India is a land of festivals and while innumerable festivals are celebrated in India more so by Hindus my favourite festivals are Deepavali and Ganesha Chaturthi.  While many people have been critical about the sound pollution that comes with celebration yet it is this very sound of cracker and a deafening one at that which made Deepavali one of my favourite festivals along with the recently concluded Ganesh Chaturthi. The moment I  hear about Ganesha Chaturthi in Bangalore where I currently reside it brings me fond memories of the way the festival was celebrated in my home town Secunderabad about two decades back. Here are some my cherished memories of Ganesha Chaturhti celebrations at Secunderbad during my childhood which  I would like to share with all of you.

Almost every lane had atleast one big idol of Ganesha:-  During those days every lane had at least one idol of Ganesha and a big one at that unlike the smaller ones in Bangalore.  What was special was the fact the festival was celebrated in a big way by the smaller people. The idol used to be kept at least for about a week or more in a area which has the maximum visibility. Prasadam was sponsored by the people turn by turn with 2 to 3 houses sponsoring different items.  Another unforgettable thing was the fact that while the idol of Ganesha was kept in the same place throughout the week the laddus were taken away from the idol of Ganesha and kept in one or the organizers home fearing that it may be stolen. While these days Ganesha festivities are marked by Orchestra programmes these days,  those days film songs and devotional songs were played on loud speakers and while the celebrations were really noisy the atmosphere was really enjoyable and one to be cherished for a liftem.

Secunderabad boasted of innovative idols way back in the late eighties:- What was special about Ganesha Chaturthi celebrations in Secunderabad was the fact that the festival crazy city boasted of innovative idols at least two decades back. There was a increase in the number of cricket followers in Secunderabad following India's successes in 1983 World Cup and 1985 World Series Championship  and that was reflected in Ganesha Chaturthi Festivals as well.  During 1987 Reliance World Cup which was hosted by India there were idols of Ganesha holding a bat and playing cricket and the innovation just does not end with cricket and it extends to other areas as well.  With Chiranjeevi introducing break dance to Telugu audience in the late eighties idols of Ganesha were introduced which had Ganesha in a break dance pose.

Secunderabad and Khairatabad boasted of massive Ganesha idols:- While lanes and by lanes revelled in Ganesha Chaturthi celebrations, Secunderabad was in news for installation of the biggest idols in the country as Ganesha idols at YMCA Grounds Secunderabad and Khairtabad were very extraordinarily huge measuring about 25 feet to 45 feet in height and were kept for the darshan of people for many days ranging from 15 days to 45 days.  While the idols were naturally beautiful considering the amount of money and effort involved the laddus were a treat to the eye as the laddus were massive and decorated beautifully.

Ganesha Immersion:- Another unforgettable thing about Ganesha festival at Secunderabad is the immersion day.  Most organizations declare a holiday or a half day on the immersion day to enable people to witness the immersion.  Even if organizations do not have authority to declare a holiday or half day they ensure that people get to leave their work places early enough to witness and take part in the immersion ceremony.On that particular day especially from afternoon till night the main roads are jam packed with lorries and cranes carrying Ganesha idols for immersion at Hussain Sagar.  Prasadam is distributed on the roads on the immersion day and since hundreds and thousands of Ganesha idols are immersed that day many people do not take dinner as the quantity of Prasadam offered is huge that the stomachs are full before they reach home.  Another factor is many people cannot be at home in time for dinner because it is only by midnight the celebrations get over and people are more than content with the Prasadam they get to eat as apart from filling up the stomach it holds lot of religious significancefor the Hindus as Prasadam is considered sacred by every community in Hindus. Even people who do not believe in God consider Prasadam very sacred.

Ganesha festival is unique compared to other Hindu festivals:- What is unique about Ganesha festivals is that it is not like a routine Hindu festival in which women participate more than men. Aroutine Hindu festival it is all about women doing everything from fasting to praying, getting themselves decked in sarees for temple visits  but Ganesha festival is mostly about men from installing the idol till immersion.While it hurts that I can longer take part in Ganesha festival after having shifted to Bangalore, the celebrations at Secunderabad  it has given me memories to cherish for a lifetime.

Thousands of people lined up to pray in a nine foot statue of the Hindu god Ganesh in the context of a religious festival. The statue, which is claimed to be the largest of its kind in the UK shows temple Shri Sanatan Mandir, Weymouth Street, Belgrave, Leicester, in the framework of the celebration of Ganesha Chaturthi. The festival commemorates the birth of Ganesh, revered as the god of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune. The temple staff ordered the clay sculpture, which took four months to build, from Mumbai. It was shipped over to arrive in time for the 10-day festival, which began Saturday. The statue, which is biodegradable, is taken to Liverpool on Wednesday and sank in the River Mersey to symbolize the return of Ganesh to their parents and spiritual home.


Vinod Patel, festival organizers said this year's celebrations were the biggest yet in Leicester. He said Every year we try to make the statue of a larger one. It's the largest in the United Kingdom this year and we had thousands of people who come to see. Some people have queued for a long time to get inside the temple. We had people from India, which months, because we wanted to make this year a statue as big as possible. I went to Mumbai, when it was done, and it will then be transported on it. It was hard work to do inside the temple, but it's worth it.

