Written by: Aarika Jha - 31003, Grade V
Posted on: 02 June, 2023
Tihar is a festival of lights. It is the greatest hindu festival, which falls in the month of October or November, right after Dashain. This festival is celebrated for five days. Each of the five days of this festival is dedicated to celebrating and worshipping different gods and animals.
The first day of Tihar is known as Kaag Puja. On this day, we worship the crows and give delicious food to them. The second day of Tihar is known as Kukur Puja. On this day, we worship the dogs. They are also given delicious food and hang garland on their necks with tikas on their foreheads.
The third day of Tihar is known as Gai-Laxmi Puja. In Gai-Laxmi puja, we worship the cows and
goddess Laxmi. In the morning, cows are worshipped with garlands hung around their necks and red strings around their tails. In the afternoon, the entire house is cleaned and groomed. People may even put fancy lights in their rooms and outside their houses. Houses are cleaned, and the doorways and windows are decorated with garlands made of marigold flowers (Sayapatri). People also paint small patterns of footprints to welcome the goddess Laxmi. They use colours to create beautiful patterns called rangoli.
In the evening, the house is decorated with candles. Decorative lights are placed outside. Children engage in playing with firecrackers. Although firecrackers were not permitted last time, some people still engaged in this activity. However, it is important to remember that excessive use of firecrackers should be avoided due to noise pollution and safety concerns.
It is preferable to use small firecrackers that produce less noise and are not dangerous. This procedure is followed throughout the entire Tihar festival.
