It’s a day of momentous celebration at SXB.! It’s Holi celebrations at St Xavier’s Bangalore .! Today is a day of commemorating good over evil. After many days, we feel that normality as slowly returned to our college after these last two years of battling corona. Today, we have decided to celebrate Holi in a pompous manner at St Xavier’s Bangalore. Holi celebration mark the beginning of the festival of spring and the end of a long winter. It’s a time to harvesting as farmers celebrate Holi by doing all kinds of harvest in the fields initiating a new mark of the beginning, in the same way we must also harvest good thoughts and deeds from today so that the year is a more memorable and a happy one. Holi celebration is therefore necessary for us as we shall throw colours on all our friends and share sweets and savouries to highlight the good in our life. Holi is celebrated on March 18 today after Holi dhahan . The Grand Holi, also known as the festival of joyous colours, is a religious occasion celebrated with much pomp ad grandeur. It is considered the second biggest Hindu festival after the Diwali, and the celebrations last for two days – Chotti Holi or Hollika Dhahan and Dhulandi or Rangwali Holi. It marks the celebration of the victory of good over evil. The festival falls in the Hindu calendar month of Phalguna, which usually falls between February and March. On this day, people play with colours, water, flowers and more, children and adults smear Gulal on each other, and people around the country seek the blessings of their elders. People visit their friends and relatives and also relish Holi delicacies like gujiya, thandai and more after playing Holi. Today at Holi, we at St Xavier’s have finally set out to spread joy and happiness in our environment as we safely celebrate Holi by exchanging sweets and colours in a timid manner. We are having great fun at this Holi day but we also remember the strain we faced during these last two years where we were stuck with the COVID Pandemic situation. Today we are gently reminded that how normality and social gathering feels like as we throw colours on our fellow students and spread joy happiness and pleasure. The Holi festival has a cultural significance among various Hindu traditions of the Indian subcontinent. It is the festive day to end and rid oneself of past errors, to end conflicts by meeting others, a day to forget and forgive. People pay or forgive debts, as well as deal anew with those in their lives. Holi also marks the start of spring, an occasion for people to enjoy the changing seasons and make new friends. Holi celebration is also a day of love as we celebrate Holi as a day of not just a triumph of good over evil but also as a day of remembrance of the eternal love of Lord Krishna and Radhe.Its on this Holi celebration day that Radhe and Lord Krishna have been unified as one as Radhakrishna. There is a symbolic legendary story behind the festival. In his youth, Krishna despaired whether the fair-skinned Radha would like him because of his dark skin colour. His mother yashoda ,who was Lord Krishna s matchmaker, was tired of his desperation, asks him to approach Radha and ask her to colour his face in any colour she wanted. This Radha meekly did, and Radha and Krishna became a couple. Ever since, the playful colouring of Radha and Krishna’s face has been commemorated as Holi. And since then only, Lord Krishna has been associated with colours and fondly called as raang avatari in Sanskrit. We celebrate Holi in many forms as tales of splendour has come to light when Lord narasimha appears to save Prahalada, a Vishnu Bhakta from the clasps of death by his own father, King hiranshakashypu. It is when the demon sister of king hiranshakashypu hollika who was sanctioned to kill Prahalada for betraying to worship his father. Raging from the earth, Lord narasimha appears and kills king hiranshakashypu hollika is also burnt to death on this occasion , henceforth citing the celebration of Holi, as evils get destroyed that has acted against devotion and true love. This day also marks the day of burning Lord kamdev accidentally by Lord Shiva, who was in deep meditation as Lord kamdev tried to play wingman for Shakti. His cupid arrows angered the Lord Shiva, who burnt the God of love with fire from his third eye and even burnt goddess Parvathi to ashes. Realising his mistake, Lord Shiva reincarnated goddess Parvathi and lord kamdev to life. Even in Mughal India, In Mughal India, Holi was celebrated with such exuberance that people of all castes could throw colour on the Emperor. Such are the significance of Holi Festival where we sure have fun at SXB and we welcome you as , to come join us in our celebration. From St Xavier’s Bangalore, Wishing you all a very happy Holi.! May the joy run through our hearts all year long.!