Culture of Maharashtra

Ganesh Chaturthi, a popular festival in the state

Marathi is the language of Maharashtrians. Maharashtrians take great pride in their language and history, particularly the Maratha Empire, its founder Shivaji is considered a folk hero across India.

Overview

About 80% of Maharashtrians are Hindu, and there are significant Muslim, Christian and Buddhist minorities. There are many temples in Maharashtra some of them being hundreds of years old. These temples are constructed in a fusion of architectural styles borrowed from North and South India. The temples also blend themes from Hindu, Buddhist and Jain cultures. The temple of Vitthal at Pandharpur is the most important temple for the Varkari sect. Other important religious places are the Ashtavinayaka temples of Lord Ganesha, Bhimashankar which is one of the Jyotirling (12 important shiva temples). Ajanta and Ellora caves near Aurangabad are UNESCO World Heritage Sites and famous tourist attractions. Mughal architecture can be seen is the tomb of the wife of Aurangzeb called Bibi Ka Maqbara located at Aurangabad. In 1708, the year following the death of Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Singh the tenth spiritual leader of the Sikhs came over to Nanded, his permanent abode. He proclaimed himself the last living Guru and established the Guru Granth Sahib as the eternal Guru of the Sikhs. This elevates the reverence of Granth to that of a living Guru. A monument has been constructed at place where he breathed his last. Maharaja Ranjit Singh's endowment saw the construction of a beautiful Gurudwara at Nanded around 1835 AD. The Gurudwara features an imposing golden dome with intricate carvings and a breathtakingly beautiful artwork. It is known as Shri Huzur Abchalnagar Sachkhand Gurudwara

Maharashtra has a large number of hill, land and sea forts. Forts have played an important role in the history of Maharashtra since the time of the Peshwas. Some of the important forts in Maharashtra are Raigad, Vijaydurg, Pratapgad, Sinhagad. Majority of the forts in Maharashtra are found along the costal region of Konkan.

Marathi Hindus revere Bhakti saints of all castes, such as Dnyaneshwar (Brahmin), Tukaram (Moray Shudra), Namdev (Chhimba Shudra), and Chokhamela (Mahar).

There were several other Harijan saints of Maharastra. They are Sant Banka Mahar, Sant Bhagu, Sant Damajipanth, Sant Kanhopatra, Sant Karmamelam, Sant Nirmala, Sant Sadna, Sant Sakhubai, Sant Satyakam Jabali, Sant Soyarabai. Other important devotees are Namdev Mahar, devotee of Shirdi Sai Baba, lived in Kharagpur and Bhagubai, the wife of Namdev Mahar, devotee of Sai.

In modern times Nisargadatta Maharaj, a Shudra and bidi-seller, became a Hindu saint of major influence in India.

Popular forms of God are Lord Shiva, Lord Krishna and Lord Ganesh.

Lord Shiva's devotion is celebrated by taking part in Maha Shivaratri (Night of Shiva) festival. In modern times, the Elephanta island in Mumbai, Lord's Shiva island in local mythology, originated the Elephant Festival. Lord Krishna's devotion are celebrated in the state-wide Gokul Ashtami (or Krishna Janmashtami, Krishna's birthday) whereby many devotees fast on the entire day until midnight. Lord Ganesh's devotion is celebrated by Ganesh Chaturthi (Ganesh's birthday) in August.

Life Style

People of this colourful state wear different types of costumes and there is a variation in dance and music according topeople'slocalities.Genrally, in olden days, men wear dhoti and pheta, while choli and saree is baisc costume of womens.Now a days,young maharashtian gets attracted to latest fashion. The Konkan and Varadi cuisines must kill the tourist's appetite.The speciality of dishes of this state is that Maharashtrian cuisines are strong in pepper and spice.Mumbai chaat is the most popular dish that have unbeatable taste. There is also a variation in dance form accordingly.The dance form like Povada,Lavani, Koli with memerizing music and rhythmic movement entartain the pepole of maharashtra.

See also

• Sangeet Natak

External links

See also: Maharashtrian cuisine and Marathi cinema