Christmas is an annual event which holds immense cultural and religious significance. It is a festival of enjoyment and merry making.
It is celebrated to observe the birth of Jesus, believed to be born between 6 and 4 BC. On this day Christians remember Jesus Christ, recall his sacrifices and do a mass service.
Be it movies or literature, Christmas is synonymous with certain traditions like holiday parade, baking cookies, decorating Christmas tree etc.
The Christmas decorations are characterized by use of red, gold and green colour. While red suggest the blood of the Christ, gold is the one of the gifts from the Three kings and green is the colour of everlasting life.
At every Christmas celebrations, Carol singing is integral. Though carols are sung throughout the year, there are several of these which are specifically sung during this period.
We have always associated Christmas with beautifully decorated fir tree. The use of tree dates back to early times when Romans used the tree to decorate their temples at the festival of Saturnalia.
Christmas Wreaths mark the beginning of Christmas and are used as a symbol of honour and victory.
The use of Evergreen Foliage during Christmas dates back to pagan and the Roman festivals. It represents victory of life over darkness.
Christmas stockings are much loved socks – popularised by movies. As per a folklore, St Nicolas threw a few gold coins down the chimney of a poor farmer and the coins fell inside the stockings hanging there to dry….and the practice of hanging stocking by the fireplace or keeping it under the pillow(when there is no fire place) came into being.
Romantics look forward to standing under the mistletoe to kiss their beloved ones at Christmas.
No discussion around Christmas is complete without a mention about Santa Claus. This mythical creature is closely associated with Christmas and kids wait for the Santa to arrive on a sleigh and leave them gifts. The tradition has been kept alive to this date and at several places people engage in playing the game of Secret Santa.
Christmas like any other festival brings joy and harmony into the life of the members of the communities where it is celebrated.
