Festivals

of India
Table of contents

01 Durga Puja 02 Diwali

Eastern India Central India

03 Onam 04 Ganesh Chaturthi

South India Western India
 01
Durga Puja
Eastern India
 Information about the festival
Durga Puja is an annual Hindu festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which reveres and pays
homage to the Hindu goddess durga

Date
It is celebrated throughout the country with great zeal and fervour in the
month of October during the last 5 days of the festival of Navratri. The tenth
and the last day of the Navaratri is called as Dashami and on this day the
idols of the Goddess Durga are immersed into the water and this process is
called as Visarjan.
Reason
Hindus believe that the Goddess emerged triumphant after slaying demon
Mahishasura, who had argued that he was invincible and immortal, and
that a woman could certainly never kill him and this festival is celebrated to
asertain the thought that good has victory over evil.
 Information about the festival

Places Celebrated
While the whole of India celebrates navratri for 10 days but specifically the
people of West Bengal, Assam and other northeastern states celebrate the
festival for the last 5 days

Rituals and Traditions

Durga Puja is also a cultural extravaganza during which Bengalis fast in the
morning and feast at night. Various food stalls serving authentic Bengali
cuisine are set up around puja pandals. Dance, music, recitation, arts and
some light sports activities are also planned in the four days of the festival,
during which people wear new clothes and look their best. From the sixth
day of Navaratri till the ninth day the huge pandals of the Goddess Durga
are open for the visitors.
 02
Diwali
Western India
 Information about the festival
Diwali also known as Deepavali is the festival of lights

Date
It generally lasts five days or six in some regions of India,
and is celebrated during the Hindu lunisolar months of Ashvin
and Kartika (between mid-October and mid-November).

Reason
It symbolizes the spiritual "victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge
over ignorance".The festival is widely associated with Lakshmi, goddess of prosperity and
Ganesha, god of wisdom and the remover of obstacles, with many other regional traditions.
Furthermore, it is a celebration of the day Rama returned to his kingdom in Ayodhya with
his wife Sita and his brother Lakshmana after defeating the demon Ravana in Lanka
andserving 14 years of exile.
 Information about the festival

Places Celebrated
This festival is celebrated in the whole country but most importantly
celebrated in the North-western region

Rituals and Traditions

this festival is celbrated with liting diyas all around so that positivity andlight
comes thus this festival is also called festival of light , with worshiping
goddess laxmi by doing pooja for wealth and prosperity , making rangoli with
powdered colors and flowers most important part is bursting of
firecrackers in deewali , people wear their finest traditional clothes we also
offer mithai (sweets) to our neighbours , relatives and loved ones
 03
Onam
South India
 Information about the festival
Most Celebrated festival of the south!

Date
Celebrated from 20th to 31st august

Reason
The homecoming of King Mahabali is celebrated as Onam in Kerala every year
Harvest festival celebrated predominantly by the Hindus of Kerala.
The celebrations mark the Malayalam New Year
 Information about the festival
Places Celebrated
This festival is celebrated in the whole country but most importantly
celebrated in the southern region of india, places like kerela, tamil nadu
etc
Rituals and Traditions
Athachamayam -Parade features decorated elephants marching, drumbeats and
other music, folk art forms, floats and colourfully dressed people with masks
Pookkalam - Floral rangoli is made out of the gathered blossoms with several
varieties of flowers of differing tints pinched up into little pieces to design and
decorate patterns on the floor
Vallamkali -Numerous oarsmen row huge snake-shaped boats.
Sadya -The Onam sadya (feast) is another indispensable part of Onam he feasts
is served on plantain leavesand consists of nine courses, but may include over
two dozen dishes,
Thiruvathira Kali - Thiruvathira Kali women's dance performed in a circle
around a lamp
 04
Ganesh Chaturthi
West India
 Information about the festival
Ganpati Bappa Maurya!

Date
The 11-day celebration begins on the Chaturthi Tithi of Shukla
Paksha in the month of Bhadrapada which falls on August 30,
2022

Reason
Ganesh chaturti is a Hindu festival commemorating the birth of the Hindu god
Ganesha .Although it is unknown when (or how) Ganesh Chaturthi was first
observed, the festival has been publicly celebrated in Pune since the era of
King Shivaji
 Information about the festival
Places Celebrated
In India, Ganesh Chaturthi is primarily celebrated at home and in public by
local community groups in the central and western states of
Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Goa and the
southern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu
and eastern states of West Bengal and Odisha and in North eastern
states of Assam.

Rituals and Traditions

The festival is marked with the installation of Ganesha's clay idols privately in homes
and publicly on elaborate pandals. Observances include chanting of Vedic hymns
and Hindu texts, such as prayers and fasting. The primary sweet dish during the
festival is Modak. Panchakajjaya is an offering made to Lord Ganesh during this
festival in parts of Karnataka. The festival ends on the tenth day after start, when
the idol is carried in a public procession with music and group chanting, then
immersed in a nearby body of water such as a river or sea
Thanks!