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The festival of Holi heralds spring. This is the time when nature discards the gloom of winter and rejuvenates with new leaves and flowers. Many flowers bloom in this season and tall trees acquire a green splendour with new leaves. This riot of colours in nature is appropriately celebrated in India as the festival of colours. It is a celebration of life and nature's power of revitalisation.

The most common feature of the celebration in most parts of India is the lighting of the bonfire on the eve of Holi followed by celebrations with colour, the next day. The bonfire is lit to signify the burning of Holika, a mythical she demon. It is also in honour of the fire god who is offered new corn and other food items.

Splashing of colours: The next day is the festival of colours. Preparations for this begin a week in advance. Powdered colour is bought from roadside vendors and placed in small heaps on a large plate. Colour pellets are mixed with water and buckets of coloured water are prepared. This colour is squirted on each other with the help of pichkaris, long syringe-like cylinders with a piston. Water balloons are filled with coloured or plain water and thrown at each other.

A family occasion: Three days before the full moon, the event of 'Rang Pashi' is celebrated. All members of the family gather at one place. Friends are also invited. The household priest or the eldest member of the family sprinkles coloured water on everyone, amidst the beating of drums. The guests are offered delicacies like gujjia, papadi and dahi bade. In many places, bhang or thandai is prepared on Holi and people drink it as a token of gay abandon. There is an air of celebration and merriment as people mingle with each other, sprinkling colour and offering sweets.

Colour is the spirit of this festival of spring. Imitating the rich and vibrant colours of nature, coloured powder is flung into the air and applied on the faces of friends and relatives, amidst much merriment and laughter. Through its rich colours, nature teaches us to appreciate life. The pulsating and energetic aspect of life is reflected in colours. These qualities are imbibed when Holi is celebrated with colours. Holi colours symbolise joy and happiness. Holi also teaches us that every sorrow or dark period of life will be followed by joy and contentment.

The colour used on Holi is called 'gulal'. In the olden days, gulal was made at home from the flowers of the 'tesu' tree. This tree is also called 'the flame of the forest' or 'palash'. These bright red flowers were soaked in a bucket of water overnight. By the next day, the water is bright red and is used with pichkaris. Dry gulal was made by drying the tesu flowers in the sun and grinding them into fine powder. Gulal was even considered good for health, for tesu flowers have many medicinal properties and it left a reddish glow on the skin.

Today, artificial colours in different bright shades are available in the market. Rich colours like pink, magenta, red, yellow and green can be bought from roadside vendors. 'Abeer' is made of small crystals or paper-like chips of mica. These are mixed with gulal to give it a rich shine. Silver or gold colour is also available in the market. This is mixed with coconut oil and stored in a bottle. It is applied in the form of tilak on the foreheads of visitors, on the day of Holi.

The tradition of celebrating with colour is traced to the stories of Krishna's youth. In Vrindavan, Krishna used to celebrate raas leela with the milkmaids. The youngsters sang, danced and applied colour to each other. Even today, Holi is celebrated with great fanfare in the villages around Vrindavan and Mathura.

In north India, on the day of Holi, a newly wed bride gets a special gift from her parents. This is a special saree called 'dandia'. It is a white cotton sari made of cotton voile or 'malmal'. Its borders are dyed with a colour called Indian Pink. The colour is not very fast and is absorbed by the cloth in an uneven pattern. Each border of the sari is dipped in the colour so that it is absorbed upto width of two to three inches. The effect is that of a slowly spreading blush.

The saree is then dried and further decorated by painting designs all over its base. Usually, Indian motifs are used. When the colour and designs are ready, a border of gold or silver, about two to three inches in width, is stitched onto the edges of the dandia. This border is called 'gota'. The pallav of the sari has a 'kiran' or a fine fringe of gold or silver, attached to it. This adds shimmer to the dandia.

Traditionally, parents invite their married daughter and son-in-law for meals on the day of Holi. The daughter is gifted the dandiya, as well as another sari and blouse pieces. Daughter's children are also gifted new clothes every year, until they get married.

Holi is the festival of fun and what is a celebration without good food! This festival of colours is no exception and there are a number of special dishes prepared specially to mark the festival. In north India, gujjia is the traditional sweet. Made from khoya and dry fruits, this is shaped like a half moon.

In Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, delicacies like namakpare, papadi, mathadi, potato papad, chips and dahi bade are made and served to guests. In cities and towns, sweets and dry fruits are served to the guests.

Treat for the son-in-law: It is a popular custom in north India to invite the married daughter of the house and her family for meals. Special festival food is cooked for the feast. Some families serve meat dishes like korma balls and curry. Drinks are served before dinner.

In Maharashtra: The fire god is made an offering of 'puran poli', the sweet delicacy of the state. The entire meal, consisting of puran poli, rice, dal, vegetables, salads, raita and chutney is offered as naivedyam.

In Bengal: Khichri and payasam is prepared and offered to Lord Krishna, who is worshipped on this day.

The bhang ritual: Apart from these delicacies, drinking bhang is a ritual on Holi. Bhang is a slightly intoxicating drink made from marijuana leaves and plenty of dry fruit. The leaves are pounded in a mortar and pestle and mixed with milk. Those who cannot stand strong bhang, make bhang pakoras or mix it with sweets. The idea is to get high on the occasion and enhance the sense of enjoyment.