‘Holi 2013’ Celebrated in Grand Style in Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES, USA – April 04, 2013 (VNN) By Dilip Butani, Special to India-West via Indiawest
Seen at the Holi celebrations (l-r): Neelam Tolani, Sunil Tolani, Dilip Butani, Charu Das, Ishwar Deedwania, and Roshan Khandpur.
The Krishna Temple of Utah, in association with Roshan Khandpur, an active member of ISKCON, brought the grand festival of Holi to Los Angeles sponsored by Avdesh and Uma Agarwal, Sunil Tolani, Dr. Vir Nanda, Ishwar Deedwania and Suresh Bhatti.
Brought by popular demand, the show was attended by thousands of Indian Americans, young and old. Several popular music bands gave performances throughout the event, which included several yoga demonstrations. There were also joint color throws every few hours.
A number of booths were set up to sell food, books, CDs, tapes, videos and religious material, and there were places where yoga, mantras and kirtans were conducted in more intimate settings.
Around noon, sponsors of the event were welcomed to the stage to be introduced before the countdown began for a joint “throw” of colors.
As per tradition, Holi announces the arrival of spring and the passing of winter, as well as solemnizes the love of Lord Krishna and Radha. The festival is filled with an atmosphere of social merriment and every nook and corner presents a colorful sight.
The spraying of colored powders recalls the love sport of Lord Krishna and His devotees. The color, noise and entertainment that accompany the celebration bear witness to a feeling of oneness and sense of brotherhood. The festival brings home the lesson of spiritual and social harmony.
Holi has long traditional links with several legends. According to one popular legend, the word Holi is derived from the demoness Holika, sister of Hiranya Kashipu, a demon king who, having defeated the gods, proclaimed his supremacy over everyone else in the universe.
Enraged over his son’s ardent devotion to Lord Vishnu, Hiranya Kashipu decides to punish him. He takes the help of his sister Holika, who is immune to any damage from fire.
Holika carries the small boy Prahlad into the fire but divine intervention destroys her and saves Prahlad from being burned. Thus, Holi is celebrated to mark the triumph of good over evil, light over darkness, kindness over cruelty.
The top performers at the event included Larisa Stow and Shakti Tribe, Deepak Ramapriya and Breath of Life Tribe, Kirtaniyas Bass Mantra, MC Yogi and DJ Drez, Jai Krishna and Ananda Groove, Coral and Band, Kumudini, DJ by Mental Physix and the Temple Bhajan Band.
Yoga sessions were conducted by Atma and Bhangra Yoga, Marti Bradley, Alan Seigel and Asha Kalka.
Charu Das and his wife Viabhavi, who head the ISKCON temples in Salt Lake City, worked along with Khandpur to put on the show. They expressed their deep appreciation of the support and contributions of the sponsors.
