On Monday, March 30, students and faculty gathered at the chapel lawn to celebrate Holi, the Hindu festival of colors. Participants were instructed to wear old white clothes and received packs of colored powders to throw at each other in honor of this celebration. Each of the colors signifies something different relating to the upcoming spring season.
“The point of Holi is to celebrate the good over evil, the arrival of spring, and to give people a fresh start,” sophomore Siya Patel said. “It also brings happiness, and we get to celebrate our culture. It’s a fun way to connect with our family and friends.”
There are many different ways families celebrate Holi. Eating traditional foods and throwing colored packets at one another is just one way this colorful celebration is honored. Patel shares how her family celebrates Holi.
“To celebrate Holi, we go to our temple, and we start by lighting a fire, and you have to do a certain ritual and prayer around it to give good spirits and vibes for the start of spring. Then, we throw colored powder, eat traditional foods, and enjoy music,” Patel said.
While Holi is traditionally a holiday for those of the Hindu religion, students of other beliefs had the opportunity to celebrate alongside their friends. After school on Monday, the faculty laid out a bunch of colored powder packets for students to cut open and throw on their friends, leading to an explosion of color on the lawn.
“Holi is really fun if you are the type of person who likes to go out and do things. There were millions of bags of different colors, and you just cut the top of them and throw them at your friends,” freshman Anne Walker Ellington said. “It is very messy, and it gets everywhere, and it stains your hair. But especially on a Monday, it just made the week start on a good note. You get really colorful, and it’s really fun.”
As Ellington said, throwing a little bit of color on friends can make a week full of athletics and academics a little less stressful. Like other holidays, our community works hard to create a fun experience for everyone and highlight the importance of Holi.
“Bringing this festival to Darlington helps expand the tradition to other people. Since our school is a big boarding school, there are many people from different countries, and we get to celebrate with many who have never celebrated it before,” freshman Henry Patel said. “It helps people expand on different cultures and traditions, and I think it’s cool that we get to explore different cultures at Darlington.”