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RAKHI BANDHAN

Rakhibandhan festival or Rakhipurnima is a festival in South Asia. This festival is a festival of love between brother and sister. Hindus, Muslims, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs celebrate this festival. On this day didi or sisters tie a sacred thread called Rakhi on the hand of their brother or grandfather. This rakhi is a symbol of sister’s or sister’s love for brother or grandfather and brother’s good wishes and brother’s or grandfather’s vow to protect sister or sister forever.

Rajendra Prasad, first president of the Republic of India, celebrating Raksha Bandhan at the presidential palace, Rashtrapati Bhawan, 24 August 1953

According to the Hindu calendar, this festival is celebrated on the full moon day of the month of Shravan. Rakhi festival at the end of this month. This festival will be celebrated on 30th and 31st August.

It is a special day for brother-sister relationship. On this day, sisters tie rakhi on brother’s hand to wish him well. Similarly, the brothers promise to protect the sister from all difficult situations throughout her life. Sweet faces and gifts are exchanged. It is necessary to tie rakhi to wish the well-being of the brother.

This year Rakhi Bandhan festival will be celebrated on 30th and 31st. Actually the bhadra will last for two days during Rakhi Bandhan. So the rakhi bandhan also fell for two days. Bhadrakal will start on the morning of 30th August with Purnima Tithi and will last till 9:20 PM. However, the multiple auspicious yogas created during the Rakhi Bandhan will add to the importance of this festival.

Raksha Bandhan is a popular and traditionally Hindu annual rite or ceremony that is central to a festival of the same name celebrated in South Asia. It is also celebrated in other parts of the world significantly influenced by Hindu culture. On this day, sisters of all ages tie a talisman or amulet called the rakhi around the wrists of their brothers. They symbolically protect them, receive a gift in return, and traditionally invest the brothers with a share of the responsibility of their potential care.

Etymology :

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, Third Edition, 2008, the Hindi word, rākhī derives from the Sanskrit rakṣikā, a join: rakṣā protection, amulet ( < rakṣ- to protect + -ikā, diminutive suffix.)

1829 The first attested use in the English language dates to 1829, in James Tod’s, Ann. & Antiq. Rajasthan I. p. 312, “The festival of the bracelet (Rakhi) is in Spring … The Rajpoot dame bestows with the Rakhi the title of adopted brother; and while its acceptance secures to her all the protection of a ‘cavaliere servente’, scandal itself never suggests any other tie to his devotion.”

1857, Forbes: Dictionary of Hindustani and English Saluno: the full moon in Sawan at which time the ornament called rakhi is tied around the wrist.

1884, Platts: Dictionary of Urdu, Classical Hindi, and English راکهي राखी rākhī (p. 582) H راکهي राखी rākhī [S. रक्षिका], s.f. A piece of thread or silk bound round the wrist on the festival of Salūno or the full moon of Sāvan, either as an amulet and preservative against misfortune, or as a symbol of mutual dependence, or as a mark of respect; the festival on which such a thread is tied—rākhī-bandhan, s.f. The festival called rākhī.

1899 Monier-Williams: A Sanskrit–English dictionary Rakshā: “a sort of bracelet or amulet, any mysterious token used as a charm, … a piece of thread or silk bound round the wrist on partic occasions (esp. on the full moon of Śrāvaņa, either as an amulet and preservative against misfortune, or as a symbol of mutual dependence, or as a mark of respect”.

1990, Jack Goody: “The ceremony itself involves the visit of women to their brothers … on a specific day of the year when they tie a gaudy decoration on the right wrists of their brothers, which is at once “a defence against misfortune, a symbol of dependence, and a mark of respect.”

1965–1975, Hindi Sabd Sagara “राखी १— संज्ञा स्त्री० [सं० रक्षा] वह मंगलसूत्र जो कुछ विशिष्ट अवसरों पर, विशेपतः श्रावणी पूर्णिमा के दिन ब्राह्मण या और लोग अपने यजमानों अथवा आत्मीयों के दाहिने हाथ की कलाई पर बाँधते हैं। (That Mangalsutra (lucky or auspicious thread) which on special occasions, especially the full moon day of the month of Shravani, Brahmins or others tie around the right wrist of their patrons or intimates.) .

