Holika Dahan

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The festival of Holi is in two days and the Sadhana week has already begun. As the Hindu calendar year almost comes to an end, with the festival of Holi, we wipe the slate clean and welcome the new year with color, joy and happiness. For spiritual seekers around the world, it is important to also spiritually, mentally and physically, leave the old behind so we can make space for the new. What is interesting, is that spring cleaning also happens around the same time in various parts of the world.

While Holi is the festival of colors and welcoming the new, just a day before the color play, is Holika Dahan. A day where we let go of all things that aren’t serving our highest good anymore. In this blog, we discuss the meaning of Holika Dahan, the story behind it and how to spiritually celebrate it.

The Meaning and Story

The word Holika is the bunch of woods that are burnt a day before Holi. The word Dahan means the action of burning something. Holika also has a mythological significance, which we will read in the story below –

In the vedic times, there lived a king named Hiranyakashyapu. He was a proud king who had ordered everyone in the kingdom to worship him and only him as God and no one else. Hiranyakashyapu had a son named Prahlad who was an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu. Despite Hirnyakashyapu’s multiple attempts, Prahlad never stopped worshipping Lord Vishnu. As a result, Hiranyakashyapu decided to have his own son killed. Many attempts were made again, but every time, Prahlad was miraculously saved by Lord Vishnu. As a last resort, Hiranyakshyapu’s sister Holika, also known as Simhika, offered her help. Holika had a special cloak that prevented her from being harmed by fire. So Holika offered to sit on a bonfire with Prahlad in her lap, by tricking the boy. However, as the fire roared, Holika’s cloak flew away from her and covered Prahlad. Holika burnt to death.

Since then, every year on Holi, Holika Dahan is celebrated a day prior when the evil and negative is burnt and positivity is welcomed.

How to Spiritually Celebrate Holika Dahan

Below is the simple step by step of how you can perform Holika Dahan –

1. Clean out your home completely. Make sure no dust, clutter or old, unused things are in the house.

2. If there are any old clothes that you aren’t using, then donate them.

3. Same with electronics. You can either repair them and use them, or donate them, or put them for recycling.

4. For three days, light a Ghee (Clarified butter) lamp and an oil lamp

5. The lamps can go out by themselves when you burn the Holika.

6. The ritual of Holika Dahan can be performed in any open space, a day before Holi. You can use an open ground or a lawn.

7. Twigs, dried leaves, branches of trees, other combustibles, old belongings that you can’t donate are all put with logs of wood

8. The best time to perform the ritual is in the evening.

9. Once all preparations are done, the heap of woods and burnable materials are set alight

10. Add nutmeg, areca nut, cloves, cardamom and camphor in the fire

As Holika burns, you can affirm that all negativity and unnecessary burdens burn with it and chant the Mantras given by your Guru Ji

11. It is also a good idea to meditate and clean your seven chakras as the fire burns

12. Along with the Guru Mantra, also chant Kleem Kalikay Namah as much as you can

13. Next day, you can collect the ashes. These ashes are considered holy and can be smeared on the limbs as a blessing

14. The smearing is considered as an act of purification.

15. From the next day of Holika Dahan, you can begin your Sadhana, which will help your spiritual awakening.

Holika Dahan serves as a powerful metaphor for personal transformation. The act of cleaning one's home symbolizes the purification of the mind and spirit. Just as physical clutter is removed from the living space, this ritual encourages individuals to let go of mental and emotional baggage. By donating unused items and repairing or recycling old belongings, one not only contributes to the well-being of others but also reinforces the principle of non-attachment, a key concept in many spiritual traditions.

The lighting of Ghee and oil lamps for three days preceding Holika Dahan holds significance as well. The gentle glow of these traditional lamps represents the dispelling of darkness and the illumination of one's inner self. The ritual creates a sacred atmosphere, fostering introspection and setting the stage for the symbolic burning of negativity during Holika Dahan.

The addition of specific ingredients like nutmeg, areca nut, cloves, cardamom, and camphor to the fire further enhances the spiritual potency of the ritual. These elements, often associated with purification and positive energy, infuse the flames with transformative properties. As the fire engulfs the heap of woods and materials, individuals are encouraged to not only witness the physical burning but also engage in meditative practices, aligning their energy centers and invoking spiritual mantras for a more profound experience of cleansing and renewal.