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Waitakere Diwali festival was initiated in Waitakere
by Waitakere Indian Association in year 2000 and has grown
from strength to strength since then.
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Holi Mela |
Holi Mela is another event which has become very popular
amongst the community. It has been the motto and effort of
Waitakere Indian Association to promote diversity in our
area and we have been very successful with our Holi Mela.
Now Waitakere Holi Mela has developed into an event not only
for Indians but also for wider New Zealand community. The
event also marks the Race Relations day in March every year.
Celebrating the festival of colours in our diversely
cultural city is seen as a way to continue building better
relations with the community. A crowd of over 10,000 people
have attended this event every year.
Significance of Holi Festival – A Festival of Colours
The festival of Holi is celebrated on the day after the full
moon in early March every year.
Originally a festival to celebrate good harvests and
fertility of the land, Holi is now a symbolic commemoration
of a legend from Hindu Mythology. The story centers around
an arrogant king Hirnakasyap who resents his son Prahalad
worshipping Lord Vishnu. He attempts to kill his son but
fails each time. Finally, the king's sister Holika who is
said to be immune to burning sits with the boy in a huge
fire. However, the prince Prahalad emerges unscathed, while
his aunt burns to death, but it was the will of God that
truth and good triumphs over lies and evil. That is what
exactly Holi signifies. The use of coloured water and powder
is intended to colour all people in one colour, so it
transcends race, colour and creed to signify that we all are
equal in one colour and children of one God. Holi
commemorates this event from mythology, and huge bonfires
are burnt on the eve of Holi as its symbolic representation.
This exuberant festival is also associated with the immortal
love of Lord Krishna and Radha, and hence, Holi is spread
over 16 days in Vrindavan as well as Mathura - the two
cities with which Lord Krishna shared a deep affiliation.
Apart from the usual fun with coloured powder and water,
Holi is marked by vibrant processions which are accompanied
by folk songs, dances and a general sense of abandoned
vitality.
Today Holi is an excuse for Indians to shed inhibitions and
caste differences for a day of spring fever and Big Fun.
Teenagers and adults extend the hand of peace, and everyone
chases everyone else around, throwing brightly coloured
powder (gulaal) and water over each other. The uniformity of
colours signifies that we all are equal in the eyes of God.
The Waitakere Holi Festival is celebrated in March each year
at The Trusts Stadium Grounds, Central Park Drive,
Henderson. Please keep watching this space for further
details
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