father's orders, and prayed to Vishnu to keep him safe. Holika had a mystic shawl whereby she could enter fire without any damage to herself. However, she was not aware that the boon [shawl] worked only when she entered the fire alone. As a result she paid a price for her sinister desires, while Prahlad was saved by the grace of the god for his extreme devotion. The festival, therefore, celebrates the victory of good over evil and also the triumph of devotion. The colors are a joyous explosion of this victory. (holifestival.org)

Alternative  Origin Legend:

There is another story about the origin of Holi and the "burning witch" and the "colors". Kamadeva is a god of love. Kama's body was destroyed when he shot his weapon at Shiva in order to disrupt his penance and help Parvati to marry Shiva. Shiva then opened his third eye, the gaze of which was so powerful that Kama's body was reduced to ashes. For the sake of Kama's wife Rati (passion), Shiva restored him, but only as a mental image, representing the true emotional and spiritual state of love rather than physical lust. The Holi bonfire is believed to be celebrated in commemoration of this event.

Holi is a festival of radiance (Teja) in the universe. During this festival, different waves of radiance traverse the universe, thereby creating various colors that nourish and complement the function of respective elements in the atmosphere. [Wikipedia]

Look into these people's eyes. They understand what this celebration is truly about. (Image source: Boston.com)

I love the Indians rockn' the eye protection!

Please take the time to enjoy this musical photo collage of Holi set in India:

Congratulations for reading to the end of the post! You will now be rewarded for your efforts. I will reveal to you my greatest secrets surrounding the celebration of Holi:

How to make your own colors:

The easiest way to make "Gulal" [colored powder] is to buy jumbo sidewalk chalk at the dollar store and crush it up with a rolling pin. That way you have some of every color! It's actually less toxic too. (You might even make a profit by selling to those in line.) The real deal is a little more involved. See this Link for details. Real ingredients are next to impossible to find.

I would suggest bringing a squirt gun or water bottle full of "Rang" [wet colors] as they do in India, but I'm afraid the event would turn into a raving, colorful wet-t-shirt contest. Plus, I'm not sure the Hare Krishna cleanup crew would appreciate it very much as guests aren't technically supposed to bring their own colors. (This for our own protection -- to make sure the colors don't stain or have chunkies.)

Here is the "Smart Way" to go on your way to the festival:

Directions: (This is what I wrote down to get there, but roads change so definitely look it up on google.com)  Just search for "Krishna Temple Spanish Fork, UT" on http://maps.google.com/.

*Note: This is smart because parking extends 3 miles into town. Hardly anyone parks in the roads just beyond the temple. Park anywhere along the side roads up there. Don't go in with your car. When the festival is over, the narrow exit bottlenecks for 45 minutes and becomes impassible. Then the traffic along the one road towards the freeway is stop and go for an hour.

The SF Krishna Temple Address:

S Main St
Spanish Fork, UT 84660
www.utahkrishnas.com
Or Get Directions by calling: (801) 798-3559

Additional local information