UGADI
The New Year festival Ugadi comes close on the heels of Holi. While the strong colours of Holi start fading away, the freshness of spring lingers on with sprightliness all around. Ugadi is celebrated with festive fervour in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Ugadi marks the beginning of a new Hindu Lunar calendar with a change in the moon’s orbit. It is a day when mantras are chanted and predictions are made for the New Year. Traditionally, the panchangravanam or listening to the yearly calendar is done at the temples.
People listen to Ugadi Panchangam on Ugadi to known their horoscope on this year. Listening to Ugadi Panchangam is following from ages. Telugu people shows interest in knowing their education career, employment career, marriage and other issues through panchangam. There is a deomon called Somakasura, which stole the Vedas from Lord Brahma and hide in Sea. Lord Brahma asks help from Lord Vishnu in return of Vedas from Somakasura. Lord Vishnu takes “Macha Avatharam”, which is one of the 10 incarnations of Vishnu and kill the demon (Somakasura). Later, lord Vishnu returns Vedas to Brahma and Brahma started creating the world on Ugadi. Yugadi means Yuga Adi, which means beginning of year/ age. According to the Telugu people belief, on the day of Ugadi, Brahma started creating the world and writes the fates of People. One year is equal to one day to the Brahma. Every year Lord Brahma started his day and write fates of people. Current Ugadi is called as “Durmukha Nama Samvastsaram”. According to the Indian History, the Ugadi is celebrated from the times of Mahabharata, but they are not celebrated as per the “Chaitra Suddha Padyami” they celebrate on next day of Makara Sankranti. In Hindu’s culture, the first day of Chaitra Sudha Padyami has very importance. People from ages celebrate this day with great devotion. Not only in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, people from many regions celebrate Ugadi with many names. Gudhi Padwa in Maharashtra, Yugadi in Karnataka, Cheti Chand among the Sindhi people.
It is believed that on this day, Lord Brahma had created the universe. He had also created days, weeks, months and years. Thus, Ugadi is said to be the first day of the creation of the universe. Similar in concept is the Gudi Padwa festival, which will also be celebrated on the same day. It is mostly celebrated by the people of Maharashtra according to the lunisolar Hindu calendar. Gudi Padwa gets its name from two words: ‘gudi’, meaning Brahma’s flag, and ‘padwa’, meaning the first day of the phase of the moon.
On this day, many people take a customary oil bath, following which, they wear new clothes — mostly traditional attire — and decorate their home. Traditional rangoli is made with flowers and colours, and people then go on to hoist the gudi, or the revered flag. It is a season for raw mangoes spreading their aroma in the air and the fully blossomed neem tree that makes the air healthy. `Ugadi pachchadi’ is one such dish that has become synonymous with Ugadi. It is made of new jaggery, raw mango pieces and neem flowers. Preparations for the festival begin a week ahead. Houses are given a thorough wash. Shopping for new clothes and buying other items that go with the requirement of the festival are done with a lot of excitement.
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