On the canvas of life, we tend to paint the same picture every day. Our daily lives get monotonous and sometimes, we get bored of it. Festivals like Rang Panchami fill this picture with different colours of happiness. In the spring season, we celebrate two festivals – ‘Rang Panchami'(holi in North India), played by Lord Krishna, and ‘Dhulivandan’, which strengthens our relationship with the soil. On this occasion, we will talk about these colourful festivals.
In our day-to-day lives, we give a lot of importance to cleanliness. We ensure that dust does not accumulate in our homes. When we return home from outside, we generally wash our hands and feet, in order to get rid of dust, soil and other unclean things and keep our bodies clean. We especially care more about cleanliness when it comes to small children. Then the question arises – Why do we behave the opposite on ‘Dhuliwandan’? On this day, mud or soil is mixed with water and applied on each other’s body. Moreover, we also roam around the entire day with this mud on our body.
There is a scientific reason for celebrating this kind of festival during this period. Heat starts to increase in the spring season, in the month of February. In March, the intensity of the heat increases even more. We feel this as it starts to affect our body. We start experiencing problems related to the increased body heat. During this time, soil is inherently cool and is very beneficial in cooling down our body. When water is mixed, it becomes even cooler. Therefore, applying mud with it’s cooling property on our body creates a cooling effect on the skin. This protects the skin from increased body heat. It also helps with heat-related problems such as skin rashes, blisters etc. However, the right kind of soil must be used. We must not use soil that contains stone, gravel or sand. Ensure that the soil is soft and not very sticky. If the soil is too sticky, add some soft sand to it. This reduces the stickiness and makes it easier to apply as a paste on the skin. Ensure that the soil used does not contain any animal faeces, urine, or any kind of waste.
Apart from soil being used in ‘Dhuliwandan’, in this season, this clay coating is also used as a treatment for many diseases. It is particularly used in Naturopathic treatments. It is beneficial for diseases caused by acidity. While experiencing headache due to acidity, this mud coating is to be applied on the forehead. This clay coating can also be applied to reduce swelling and pain caused by a bump on the skin. Wet soil also stops inflammation due to skin burns. Stomach pain can be treated by applying this clay coating around the belly button. In treating diseases like joint pain and paralysis, wet and hot soil mixed with ozone is used. Apply the paste directly on the skin or place a layer of clay paste in the folds of a cloth and place this cloth bandage on the suggested part of the skin. When used as a treatment for a disease, it must be done only on medical advice.
Another essential substance to protect against this season’s heat is ‘Water’! Sprinkling water on our body protects the sun – parched skin. It cools down the body. The sun’s heat tends to make us tired, exhausted and drained out. During this time, we lack enthusiasm to do any work. The touch of water refreshes us. Water helps to remove sweat, without allowing it to stick to our skin. Hence, we celebrate ‘Rang Panchami’. The main purpose of this festival is to meet the water needs of the body. The splash of colours adds joy to this occasion. This is the reason why traditionally this festival falls during this season. In today’s times, care must be taken regarding the colours we use. Often, the colours we get in the market may contain harmful chemicals. Exposure to these chemicals causes skin allergies and blisters. If it comes in contact with our eyes, there is a possibility of injury to this delicate organ. Hence, such harmful colours must be avoided. Instead, safe foods containing natural colours such as Turmeric, Sonkay, Manjishtha and Saffron can be used.
Therefore, we should use water by sprinkling, wrapping wet cloth on the body, taking tub bath. In fact, saving water is the need of today’s world, the unnecessary cost of water can definitely be avoided with these methods. In this way, all these festivals with a ‘scientific’ basis create happiness in our lives. However, our main focus is on maintaining overall health.
Dr Mayuresh Aagte