India is home to a cluster of cultures and practices, so the Hindu new year is naturally celebrated throughout the country under a variety of different names, Baisakhi in Punjab; Bohag Bihu in the North Eastern States; Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra; Jude Sheetal in Bihar, Jharkhand; Puthandu in Tamil Nadu; Yugadi in Karnataka; and Ugadi in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. While the customs and traditions are unique to each region’s particular festival, the overall messages of hope, growth, and love are ultimately the same.
India is home to a cluster of cultures and practices, so the Hindu new year is naturally celebrated throughout the country under a variety of different names, Baisakhi in Punjab; Bohag Bihu in the North Eastern States; Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra; Jude Sheetal in Bihar, Jharkhand; Puthandu in Tamil Nadu; Yugadi in Karnataka; and Ugadi in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. While the customs and traditions are unique to each region’s particular festival, the overall messages of hope, growth, and love are ultimately the same.
Ugadi — which is derived from Sanskrit words yuga, meaning age and adi meaning beginning — is “the beginning of a new age”. This festival falls on “Chaitra Shudhdha Paadyami” — the first day of the Hindu lunisolar calendar month of Chaitra. A joyous celebration signifying the fading of cold days as the warm weather of spring sets in, Ugadi, like most Hindu spring festivals, is a time for new beginnings, as the longer and brighter days invigorates and inspires hope for prosperous growth in one’s work, relationships, and spiritual practices. According to the Gregorian calendar, the festival falls in late March or early April.
The festival is celebrated with great fanfare and in very high spirits with new clothes, exchanging of gifts, giving charity to the poor, delicious traditional cuisines, etc. Drawings of colourful patterns, also known as kolamulus, are made on the floor. These wonderful floor drawings and decorations are known as Muggulu in Telugu and Rangoli in Kannada. House entrances are decked up with mango leaf decorations known as the toranalu. On this day, people visit temples to seek the blessings of God as they step into a New Year. One major tradition that people follow on this auspicious day is the ritual of taking an oil bath early in the morning. The belief is that Goddess Ganga dwells in water and Goddess Lakshmi dwells in oil. Hence, having an oil bath is considered as receiving blessings from both the Goddess.
The history of Ugadi
Among the few legends associated with Ugadi, there is one pertaining to Lord Brahma, the architect of the universe, that is widely popular. According to ancient mythology, when Lord Brahma was born, he could see no other being in creation. Wondering who he was, from where he came, and what his purpose was, he turned his senses inward, and went deep into meditation. After meditating for 100 years (one day of Brahma is equal to 4.32 billion solar years), his divine origin became revealed, and he understood his purpose to design and engineer the universe. Hence seeking Lord Brahma’s blessing on this auspicious day is considered to bring in fortune and good luck in the coming year. In India, given the diverse culture that we live in, the beauty of this festival is that it is celebrated across various cities differently.
Ugadi Pachadi
India is the land of culture and festivals, and the one common element that you can celebrate without is sweets and delicacies! Ugadi is one such festival. An integral part of the cultural tradition and a reference to the philosophy of life in the Telugu community is Pachadi. The festive food of Ugadi, Pachadi is an amalgamation of six flavours in one — sweet, spicy, salty, tangy, sour and bitter. According to age-old traditions, this festive dish is a symbolic representation and reminder of how one must accept all the flavours of experiences that come in life. It emphasises the fact that life is a mix of different experiences. The ingredients of this traditional dish are jaggery — for the sweetness that signifies happiness; chilly (even pepper) — for the spice that signifies danger; salt – for the saltiness that signifies fear; raw mango — for its tanginess that marks surprise; tamarind – for the sourness that signifies disgust; and neem buds and flowers — for the bitterness that signifies sadness. Other than Pachadi, Payasam and Arisulu are the most preferred desserts to celebrate this important day.
