Significance of Basant Panchami (Saraswati Puja)

Also known as Vasant Panchami, Shri Panchami and Saraswati Panchami, the Hindu festival of Basant Panchami is celebrated on the first day of spring and falls on the fifth day of the month of Magha and also marks the beginnings of preparation for Holi, which falls forty days after the festival. The festival is dedicated to Maa Saraswati, the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music and art.

The story behind Saraswati Puja:

It is believed that Goddess Saraswati was born on Basant Panchami and since then the day has become a  celebration of her birth and importance. According to another legend, it was on Basant Panchami when Goddess Saraswati granted wisdom to the classical poet Kalidas. Moreover, the importance of Basant Panchami is drawn from Ramayana also because, on this day, Rama ate the half-tasted grapes of Shabari.

Significance:

The color yellow has a lot of significance on the day. People celebrate the day by wearing yellow outfits, worshipping the goddess Saraswati and eating traditional dishes. The color yellow symbolizes knowledge and denotes mustard fields associated with the arrival of the spring season. Basant Panchami takes place on the fifth day (Panchami) of the Magh month of Shukla Paksha every year. The day also marks the start of the preparations for Holi, celebrated 40 days after Saraswati Puja.

Celebrations:

Basant Panchami is celebrated across the country with slightly different traditions and delicious traditional dishes are cooked and enjoyed on this day. While in North India, especially in Punjab and Haryana, people fly kites, in the eastern part of the country like West Bengal, it is celebrated as Saraswati Puja.

In the southern states, it is known as Sri Panchami. In Gujarat, bouquets and garlands of flowers set with mango leaves are exchanged as gifts. In the states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh people worship Shiva and Parvati on this day.