Shivaratri - The Great Night of Shiva - The Amazing Days for Sonic Sonny 💁🏻Can India get anymore Colourful - YES - Part 1

sonic-sonny (45)in #travel • 7 years ago (edited)

Just when I thought India could not get anymore colourful or spectacular - I was WRONG !

THE FESTIVAL
Shivaratri, the festival and celebration of the Hindu God, Lord Shiva.
It's a first and foremost a religious festival and also a time for celebration with your family and friends. It's a holiday time in India.
The celebrations go on for many days and closes with the pulling of an amazing chariot.

THE TEMPLE DAY
Temples are adorned with lights & Families attend Pooja ( to give worship / honour Shiva) at the many Temples across the country.
I have never seen longer queues like this in soaring 34 degree heat families with young children waited their turn patiently for hours to enter the Temple - it to was very humbling to see and certainly made me think about my own faith.

I attended the Temple on the second day when the locals had mostly made their Poojas
My flower offering

It felt nice to enter and leave a small token of me behind - I said a little wish and pray of my own faith also.

3 days later the Chariot pulling day arrives and the centre became a wonderful mixture of people offering colour, art, selling food, crafts and pretty much anything else you could imagine needing at a festival. More in Part 2

THE FOOD AND STALLS
And of course would not be a celebration without SWEETS - the india way of celebration and have luck is to offer and to eat sweets !!

Bright orange Jalebi - deep fried flour batter then soaked in sugar syrup.

Spice Tables appear even more beautiful and creative for the festival.

CRAFTS
Crafts are amazing - from simple bead bracelets to customised macrame brackets. I couldn't resist engaging with this family all happily working together. Of course I couldn't walk away without buying !