Happy Dassehra! Why is it the Internet of a Festival?

If you’ve been with me the past few days as I went round the blog floor in nine nights of dancing and corresponding colours, thanks for making it to the final culminating day.

The nine nights end with Dassehra – the final 10^th day – again celebrated differently in different parts of India.

In a nutshell however the day represents triumph of good over evil, the victorious and the vanquished.

But for me the past nine days and the nine colours have given rise to more questions than answers and would love all of you to try and answer as many as you can down below in the comments section of the blog.

Question 1.

My friend RP happily suggested that these colours always existed and there is also a specific logic behind the symbolism of the colours for each day. I buy that logic 100%. The symbolism of colour in the Indian social and religious scenario is huge. But what beats me is something else – why are the colours different for different years?

Here are the examples:

Colours of 2014

Colours of 2015

Who did this? The Internet? The Gods? The Goddesses?

Question 2

While the Goddess worshipped on each day wears a colour that represents what She stands for, why do devotees wear another colour on that day?

Question 3 (and this one is simple!)

Did you follow the colours all 9 days? If yes, post your pics with the day and colour and we'll make a festival of it!

Question 4

I know this festival has always been celebrated with aplomb. But why do I feel this celebration has gone up several notches now? Is the net making it bigger than what it is? Are the colours a new phenomenon? 

Let's keep this conversation going. It's about 20 days to Diwali now! Stay blessed.

Have you been following the Navratri posts? Here they all are...

The sky is the limit

Go Pink. Because you rule

The Purity of White

The Flames of Orange 

The Grey Day
The Internet of a Festival

The Internet of a Festival - The sky is the limit

It’s the ninth day of the fabulous Navratris, Nine nights of dancing. 

Nine nights of worshipping the Goddesses that represent power, wealth and wisdom. 

Really if you have these three, the world is at your feet and what you can do with it is up to you.

The sky is your limit now and significantly today the colour is sky blue.

In India, in Hindi, the word would be Aasmani – literally translated – that of the sky.

I know sky blue is a particular light blue but empowered with Shakti (Power), and the wealth of wisdom, today on the ninth day I wish to think more of the sky than just the blue.

Today you are empowered with not only calming effect of blue. But also the metaphor of the sky. Truly where you are concerned the sky is the limit as to what you can do.

Look at the sky, sometimes it’s clear, sometimes cloudy, sometimes blue, sometimes grey. Always changing. Always a pleasure to look at. Always creating that sense of space and calm, that sense that one can just reach out and touch it and yet it remains an aspirational goal one wants to strive towards. 

Today is your day to stretch, stretch your limits for the rest of the year… stretch them till you can touch the sky.

You’re blessed. Go do it.

Have you been following the Navratri posts? Here they all are...

Go Pink. Because you rule

The Purity of White

The Flames of Orange 

The Grey Day
The Internet of a Festival

The Internet of a Festival - The Purity of White

I love wearing whites and have a whole lot of whites in my wardrobe. But it’s important to know that while white is used for finer occasions, in India white has a somewhat serious meaning.

First, white technically is the absence of colour. And it takes on sombre tones in the Indian context.

In older more traditional times it was the only colour widows were allowed to wear. The reasoning behind that was that it helped her disconnect from the pleasures and luxuries of active and normal participation in society and life around her. Today it is the acceptable color at funerals and ceremonies that mark death in the family. 

But white also stands for peace and purity. Like the pristine lotus that grows beautifully in the murkiest of waters. In principle; white, as a color, repels all light and colors. And it repels evil. And today is the day when the Goddess protects her devotees from all evil. 

So today dress up in your whitest whites. And stay blessed.

Missed earlier posts on this festival? Get them here - 

The Flames of Orange 

The Grey Day

The Internet of a Festival

The Internet of a Festival - The Flames of Orange

The colour saga continues. It’s Day 6 of the Nine Nights of Dancing, Navratri.

