“The Basant Kite Festival” on Feb 12 at Cherry Valley, CA
You are Cordially Invited:
The Edward-Dean Museum & Gardens presents “The Basant Kite Festival” This event is free to the public, Saturday, February 12, 2011, from 10 am to 4 pm.
Let’s go fly a kite. The Basant Kite Festival represents the start of spring which is the first month of the year on Indian and Chinese calendars.
Included in the Festival are Mushaira, Urdu Poetry readings offered by the Urdu Writers Society of North America, and classical singing in Basant Raga and dances. Baljit Toor will lead a Kite making workshop with participation from the India Association of the Inland Empire and the VAP Club of the Inland Empire. There will be food, clothes and jewelry booths. Kites will be available for purchase or you may bring your own.
Basant or spring is said to be the prince of all seasons, when the whole nature slips into ecstasy. So the ancient Hindu calendar started with this season. The festival lies in the month of January-February. Basant Panchami has a specific meaning; Basant means spring, whereas Panchami means the fifth day of the spring. It falls on Panchami - on the Waxing Moon. The young girls dressed in the diverse shades of yellow magnify the splendor of nature. Kite flying, a popular sport in India, is associated with the Basant Panchami day. Sending messages through Flying Kites started from the old tradition which was lost in time in India, but it’s still a custom in China. People write down wishes and messages for their ancestors, tie them to the kite and send them to the heavens. It is a day for the young crowd - no routine work, no studies, only merry making.
The festival is celebrated with full vivacity and festivity to mark the end of the winter. It is one of the first festivals of the year and is celebrated all over India and Pakistan.The yellow color has great significance; people wear yellow clothes, offer yellow flowers in worship and put a yellow, turmeric tilak on their forehead. They visit temples and offer prayers to various gods. At home, kesar (Saffron) halva, also yellow in color, is prepared. The yellow flowers of mustard crop cover the entire field in such a way that it seems as if gold is spread over the land glittering with the rays of the sun.
The day of Basant Panchami is dedicated to Goddess Sarasvati. Sarasvati is the goddess of learning who bequeaths the greatest wealth to humanity, the wealth of knowledge. Hindu mythology depicts Sarasvati as a pristine lady bedecked with white attire, white flowers and white pearls, sitting on a white lotus, which blooms in a wide stretch of water. The Goddess also holds Veena, a string-instrument, like Sitar, for playing music. The prayer of Sarasvati finally concludes as, "Oh Mother Sarasvati remove the darkness (ignorance) of my mind and bless me with the eternal knowledge."
The most significant aspect of this day is that Hindu children are taught reading and writing their first words on this day - as it is considered an auspicious day to begin a child's education. Educational institutions organize special prayers for Sarasvati on this day. The great Indian guru Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya laid the foundations of the world-class academic institution, Kashi Hindu Vishwavidyalaya on Vasant Panchami.
This is commercialized in India, Pakistan and Arabian countries as a sport. The competition is to try and fly your kite very high while keeping other people from trying to cut your string. This will continue until the last kite is in the air then the person declares "Jhandi," the victory. The competition can last at least a month. The string is very important. It is coated with ground glass and mica to make it very strong. This is an exciting way to welcome the New Year.
General information: The Edward-Dean Museum is located at 9401 Oak Glen Road, Cherry Valley, CA. The Museum is open Friday, Saturday and Sunday 10:00 am to 5:00 pm and is closed on county holidays. Admission to the Museum is $5; children 12 and under are free. Guided tours are available by appointment. The Museum's permanent collections are primarily 16th through 19th century European and Asian decorative arts including furniture, ceramics, glass, textiles, sculptures, and many small collections such as miniature paintings, fans and pocket watches.
