Raksha Bandhan 2017 : A Relationship to Cherish

Raksha Bandhan is the festival of bond shared by a brother and a sister. This festival signifies the love, care and protection promised by a brother to his sister. In 2017, it will be marked on 7th August. It is observed on a full moon day of Hindu month Shravana. Due to this reason, it is also known as Rakhi Purnima. It is also known as Rakhi or Rakhri in different parts of India. Read on this article to learn more about this occasion…

Raksha Bandhan: A Sacred Promise

Raksha Bandhan reminds us of the importance of sacred bond between brother and sister. Apart from celebrating the cutest relationship of a brother with his sister, Raksha Bandhan involves a sacred promise. This sacred promise is the duty of a brother towards his sister that he’ll protect her all lifelong and at the same time the promise of a sister toward her brother that she’ll always pray for his success. This is an unsaid promise, which is sanctified through the tying of the Holy thread called Rakhi.

The Bewitching History of Raksha Bandhan

While celebrating Rakshabandhan, it is a good idea to know about the legends related to it. There is always a rich history behind any festival and Raksha Bandhan is no different. There are different stories related to Rakshabandhan and some of them are listed below:

Krishna-Draupadi & Raksha Bandhan: The best instance which exactly tells that Raksha Bandhan is not just a festival, but what it actually means, comes from the time of Mahabharata. She once protected Lord Krishna when he was wounded on a battlefield ground. She tore a strip of her saree and folded it around his wrist in order to stop the flow of blood. Due to this touching action of Draupadi (though they were unrelated), he declared her as his sister and made the sacred promise of protecting her always. He fulfilled his promise during the ‘Cheer-Haran’ of Draupadi, when Pandavas lost Draupadi to Kauravas in the game of gambling.

Yama-Yamuna & Rakshabandhan: Hindu Lord of death, Yama was the brother of the river of Northern-India, Yamuna. Once Yamuna tied this sacred thread, Rakhi on Yama’s hand and blessed him with immortality. He was so touched and happy that he declared, whenever a sister ties this sacred thread to someone and this person promises to protect her, then the person will become immortal.

Emperor Humayun and Rani Karnavati: The most famous story related to Raksha Bandhan, which is also taught to the students in their childhood school lessons is of Rani Karnavati and Humayun. Rajputs were fighting Muslim invasions during the medieval period. The widowed Rani Karnavati of Chittor was unable to fight the invasions of the King of Gujarat, Bahadur Shah. Knowing the significance of Rakhi, she sent it to the Emperor Humayun. Touched, Humayun declared Rani Karnavati as his sister and in order to fulfill his side of promise to protect her, he immediately sent his troops to conquer Bahadur Shah.

Raksha Bandhan Celebrations

Raksha Bandhan in 2017, like every year, is going to be celebrated with great joy. Celebrations of Raksha Bandhan are not only religious but also fun-filled, as is also this brother-sister relationship. Sisters start the preparations almost a week before this festival. Almost a month before this festival, the markets are filled with different designs of Rakhis varying in different ranges.

There are also different types of Rakhis available in the market based on the age of your brother. For example, if your brother is small between 1-3 years then you can buy a toy shaped rakhi. This is just to impart a fun element in the festival. Rakhi pooja Thalis are also now-a-days available in the market. Sweets like Rasgulla, Gulab Jamun, Jalebis etc. are in great demand during this occasion, just to make this occasion sweeter.

Sisters go shopping. They buy traditional clothes for this auspicious day. At the same time brothers also buy traditional clothes for themselves and most importantly, the gifts for their beloved sisters.

Celebrations begin by the day break. People bathe early in the morning and then worship God. After worshipping, the sister prepares Pooja Thali. Then she puts a red vermillion mark and rice on the forehead of her brother and performs her brother’s Aarti. Then she ties the Rakhi on his wrist, offers him sweets and fruits and then she takes his blessings, if he is the elder one.

The brothers in return, gift their sisters with beautiful presents. Other family members also get together with each other through the medium of this festival and spend some quality time out of their busy schedules.

Thus, Raksha Bandhan is truly the best occasion of rewinding all the good memories, that the brothers and sisters have spent with each other. Also, the promise to share all the joy and sorrows together makes it all the more special for them. With this article on Raksha Bandhan, we hope you make your Raksha Bandhan very special.