From rectangle to a circle she takes endless
shapes,
From
peacock to a lotus she wears boundless designs,
She is an imagination of every artistic woman.
Kolam, Muggu, Mandana, Aplana are some of her
distinct identities.
Rice grains, flour, sand chalk and OHP sheets all
engross to make her come alive!
She is as vibrant as her name…
She is Rangoli.
Rangolis
are artistic imagination of any women. We always create our own designs, with
catchy color combinations. Rangoli is an ancient tradition followed over years
and years in India. The thing is most of us do not know from where actually
this ritual of drawing rangolis started. History has many theories regarding
the origin of rangolis. The Indian scriptures and puranas can be attributed for
the emergence of this creative art. It is believed that this art form is
originated from the Indian state of Maharashtra, from where it gradually
dispersed in other states of the country.
According
to the earliest disquisition or treatise on Indian painting named Chitra
Lakshana, a king and kingdom were extremely grieved as the king’s priest’s son
died. Everybody along with the distressed king offered prayers to the creator
of universe, Lord Brahma to grant life to the boy. Being moved by the prayers,
Lord Brahma asked the king to paint the likeness of the boy on the floor so
that Brahma could breathe life into the portrait. Thus the relieving the entire
kingdom from this sorrow and pain. This portrait is considered to be the first
rangoli. This mythological tale is considered to be the scriptural evidence of
this art form. Another legend says that, God in one of his creative mood
extracted the juice of a mango and painted a portrait of a beautiful woman. The
portrait was made in such a way that put all the maidens in heaven at shame.
This portrait is believed to be the origin of the creative art form, rangolis.
Rangoli is an ancient symbol of Indian
art that have been passed down through the ages. The Hindi word Rangoli
is derived from two words rang which
means colour and aavali which means
rows. Thus Rangoli is the row of colours.
Rangoli
is the charm of every doorway in India. With the rising of sun, woman across
India take a bath early in the morning and begin their day by drawing
auspicious Rangoli. Generally, the patterns of rangoli take their inspiration
from nature. The designs of birds, flowers, stars in rangoli depict the divine
connection between man and the nature. When these designs get sprinkled with
attractive colours, they endow one with tranquility, joy and good luck.
Rangoli
is more than just an art. It is a science of creating energy pool. While creating Rangoli, women often sing sacred mantras to
guard themselves from evil forces. Our fingers are the energy dissipating
centers that transmit energy in every design we make. These energies further are capable of changing
our thought, feelings and emotions followed with a good mood. Rangoli help us
to stay connected with our being and gain an undisrupted attention.
No wonder why Rangoli plays
a crucial role in marriages, deity festivals and religious celebrations. During
Diwali, Rangoli is created in the entrance of the house, not only to welcome
guest but also the goddess Lakshmi. On
Onam, women celebrate 10 days festival by making large sized Rangoli out of vivid
flowers. Even today for ladies of south
India, Kolam holds one of the most important rituals of their lives.
