Holi is also known as the Festival of colours. This is basically a Hindu Festival though it is celebrted by other religions which have originated from Hinduism like Jainism, Sikhism, Buddism etc. The holi festival is celebrated in all over India, This festival is basically connected to Lord Krishna.
Holi is an ancient festival of India and was originally known as 'Holika'. The festivals finds a detailed description in early religious works such as Jaimini's Purvamimamsa-Sutras and Kathaka-Grhya-Sutras. Historians also believe that Holi was celebrated by all Aryans but more so in the Eastern part of India.
Story Behind Holi:
In ancient India there was a king called Hiranakashyap who was given a boon by the God Bhrama that made him impossible to be killed. He was given boon that he can not be killed by a man or an animal, he can not be killed in day or night, inside or outside home, neither by any weapon which can be used as hand weapon like sword ( Astra)or any weapon which can be used from a distance like arrow( Shastra), nor can he killed on earth or in sky.This boon made him quite proud and he thne ordered everyone that only he would be worshiped and people have to stop worshipping Gods.
As the fate had it that his own son was devotee of God Vishnu and this led to the many ego clashes of Hiranakashap with his son Prahalad. Though Pharlad was just a little boy he refused to be cowed down by his father and father then started torturing him . First of all he made his son drink poision but thanks to God Vishnu, this posion turned in to nectar in the mouth of the Little guy. This angered the king even more. So he ordered his trained elephants be left on his son so he is trampled by them but even the wildest of elephants became tame when they came near the son which angered the king even more. He then ordered him to be put in the room full of Hungry and poisonous snakes but the son survived that too. The king had gone hopeless and had no way of killing his son, then he suddenly remembered his sister Holika , who had a shawl which wont let her burn in fire but wont stop anyone else burning in it. So he odered his son to sit in lap of Holika a pyre was burnt aroud them, Son Prahalad agreed to his fathers orders radily and prayed to god Vishnu to protect him. So when fire was burnt everyone was astonished that the shawl which always protected Holika flew away from her and protected the son. This marked the end of the denom Holika and in the happiness of her death the Holi Festival is celebrated.
Later that night at time of dusk ( neither day or night) Lord Vishnu came in form of Narsimha ( half man half lion..so neither man or animal), put the king in his lap( neither earth nor sky) and killed him with his claws ( neither astra or shastra).
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