SARASHI and the Foundation of Light (FOL) will jointly celebrate Vasant Rangotsav 2025 (Color of Spring Festival)  with the Finger Lakes, Southern Tier and Central New York community on Feb 22, 2025 at the Foundation of Light, 391 Turkey Hill Road, Ithaca, NY 14850.

As in other regions of the world, spring season (Vasant Ritu) in South Asia is a season of joy and rejuvenation and marked with festivities.

Vasant Panchami is a festival that heralds the imminent arrival of spring and the end of winter. It is celebrated through the worship of Saraswati, the patron goddess of knowledge and the arts, as well as music and dance events celebrating the ripening of crops in agricultural fields. Yellow, which represents the brilliance of nature such as the color of mustard fields in full bloom widely features in Vasant Panchami and other springtime festivities such as Pohela Falgun (the first day of the month of Falgun in the lunar calendar).

Doljatra is usually celebrated 40 days after Vasant Panchami, around the time of the spring equinox and is the most colorful among festivals in South Asia. Children spray colored powder solutions while adults smear dry colored powder on each other’s faces to celebrate friendships and bonds with each other in an atmosphere of fun and frolic.

Both festivals will be celebrated at the Foundation of Light on February 22 in a single event “Vasant Rangotsav” or a Color of Spring Festival. The event is ‘Hop In and Hop Out’, which means you can come and go as you like.

Please save the date. This page will be updated in the first week of February 2025 with all relevantdetails

Please email rsvp.sarashi@gmail.com for more information.