Flash Post 180!

Button, happy Holi.

Happy Holi to you too.

By the way, do you know the story behind Holi?

No. Tell me, please.

Once there was a demon king by the name of Hiranyakashyap who won over the kingdom of earth. He had such a big-sized ego that he wanted all his subjects to worship only him. However, his son, Prahlad, refused to do so as he was a devotee of Lord Naarayana.

The king tried his best to kill him off but didn’t quite succeed as Lord Vishnu was there to protect him. As a final resort, Hiranyakashyap asked Holika, his sister to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad on her lap because he knew that she had a boon to walk through it unscathed and Prahlad would be the one to get burnt and die.

As Holika had a treacherous bent of mind, she coaxed the young Prahlad to sit on her lap as she took her seat in the blazing fire but got burnt and died because she did not know that she possessed the boon only when she entered the fire alone. Prahlad came out unscathed because of his devotion to Lord Vishnu.

Thus, Holi gets its name from Holika and celebrates the victory of good over evil.

Holi is also celebrated as the triumph of a true devotee.

That’s a nice story. Hindu folklore is full of these lovely stories. You must tell me more.