Diwali Rangoli And it's Significance

Pulse

oi-Suparna Chakaraborthy

By Suparna Chakaraborthy

Thursday, November 4, 2010, 16:43

Rangoli is a major part of Diwali celebration. Diwali is a celebration of lights and a time to spread harmony. A time when people should forget all differences and restore peace and harmony. There is a saying in Indian tradition, 'Atithi Devo Bhava'. It means, 'a guest is as good as God'. A wide spread to beautiful rangoli, is the best way to welcome your guest and portrays your good feelings about them.

Rangoli is a necessity of this festival because it is believed that on this occasion, Goddess Laxmi comes at everyone's home and blesses them with prosperity. It is also believed that rangoli, invites all the positive powers into the house and drives away all the evil, which resides in our heart.

Rangoli Colours

Traditionally, natural ingredients are used to make Diwali rangoli. Products like rice flour, dried flowers, dried leaves etc are used to make beautiful rangoli. The purpose of using natural ingredients is to provide food to all the tiny insects like ants etc. They too are creations of God and should not be ignored. This act teaches us to maintain equality.

Rangoli demands the use of every colour, as each colour depicts good feelings. Red is the colour of celebration, blue and white is for peace, yellow is the colour of the halo around the Goddess's head, Pink is for sweet feelings, Green is for nature etc.

Traditional Design of Diwali Rangoli

The traditional design of Diwali rangoli is footprints made of rice flour, which, heralds the arrival of Goddess Laxmi into the house. This design is made in front of all the doors of the house. An impression of Goddess Laxmi is made on the entrance of the house with a Lotus flower. Keeping this as the basic theme of rangoli, beautiful designs are made.

Drawing a rangoli is a skill, which is generally mastered by women of Indian households and is known by different names in different regions. In Bengal, it is called, 'Alpona', in Kerela it is called, 'Pookalam' and in Uttar Pradesh it is called the 'Chowkpurana'. The meaning and significance of it, however, remains the same.