Importance of Hindu Festivals

Festivals are an expressive way to celebrate glorious heritage, culture and traditions. They are
meant to rejoice special moments and emotions in our lives with our loved ones. They play an
important role to add structure to our social lives, and connect us with our families and
backgrounds. They give us a distraction from our day to day, exhausting routine of life, and give
us some inspiration to remember the important things and moments in life. Festivals were
started to remind us of the deeds of our past heroes and to pass the legends, knowledge and
traditions onto the next generation.

Apart from that, in Hinduism, festivals play a very important role as it manifests the integration
of soul, mind and body for the pursuit of happiness. Each festival is a joyful mixture of
spirituality, religion, philosophy, culture and social values. Each Hindu festival has mythological
stories associated with it.

Types of Festivals

Hinduism has to its credit a large number of Hindu festivals which are celebrated worldwide.
There are three main types of festivals:
1. Celebrating a significant event in the life of a deity e.g. Janmashtami is Krishna’s
birthday.
2. Celebrating a significant event in the life of a holy person e.g. the birthday of a particular
guru or personality like Mahatma Gandhi.
3. Seasonal festivities or customs, e.g. spring festivals like Holi.

Moreover, all festivals are cultural in one way or another. There are many types of cultural
festivals such as National, Religious and Seasonal. They all serve the purpose of bringing
happiness to our lives, and strengthen our sense of community. National Festivals like
Independence Day or Gandhi Jayanti is celebrated throughout the continent, with many nations
having a public holiday. This solidify patriotic spirits in the society and also revive in us the
ideals & principles of those eminent personalities who sacrificed their lives for the sake of the
country. Religious festivals are important for families to teach principles and ethics to our next
generations. All different religious festivals bring the same message of love, tolerance and
understanding. On these occasions we express our gratitude to God, for the special thing or
event that originated on this particular festival. For instance, the Mahashivaratree festival is
celebrated to commemorate the sacrifice of Lord Shiva towards mankind. Seasonal festivals
reflect attitude of people towards nature. These festivals are important because they are related
to food supply. Human beings should adore the nature and acknowledge its beneficence before
partaking any of its gifts. For example, harvesting festival is celebrated as Sankranti where the
first grains harvested are cooked, offered to God and then shared to the community.

Purposes of Festivals

Festivals are generally times for celebration and remembrance. Other purposes are:

 To create a special atmosphere, diverting the mind from worldly concerns and joyfully
focusing on spiritual matters.
 To invoke the soul’s natural qualities by creating an environment replete with
auspiciousness and the abundant gifts of nature.
 To give people spiritual inspiration, which helps them perform their daily duties.
 To forge a healthy sense of belonging by peacefully bringing together individuals,
families and communities.

Festival leads to happiness

Life is all about happiness and as human beings, social interaction with our fellow beings not
only brings happiness but helps us grow our capacity to learn languages, familiarise ourselves
with cultures, inquire, think, play and work. We are dependent on social heritage, which is a
mixture of customs, traditions, moral values, attitudes, festivals, folklore, beliefs and ideals not
only makes us who we are but binds us to pass it on from one generation to another.

Festivals have both social and economic angles. In the chaotic and stressful planet, we inhabit,
happiness is overshadowed by negativity and insecurity and so the need for something that could
bring positivity has been felt time and again. Thus, festivals that give us the opportunity to forget
all our worries and celebrate the positive side of life, even if it is for a few days, came into
existence. Festivals act like stress relievers and help us balance our emotions. More positivity
naturally lowers negativity.

Festivals and the unifying spirit

Festivals are like glue in our life that keeps us attached to relationships in society. They are
celebrated both at home to bind the family and at the temples or in the society to bind the
community at large. When we are together as a family, friend, and society, it creates a sense of
unity. When the family is connected to festivals it is a most precious and joyful time. Thus,
festivals are a chance to all people of the country and world to work and connect for a cause, so
that it spreads brotherhood, faith, love, sense of respect and duty among people. That’s why
festivals are important occasions that have to be celebrated peacefully and without destroying
others’ emotions and beliefs.

Moreover, celebration of different festivals (Hindu, Muslim, Chinese festivals) surely bring
communities together. Thus, festivals contribute immensely to the feelings of social cohesion.
They involve community youngsters & elders sharing stories and experiences thus setting
templates for maintaining unity among families. It also provides an opportunity to reduce
friction and brings estranged friends and relatives together in a bond of love. Nothing brings
people together like festivals do. They play a pivotal role in nation-building; bringing people
from every religious, economic and social background together. Hence, festivals bring us
together in a bond of love, irrespective of colour, creed, race and religion.

Festivals & fun

Festivals have historically been a great source of entertainment especially before the advent of
mass-produced entertainment. They divert peoples’ attention from their demanding lives and
amuse them in their leisure time. Man gets tired of their monotonous lives. So, festivals bring
some change, relaxation and cheer in life. Singing, dancing, fire cracking, sharing of sweets,
visiting of relatives & friends, all these add colour to the different festivals.
Festivals as speeding up the economic development

Apart from their entertainment value, festivals have an economic value, as people spend money
for the festivities, gifts, travel, and other activities. Festivals also stimulate economic activities
since they provide employment opportunities to people. They enable many people from earning a
living by selling flowers, gifts and decorations. People buy more goods and services during
festivals as massive sales are offered during such occasions. Government and private employees
get special bonuses, gifts and holidays to celebrate festivals with family.

The religious aspects of festivals

Festivals play an important role in uniting people and creating awareness among them about their
faith. From time to time, they help worldly people to remember their religious duties and
obligations and their ultimate purpose, which is to lead a divine centered life and attain
liberation. The festivals of Hinduism provide people with an opportunity to think of God and
their religious and spiritual duties. At the same time, they help them to engage in religious
activity, service and declare their love and devotion.

Therefore, festivals, like life, are gifts handed down from generation to generations that need to
be celebrated. Festivals make Hinduism very colorful and vibrant. Perhaps there is no other
religion in the world where people celebrate so many festivals. Almost every day, week and
month in Hindu calendar has some significance and an occasion to celebrate. Festivals also bring
people together, reinforce their faith and help them strengthen their relationships.