We do have 365 days in a year. But out of these 365 days, few days have been selected in many western countries, especially on weekends, which are celebrated for cherishing various relationships. Whereas for India, which is a land of both diversity and celebration, each moment of life is a celebration here. This is a land which celebrates the spirit of living life. Hence we have celebrations assuming different forms. India is a country which has thus synthesized the western thoughts and ideas along with the Indian traditions. And here, we bring you a list of few celebrated days which are unique to India, and try understand their significance.
Teacher’s Day
Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was a great philosopher and probably one of the greatest teachers of modern India. On September 5th, i.e., his birth anniversary, the nation celebrates Teacher’s Day both for his remembrance as well as for expressing gratitude towards the teachers. One interesting aspect here is that although October 5th is celebrated as World Teacher’s Day every year, but the Indian schools and colleges use the birth anniversary of Dr. Radhakrishnan for the same objective.
Children’s Day
The first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru loved children. Hence he was affectionately called as Chacha Nehru. November 14th is hence celebrated as the Children’s Day. This day acknowledges that children are the future of this nation, and hence celebrating this day also helps in establishing that connect with the innocence and joy of children. Additionally, it helps us to get aware about different issues which the children face in this country for example child labor, child marriage, female foeticide and many others.
Rakshabandhan
Friendship day is a day of great zeal and enthusiasm, when a person’s hand is decorated with the friendship bands much more in number than number of bangles a bride might wear on his wedding day. This friendship day and the festival of Rakshabandhan are so closely connected to each other, having the only difference that whereas the festival of Rakshabandhan celebrates the ties between sisters and their brothers, friendship day celebrates the social ties of friends.
India: Land of Festivals and Celebration
From these aforementioned examples as well as from the our own personal experiences and observations, we can understand that India can be considered as a mystic land of two distinct calendars. According to the Georgian calendar, which is the prime calendar system we follow, there are some key dates reserved for celebrating days like the Teacher’s Day, Children’s Day, Friendship Day, Independence and Republic Day etc. The other calendar is chiefly based on our culture and religious ideas which initiates different festivals and fairs in our country. From the Jagannath Yatra of Puri to Eid-Ul-Fitr, from Christmas to Pateti, no other country can be more vibrant and happening while being considered as a land of festivals than India!
However, there are also several key points hidden here. These particular days not only instill a spirit of living and fulfilled life, but also help to rejuvenate oneself amidst a tough, packed and hectic schedule. These days help us to self-reflect and introspect about various aspects and issues of society, thereby making us give time for the social lives and the vibrant Indian social fabric. In India, we have this deeply rooted tradition that the ‘family’ is the basic foundation and is the most fundamental social institution. And this this basic belief helps us in celebrating and cherishing all the relationships we have.
This was our list of some interesting days celebrated only in India. Read further about one of these, Friendship Day, in this article.
