THE female members of the Indian High Commission on Friday tied Rakhi on Prime Minister Brigadier (R’td.) Mark Phillips, at the Prime Minister’s Office, in the presence of High Commissioner of India, Dr. K.J. Srinivasa, as part of the High Commission of India’s Raksha Bandhan celebrations in Guyana.
According to a release from the Indian High Commission, Raksha Bandhan, also known as Rakhi Poornima, is an integral part of Indian culture, and this festival has become an occasion to celebrate human bondings, relationships, and a sense of togetherness by seeking and giving protection.
This year, the Raksha Bandhan festival is being held on Sunday, August 22. Raksha Bandhan is an important Hindu festival to celebrate brother-sister relationship. Raksha, or Rakhi, means a sacred thread, and Bandhan means bonding.  Raksha Bandhan is thus essentially a celebration of bondings.
“It is celebrated every year on a Full Moon night of the Indian calendar month, Shrawan. On this day, sisters tie the Rakhi on the wrist of their brothers.  This is a symbolic ‘binding’, a sacred vow to ‘defend’, protect each other, with sister praying for the long life of her brother, and the brother renewing the pledge to protect her life and honour at all costs.

With the passage of time, this festival has become gender-neutral.  Once a family festival, today it has become a social event,” the High Commission said in its release.
Now-a-days, this festival is celebrated by one and all, regardless of belief systems, caste and creed. For ages, people have been celebrating this festival in their own way.
Raksha Bandhan, this year, has a special significance when humanity is facing the COVID-19 pandemic, as it gives a message of togetherness, the High Commission said, pointing out that nobody is isolated; nobody needs to feel lonely and left to himself/herself, as “we are all a part of a universal family, Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, the foundation of India’s world view, and today, perhaps, it is extremely relevant to spread it all over the world.”
It noted that Raksha Bandhan celebration in Guyana by the High Commission of India signifies the friendship, bonding and togetherness between India and Guyana, and renewing their pledge to defend and protect each other and praying for each other’s long life and welfare and progress.