This is a very important celebration, and that will bring happiness to thousands of people who pray to Ganesh. It's wise and then we pray to him before. Temple president Ramanbhai Barber, said We had five or six feet of the statues before, but this is bigger than the people we have come to pray to Ganesh for the whole day . He is to remove obstacles and bring good luck, so people come to him for help with their problems Thousands of. People in Leicester are expected to join Liverpool to collect, where statues of Ganesh in the whole country will end up Mersey. Lord Ganesh is worshiped, Hindu and Buddhist and Jain faiths.

Every year since 1994, the sanctuary was established in Leicester to celebrate the birthday of the son of Shiva. The popular story is that Shiva beheaded when he looks at his mother, Parvati, when she was bathing. Shiva, who did not understand that Ganesh was his son, then choose the original head like a bull, which has been exceeded.

On 11th of September 2010 Ramzan will be celebrated in Bangalore and while it is a major festival for Muslims it holds lot of significance to me from a personal point of view. I came to Bangalore in 1989  after having just finished by education.  My early days in Bangalore were memorable in many ways because I was excited to be in a new and famous place like Bangalore but at the same time never knew anything about Bangalore.  Very soon we managed to get a house in Bangalore and though we stayed only for a brief period of about 3 years that house has given me plenty of memories to cherish.

To begin with the house owners were Muslims, while we were Hindus and our co tenants Christians and I recall naming the house as Unity Buildings with a sense of pride.  We were treated as pets by our House Owners and Co Tenants because whenever there was a Muslim festival they shared their joy more with us than our co tenants who were senior to us in the sense of having occupied the house before us. Similarly when it came to Christian festivals our co tenant who is a Christian felt more comfortable in sharing their joy with us than with the House Owners.  However all of us shared a good relationship with each other and still keep in touch with each other. While our house owner stayed in the ground portion of the house we stayed in one of the portions in the first floor.

Our house owner comes from a traditional Muslim family and has a long family and though the exact number of children they have close to 10 children.  The house owner and his elder sons used to run a provision shop while the youngest son used to assist his father in the provision shop.  The house owners wife and his married daughters were all house wives.  I was close to the youngest son and youngest daughter being almost of the same age.

It is from my first house owners home I have seen Ramzan celebrations from close quarters.  I came to know about fasting and the haleem offerings they take from mosque from them.  It is from the house owners family I came to know namaz and the number of times in a day they were required to do namaz.  It is again from the house owners family I learnt that Muslim women cannot go to the mosque and have to pray at home only.  I still remember vividly Ramzan celebrations at our house owners home when their married daughters would come with their children to celebrate Ramzan and there was lot of joy in the air as the house used to full of noise.  Our house owners youngest daughter a  simply homely girl usually dressed up in simple chuidhars and half sarees on normal days comes decked in gorgeous sarees with heavy embroidery and huge earrings on Ramzan day.  The youngest girl used to come to our home with biryani and even before she reaches the door of our home, we can hear the sound of her foot steps and also the sound of jewellery while charging up to our home with full of excitement.  Even before she reaches the door of the house with Biryani we can feel the smell of perfume and powder something she is not accustomed to on other days. I had never tasted a better biryani before and I can proudly say that it is very difficult to get a better biryani than the one made in their home on Ramzan. On most of the times it is difficult to get the rice because the parcel had more of mutton than biryani rice.

We stayed in their home only for three years but the house owners family gave us plenty of memories which I can never forget throughout my life and one such memory is of the way they celebrated Ramzan, their warmth, love and affection towards us. Even Though only a couple of members of the family stay in the same house as others especially the daughters have shifted to their husbands homes I make it a point to pass through their home on my way to office and back even though it means covering extra distance.  On the eve of Ramzan I wish their family and everybody a very Happy Ramzan.

 The Japanese culture is full of interesting and intriguing customs. One such beautiful concept in the Japanese culture is Ikebana or the art of arrangement of flowers. Ikebana has been practised in Japan since the sixth century and has evolved over the centuries. The concept of Ikebana comes from the Buddhist practice of offering flowers to the spirits. In the fifteenth century, this art took its present form and since then various schools have come into being that practise this art form in differing styles.

Most people adorn flowers by simply putting them in a vase or container. But the Japanese have perfected the art of creating beautiful arrangements which aims at nature and harmony with humanity. Ikebana is a much disciplined form of art and is not merely about coordinating and combining coloured flowers together. Rather, it creates synergies by making use of the stems, the leaves and emphasizes upon the shape and form of the arrangement.

Ikebana is all about creativity. However, just like any other disciplined art, there are rules governing it. The arrangement is not just a mere creation but often has some meaning associated with it.

The concept of minimalism finds its presence in this art. Only a minimal number of flower blooms or buds are to be used along with the leaves and stalks. Twigs are usually used as symbols of man, earth and heaven or to denote the sun, moon and the earth.

 There many popular styles in Ikebana that originates from various sources. Some of the most well-known ones are outlined below.

Rikka

Rikka is a standing flower arrangement which symbolises the beauty in nature. There are seven twigs or stalks representing various elements of nature like hills, valleys, waterfalls etc.

Nageire

Nageire is a non-structured arrangement of flowers. The stems are bundled together tightly to form a triangular asymmetric design.

Shoka

Shoka is quite a simplistic design. The arrangement of flowers is such that the emphasis is on the beauty of the plant itself.

Several other forms of Ikebana like Jiyuka and Moribana are also popular arrangements. The entire concept of creating arrangements from flowers which are visually tantalizing is practised with much diligence in Japan and other countries.