Gudi Padwa

See also: Indian New Year's days

For other traditions of celebrating the lunar new year, see Lunar New Year.

A Gudi Padwa new year festive procession in Dombivli, Maharashtra
Official name	Gudhi Padwa
Also called	Marathi New Year, Hindu New Year
Observed by	Marathi and Konkani Hindus
Type	Religious (Hindu), social, cultural
Significance	Marks the beginning of the Marathi New Year
Celebrations	1 day
Observances	People clean and decorate their houses with colourful rangolis and Gudis.
Frequency	Annual
Related to	Ugadi, Cheti Chand, Nyepi

Explanatory note

Hindu festival dates The Hindu calendar is lunisolar but most festival dates are specified using the lunar portion of the calendar. A lunar day is uniquely identified by three calendar elements: māsa (lunar month), pakṣa (lunar fortnight) and tithi (lunar day). Furthermore, when specifying the masa, one of two traditions are applicable, viz. amānta / pūrṇimānta. Iff a festival falls in the waning phase of the moon, these two traditions identify the same lunar day as falling in two different (but successive) masa. A lunar year is shorter than a solar year by about eleven days. As a result, most Hindu festivals occur on different days in successive years on the Gregorian calendar.

Gudhi Padwa is a spring festival marking the start of the lunisolar new year for Marathi and Konkani Hindus.<ref name="Dalal2010p150">Roshen Dalal (2010). Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide. Penguin Books. p. 150. ISBN 978-0-14-341421-6.</ref> It is celebrated in and around Maharashtra, Goa, and Daman at the start of Chaitra, the first month of the lunisolar Hindu calendar. The festival is characterised by colourful floor decorations called rangoli, a special gudi dhvaja, which is a sari or dhoti or other piece of cloth garlanded with flowers, mango, and neem leaves, and a sugar crystal garland called gathi, topped with upturned silver or copper vessels. The celebration also includes street gatherings, dancing, and festive foods.<ref name="Dalal2010p150"/><ref>"Gudi Padwa, Government of Maharashtra". maharashtratourism.gov.in. Archived from the original on 29 March 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2022.</ref>

In Maharashtra, the first day of the bright phase of the moon is called guḍhī pāḍwā (), pāḍvo (); pāḍya (); pāḍyami (Telugu: పాడ్యమి). Konkani Hindus variously refer to the day as sausāra pāḍavo or sausāra pāḍyo (सौसार पाडवो and सौसार पाडयो, respectively). Kannada Hindus in Karnataka refer to it as Yugādi/Ugadi (ಯುಗಾದಿ), while Telugu Hindus celebrate the same occasion as Ugadi (ఉగాది). Sindhi people celebrate the day as Cheti Chand, and Kashmiri Pandits celebrate this day as Navreh.

However, this is not the universal new year for all Hindus. For some, such as those in and near Gujarat, the new year festivities coincide with the five-day Diwali festival, also known as Bestu Varas.<ref name="PechilisRaj2013p48"/> For many others, the new year falls on Vaisakhi between 13 and 15 April, according to the solar cycle part of the Hindu lunisolar calendar and this is by far the most popular not only among Hindus of the Indian subcontinent but also among Buddhists and Hindus of Southeast Asia.<ref name="PechilisRaj2013p48">Karen Pechilis; Selva J. Raj (2013). South Asian Religions: Tradition and Today. Routledge. pp. 48–49. ISBN 978-0-415-44851-2.</ref>

Etymology

Gudi means 'flag'; according to Kittel, the term is of South Indian origin.<ref>Gowda, Deve; Gowda, Javare (1998). Village Names of Mysore District: An Analytical Study. Asian Educational Services. p. 55. ISBN 81-206-1390-2. Retrieved 17 March 2018.</ref> The word pāḍavā is derived from the Sanskrit word pratipad for the first day of each fortnight in a lunar month, or the first day on which the moon appears after the "new moon" day (amāvāsya), and the first day after the full moon. A Gudi is also hoisted on this occasion, gives this festival its name. The term padva or padavo is also associated with Balipratipada.<ref>"Balipratipada: Bali Puja 2020 date: Bali Pratipada story and significance". The Times of India. 15 November 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2021.</ref>

Significance

Gudi Padva signifies the arrival of spring and the reaping of rabi crops.<ref name="gudipadwasignificance">"Significance of Gudi Padwa". Hindu Jagriti Samiti.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)</ref> The festival is linked to the day on which the Hindu god Brahma created time and the universe.<ref>"Gudi Padwa 2021: Date, Time, History, Celebration, Significance". S A NEWS. 12 April 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2021.</ref> To some, it commemorates the coronation of Rama in Ayodhya, after his victory over Ravana, or the start of the Shalivahan calendar, after he defeated the Huns in the first century.<ref>Gudi Padva, government of Maharashtra Tourism Office</ref> According to Anne Feldhaus, in rural Maharashtra, the festival is linked to Shiva's dance and the coming together of the community as they carry the Gudhi Kavads together to a Shiva temple.<ref>Anne Feldhaus (2003). Connected Places: Region, Pilgrimage, and Geographical Imagination in India. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 48–57, 72–83. ISBN 978-1-4039-8134-9.</ref>

The guḍhī

Raising gudi is main ritual of Gudi Padwa

During Gudi Padwa, gudi (or gudhi) are arranged at every household. It is a bright, colourful silk scarf-like cloth tied at the top of a long bamboo. On top of it, one or more boughs of neem and mango leaves are attached with a garland of flowers. It is capped with a silver, bronze, or copper pot (handi or kalash), signifying victory or achievement.<ref name=crump114>William D. Crump (2014). Encyclopedia of New Year's Holidays Worldwide. McFarland. p. 114. ISBN 978-0-7864-9545-0.</ref><ref name=feldhaus48/>

Some temples are located on the top of hills, and groups work together to help reach the kavad to the top.<ref name=feldhaus48>Anne Feldhaus (2003). Connected Places: Region, Pilgrimage, and Geographical Imagination in India. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 48–57. ISBN 978-1-4039-8134-9.</ref>

Some of the significances attributed to raising a gudi are as follows:<ref name="gudipadwasignificance" />

• It symbolises the victory of King Shalivahana and was hoisted by his people when he returned to Paithan.
• It symbolises Brahma's flag mentioned in the Brahma Purana, and may also represent Indra's flag.
• It is believed to ward off evil, invite prosperity and good luck into the house.

Festivities

Rangoli made on Gudi Padwa

Traditionally, families prepare a special dish that mixes various flavours, particularly the bitter leaves of the neem tree and sweet jaggery (gud, gul). Additional ingredients include sour tamarind and astringent coriander seeds. This, like the pacchadi recipe used in Ugadi festival, is eaten as a reminder of life's sweet and bitter experience and a belief that the neem-based mixture has health benefits.<ref name=crump114/><ref>Ernest Small (2011). Top 100 Exotic Food Plants. CRC Press. p. 411. ISBN 978-1-4398-5688-8.</ref>

Other names

The festival is also known as<ref name="gudipadwasignificance" />

• Cheti Chand among the Sindhi people
• Navreh among the Kashmiri Pandits in Jammu and Kashmir
• Samvatsar Padvo among Hindu Konkanis of Goa and Konkani diaspora in Kerala<ref>Gajrani, S. History, Religion and Culture of India. Vol. 3. p. 108.</ref>
• Ugadi among the south-Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana

See also

• Astronomical basis of the Hindu calendar
• Hindu units of measurement
• Panchanga
• Shaka era
• Vikram Samvat
• Nyepi

External links

• Meaning of Gudi and Date and time for 2020 Rudra Centre