When is holi in 2021?
Holi is celebrated during the Phalguna month, which typically falls in the month of March. It begins on the Purnima Tithi or last full moon day of the month, and on this evening, Holika Dahan is celebrated.
However, this year in view of the alarming COVID-19 situation, several states and union territories have announced a ban on public celebrations of Holi festival 2021.
Holika Dahan Purnima Tithi timings:
The Purnima Tithi begins at 3:27 am on March 28 and ends at 12:17 am on March 29.
Shubh muhurat of Holika Dahan:
The shubh muhurat of Holika Dahan will begin at 6:37 PM and it will end at 8:56 PM on March 28.
Significance
There once lived a devil and powerful king, Hiranyakshyap who considered himself a god and wanted everybody to worship him. To his great ire, his son, Prahlad began to worship, Lord Vishnu. To get rid of his son, Hiranyakshyap asked his sister, Holika to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad in her lap, as she had a boon to enter fire unscathed. As per the lengends, Prahlad was saved for his extreme devotion for the lord while Holika paid a price for her sinister desire. The tradition of burning Holika or the 'Holika dahan' comes mainly from this.
Holi also celebrates the legend of Radha and Krishna which describes the extreme delight, Krishna took in applying colour on Radha and other gopis. This prank of Krishna later, became a trend and a part of the Holi festivities.