Decorative art of rangoli. What it is?

The traditional Indian art of creating ornaments and unusual paintings is not just a colorful ritual, but a whole sacrament and a long process. Dry painting has long been considered a female occupation, and all the tricks of drawing patterns are passed from mother to daughter. Decorative art is preserved in the villages of India, but in megacities it is lost forever.

Since ancient times in the yard cleared of the trash or on a carefully washed threshold, they have painted scarecrows of evil spirits of the rangoli. What it is? This is an ornament that is applied daily early in the morning. Without colorful drawings that attract good gods, there is not a single national holiday.

Ancient legends

Indians have an ancient tradition that tells of a terrible grief that befell the high priest. The disconsolate father who lost his beloved son cried a lot and begged to return his child. Hearing the priest, the god Brahma asked to draw the deceased to revive him. As soon as a portrait of the boy appeared on the threshold of the house, the creator of the world breathed life into him. Since then, the art of drawing rangoli is considered to be traditional in India.

There is another legend that tells of a goddess who dreamed of marrying and who did not know how to surprise her chosen one. And one day she drew an ornament of amazing beauty, which the groom liked so much that he immediately made an offer to his beloved. Since those times, it has become a rule that girls who want to marry worthy men draw rangoles.

What is it, we figured out. Now we will stop our attention on materials for drawing drawings and main motives.

What are the rangols performed from? Main motives

The traditional Indian art of drawing is a very painstaking work that takes a lot of time. The basis for drawing ornaments is usually made of sand, sawdust or shredded bricks. The boundaries of the picture are laid out from grains of cereals, and the image itself is made from rice flour, painted in different shades with the help of chalks, as well as spices that have bright colors.

In the middle of the pattern, a flashlight or a lamp is put, which makes the composition voluminous, and beads or flowers are decorated with traditional rangoles. What is it, well-known residents of small villages of India, in which ancient decorative art flourishes.

Drawings with geometric patterns are executed, where each figure (rectangle, circle, triangle, square) has a special meaning. The subjects of the rangoli are diverse. The main motifs of the laid out compositions are lotus flowers, sea shells, animals and birds, human figures, fruits, the image of Ganesha. Although it should be noted that it is not customary to draw gods on earth in order not to walk on them with their feet, so often such drawings are performed on walls.

Blessing for the Home

The art of creating paintings with the help of colored loose materials is of great interest to all tourists who come to an exotic country. Of course, nowadays Indian symbols are used most often as an element of decor, and initially they were given magical significance. Women at sunrise cleaned their dwelling and painted ornaments, bringing blessings to the whole family and guests of the house. It is believed that such a positive effect lasts all day.

We can say that the executed patterns are a drawing-prayer, a silent wish to oneself and those around them of all blessings.

Rangoli for luck

Executed on the doorstep of the house, original ornaments adorn the house and greet everyone entering. Colorful patterns from ancient times are considered to be symbols of luck, so every woman who cares about the positive aura of her home, puts the rangoli.

Now very few people perform ornaments from natural materials, and the practice of applying traditional patterns for India has almost disappeared. Nowadays whole sets for drawing are being sold, consisting of multicolored small stones, chemical paints and stencils, which must be filled.

Symbols and their meanings

In every work of art you can find symbolic images with a secret meaning. Rangoli is no exception, because here every ornament has its own meaning, understandable to the one who is drawing the picture.

Most often images have a round shape, which symbolizes the infinity of time. It should be remembered about the obligatory absence of broken lines through which evil spirits can easily penetrate. Traditional Indian symbols are used. For example, an elephant means wisdom, and the sacred lotus flower is the power of creativity and indicates purity of thoughts.

Colorful drawings, in which even color has its meaning

The patterns of the rangoli are passed on from generation to generation for many centuries. Women seek to draw vivid drawings to attract the attention of Lakshmi, who loves the cleanliness and peaceful atmosphere in the house. Its appearance brings luck and prosperity in all matters, so all the patterns are painted in honor of this goddess, so she deigned to visit the dwelling.

Ornaments, where human figures intertwine with images of animals and birds, mean the unity of people and the world of nature.

If we consider Indian symbols and their meanings, then it should be noted that even color has its meaning. Red shades speak of purity, and therefore the bride marries in scarlet attire. The goddess Lakshmi is not in vain dressed in purple robes, since this color means sensuality.

The composition in blue tones speaks of tranquility and pacification. Green shades symbolize life itself and happiness, but black color, repelling evil, most often means death.

Diwali Festival

Often at festivals people create the most incredible constructions of rangoli (what is it, we already know). For example, at the festival of Diwali lights, symbolizing the victory of good over evil, Indians paint with dyed sand ornaments of high complexity of any size. To the festival passing in the end of October, streets and houses of local residents are decorated with drawings, which can rightfully be called real works of art.

It is necessary to note a special meditative state in which the person drawing the rangoli is immersed. This is a real magical process of creating mysterious ornaments, where each figure and color of the composition symbolizes something important.