Roomie told me she was from Bangladesh. I looked it up since I know nothing of it…
“Oh it’s overpopulated. It’s like Manila” I observed.
“Yeah it is.”
Then I saw these…
…and I was like, I thought this stuff was more in India?
“You guys have the festival of colours?”
“Yeah, we do. It’s a Hindu celebration though, but we’re (Muslims) cool. We just join in.”
====================
I asked about Muslim veils too, but apparently Muslims over at Bangladesh are more on the Burka style.
It’s Ramadan so she’s fasting and she’s flying back to Bangladesh to celebrate Eid (July 5th this year – when they can eat again).
Apparently, they get as many friends and family so they can eat together (it’s one big celebration) and they also give food to the poor.
Everybody just kinda gets together.
She doesn’t really wear the Burka everyday, but she apparently does moreso when she’s at Bangladesh. They speak Bengali over there and it’s a close language to Hindu (it’s like a dialect in comparison, apparently). She tries to pray 5 times a day facing Mecca: using an app to help her identify which way Mecca is from where she is to pray.
And about Festival of Colors (Holi)
“In the Braj region of India, where the Hindu deity Krishna grew up, the festival is celebrated for 16 days (until Rangpanchmi) in commemoration of the divine love of Radha for Krishna. The festivities officially usher in spring, with Holi celebrated as a festival of love. There is a symbolic myth behind commemorating Krishna as well. As a baby, Krishna developed his characteristic dark blue skin colour because the she-demon Putana poisoned him with her breast milk. In his youth, Krishna despaired whether the fair-skinned Radha and other girls would like him because of his skin colour. His mother, tired of the desperation, asks him to approach Radha and colour her face in any colour he wanted. This he does, and Radha and Krishna became a couple. Ever since, the playful colouring of Radha’s face has been commemorated as Holi. Beyond India, these legends to explain the significance of Holi are common in some Caribbean and South American communities of Indian origin such as Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. It is also celebrated with great fervour in Mauritius.“
Maybe I should have paid more attention in World Religions back in Grade 11. 🤔
The lessons were pretty basic then though they didn’t discuss how cultures and religions crossed over and formed many other subcultures. I recently came across this girl who was going to UofT who was studying Human Geography, which is apparently a study about how cross-cultural encounters create cultures within subcultures with cultures based on religion, race, sexuality, ethnicity and lots more in many parts of the world. She gave me a brief description but she talked for a while. It was crazy.
Read more about Holi here
Read more about Ramadan here
*There’s Holi/Festival of Colours here in Toronto (much like how they bring in Caribana and other multicultural festivals…like how there’s Ati-atihan fests here as well… that I missed and had no clue about…feck).
Holi marks the beginning of spring and was celebrated in March 23rd/24th this year, but there’s another Festival of Colours happening sometime this summer…that may or may not have something to do with Holi?*
In any case, here’s the Facebook event for the summer Festival of Colors in Toronto
Holi is apparently a lot tamer here than the one in India just like how the Ati-atihan fests also look tamer…but I might still check it out. It’s like eating Puto Bumbong in Toronto versus eating it in ratchet areas in Manila: It’s not gonna be the same, but it’s still gonna give me some sense of satisfaction.
Fuck it. I’m hungry. I’ll take whatever I can get.
A note from one of the photo captions:
“Holi celebrations in Old Dhaka, Bangladesh. In today’s fast paced world, the Hindu people of Old Dhaka have preserved their long line of tradition through their festivals despite the tough economics and financial hardships.”
#Humanity + #Significance = #Meaning
Would be cool to fly over to India and Bangladesh someday and experience the full out craziness though.
I just wanna be covered in coloured powder with people laughing & smiling and just being festive all over for the sake of celebrating life despite its hardships.
I think that’s one of the most magical things there is – being able to find joy within the purest depths of your heart amidst all the bullshit. ❤
***In World of Warcraft, this would be one of those festivals in cities and villages where people gather to celebrate: the more no-holds-barred the celebration, the more XP points you gain. You also gain points for bringing shit to participate (like if you bring crazier coloured powder or liquid or confetti – the crazier, the better) that elevates the intensity of the celebrations. These XP points help you level up and you meet people as well and discover new territory etc etc.
Video Gaming Mode:
ON 
I like to play play play!!!
(I know the Mexican jumping bean has nothing to do with this post culturally, but expressing yourself comes in many forms, shapes, and sizes. #STFU #DontJudgeMe #HumanGeography)
