The annual Hindu and Sikh spring religious festival observed in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka, along with other countries with large Hindu and Sikh populations. People celebrate Holi by throwing colored powder and water at each other. Bonfires are lit the day before in the memory of the miraculous escape that young Prahlada accomplished when demoness Holika carried him into the fire. It is often celebrated on the full moon (the Phalguna Purnima) before the beginning of the Vernal Equinox as based on the Hindu calendar. This Hindu festival has been enjoyed since ancient times to celebrate the coming of spring. Like New Years in the Western world, the Holi Festival is seen as a way for people to release all their inhibitions and start fresh. During the Holi festivals, the gods turn a blind eye, and everyone can let loose. A bonfire is also lit to symbolically burn away all the bad, and provide a light for a new future.