The rebirth of a spring deity has been celebrated through rituals and feasting not only by Anglo-Saxons but by other cultures all around the world. Hindus have been celebrating this festival as Chaitra Varsha Pratipadaor Yugadior Cheti Chand or Gudipadwa since times immemorial. This is followed by eight days of fasting for Goddess Parvati. This is followed by feasting for Rama Nawami, the birth of Lord Ram of Ayodhya. The ancient Egyptians marked the rebirth of the God Osiris with eight days of celebrations. It is from these celebrations that we get the eight days of Easter, known as Holy Week, which begins on Palm Sunday and finishes on Easter Sunday. In ancient Rome, an annual festival was held for the rebirth of the God Attis, whosereturn was celebrated with banqueting, processions and sporting events. This festival was held just after the spring equinox, and its from here that we derive the date of Easter, which always falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox. This means Easter can fall any time between March 21 and April 25; In China people were offering each other painted red eggs during the Ching Ming(Pure Brightness) festival as far back as 3,000 years ago. Central to all ancient spring festivals are huge feasts celebrating the fact that the spring was return to abundance after long, lean winters without fresh food.
