Good morning/Good
afternoon/Good evening my friends, wherever you are! This 8:00pm. 13th
February, 2013, Wednesday in India. Friends, love is in the air; tomorrow is
Valentine’s day! What is your plan for the day? I have a lot! Now it’s time to
know you about India! Today, I think it would be appropriate to share about
Valentine’s Day in India. So here I go!
In India, in the antiquity, there
was a tradition of adoring Kamadeva, the lord of love; exemplificated by the
erotic carvings in the Khajuraho Group of Monuments and by the writing of the Kamasutra
treaty of lovemaking. This tradition was lost around the Middle Ages, when
Kamadeva was no longer celebrated, and public displays of sexual affections
became frowned upon. The festival of Rasa (Rasa Utsav), a celebration of Radha
and Krishna's legendary love affair; once popular in the Eastern part of the
subcontinent (Bengal and Odisha) is also noteworthy in this context; though at
present times this is observed by a small number of people. In the state of
West Bengal, Saraswati Puja, a festival observed in early spring where Saraswati,
the goddess of learning is worshiped; has often been seen as a Bengali version
of Valentine's day; especially among the urban middle class youth. Around 1992,
Valentine's Day celebrations started catching up in India, with special TV and
radio programs, and even love letter competitions. The economic liberalization
also helped the Valentine card industry.
Well, that's all for today! Enjoy the Valentine's Day with your beloved! Take care! Have
a good day/ afternoon/evening/night! Namaskar.
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