The Encyclopedia of World Religions

198 S Hindu festivals

deeply influenced the filmmaker George Lucas. He used them as the basis for his well-known movie trilogy, Star Wars.

male-centeredness derives from the people who tell hero-stories; it may just as likely derive from the scholars who study them. Heroes stand out from the crowd because of their remarkable abilities and achievements. Hom er’s heroes routinely lift boulders that “two men of today” could not begin to budge. Beowulf defeats the dragon Grendel, who previously wreaked destruction far and wide. The military exploits of Lakshmi Bai (d. 1858), the rani (queen) of Jhansi, a town of central India, have become legendary there. Some heroes embody superior qualities that are as much moral or spiritual as physical. In the Ramayana, a Hindu epic, Rama and his wife Sita exceed all other human beings in virtue ( see R AMA , R AMAYANA ). Some scholars have identified typical features of a hero’s career. These features are helpful, pro vided they do not obscure the distinctive char acteristics of a particular story. The writer F. R. S. Raglan noted several characteristics of a hero. They include birth through supernatural means, a battle with a supernatural enemy, such as a demon or a dragon, and a special destination after death. Campbell said that a hero’s career followed the structure of RITES OF PASSAGE : separation, triumph over trials, and return. Each stage presented many possibilities for variation. For example, triumph could take the form of marriage to a GODDESS , reconciliation with the creator-father, becoming divine, or stealing the drink of immortality. Founders of religions sometimes take on the characteristics of heroes. Examples include M OSES , J ESUS , and the B UDDHA . Indeed, the Buddha’s biog raphy contains a tension between two different ideals of world-conquest: the military conquest that the Buddha’s father wanted for his son, and the spiritual conquest that the Buddha achieved. During the 20th century the ideal of the hero or heroine was applied to nonreligious figures: politi cians (Abraham Lincoln), military leaders (George Patton), sports figures (Muhammad Ali), and lead ers of social causes (Susan B. Anthony). Comic books and films celebrated a number of fictional heroes and “superheroes,” such as Superman, Bat man, and Wonderwoman. Joseph Campbell’s ideas

Hindu festivals Religious celebrations in Hindu communities ( see H INDUISM ). Hindus celebrate most festivals once each year. But the Indian year is quite different from the Gregorian year observed in North America and Europe (January 1 through December 31). It is based on cycles of the moon, and the number of days in both months and years are different from what is found in the Gregorian calendar. Hindus regularly adjust the year so that the months occur during roughly the same season, but it is not possible to say that a Hindu festival, such as Holi, occurs on a specific Gregorian date, the way C HRISTMAS , for example, falls on Decem ber 25. In this way, Hindu festivals are like the Jewish holiday P ASSOVER and the Christian holiday E ASTER . The Hindu year generally begins around either the spring or the fall equinox (when the day and night are the same length). Each month is divided into a bright half or fortnight, which is the time between the new and the full moon, and a dark fortnight, between the full and the new moon. The renowned expert on Hindu religious prac tice, P. V. Kane, identified more than 1,000 differ ent Hindu festivals. Some are observed only in cer tain regions; others are observed throughout India. The observance of all-Indian festivals may, how ever, vary from place to place. Festivals generally combine elements of a fair or carnival with reli gious RITUALS , narrowly speaking. Many are color ful, and Hindus decorate their temples with strings of colored flags and lights that North Americans may associate with store openings and Christmas, respectively. Some festivals celebrate major events in the life of a god. Dussehra, celebrated during the bright fortnight of October–November, begins with Navaratri. The name means “nine nights,” and the nights are generally associated with the battle of D URGA and the buffalo demon. The 10th day marks Durga’s victory; in some places it also marks