Monday, April 8, 2013

We.Are.One.

The festival of Holi as described by Wikipedia; "...Every year, thousands of Hindus participate in the festival Holi. The festival has many purposes. First and foremost, it celebrates the beginning of the new season, spring. Originally, it was a festival that commemorated good harvests and the fertile land. Hindus believe it is a time of enjoying spring's abundant colors and saying farewell to winter. It also has a religious purpose, commemorating events present in Hinduism. During this event, participants hold a bonfire, throw colored powder at each other, and celebrate wildly...".

The South African organisers lost the rights to call their version of the festival Holi One and changed it to We Are One. The spirit of the day however remained unchanged. We all arrived in white (as it is traditional to do so). We were given our five bags of powder and headed straight to the bar. The countdown to the first explosion of colour was about to commence and we headed for the open field. 3-2-1 and colour filled the air in a mass powdered rainbow. Everyone around us was in the most elated and brilliant mood. There were no ill-feelings or bad tempers from anyone throughout the day. People just celebrated being coloured in. We pelted each other with powder and danced throughout the day. It is incredible to see ego and insecurity go out the door when people let their guard down. People truly embraced the concept of being free and being one. Everyone was equally dirty and equally as colourful. I don't think my pictures truly capture the beauty of the day, but it will give you a fair idea of what went down. If you were there I hope you felt the same way that I did. Enjoy!



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