1976, Adarsh Hindi Shabdkosh रक्षा (संज्ञा स्त्रीलिंग): कष्ट, नाश, या आपत्ति से अनिष्ट निवारण के लिए हाथ में बंधा हुआ एक सूत्र; -बंधन (पुलिंग) श्रावण शुक्ला पूर्णिमा को होनेवाला हिंदुओं का एक त्यौहार जिसमे हाथ की कलाई पर एक रक्षा सूत्र बाँधा जाता है. (transl. raksha (feminine noun): A thread worn around the wrist for the prevention of distress, destruction, tribulation, or misfortune; -bandhan (masculine): “a Hindu festival held on the day of the full moon in the month of Shravana in which a raksha thread is tied around the wrist.)

1993, Oxford Hindi–English Dictionary रक्षा बंधन: m. Hindi, the festival of Rakshabandhan held on the full moon of the month of Savan, when sisters tie a talisman (rakhi q.v.) on the arms of their brothers and receive small gifts of money from them.

2000, Samsad Bengali–English Dictionary রাখি rākhi: a piece of thread which one ties round the wrist of another in order to safeguard the latter from all evils. ̃পূর্ণিমা n. the full moon day of the month of Shravan (শ্রাবণ) when a rakhi is tied round the wrist of another. ̃বন্ধন n. act or the festival of tying a rakhi (রাখি) round the wrist of another.

2013, Oxford Urdu–English Dictionary راکھے ra:khi: 1. (Hinduism) (i) rakhi, bracelet of red or yellow strings tied by a woman round the wrist of a man on a Hindu festival to set up brotherly relations. بندھن- – bandhan: festival of rakhi.

Evolution of Raksha Bandhan :

Nazeer Akbarabadi (1735–1830) wrote one of the first nazms (poems) in Hindustani on Rakhi. This is the last “band” (stanza); the poet fantasizes that he (a Muslim) would like to dress up as a “Bamhan” (Brahmin priest), with sacred thread and mark on forehead, so that he too can tie the threads on the wrists of all the beautiful people around him.

🙏”August 26, ’44 My dear Lachi-Raja, After all your letter has come, and I feel greatly relieved. … The Raksha and Janeoo mentioned in your present communication of 17th which you had sent on the occasion of Rakshabandhan got stranded somewhere, and have not yet arrived. There is little chance of their being recovered now. “

From a letter written by Indian nationalist Govind Ballabh Pant, to his children Laxmi Pant (nickname Lachi) and K. C. Pant (Raja), from Ahmednagar Fort prison on 26 August 1944.

— Govind Ballabh Pant, from Selected Works of Govind Ballabh Pant, Oxford University Press, 1998. 🙏

Sociologist Yogendra Singh has noted the contribution of American anthropologist McKim Marriott to an understanding of the origins of the Raksha Bandhan festival. In rural society, according to Marriott, there is steady interplay between two cultural traditions, the elite or “great” tradition based in texts, such as the Vedas in Indian society, and the local or “little”, based in folk art and literature. According to Singh, Marriott has shown that the Raksha Bandhan festival has its “origin in the ‘little tradition'”. Anthropologist Onkar Prasad has further suggested that Marriott was the first to consider the limitations within which each village tradition “operates to retain its essence”.

In his village study, Marriott described two concurrently observed traditions on the full moon day of Shravana: a “little tradition” festival called “Saluno”, and a “great tradition” festival, Raksha Bandhan, but which Marriott calls, “Charm Tying”:

On Saluno day, many husbands arrive at their wives’ villages, ready to carry them off again to their villages of marriage. But, before going off with their husbands, the wives as well as their unmarried village sisters express their concern for and devotion to their brothers by placing young shoots of barley, the locally sacred grain, on the heads and ears of their brothers. (The brothers) reciprocate with small coins. On the same day, along with the ceremonies of Saluno, and according to the literary precedent of the Bhavisyottara Purana, … the ceremonies of Charm Tying (Rakhi Bandhan or Raksha Bandhan) are also held. The Brahman domestic priests of Kishan Garhi go to each patron and tie upon his wrist a charm in the form of a polychrome thread, bearing tassel “plums.” Each priest utters a vernacular blessing and is rewarded by his patron with cash, … The ceremonies of both now exist side by side, as if they were two ends of a process of primary transformation.

