Now are the days of festivals, I think starting with Ganesh Puja- festivals, celebrations continue till the year-end, while the year-end, welcoming of the New Year is a big celebration in itself.

There are old stories associated with each festival, some great soul, God himself, worshipping celebrating the old auspicious events, like the return of Lord Ram after winning the war of Lanka, killing the Demon-Ravana etc. We celebrate and try to emulate the virtues of our icons of faith.

Everybody celebrates the festivals, but the basic difference is there! For a child it is pure celebration, happiness, from applying colors on Holi to lighting of lamps and playing with crackers, enjoying sweet dishes on Diwali, it is pure happiness. While the adults have to think several times about how to maintain the standards, to be at par with others in celebrating, decorating and exchanging sweets and other gifts etc.!

I remember a few lines from a Hindi sonnet (Geet) by famous poet Bharat Bhushan Ji-

कंधे पर चढ़ अगली पीढ़ी, जिद करती है गुब्बारों की,
यत्नों से कई गुना ऊंची, डाली है लाल अनारों की,
हर भोर किरन पल भर बहला, काले कंबल में सुला गई।
चक्की पर गेंहू लिए खड़ा, मैं सोच रहा उखड़ा-उखड़ा,
क्यों दो पाटों वाली चाकी, बाबा कबीर को रुला गई॥

I just felt that expressing the immense pressure which the earning adults have to face not just to make both ends meet but also celebrate on the occasion of various festivals.

Before I move further in sharing my ideas on the subject, I remember a few lines from my own Hindi Geet, which is also about the pathetic financial condition of the common man, who in any case has to celebrate also on such occasions-

हैं कहीं महाजन हम, कहीं हैं फक़ीर,
मिटते संबंध ज्यों धुएं की लकीर।

खुशियों के आयोजन भार हो गए,
जड़ता के बंधन स्वीकार हो गए,
बुझे हुए सपने ज्यों होली की राख,
उड़ती तनख्वाह हुई फाग का अबीर!

Sorry, such negative thoughts keep coming to my mind, I think at least in our imaginations we should remain happy and enjoying.

Yes I wish and I imagine that every Indian citizen would be able to celebrate all the festivals with heartfelt happiness and without facing much financial pressure. Ours is a culture of happiness, we have so many festivals lined up to celebrate, be happy and re-enforce our faith in well being of the society and humanity at large.

As we may say in Hindi, we are ‘Ustav Dharmi’ people, our culture tells us to rejoice and celebrate on every possible occasion. #What If such an atmosphere is created in my country again.

But the conditions today are not of so much of happiness. Frankly speaking we have created so many problems by increasing the population mindlessly! This could be a subject of separate discussion, I just mentioned it here.
I had read in the memoirs of some writer, who was sitting in a garden, in some foreign country, perhaps Switzerland. He saw that suddenly a young lady came there, started dancing, danced for a few minutes and then left the place.

Such spontaneous expression of happiness, we might find in small kids, but if it is there in grown-up people and they do not feel shy in expressing it openly, specially young ladies, that is really a great thing.

When that becomes normal in our society, we could consider that we are happy and jovial, ‘Utsav-dharmi’ people, as our culture teaches us to be.

On the occasion of this great series of festivals lined up in a row, I wish that everybody in my country and my world remains happy and always in a mood and position to celebrate. All are happy and healthy with no grave health problem which de-stablize the budgets of common people.

And the basic thing required for that is also that everybody has faith, love for other fellow beings and contributes positively for the society. Let us all live in an environment of love and happiness where those who have a good financial status, they do not just feed the hungry but make arrangements that they do not have to remain hungry, manage earning opportunities for them.
When there would be a loving and helping society, like we say ‘The whole world is a family’, when we would make it real then everyday would be a festival, everybody would be happy and there would really be ‘Ram Rajya’, full of love and happiness. #HappyDussehra

‘This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by #BlogAdda.

Happy festival season for all.
*************