Vasant Panchami
What Do People Do?
- Vasant Panchami is a famous festival that marks the end of the winter season and ushers in the springtime. Sarasvati is the Hindu goddess of the Vasant Panchami festival. Young girls wear bright yellow dresses and participate in the festivities. The color yellow holds a special meaning for this celebration as it signifies the brilliance of nature and the vibrancy of life. The whole place bursts with yellow during the festival.
People dress in yellow and they offer yellow flowers to others and to the gods and goddesses. They also prepare and feast on a special pastry called kesar halwa or kesar halva, which is made from flour, sugar, nuts, and cardamom powder. This dish also includes saffron strands, which gives it a vibrant yellow color and mild fragrance. During the Vasant Panchami festival, India’s crop fields are filled with the color yellow, as the yellow mustard flowers bloom at this time of the year. Pens, notebooks, and pencils are placed near the goddess Devi's feet to be blessed before they are used by students.
The festival of Vasant Panchami is celebrated all over India. However, like every festival, each region and state has its own way to celebrate the festival. For example, inpatna nalanda West Bengal and Bihar, Saraswati Puja is performed all over these states, at their homes and pandals. The idols of the goddess are also immersed in the water in the evening.
For Haryana and Punjab, Vasant Panchami, just like Lohri, is a festival of harvest. You may also see many people flying kites in these states on the day of Vasant Panchami, wearing yellow clothes. Yellow, because the festival represents energy and yellow fields of North India. Mustard and marigold flowers are also offered to Maa Saraswati.