Gudi Padwa is the new year Celebration for the Marathi and Konkani Hindus it is a time of spring. It is celebrated in March Month, it is mostly celebrated in the state of Maharashtra and in some parts of Goa.
According to the Hindu calendar, the first day of the Chaitra month is the beginning of the new year. Gudi Padwa is also known as Samvatsar padvo.
People celebrate this festival by making rangoli, hoist the Gudhi flag, dance, and make many types of sweets. For Telegu Hindu, this festival is known as Ugadi, While for the Kannada and Konkani people this festival is known as Yugadi.
The new year festival is known by different names in other regions of India. For Some Other people, the new year occasion falls on Vaisakhi which in 22 march 2023.
Origin
The origin of the word padava came from the Sanskrit word “pratipad which means the first day on which the moon appears after the Amavasya which the first day after the full moon. The word padava is related to balipratipad which is the third day of Diwali that celebrated at the end of the harvesting season.
Significance
Gudi Padwa signifies the cutting of rabi crops and the arrival of spring. According to the history when the Hindu god Brahma created the universe the festival is connected with that but some people believe that the Gudi symbolises the victory of Lord Rama over evil Ravana.
The festival is Honouring the crowning of Rama post his return to Ayodhya after completing 14 years of extradition. But in rural Maharashtra, the festival is related to the dance of Lord Shiva and as a whole community people carry the Gudhi Kavads together to a Shiva temple.
Celebration
During the festival, people clean their courtyard and houses and also decorate their house with various types of rangolis. The whole family wear new clothes to celebrate this festival and family gatherings.
The families in Maharashtra prepare many types of traditional dishes like Shrikhand, Poori and Pooran Poli to celebrate the day. Dishes like pacchadi recipe make in Ugadi festival which is eaten for the remainder of the sweet and bitter experience of life.
The Emergence of the lord Jhulelaal is observed as the Cheti Chand the new year for the Sindhi Community. The Sindhi people offered prayers to the Lord Jhulelaal by making dishes like Saai Bhaaji and Tehri.
In Maharashtra, people hoisted Gudi which is the most important ritual of this festival. After putting up the Gudi people offers a prayer to Lord Brahma. After the prayer, the local people came together to break a coconut which is kept in the Gudi by making a human pyramid of only young boys which is a special ritual.
Another unique highlight of this festival is the consumption of Neem leaves people either can eat it directly or make it into a paste and used it in a special preparation with jaggery. The main motive of this custom is the beginning of the celebration.
The Gudhi
The preparation of Gudi is started by buying a bright yellow silk cloth with a zari fabric on it and strap it on to a long bamboo stick and then on the top of the cloth gathi, mango leaves, yellow flowers and neem leaves are also tied. Then the stick with many ornaments is topped off with a copper or bronze pot.
Generally, the whole arrangement is placed outside at the window or at the gates or terrace of the house so that it can visible for everyone and then the neighbourhood and communities came together which is Gudhi kavad which they carry together to the local Shiva temple many of the temples are located at the hilltop or higher location and group work is done to help reach kavad to the temple.
Significance related to Gudhi
Gudhi symbolizes the Brahma flag as mentioned in the Brahma Purana because Lord Brahma created the universe on this day.
But it is believed that the flag was hoisted for the victory of the king Shalivahana when he returned to Paithan.
Gudhi is believed to invite prosperity and good luck into the house.
Celebration of Gudi Padwa in other states
In other parts of India, this festival is celebrated or known by different names such as Cheti Chand in Sindhi, Yugadi in Karnataka and Ugadi in Andhra and Telangana state.
It is celebrated in the Northeast side of Indian states like in Manipur, Nagaland as Sajibu Nongma Panba in which people prepare a variety of dishes on this day and later climb the small hill in the evening.
In the Northside the Kashmiri Hindu and the Sikh community celebrate this festival as Navreh. The people there celebrate Navreh by making a Thal which is filled with uncooked rice, curds, coin and some flowers and according to the rituals everyone is expected to see that Thal first thing in the morning.
In Punjab, the new year is celebrated as Baisakhi falling mostly on 22 March 2023, the first day of month Naisakh of the Bikram Samavt or calendar.
It Changes according to the states like in Bengal, this occasion is celebrated as Naba Barsha, in Assam as Bihu, in Kerala as Vishu, in Tamil Nadu as Putuhandu. It is considered as the most auspicious day of the year.
Reviewed by 365 Festivals
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May 19, 2022
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