Yaosang
14 Mar, 2025
Friday
Yaosang on 14-03-2025
About Yaosang 2025
Yaosang is a five-day spring festival in Manipur, starting from the full moon day of the Lamda month which falls between February and March every year. Yaosang is an indigenous tradition of the Meitei people.
It is considered the most important festival of Manipur. But unlike Holi, its celebration goes beyond just colours.
Yaosang begins with the burning of the Yaosang Mei Thaba or straw hut on the full moon night of the Manipuri month Lamta just after sunset in every village. Children then go to every household to ask for donations of money, called nakatheng. On the second day, groups of local bands perform Sankirtana at the Govindagi temple in Manipur's Imphal-East district. On the second and third day, girls visit their relatives for nakatheng and block roads with ropes to collect money.
On the fourth and fifth day, people pour or sprinkle water on each other. Several sports events like tug of war and football are also organized on this occasion. Apart from this, local delicacies are also shared with neighbors during the festival.
Some recent trends during the Yaoshang festival are open-air concerts, DJs and other forms of entertainment. Local bands perform during such concerts.
