A sketch of the various festivals of Indian origin, still celebrated in fervour in the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago, penned by Dr Kumar Mahabir.

Few places in the world offer so many types of festivals all year round as Trinidad and Tobago in the English speaking Caribbean. The range of festivals reflects the diversity of people who can trace their roots to Africa, India, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Trinidad is well known for hosting the breath-taking beauty of Carnival (in February), described as the “Greatest show in earth.” But there are more festival attractions for tourists than this street pageantry of extravagant floats, masqueraders, steel bands, and calypso, soca and chutney musicians.

Although East Indians/South Asians form half of the population of the twin-island republic of 1.3 million people, not many visitors witness the abundance of their colourful festivals, ceremonies and concerts. A total of 147,596 Indians came as indentured labourers to Trinidad to work in the deserted sugarcane plantations after the abolition of slavery. The vast majority of them stayed, and in many ways, brought India to the Caribbean. They continued their traditions of Hinduism and Islam, and eventually helped transform Trinidad into an exciting cosmopolitan society.

Descendants of these Indian immigrants commemorate the arrival of their ancestors to these shores annually on Indian Arrival Day (May 30 ). The heritage day takes the form of prayers, speeches, songs, music, dances and plays in communal as well as public spaces. The spirit of the day is invoked at various beaches with the reenactment of the landing of the first boat-load of “pioneers” who gave birth to the Indian community in Trinidad. The historic day has been proclaimed a national holiday since 1994.

Hindu festivals

But it is Divali (October or November) which is undoubtedly the largest Indian-based festival in Trinidad. It is also the second largest national festival after Carnival in the island, and is observed on the darkest night of the year. The Hindu Festival of Lights is celebrated mainly in honour of Mother Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth and Prosperity. Divali is marked by the lighting of thousands of deyas [clay lamps] on decorative designs of split bamboo tubes, unique only to Trinidad. The lights twinkle in the shadows of free public performances by actors, models, drummers, dancers, musicians and singers.

During the days and nights preceding Divali, non-Hindus and non-Indians actively join in the celebration by lighting deyas, wearing saris and kurtas, and partaking in preparing and eating traditional Indian foods and sweets. The festival climaxes with a display of resplendent fireworks on Divali night, which has been pronounced by the state as a public holiday since 1966. The major public event takes place for one week at the Divali Nagar [Divali Village] in central Trinidad where thousands of visitors converge to create a bustling Indian bazaar.

The second largest Hindu festival is Phagwa or Holi celebrated (mid March) after Carnival. The festival is marked by lighting of bonfires, the playful squirting of tinted water (abeer) and smearing of coloured powder (gulal) on the bodies and clothes of participants. The sea of revelers becomes washed in hues of colours that make it impossible to distinguish their individual racial identity. Bands of chowtal singers parade with drums and other percussion instruments on stage built on temple grounds and sports fields. A recent entry into Phagwa has been the lively pichakaree song competition largely in English that dwells on themes of religion, society and contemporary Trinidad politics. Phagwa, with its pervasive red colour symbolizing fertility, also signals the beginning of the harvest season.

Other major Hindu festivals include Shiv-ratri (February), held a few days away from Carnival. It takes the form of an all-night vigil in the 200 public temples across the country. From midnight, offerings are made to Lord Shiva, the Remover of Obstacles, whose form is an oval stone, symbolizing the abstraction of God. Another public event is Kartik (October), a water festival in which Hindus converge to rivers and seas to perform puja [worship], bathe and make offerings of flowers and fruits. Ganga Dashara (May) takes the form of a pilgrimage to a Blanchisseue river. There, the sacred Ganges is invoked through rites and rituals to reconnect with the world’s oldest river festival.

Muslim festivals

The largest festival for the six percent of the country’s Muslims is Eid-ul-Fitr which has been declared as a national holiday. The morning begins with devotees dressed in ethnic wear congregating at mosques and large open sites. The thanksgiving service mainly celebrates the end of a month of prayer and fasting from dawn to dusk which began with the sighting of the new moon. The morning is followed with lavish feasts of Indian dishes with family members and friends, and the distribution of food (especially halwa and sawine ) to neighbours and the needy.

Hosay or Muharram is observed mainly by Shi’ite Muslims in Trinidad to commemorate the martyrdom of the two grandsons of Prophet Mohammed in Iraq in 680 CE. Hosay (April) takes the form of a spectacular street procession spanning three days (“Flag Night,” “Small Hosay” and “Big Hosay”). The highlight of the procession is the display of huge colourful floats in the shape of mausoleums (tadjahs). The floats are heralded by convoys of colourful flags of various shapes and designs, and the accompaniment of the military music of tassa drums. On the final evening of the 1300-year-old procession, the tadjahs are dismembered and submerged in the sea. It is notable that while Muharram is a time to mourn among Shi’ite Muslims around the world, it is in India that the unique tradition of colourful tadjahs originates, a legacy of the richly blended Indo- Islamic culture of medieval India.

Beyond ethnicity

What is remarkable about all these events is that they are open and accommodating to anyone regardless of gender, nationality, colour, creed or race. The ethnic tolerance of Trinidad is evident in the presence of Christian churches, Hindu temples and Muslim mosques built side by side in such a small island of 4,828 sq. km. which vibrates in union in a single sound of spirituality.