A Token of Love

Today it is 26th August. This is the day which is being celebrated as ‘Raksha Bandhan‘ in India. Raksha means protection and Bandhan means to tie.

Ritualistically, on this day, every year sisters tie Rakhis on the wrist of brothers. The rakhi is not simply a thread but a promise made by a brother to protect his sister and a prayer of sister seeking well being of brother. This festival symbolising love, faith and trust have its historical importance too.

Rakhi was once used as a sign of unity when the great state of Bengal was being divided for ‘the ease of governance’ in 1905. People fighting for the unification of Bengal such as Rabindranath Tagore, Kazi Najrul Islam and many others exchanged these decorated and simple strings as an epitome of love, faith and trust. Rakhi was used as a weapon against ‘Divide and Rule’ policy of British.

However these days, Rakhi is no longer just limited to Brothers and Sisters. Rakhis are tied to the people whom we care and adore irrespective of race, colour and gender. This is the day, when old feuds are forgotten and new promises and bonds are established.

Even in today’s world of social media and instant communication system, Rakhi plays a vital role in keeping the age-old tradition as relevant as it was, because at the end no matter how much we develop social media communication with features like video chat and voice chat, we humans, as emotionally and socially evolved species, will always require the magic of human touch. And Rakhis are perfect means for that purpose.

So, let us celebrate this very special day, filled with its own blend of love and purity. Let’s shower our care and love to each others and mark this day as a symbol of fraternity and sanctity.

Happy Rakshabandhan