Norwegian anthropologist Øyvind Jaer, who did his fieldwork in eastern Uttar Pradesh in the 1990s, noted that the “great tradition” festival was in retreat and the “little tradition” one, involving sisters and brothers, now more important.

From Hindu Texts :

Important in the Great Tradition is chapter 137 of the Uttara Parva of the Bhavishya Purana, in which the Hindu god Krishna describes to Yudhishthira the ritual of having a raksha (protection) tied to his right wrist by the royal priest (the rajpurohit) on the purnima (full moon day) of the Hindu lunar calendar month of Shravana. In the crucial passage, Krishna says,

“Parth (applied to any of the three sons of Kunti (also, Pritha), in particular, Yudhishthira): When the sky is covered with clouds, and the earth dark with new, tender, grass, in that very Shravana month’s full moon day, at the time of sunrise, according to remembered convention, a Brahmin should take a bath with perfectly pure water. He should also according to his ability, offer libations of water to the gods, to the paternal ancestors, as prescribed by the Vedas for the task required to be accomplished before the study of the Vedas, to the sages, and as directed by the gods carry out and bring to a satisfactory conclusion the shradh ceremony to honor the deceased. It is commended that a Shudra should also make a charitable offering, and take a bath accompanied by the mantras. That very day, in the early afternoon (between noon and 3 PM) it is commended that a small parcel (bundle or packet) be prepared from a new cotton or silk cloth and adorned with whole grains of rice or barley, small mustard seeds, and red ocher powder, and made exceedingly wondrous, be placed in a suitable dish or receptacle. … the purohit should bind this packet on the king’s wrist with the words,’I am binding raksha (protection) to you with the same true words with which I bound Mahabali King of the Asuras. Always stay firm in resolve.’ In the same manner as the king, after offering prayers to the Brahmins, the Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras should conclude their Raksha Bandhan ceremony.”

Urbanization :

More recently, after enactment of more gender-neutral inheritance laws in India, it has been suggested that in some communities the festival has seen a resurgence of celebration, which is serving to indirectly pressure women to abstain from fully claiming their inheritance. According to author Prem Chowdhry,

Rural patriarchal forces have been anxiously devising means to stem the progressive fallout of this Act through a variety of means. One way has been to oppose the inheritance rights of a daughter or a sister to those of the brother. Except in cases where there are no brothers, the sisters either sign away their in favour of their brother or sell it to him at a nominal price. This code of conduct is observed knowingly by both the natal and conjugal families. Brother-sister bonds of love have also been greatly encouraged, visible in the noticeable revival of the Raksha Bandhan festival and the renewed sanctity it has claimed in north India.

Movies and popular History :-

The religious myths claimed as the basis of Raksha Bandhan are disputed, and some historians consider the historical stories associated with it to be apocryphal.

Jai Santoshi Maa (1975 film) :

The 1975 film Jai Santoshi Maa tells a story in which Ganesha had two sons, Shubha and Labha. The two boys became frustrated that they had no sister to celebrate Raksha Bandhan with. They asked their father Ganesha for a sister, but to no avail. Finally, the sage Narada appeared, who persuaded Ganesha that a daughter would enrich him as well as his sons. Ganesha agreed, and created a daughter named Santoshi Maa by divine flames that emerged from Ganesh’s wives, Riddhi (Amazing) and Siddhi (Perfection). Thereafter, Shubha Labha (literally “Holy Profit”) had a sister named Santoshi Maa (literally “Goddess of Satisfaction”), to tie rakhi on Raksha Bandhan. According to author Lawrence Cohen

