January 9 – Yadnya Kasada Ceremony in Indonesia

Posted on January 9, 2014

Before I say one word about this fascinating holiday, I have to warn you—I don't know if it is being held on January 9, 2014. Or in January 2014 at all, on any day!

It might be in March this year! Or September!

I did a lot of research, and I saw plenty of evidence that this ceremony has happened in January, August, July, and November of various years – but I have not been able to turn up a single tiny indication of when the next one will be. Not even from hotels using the ceremony as a lure, on their website. Plenty of “come see this amazing sight”—no clue as to when you might be able to see it!

That said, I still wanted to let you in on this mind-boggling custom.

Okay, first of all, Hindu people called Tenggerese climb to the top of Mt. Bromo, in East Java. This is an active (and therefore dangerous) volcano! 

On the morning of Yadnya Kasada, they gather around the crater and throw sacrifices of flowers, fruits, other harvested foods, and even (yikes!) farm animals into the caldera!

 It is an ancient tradition based on a legend; it's believed to be important to make annual sacrifices to the mountain gods as a thank you for the good harvest, good weather, and general good luck of the past year—and to ask for the gods' help for the next year.

Now, I don't know if people really believe that, these days, or if they just enjoy carrying out this custom. But the really odd thing about the festival is this:

There are a lot of people who have braved the dangers of being INSIDE the caldera of an active volcano and are waiting with nets to catch the things thrown inside! It is believed that taking such a risk and catching food and flowers and maybe a chicken or two brings you good luck.

But...wait! What about the gods? Wouldn't they be angry to be cheated out of their sacrificed items? 

Are the people throwing in the stuff perfectly happy that their, say, tubers and melons never made it to the mountain gods and instead are being eaten by someone else for dinner?

I find it dazzlingly puzzling and amazingly fascinating!

• 
  Check out Robert's Photography for some great images of Yadnya Kasada.

• And catch this article from the Daily Mail, which perfectly captures the oddness of the festival in its really, really long headline: “Stealing food from the gods: Villagers offer gifts to appease the volcano (just don't mention the men perched INSIDE the crater ready to catch them).”

Also on this date:

Martyrs' Day in Panama 

National Static Electricity Day 

Balloon Ascension Day

Anniversary of Columbus spotting mermaids (supposedly!)

Plan ahead!

Check out my Pinterest boards for:

• January holidays 
• January birthdays 
• Historical anniversaries in January

And here are my boards for:

• February holidays 
• February birthdays 
• Historical anniversaries in February

August 28 – Janmashtami

Posted August 28, 2013

Today is celebrated as the birthday of the Hindu god Krishna.

It's a really big deal! According to some sources, this holiday is like Christmas and New Year's rolled into one, for more than 900 million people worldwide. Of course, with so many celebrations in so many places, there are a lot of variations of customs. 

For some, festivities begin before dawn and extend all day until midnight. There is prayer and scripture reading, singing and dancing, fasting and feasting, ceremonial washing statues of gods, and decorating temples and statues of Krishna. People often re-enact scenes from Krishna's life or perform other dramas. In some places, teams of young men form human towers so they can reach and break a pot of butter that has been hung up high. People often exchange gifts; in some places people compete for cash awards.

The story of Krishna's birth has a few similarities with the story of Jesus's birth:

An evil ruler had heard a prophecy that one of the sons of his sister and her husband would destroy him, so he imprisoned the couple. Each time the couple had a baby (always a boy), the evil ruler had his newborn nephew killed. Before their eighth son was born, the couple was already mourning his death, but the Supreme Lord Vishnu appeared and assured them that he himself was coming in the form of this baby. Vishu instructed the father to take the baby, the moment he was born, to the home of a cowherd and swap his baby boy for the cowherd's newborn daughter. Of course, the father pointed out that he was a prisoner and couldn't go anywhere at all—but Vishnu assured him that all the barriers would give way on this important night.