Today’s colour is orange. And if you’ve not read the earlier posts on The Colours of Navratri, the links are below.

While orange is everything bright and beautiful that India and Indians stand for what’s really worth talking about is the symbolism of orange.

Most people know that orange has immense religious significance because most of the monks wear orange but most also don’t know why they wear orange.

Orange or Saffron, actually represents the colour of Agni or fire. And fire is sacred because it burns away all the impurities, dispels darkness and gets rid of ignorance. There couldn't be a better representation of purity than with the colour orange. Orange flags, sometimes triangular, sometime forked, atop the perch of Hindu temples, are representative of this. The flames of orange.

In all its representations, the colour orange comes out as the shining symbol of the search for light, the light itself, the quest for knowledge and wisdom.

Besides it’s the colour of the setting sun, ripe tangerines, autumn leaves, the evening sky, and of the ubiquitous flower of worship in India – the thickset marigold. Get all of this in one colour – orange.

So brighten up today. What better colour to wear, no matter what it means to you. It’s bound to bring with it joy and vibrance and the shining light of knowledge.

And remember, Saraswati, the Goddess of Knowledge is watching. Stay blessed.

Missed earlier posts on this festival? Get them here - 

The Grey Day

The Internet of a Festival

The Internet of a Festival - A Grey Day?

In continuation with my earlier post, (here's the link The Internet of a Festival) today’s colour is grey. I, religiously (pun intended, and how) wore a grey T-shirt today. 

Personally I don’t like grey as a colour. It doesn't do much for me (and I don’t mean on my hair!) It makes me feel low and dull. It’s fine where it belongs as a neutral shade to let other colours stand out. Else, it is exactly where it stands in the world of literature where grey days and grey evenings, grey landscapes and grey areas are nothing short of energy-sapping.

But today’s colour was grey so grey I wore. 

I thought ( a bit rudely perhaps) whether women around will be in Fifty Shades of Grey but my Inner Goddess quickly rapped me on my knuckles and I came back to focusing on other things.

The plan for today (being a Saturday) was to have a little excursion with two friends to a fashion designer’s studio. Yes. It’s a name that has caused many a ripple in sartorial circles. Salim Asgarally is doing fashion divas and the remaining goddesses on this side of the planet a favour – with a silver sale commemorating 25 years of his contribution to the sparkling world of high fashion.

So I went to his studio with two friends DO and SG. DO had been invited to his studio and since it was in the area where I live we had decided to go together.

For those who know Salim Asgarally, I don’t need to say the work was great. What I did love and appreciate about this work was the kind of style and elegance that I could resonate with and the classic wearability of the stuff. Many a times I have walked into a fashion studio and walked out empty-handed and with an empty feeling like I don’t belong to this world.

But this was different. And as we ooh-ed and aah-ed over the beautiful whites, the lace and cutwork pieces and the surprising yet elegant combinations of colour, style and form, I chanced upon something I liked.

A simple, elegant grey saree blouse. Just what I needed for a saree I had. I picked it up put it aside and went on to pick up many other stuff. Much trials (and tribulations) later… trying on various stuff of (sometimes) smaller sizes, I tried the grey blouse. Salim had graciously said he’d alter stuff in case it needed to be done… but this? It fitted like a T! (Not sure how a T will fit me… but oh well… English does have its expressions!) I had to have it.

And so that was it… this elegant, silvery grey thing was mine, mine, mine.

And then I realized in any case the colour of the day was grey! I mentioned it to Salim and he said, yes, that’s because the dress chooses you!

Lovely thought, isn’t it?

And below is the link to the film he made on this where he talks about the fact that there is energy in the inanimate. It’s not a very long film but if you’re pressed for time, watch it from 3:00 minute onwards and you’ll get it. 

Meanwhile, I will continue with my worship of the Grey Goddess of the Day.

Stay blessed all of you!
And don't miss this link - Salim Asgarally - The Dress