The Raksha Bandhan you celebrate now resembles the one that has been portrayed in Bollywood movies and rakhi related advertisements. With the sister tying the rakhi on the brother’s wrist and feeding him sweets while he surprises her with over the top rakhi gifts, this picture-perfect rakhi celebrating moments are our rakhi celebrations in a nutshell. Also, there are some old and new traditions like rakhi gifts and online rakhi to be sent in India from abroad which have been adopted in our rakhi celebrations. However, the rakhi celebrations and traditions which we have come to know and practice are a more updated version of the older ones. Traditions like this have been circulating through generations have many known and unknown legends that add to its history. Therefore, look out for these famous brother-sister duos that have been listed in our history book and other mythologies and popularized the Raksha Bandhan traditions which we know today.
1. Krishna and Draupadi
This duo of Lord Krishna and Draupadi is perhaps the most popular brother-sister duo that is derived from the Mahabharata. As the legend dictates, on the day of Makar Sankranti, Krishna was cutting sugar and accidentally cut his index finger which started bleeding profusely. While his consorts ran to bring bandage it, it was Draupadi’s presence of mind that made her cut a strip from her saree and tie it on his finger. Moved by this gesture, Krishna vowed to help her in her time of need. Thus, Krishna fulfilled this promise when he helped Draupadi during the infamous disrobing ceremony and saved her honor. Similarly, the brother vows to protect his sister just like Krishna did.
2. Queen Karnavati and Humayun
Although rakhi is borrowed from the Hindu scriptures, there are many people from other religions who are enamored by this practice and celebrate it. This legend involves Queen Karnawati of the Mewar region who was under attack from Bahadur Shah( not the last Mughal emperor). In her distress, she sought help from the Mughal emperor Humayun by sending a Rakhi as an SOS who came to her help leaving his military campaign. Thus, this legendary tale relays that the brother and sister relationship that is not related by blood.
No comments:
Post a Comment