Krishna was born exactly at midnight, and his earthly father did as Vishnu said. Magically, his leg irons broke apart, the door lock opened, the iron bars gave way, and Krishna's father was able to get to the cowherd's house and make the swap. When Krishna's father returned to his wife, all the doors and bars and locks and leg chains snapped back into place.

When the evil ruler arrived the next morning, ready to kill the new baby, he discovered that it was a baby girl. He still tried to kill the infant, but she was transformed into a goddess who taunted the ruler with the knowledge that his nemesis was hidden somewhere else.

Also on this date:

Anniversary of the beginning of the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing 

Anniversary of the discovery of a very special moon

Anniversary of MLK's “I Have a Dream” speech

Plan ahead:

Here are my Pinterest pages on August holidays, historical anniversaries in August, and August birthdays.

And here are my Pinterest pages on September holidays, historical anniversaries in September, and September birthdays.

August 9 – Teej Festival

Published on August 9, 2013

This festival is celebrated differently in different parts of India and Nepal.

Everywhere, Teej is a women's festival that is all about having a happy marriage, a healthy body, and happy, healthy children. Tradition tells us that it is the anniversary of the wedding of the Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva.

But it's also about welcoming the monsoons (winds that bring the rainy season).

And it's about swings!



In some places, there is a huge procession with decorated elephants and camels, richly costumed dancers, and a statue of Parvati, all decked out in new clothes and jewelry.

In some places, swings are hung from trees and decorated with flowers. Young girls and women dress in green, and they swing and sing songs that praise both Parvati and the monsoons.








Women and girls not only dress up in their finest clothes and jewelry, they commonly decorate their hands and feet with henna. Also, girls and women traditionally receive presents from their parents (or, in some cases, their future in-laws).








In many places, women gather together to dance or attend religious ceremonies. Many make offerings of flowers and fruit to Parvati and Shiva. Women often enjoy enormous feasts, but some also fast for 24 hours. A special treat for Teej is Gehvar. 





Celebrate!


I can't think of a better way of celebrating Teej than by decorating playground swings with vines and flowers, and taking turns swinging. Don't forget to sing as you swing!



Learn about the monsoons...


Monsoons are sea breezes—winds that travel from the ocean to the land—but on a large scale. The monsoons that blow from the Indian Ocean onto the land we know as India, Nepal, and Bangladesh change some areas in India from semi-desert to lush and green, in just a couple of months!

We usually call only the rain-bringing winds the monsoons (although really the term applies to both the wet and the dry part of the seasonal change).

Read more about monsoons at Kids for Change. 



Also on this date:

Battle of Flowers in Jersey 

Anniversary of Jesse Owens's fourth gold medal

Smokey the Bear's birthday

Plan ahead:

Here are my Pinterest pages on August holidays, historical anniversaries in August, and August birthdays.

And here are my Pinterest pages on September holidays, historical anniversaries in September, and September birthdays.

February 14, 2013 - Basant Panchami

This Hindu festival celebrates the coming of spring, the color yellow, and the goddess of knowledge, music, art, and culture. Saraswati is that goddess, and offerings of yellow flowers are often made to her statue or temples. Traditionally, children begin to learn the 50 letters of the Sanskrit alphabet on this day, or learn to write their first words. Students sometimes make offerings of pens or books to Saraswati in hopes that they will do well on their exams. Most schools have special programs on this day.

People wear yellow clothes and eat saffron rice and yellow sweets during Basant Panchami.

In one city in India, today is celebrated with a huge kite festival. 

Kite flying is also very important in Lahore, Pakistan, especially during Basant. However, metal or glass-encrusted string and dangerous kite-fighting practices have resulted in an unacceptable death toll and a governmental ban on all kite sales and kite flying. 

This video and this article explore kite-flying in Pakistan and the kite ban.

Note: By the way, some sources call this festival Vasant Panchami.

Also on this date:

Valentine's Day 

and more Valentine's Day

Inventor and "Queen of Paper Bags" Margaret Knight's birthday