In Varanasi the paired figures were usually called Ṛddhi and Siddhi, Gaṇeśa’s relationship to them was often vague. He was their mālik, their owner; they were more often dasīs than patnīs (wives). Yet Gaṇeśa was married to them, albeit within a marriage different from other divine matches in the lack of a clear familial context. Such a context has recently emerged in the popular film Jai Santoshī Mā. The film builds upon a text, also of recent vintage, in which Gaṇeśa has a daughter, the neophyte goddess of satisfaction, Santoshī Mā. In the film, the role of Gaṇeśa as family man is developed significantly. Santoshī Mā’s genesis occurs on Rāksa bandan. Gaṇeśa’s sister is visiting for the tying of the rākhī. He calls her bahenmansa—his “mind-born” sister. Gaṇeśa’s wives, Ṛddhi and Siddhi, are also present, with their sons Śubha and Lābha. The boys are jealous, as they, unlike their father, have no sister with whom to tie the rākhī. They and the other women plead with their father, but to no avail; but then Narada appears and convinces Ganesha that the creation of an illustrious daughter will reflect much credit back onto himself. Ganesha assents and from Ṛddhi and Siddhi emerges a flame that engenders Santoshī Mā.

Rani Karnavati and Emperor Humayun :

Bound by a sacred gift, in happier hours,

To prove a brother’s undecaying faith;

Now when the star of Kurnivati lowers,

He rushes on to danger or to death.

He came to the beleaguered walls too late,

Vain was the splendid sacrifice to save;

Famine and death were sitting at the gate,

The flower of Rajasthan had found a grave.

— From poem, “The Rakhi,” in Oriental scenes, dramatic sketches, and tales (1832), by Emma Roberts, p. 125

Another controversial historical account is that of Rani Karnavati of Chittor and Mughal Emperor Humayun, which dates to 1535 CE. When Rani Karnavati, the widowed queen of the king of Chittor, realised that she could not defend against the invasion by the Sultan of Gujarat, Bahadur Shah, she sent a rakhi to Emperor Humayun. The Emperor, according to one version of the story, set off with his troops to defend Chittor. He arrived too late, and Bahadur Shah had already captured the Rani’s fortress. Alternative accounts from the period, including those by historians in Humayun’s Mughal court, do not mention the rakhi episode and some historians have expressed skepticism whether it ever happened. Historian Satish Chandra wrote,

… According to a mid-seventeenth century Rajasthani account, Rani Karnavati, the Rana’s mother, sent a bracelet as rakhi to Humayun, who gallantly responded and helped. Since none of the contemporary sources mention this, little credit can be given to this story …

Humayun’s own memoirs never mention this, and give different reasons for his war with Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat in 1535.

Rakhi Bandhan Poetry :

Poetry : Rakhi Bandhan

Poet : Jotsna Jari

We are Rakhi

we come at right time

Actually we love

everyone so much.

Oh my children, in your little hands

when you hold and shake Rakhi

that’s when…

love grows deeper.

If Rakhi is tied

brawls rest in vacation land

Then all people find

the home of peace & happiness.

Ah baby, listen to me…

take us with you

Make bond with everyone

by Rakhibandhan.

💚

{ N.B- Bengali Rhyme (English Translation- above) of the Video (below) is –

কবিতা – রাখি বন্ধন 🔼

কবি – জ্যোৎস্না জরি

আমরা হলাম রাখি

সময় হলে আসি

আসল কথা সকলকে তো

আমরা ভালোবাসি ।

ছোট্ট ছোট্ট হাতে যখন

একটু নাড়ো চাড়ো

ঠিক তখনি ভালোবাসা

হয় বেশি যে গাঢ় ।

বাঁধলে রাখি ঝগড়াঝাটি

ছুটির দেশে যায়

শান্তি সুখের ঘরটা তখন

সব মানুষে পায় ।

বলছি শোনো খোকা খুকু

আমাদের যাও নিয়ে

সবার সাথে ভাব করে নাও

রাখি বন্ধন দিয়ে ।

💕 }