Vasant Panchami, also known as Saraswati Puja and the Festival of Kites has been celebrated in some form for millenia in India. It falls during end of January to mid February in the western calender, or during Magha - lunar month -every year, and one of it's aspects is to welcome in the end of the harsh winter in preparation of the spring. (Much like Celtic Imbolc in fact) Like Imbolc, an important focus of the Vasant Panchami is to honor a goddess, in this case it is the Goddess Saraswati who is honored. Saraswati is the consort of Lord Brahma and is the goddess of learning, bestowing humanity with the gift of knowledge.

A vital member of the pantheon of Hindu Gods, Saraswati has been worshipped since Aryan rule and has a fascinating history of her own. There are two likenesses associated with her, the Goddess Saraswati, bringer of knowledge, language and speech...and the Goddess Sarasvati, born from the river Sarasvati and patroness of waters, arts, science and knowledge. As a goddess, she is attributed as a daughter of the Lord Vishnu and the Goddess Durga, and is considered the mother of the The Vedas (spiritual teachings that form the backbone and basis for Hinduism, there are 4 of them, with the Rig Vedas written around 1500 b.c. being the oldest). Buddhists reading this may note Her familiar name as the consort of Manjushri.

Revelers of Vasant Panchami wear shades of yellow, decorate their homes with yellow adornments and gift shrines of Saraswati in yellow cloth, Bindi, yellow flowers and lotuses (a symbol of purity and the essence of knowledge). Observant families have their young children begin learning on this day, and in keeping with that tradition we will be posting a Sanskrit word with it's English translation each day.

Come celebrate with us!

The festival Vasant Panchami itself is filled with celebrations, adornment and traditions uniquely Indian. Like much of India's modern life, it maintains so much cultural tradition that it is truly a chance to observe or partake in a festival of living history! Come join us, adorn your avatar with yellow, display yellow decorations at your homesite (you can pick up some at this thread) , come expand your vocabulary with our Sanskrit word for the day and don't forget to take our tour through India throughout this festival. There will also be a blockparty going on at India's Blockparty Thread

A lovely prayer to Goddess Saraswati to chant; may She bless you with knowledge and a fruitful mind!

"May Goddess Saraswati,
who is fair like the jasmine-colored moon,
and whose pure white garland is like frosty dew drops;
who is adorned in radiant white attire,
on whose beautiful arm rests the veena,
and whose throne is a white lotus;
who is surrounded and respected by the Gods, protect me.
May you fully remove my lethargy, sluggishness, and ignorance."
-prayer from about.com/Saraswati

In keeping with the honoring of this important figure of the Hindu pantheon, we invite you to visit our neighborhood of Bihar, or ancient Maghada, and it's subhood of Patilaputra where many important aspects of Hinduism were born including the author of the epic Ramayana and Lord Rama's consort Princess Seeta. It was also the ruling seat of King Ashoka (Asoka) the Great, and lastly the birthplace of Buddhism! A absolute jewel in history, Bihar is located as a midlevel hood inside our Indian top level hood.

Online sources and further reading:

Vasant Panchami at IndiaLife.com
Vasant Panchami at Hinduism.co.za
Lakshmi and Saraswati at ExoticIndiaArt.com

This festival is brought to you by Bharat Mata and happily researched by it's members. Does India's magnificent history, monuments, sculpture, language or religion interest you? Come stop in Bharat Mata and discuss India with members who share your fascination!

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