Festival again...

The Shravana or the monsoon month carries all hues and shades of nature and emotions. Religiously speaking Shravan
is a pious month and full moon of this all-important month is considered to be a very holy day.
It is celebrated in different ways for different reasons almost throughout the country.

For the siblings it is the eternal tie of love, for Brahmins the day to take the pledge of Brahmanik rites
and for those who depend sea and monsoon, it is the beginning of the new season.

Indian festivals are based on the weather changes and their significance in the lives of people,
but they do have a story to support the celebrations. The rich Indian Mythology provides a religious
reason to celebrate the day in a specific way. Many epics are related to the day and the origin of Raksha Bandhan.
The festival finds a mention in most of the epics and its origin can be traced back to the mythological Pouranik times.

The legend in the Bhavishya Puran

The legend refers to a war between the Gods and the Demons. The demon King Brutra was advancing
and the Gods lead by lord Indra, were on verge of defeat. The king of Gods, Indra approached
Guru Brihaspati to find a solution to the situation. Brihaspati asked Indra to tie a sacred thread on his wrist,
powered by the sacred mantras on the Shravan Purnima. Lord Indra's Queen Sachi also called Indrani,
empowered the thread and tied it on to his hand on the decided day. The power of the sacred thread called Raksha
helped the Gods to victory.

In the history ,Alexander The Great and King Puru ,the oldest reference to the festival of rakhi goes back to 300 B.C. at the time when Alexander invaded India.
It is said that the great conqueror, King Alexander of Macedonia was shaken by the fury of the Indian king Puru
in his first attempt. Upset by this, Alexander's wife, who had heard of the Rakhi festival, approached King Puru.
King Puru accepted her as his sister and when the opportunity came during the war, he refrained from Alexander.
Since, as King Puru has been mentioned here , i would add one more magnificent trait of his, though Alexander the
Great defeated the Indian King Puru, the Indian King was determined not to loose his dignity. Despite being a prisoner
he demanded that Alexander should treat him like a King treats another King.

In the Epics, as per the Hindu mythology, Raksha Bandhan finds a mention in Mahabharata when Lord Krishna advised Yudhishthir
to perform the ceremony to protect himself and the army from the dangers of the war.
It is said that Kunti, the mother of the Pandavas tied rakhi to her grandson Abhimanyu
and Draupadi to lord Krishna.

The Significance -though now it is considered as a brother and sister festival, it was not always so.
There have been examples in history where in rakhi has just been a raksha or protection.
It could be tied by wife, a daughter or mother. The Rishis tied rakhi to the people who came seeking their blessings.
The sages tied the sacred thread to themselves to safe guard them from the evil. It is by all means the 'Papa Todak,
Punya Pradayak Parva' or the day that bestows boons and end all sins as it is mentioned in the scriptures.

Rakhi for many centuries encompassed the warmth shared between the siblings but now it goes way beyond it.
Some tie rakhi to neighbors and close friends signifying a peaceful co-existence of every individual.
Congregations like Rakhi Utsavs, popularized by Rabindranath Tagore, promote the feeling of unity and a
commitment to all members of society to protect each other and encourage a harmonious Social life.

The day has a deeper perspective in today's scenario. The occasion holds for a life long pledge to practice moral,
spiritual and cultural values. The values and the sentiments attached to the rituals of this festival are worth inculcating
by the whole human race, the sentiments of harmony and peaceful coexistence.

Raksha Bandhan assumes all forms of Raksha or protection, of righteousness and destroyer of all sin.
The rakhi tying ritual has become so much a part of the families that come what may brothers and sisters try
to reach out to each other on this particular day bringing back the oneness of the family, binding the family together
in an emotional bond.

The tradition of thread tying still continues. It is a gesture of goodwill.