Thanks giving Day Black Friday

Please click this link:

http://www.manamlagaru.com/columnists.php?col_id=45

Full Text:

Thanksgiving Day that was celebrated on November 26, finds its roots in America. It is celebrated with lot of fervor and euphoria on the fourth Thursday in the month of November every year. The Day is celebrated with lot of joy and enthusiasm not only in US but other countries as well. It symbolizes the feeling of gratitude, people feel towards God for bestowing constant grace and love. More commonly it is celebrated to thank God for the bounty of autumn harvest.

Thanksgiving Day is essentially a harvest related festival. It celebrates communal harmony. Though it is said to have been originated in America, a number of other countries celebrate harvest related festivals. They are observed with different names and in different seasons. Harvest related festivals, all the over the world are characterized with lot of fun and merrymaking. Each region has its unique customs and traditions to jubilate the occasion. In a nutshell, Thanksgiving is all about loving, caring, sharing and communal harmony. It is all about being grateful to not only God but also to fellowmen. It is also about reaping the benefits of the year long hard work and struggle.

Canada celebrates thanksgiving on the second Monday in the month of October. India also has a number of harvest related festivals in different regions. Popular regional festivals are Pongal, Baisakhi, Lohri, Onam etc. Though the underlying principle behind each of them is same, every festival is exclusive and different from the other.

India is a multi-lingual, multi-cultural and a secular country; also popular for its spirituality, God loving and God fearing people. It is known for its 'Unity in Diversity'. With the spread of western culture, Thanksgiving is celebrated in quite a few parts of India, the major festivity is however, observed by Christians in the state of Goa.

Thanksgiving is primarily celebrated in the state of Goa, with a different name. It is popularly known as 'Ladin' or 'Ladainha' in India. 'Ladin' literally means a litany to the Virgin Mary. During the Thanksgiving ritual, people thank God for all the material and spiritual benefits. The Thanksgiving function is sponsored by a different person every year that either seeks benefits or has been lucky enough to have God's special grace. Christians start preparing for Thanksgiving celebrations by purchasing wheat and gram, candles, wine and colored tinsel paper. A temporary platform/altar is constructed which is decorated with flowers, vines and creepers. Celebrations also include singing of hymns and prayers.

Another celebration associated with the feeling of Thanksgiving, is the popular religious feast of conception of Mother Mary. It is a time for farmers to cut the first harvest of milk-filed corn from the rice field and offer it to God. This is done to seek God's blessing for a good harvest in the coming season. Though the date of celebrations varies in different parts of Goa, but generally it is celebrated on the 15th of August every year.

Other Asian countries such as China, Malaysia, Korea celebrate the festival on different dates. Each festival has a folklore attached to it. Harmony, peace, feeling gratitude is the underlying theme of the celebration all over.

It is generally a "four-day" weekend in the United States. Friday right after thanksgiving is popularly known as 'Black Friday'. It is the official beginning of Christmas season and is marked with the highest retail volume sales in USA. The day got its name from the standard accounting practice of marking profits in black ink in the US.

Thanksgiving is traditionally celebrated with the customary 'feast' shared among friends and family. It is an important family gathering, and people often travel far distances to be with family members for the celebration. The traditional “Turkey” is the most important dish cooked in every house as part of the feast. Pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce and corn dishes also form a part of the family dinner. The entire family sits at the table during dinner and offer prayer to the Lord Almighty for his continuous grace. The traditional stuffed turkey adorns every dinner table during the feast.

Crystal brand kosher salt, sugar, cloves, juniper berries, black peppercorns, fresh sage leaves etc are the ingredients of Turkey dish. In a large saucepan, the salt, sugar, cloves, juniper berries, peppercorns, and allspice are stirred together. Then the sage leaves, thyme, and bay leaves along with the hot water are added to this. All are stirred to combine. The combination would be brought to a boil over high heat, stirring frequently until the salt and sugar have dissolved. After boiling for 3 minutes, it is removed from the heat. The ice water is then added and stirred again to cool the mixture. Then it is set aside and let cool to room temperature.

The traditional thanksgiving parade, a full dress parade that was probably started with President Lincoln proclaiming it an official day, is designed to display the country's military strength and discipline. The main aim of such parades is to lift the spirits of the spectators, provide them with wholesome entertainment. In the present day, parades are accompanied with musical shows and celebrities. American football and parade is a yearly feature to mark the celebration of thanksgiving. Watching football during Thanksgiving is a popular tradition in USA.

Though thanksgiving originated in America, but it has spread its wings to other continents of the world as well. In November 1997, as a communal effort to reunite people all over the world, the millennium year 2000 was proclaimed as the 'International year of Thanksgiving' by the United Nations. This was first time ever that the general assembly voted unanimously in favor of a spiritual idea. The responsibility to take lead was given to Center for world Thanksgiving situated at Thanks-Giving Square. The idea behind the declaration was to spread peace, harmony and brotherhood.

The activities undertaken by Center of World Thanksgiving included surveying the members’ countries of United Nations and study their harvest related festivals. The survey laid emphasis on the importance of thanksgiving as an expression of gratitude in history, in arts, in philosophy and in religion. The declaration also served the purpose of fostering cultural relations among different countries. Lastly, the declaration intended to promote friendly relations among nations.

In United States Thanksgiving Day was celebrated first in the year 1621. After the United States gained independence, Congress recommended one yearly day of thanksgiving for the whole nation to celebrate. Until recently, people believed Thanksgiving Day to be a celebration of pilgrims, offering food to Indians. It however is a day marked as a gesture of thanks and gratitude to Lord Almighty for his blessings. It is also a celebration to mark the respect towards Indians for teaching the pilgrims how to cook. Pilgrims could not have survived without the help of the native Indians.

Thanksgiving Day is the official beginning of the Christmas season. USA witnesses maximum sales volume on the very next day. The following Friday after thanksgiving is famously known as 'Black Friday'. This is so, because of the standard accounting practice of writing profits in black. The ongoing festive spirit, shopping spree, helps the shopkeepers to register maximum sales and profits. The entire atmosphere during the time is euphoric; people get in a holiday mood. Families visit restaurants, amusement parks, gift each other, decorate their house etc.

Now-a-days Black Friday is not a crucial source of profit to retailers, but is important in driving traffic into stores. Many retailers mail special Black Friday circulars to consumers, announcing deeply discounted items in the hopes that consumers will visit their store on Black Friday.

Marketing studies have shown that many Black Friday shoppers will buy other merchandise from stores in which they planned to visit to purchase advertised items. The increased volume of shoppers buying non-discounted items makes Black Friday profitable for retailers even though they do not make much profit on deeply discounted merchandise.

While some people head out on a Black Friday to just "window shop", others insist they will not shop on a Black Friday at all, citing overcrowded parking lots and wall-to-wall shoppers as reasons to forgo saving money at sales. Yet many others not only pre-plan which items they will buy from which stores, they are willing to brave long lines to get bargains on items they want. Each year, Black Friday has so many interested shoppers participating that it remains a retailing tradition in the United States.

Electronics and toys are popular Christmas gifts and are often the most sought-after bargains during Black Friday shopping excursions. Retailers often slash prices on the latest electronics and toys by as much as half or even one third of their suggested retail price. Retailers know consumers will respond to such enormous opportunities to save on Christmas shopping costs. Jewelry is another popular Black Friday item that shoppers look for discounts on, although gigantic discounts on jewelry items are not usually as common as drastically slashed prices on toys and electronics are. "Black Friday" officially opens the Christmas shopping season in center city, and it usually brings massive traffic jams and over-crowded sidewalks as the downtown stores are mobbed from opening to closing.