‘Ganpathi’ also known as Ganesh Chaturti is a very popular cultural festival for the Hindu culture in Mauritius. This festival is very awaited and appreciated by many other cultures also, as they get see a lot of colour and they get to eat a lot sweets such as ladoo, jalebi, barfi but the traditional one is known as ‘Kanawla’. For this festival all those devotees fast for 40 days before the D-day. When 3 days are left the idol of god is brought into the house where endless of ‘aarti’ is held every 3 hours of the day. During te night group of traditional dancers come and they showcase the traditional Marathi dance form known as ‘Jakri’. On the day every one is welcomed whether you received the invitation or not, you can come, bow to the god, enjoy the delicious food and the dances. On the day, more aarti is held then every walks with the idol till the sea or river while doing the ‘jaakri’ dance, to immerge the god.
For me this is a very pure moment and very heart warming as you can see diverse cultures coming together to celebrate ‘Ganpathi’. No differences is spotted i really look forward for this festival each and every year to enjoy these happy and pure moments. I have also worn traditional clothes that is known as ‘Kaashti’
Here`s a link for a well known group who practices ‘Jaakri’ on Ganpathi occasion : https://youtu.be/hBBNExynqXY
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