Lohri Tradition - Of folk tales, songs, dance

BONFIRES warming up the earth; pulsating rhythm of folk songs, dhol beats, energetic giddha and foot tapping bhangra light up the night, captivating tales of the lore and mouthfuls of rewari, gachak and moongphali keeping the spirits high - every year, on January 13, the festival of Lohri arrives with the harvest of happiness and togetherness promising good times ahead. Lohri celebrations kick off across the world - from US, Canada to India - as people, especially Punjabis, carry on with lohri traditions and celebrate the lohri festival with fun and fervour.

Beyond the bonfire: All About Lohri Festival

What is lohri festival? One of the oldest traditions and festivals of Punjab, lohri falls on the last day of the month of Paush, the coldest month of the year. Now, festivals in Punjab are in sync with the crop cycle, and according to lohri traditions, the lohri festival aligns with the harvest season for Punjabi farmers. In the lohri traditions, lohri celebrations primarily observe gratitude for the bounty of rabi crops. Lohri also marks the end of the winter solstice, and folks look forward to longer days as the sun moves northwards from south, registering the beginning of Uttarayana. 

The lohri traditions go beyond the bonfires that are lit on the night of January 13. There is immense significance of lohri. The flames of lohri testimony to an eventful past and a beautiful future. As we bask in the warmth of the bonfire, we, through tales of love, courage and perseverance, also pay homage to the wisdom and traditions of ages passed down to us through the festival of lohri.  

With lohri begins the month of Magh, called Maghi in Punjab. At the same time, Pongal is celebrated in Tamil Nadu and festival of kites, Makar Sakranti in other parts of India, US and Canada.

One of India’s rich and diverse festivals, lohri festival is also one of the first to be celebrated in the new year. Lohri 2025 is round the corner and lohri festival with its age-old lohri traditions of song and dance, of food and music, of celebrating the first lohri of newly weds and newborn babies are all set to be followed with full gusto all over.

Going back in time: The history of Lohri

To understand the lohri traditions, one has to rewind and familiarise ourselves with the narrative around the lohri festival and the rich history of the lohri. Lohri festival is enriched with tales of the lore and legends like the Dulla Bhatti. According to history, Dulla Bhatti lived during the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar, and he was a Robin Hood of his times. Legend has it that he would also rescue girls who were sold as slaves in those times to the Middle East. Two of those girls were called Sundri and Mundri, and hence the popular folk song, Sundar Mundariye that is sung at lohri. Lohri meaning, for many, also comes from the word loh which is iron/girdle, and other tales refer to Loi, wife of reformer Kabir Das. It’s also a wordplay of til (sesame seeds) and rorhi (jaggery/gur). Among the Sindhi community, lohri festival is celebrated as Lal Loi. Lohri traditions, in some ways, are similar to Halloween - lohri celebrations witness kids going around in the neighbourhood ‘trick or treating’, singing folk songs like ‘saanu de lohri, teri jeeve jodi’. 

Most importantly, lohri for new beginnings, for welcoming the sun god, for blessing the harvest and hailing the new year on an auspicious. So, in the lohri traditions, it’s equally important to celebrate the birth of a new baby or the celebration of newlyweds. 

From fostering communal harmony and connectedness to showing humility and gratitude for a good bounty and surviving the harsh winters, the lohri meaning symbolises survival and sustenance and the significance of the lohri festival is therefore powerful and impactful.

The Lohri celebrations: The Punjabi lohri way

Punjabi lohri is filled with music, colours of the phulkari, an infectious vibe and spirit, traditional spread of food, broad smiles and lots of song and dance, giddha and bhangra. Preparations for Lohri 2025 is already afoot, with party planning and decor details.

Lohri traditions are incomplete without food from the harvest - piping hot sarson da saag with loads of white butter and ghee, makki di roti, ganne di rass di kheer (sugarcane juice sweet rice pudding), moth di dal di khichidi (lentil porridge) and platters overflowing with gur, til, rewari, gachak, popcorn and peanuts. On the day of lohri, a huge bonfire is made from wood, cow dung cakes and desi ghee. As a lohri tradition, Punjabis walk around the bonfire at least three times, offering it til, rewari and popcorn, and prayers. Some also mel gur/jaggery over this sacred fire and serve it as prasad. In the lohri tradition, all these are ways of embracing a new start, a new year, a new addition to the family, a new crop cycle and simultaneously salutes the strength and resilience displayed in braving the cold winter, and the vibrancy of a community.

Conclusion

The lohri traditions and lohri celebrations are intrinsic to our culture, be it US, Canada or India, or anywhere in the world. As people come together, light bonfires together and sit around it, chatting, singing, feasting, the Lohri traditions instill a sense of belonging and collective joy, of carrying on the intergenerational dialogue, of reaffirming faith and connection with ancestors, of restoring heritage, of celebrating the spirit of renewal and fertility, prosperity, harmony and happiness. Happy Lohri 2025!