Lohri marks the
culmination of winter, and is celebrated on the 13th day of January in the
month of Paush or Magh, a day before Makar Sankranti. For Punjabis, this is
more than just a festival, it is also an example of a way of life. Lohri
celebrates fertility and the spark of life. People gather round the bonfires,
throw sweets, puffed rice and popcorn into the flames, sing popular songs and
exchange greetings.
In the morning on Lohri day, children go from door
to door singing and demanding the Lohri 'loot' in the form of money and
eatables like til (sesame) seeds, peanuts, jaggery, or sweets like
gajak , rewri, etc.
“Dabba bharaya leera da”
“Ai ghar ameera da”
Box filled of cloths strips..this house is of the rich!
And those who weren't that generous had to face a bunch of kids
chanting the following:
“Hukka bhai
Hukkaa”
“Ai ghar bhukka”
Hukka! Oh! Hukka!..this house is full of misers!
They sing in praise of Dulha Bhatti, a Punjabi
avatar of Robin Hood who robbed the rich to help the poor, and once helped a
miserable village girl out of her misery by getting her married off like his
own sister.
In the evening, with the setting of the sun, huge
bonfires are lit in the harvested fields and in the front yards of houses and
people gather around the rising flames, circle around (parikrama) the
bonfire and throw puffed rice, popcorn and other munchies into the fire,
shouting "Aadar aye dilather jaye" (May honor come and poverty vanish!), and
sing popular folk songs. This is a sort of prayer to Agni, the fire god, to
bless the land with abundance and prosperity. After the parikrama,
people meet friends and relatives, exchange greetings and gifts, and distribute prasad
(offerings made to god). The prasad comprises five main items: til,
gajak, jaggery, peanuts, and popcorn.In homes where there is a new-born
son or a newly wed man, Lohri is celebrated with even greater enthusiasm, and
sweets made of molasses and sesame seed are sent to relatives and friends.
Since the Punjabi word for sesame seed is til and for molasses rorhi the festival
is also called Tilori.
One of the most famous song which
children sing during this festival is:
Sunder mundriya …ho
Tera kaun vichara..ho
Dulla Bhatti walla…ho
Dulle ne ti viahiyi…ho
Saer Shakar payi…ho
Kudi de boje payee…ho
Shallu kaun samete…ho
Chacha galee dese…ho
Chache choori kutee…ho
Zamindaran lutee…ho
Zamindara sidaye…ho
Gin-gin pole layee…ho
Ik pola reh gaya…ho
Sipahi farh ke lei gaya…ho
Aakho mundao…taana…
Mukai da dana…
Aana lei ke jana…
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