Pola Festival is celebrated throughout the state of Maharashtra, in the Hindu month of Shravan (that usually coincides August). It falls on day of Pithori Amavasya (new moon day) in Shravan. The festival marks the day when farmers worship their bulls and it is from the after Pola festival that ploughing and sowing is started.
On the day of the festival, the bull is taken to the nearest river or pond and given a thorough bath. After decorating the bulls, the farmers worship them and a procession is carried out in the evening through the streets.
The harvest fair is celebrated by farmers all over Maharashtra. On this day bullocks, which are an integral part of the agricultural chores and consequently the village economy, are honored. They are bathed, colorfully decorated and taken out in processions across the village, accompanied by the music of drumbeats and lezhim (a musical instrument made of a wooden rod and an iron chain full of metallic pieces). Pola brings out an important facet of Hindu culture, which does not look upon cattle as mere beasts of burden, but treats them with dignity and gratitude.
Bulls are washed and decorated for a nice look. The farmers offer them worship and provide special food on the day. They are then taken out to a procession across the village, accompanied by the tune of drumbeats and lezhim (a musical instrument made of a wooden rod and an iron chain full of metallic pieces). Pola is the unique facet for the Hindu culture that marks respect to cattle.
Celebration Pola Festival in Chhattisgarh
Pola Festival, also known as Pithori Amavasya is celebrated during Sharavana or monsoon and lays great emphasis on treating the bestial creatures with due respect. The festival is celebrated on a lovely new moon night when the star studded whitewashed sky closely resembles a ripe and flourishing paddy field. At the culmination of this ceremony, ploughing and sowing of seeds begin.
Pola or Bail Pola is a festival that is grandly celebrated in rural India, which has a predominantly agrarian economy. The festivites commence with the farmers adorning their bulls with decorating garments, embellishing their bodies with turmeric powder and garlanding the beast and finally offering them holy food. The evenings witness musical parades promenades where the farmers march with their cattle in tow. They also regale in outdoor games and gorge on the local delicacy of Puran Poli.