Propitiation of Sunshine.
There seems to be little doubt that the custom of burning the Holî fire rests on the same basis as that of similar observances in Europe. The whole subject has recently been copiously illustrated by Mr. J. G. Frazer.63 His conclusion is that “they are sun charms or magical ceremonies intended to ensure a proper supply of sunshine for men, animals, and plants. We have seen that savages resort to charms for making sunshine, and we need not wonder that primitive man in Europe has done the same. Indeed, considering the cold and cloudy climate of Europe during a considerable portion of the year, it is natural that sun charms should have played a much more prominent part among the superstitious practices of European peoples than among those of savages who live near the equator. This view of the festival in question is supported by various considerations drawn partly from the rites themselves, partly from the influences they are believed to exert on the weather and on vegetation. For example, the custom of rolling a burning wheel down a hill-side, which is often observed on these occasions, seems a very natural imitation of the sun’s course in the sky, and the imitation is particularly appropriate on Midsummer Day, when the sun’s annual declension begins. Not less graphic is the imitation of his apparent revolution by swinging a burning tar barrel round a pole. The custom of throwing blazing discs, shaped like suns, into the air, is probably also a piece of imitative magic.”64 In these, as in so many cases, the magic force is supposed to take effect through mimicry or sympathy.
It is true, of course, that the climatic conditions of Northern India do not, as a rule, necessitate the use of incantations to produce sunshine. But it must be remembered that the native of the country does not look on the fierceness of the summer sun with the same dread as is felt by Europeans. To him it is about the most pleasant and healthy season of the year, and people who are sometimes underfed and nearly always insufficiently dressed have more reason to fear the chills of December and January than the warmth of May and June. It is also usually recognized in popular belief that seasonable and sufficient rainfall depends on the due supply of sunshine.