Raksha Bandhan (the festival of India) is related to the Hindu epic Mahabharata.

 

Raksha Bandhan 

Raksha Bandhan, also abbreviated to Rakhi, is the Hindu festival that celebrates brotherhood and love. It is celebrated on the full moon in the month of Sravana in the lunar calendar. The word Raksha means protection, whilst Bandhan is the verb to tie.

Raksha Bandhan is an auspicious festival marked annually to celebrate the meaningful bonds we share with our siblings. Traditionally, sisters tie Rakhi on their brother's wrists and wish they have a prosperous, happy, and fulfilling life. In return, the brothers promise to protect and love their sisters unconditionally. However, in recent times, brothers have also started tying Rakhis on their sister's hands, and sisters also tie the holy band on each other's wrists with the same promise to protect and love each other. Additionally, siblings exchange gifts on this day and pamper each other with their favorite things.

Raksha Bandhan Rituals

The Raksha Bandhan festival involves several rituals. On this day, the sister performs her brother's aarti and prays for his long life. Then, she ties a Rakhi on his wrist, puts tilak on his forehead, and feeds him sweets. Brothers show their affection by giving their sister a gift or money.

According to Drik Panchang, traditionally, the afternoon is considered the most auspicious time to celebrate Raksha Bandhan. However, if it is not suitable due to Bhadra, the rituals are performed after it is over.

 Raksha Bandhan festival with married women

The bride marries out of her natal village or town, and her parents by custom do not visit her in her married home. In rural north India, where village exogamy is strongly prevalent, large numbers of married Hindu women travel back to their parents' homes every year for the ceremony. Their brothers, who typically live with their parents or nearby, sometimes travel to their sisters' married home to escort them back. Many younger married women arrive a few weeks earlier at their natal homes and stay until the ceremony. The brothers serve as lifelong intermediaries between their sisters' married and parental homes, as well as potential stewards of their security.

In urban India, where families are increasingly  nuclear, the festival has become more symbolic but continues to be highly popular. The rituals associated with this festival have spread beyond their traditional regions and have been transformed through technology and migration. Other factors that have played a role are: the movies,social interaction, and promotion by politicized Hinduism,as well as by the nation state.

 Among females and males who are not blood relatives, , the act of tying the rakhi amulets has given rise to the tradition of  voluntary kin relations, which has sometimes cut across lines of caste, class, and religion. Authority figures have been included in such a ceremony.

Raksha Bandhan in Mahabharat

The story of Raksha Bandhan has related today to Hindu mythology and the Hindu epic Mahabharata. Once Lord Krishna cut his finger, Draupadi tied a piece of cloth from her saree, which stopped the bleeding.

 Raksha bandhan is also mentioned in mahabharat. Dharmaraj or yudhistria. The  elder brother among pandavas, asked lord Krishna to refer him a ritual to protect himself, his family and army from dangerous acts  of kauravas and kaurav sena( the army of Kauravas). On Shravan purnima, Yudhishtira performed a puja and tied a sacred thread on to his hand.

Mahabharata is also mentioned about the Rakhi festival or Raksha bandhan celebrated by Draupadi or panchali. Draupadi tied Rakshi to Lord krishan and when darpadi was in trouble with kauravas Krishna protected him.