Raksha Bandhan, meaning "Know of Protection" is one of the most important festivals celebrated in Hindu religion across the world. This festival stands for the beautiful bonding shared between brothers and sisters.
On this day, sisters tie 'Rakhi' around the wrist of their brothers and make a promise to protect their whole life. As per the Hindu calendar, it is celebrated on the full moon of the Savan month.
Rakhi has a lot of stories around it. It nurtures a rich heritage of legendary traditions, some rooted back to the ages of great epics. As per the Hindu tradition, the Raksha has indeed assumed all aspects of protection of the forces of righteousness from the forces of evil.
The history of Raksha Bandhan started about 6000 years back when it came into origin when Aryans created the first civilization- Indus Valley Civilization.
There are numerous stories behind Raksha Bandhan. The festival started mainly when Draupadi once tore a strip of her sari and tied it on Krishan's wrist which stopped Krishan's bleeding from the battlefield would.
Then Krishna declared her as his sister. In return, Lord Krishna protected Draupadi, when she was abused by the Kauravas when Pandavas lost her in a gambling bet.
It is said that the festival gained popularity mainly after Rani Karnavati, the queen of Chittoor, sent a Rakhi to the Mughal emperor Humayun.
She needed instant support and sought help to protect her state from the attack of Bahadur Shah of Gujarat. To respect the threat that Karnavati has sent, Humayun immediately sent his army to Chittor to protect her.
Raksha Bandhan is also linked to the birth of Goddess Santoshi, and the relationship Goddess Laxmi and King Bali shared among many other fables of similar nature. It is believed that the Yamuna River also tied Rakhi to Yama, the God of Death, and bestowed immortality.
The noble laureate Rabindranath Tagore started a mass Raksha Bandhan festival during the Partition of Bengal, in which he encouraged Hindu and Muslim women to tie a rakhi on men from the other communities and make them brothers.
It was mainly started to address the British's efforts to create a divide between Hindus and Muslims.
Whatever the stories with this festival, it is celebrated with full fervor with a touch of modern trends. Raksha Bandhan is the perfect symbol of duty between brothers and sisters.
This festival is meant to celebrate any type of brother-sister relationship between men and women that may not be biologically related.