POLOKWANE – The Hindu community celebrated the colourful Holi Festival at the Shree Gita Mandir Temple in Nirvana on Sunday evening.
The celebrations, arranged by the the Pietersburg Hindu Seva Samaj and the community started with a prayer session in the temple and thereafter the festivities continued outside the temple in the courtyard.
In India, Holi is used to mark the onset of a new season, to ward off the winter cold and to welcome the colours of spring.
Jyoti Mistry, a member of the Pietersburg Hindu Seva Samaj said: “The festival celebrates the victory of good over evil, removing negativity within oneself and striving towards good and improving oneself”.
A bonfire was made and the community gathered around it for songs of prayer, led by the women. Offerings such as coconuts and a combination of rice, flowers, money and red prayer powder, were thrown into the fire. The offerings were given so that the prayers said around the bonfire would be answered.
During the ceremony, residents walked around the bonfire and sprinkled water to purify the air and area.
After the prayers and giving of offering, the half cooked coconuts were removed from the fire, broken in half and eaten.
The community then continued the celebrations by plastering and sprinkling brightly coloured powders on each other.
The powders were made of neem, kumkum, haldi and bilva and are believed to have medicinal properties that will keep sicknesses at bay.
