Rangoli

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The word rangoli is derived from the Sanskrut word 'rangavali' (an array of colors). Thus, a design created by a pinch of hand, allowing the powder of a special soft white stone to flow freely is called rangoli. Rangoli is an art, which precedes sculpture and painting. It is both an auspicious and a preliminary necessity in any religious ritual.

The two aims of drawing rangoli are revelation of beauty and acquisition of auspiciousness. It is a practice to draw rangoli at the site of any auspicious religious ritual such as a holy festival, a religious festival, an auspicious function, ritualistic worship, a vowed religious observance, etc. When performing the act of moving lit lamps about the face for someone (arti), rangoli is drawn around a wooden seat (pat) on which he is seated and also in front of him. At public functions also during a meal rangoli is drawn around a wooden seat and the plate or leaf on which the meal is served. During Divali various rangoli designs are drawn at the doorstep and decorated with different colours. In the ancient times it was a practice to sweep and sprinkle every doorstep with cowdung everyday and draw rangoli.

Rangoli is drawn with powder obtained by pounding a cleavable and lustrous mineral (shirgola). Rangoli powder is generally coarse. As a result, it is easily released with a pinch. After smearing the ground with cowdung, one should not forget to draw at least four lines of rangoli on it. Ground smeared with cowdung but not decorated with rangoli is said to be inauspicious. When sweeping the floor or smearing with cowdung, subtle lines are created on it. These possess certain frequencies. Since these lines are irregular, their vibrations, too, are irregular. These are harmful to the body, eyes and mind as well. To overcome these unfavorable frequencies, if cones and auspicious symbols are drawn systematically with rangoli on the smeared floor, then the ill effects of sweeping/vacuuming and smearing are overcome and favorable results are obtained.

The information on this page was provided by http://www.sanatan.org