Vasanta Purnima is the full moon day, which occurs in the middle of the spring season in India. It is a day of substantial significance because it coincides with Holi, the festival of colors. Spring is the wonderful season when nature displays various colors, and Holi is also the festival of colors that synchronizes with nature.
As per legends, the ritual of playing Holi with colors began in the time of Lord Krishna. It is believed that Lord Krishna played Holi with Radha and her female friends commonly known as Gopis. As per Vedic astronomy there are six seasons or Ritu in a year, which are Vasanta (spring), Grishma (summer), Varsha (monsoon), Sharad (autumn), Hemant (pre-winter) and Shishir (winter).
Vasanta Ritu in India is between February 19 and April 19 and hence all Hindu festivals celebrated during this period are related to Vasanta Ritu.
Phalguna Purnima falls during the period of Vasanta Ritu and hence it is known as Vasanta Purnima. Hindu festivals are not linked with seasons as the festivals and seasons will not coincide because of precession. It may take several hundreds of years to identify the seasonal change of Hindu festivals, and hence suitable names are assigned to the festivals, corresponding to the season they currently coincide with.
The festival of Vasanta Panchami enlightens us that there is no strict relation between Hindu festivals and seasons. Mostly, Vasanta Panchami is celebrated before February 19, which is much before the beginning of Vasanta Ritu. Hence, the better name to Vasanta Panchami can be Shri Panchami, which is its alternate name. Nevertheless, Vasanta Panchami proclaims the arrival of both Vasanta Ritu and Vasanta Purnima. Holi usually falls in the middle of Vasanta Ritu and hence we can say that Holi is Vasanta festival. Undoubted fully, Holi would keep on coinciding with Vasanta Ritu for more than thousands of years because it takes thousands of years to make a significant change of phase between festivals and seasons.
As per Hindu calendar, all the festival days like Holi Purnima, Phalguna Purnima and Vasanta Purnima occur on the same day. It is a coincidence that Vasanta Purnima day is also the birth anniversary of Goddess Lakshmi as well as Saint Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.