PHOTOS: A Holi shower of flowers on Lower East Side to celebrate Hindu festival of spring

Through a blitz of color and goodwill, they chanted on the Lower East Side Saturday night in honor of Holi.

On the third floor of the Lower East Side’s Bhakti Center, those of the Hindu faith came together on March 23 to celebrate what is commonly known as the festival of colors, love and spring. 

Sitting before a shrine of three deities draped in flowers, worshipers sang and danced as two members of the Bhakti Center took turns sprinkling petals over the Gods.  The event combined both the official start to Holi as well as Pushpa Abhishek, which translates to bathing in flowers. Holi can be celebrated in a variety of ways and the Bhakti Center decided to use flowers for their festivities. 

“We are mixing Holi with the Flower Festival. Holi is a festival of colors, equality, of acceptance, of community, rejuvenation and flowers are a symbol of purity and devotion. We are combining them both and our community here at the Bhakti Center are from all walks of life, all ages, are coming together to make this offering of flowers to God. It’s a festival of happiness and fun,” Kartikeya Parashar said, Bhakti Center operations director.

For the past two days, members of the Bhakti Center placed approximately 450 pounds of petals into bags for the ceremony. The petals were then sprinkled upon the deities, spilling onto the floor where parishioners grabbed handfuls and tossed them onto each other as a symbol of universal love. 

“We are having our annual flower festival, the Pulshpa. In the Eastern tradition, flowers signify loving exchanges. So, offering flowers to a person shows how much we love, how much we care for them,” said Sai Praveen, 37, a member of the Bhakti Center.

“This is a Flower Holi, it’s a very important festival in India so we throw colors there but here with throw petals,” Praveen added.