Thousands chanting, flowing robes, and an ornate Hare Krishna temple. You might think you were in India or another country from the Far East. Utah Valley probably wouldn’t be the first place to come to mind.
But every year, the Sri Sri Radha Krishna temple in Spanish Fork celebrates the beginning of Spring with the Festival of Colors, or Holi, as it’s called by the Krishna devout.
The festival is open to everybody, and practicing Krishnas find themselves a small minority in the crowd. On Saturday thousands from the surrounding area, including BYU and UVU students, gathered to celebrate.
The big draw at Holi isn’t the bonfire or the band, but the multi-colored powders thrown over everyone at the festival. After the recitation of a traditional Krishna story, the effigy of a mythical witch is lit on fire, and an explosion of colors engulfs the crowd.
People attending Holi buy bags of the powder in pink, yellow, orange, blue, green, and almost any other color imaginable. When the time is right, nobody is safe from the colors getting in clothes, hair, and faces.
Here are some of my pictures me and my friends took.
