The festival marks the bond of love, faith and protection between a brother and his sister. There are a number of myths and stories that surround Rakshabandhan.

It is believed that before the epic battle of Mahabharata, Krishna’s hurt his finger while setting off his sudarshan chakra against evil king Shishupalal who had insulted the Lord over hundred times. As Krishna’s slashed finger bled, Draupadi tore a piece from her sari and tied it around Krishna’s hand. Krishna in return vowed to protect Draupadi against all adversities in future.

According to a popular legend, when Alexander the Great was out on his legendry invasion spree in 326 B.C , he encountered the Great King Puru of the Paurava Kingdom who was giving the conqueror sleepless nights with his tough fight. When Roxana, wife of Alexander heard of the Indian festival- Rakhi, she sent King Puru the holy thread of bond and protection, and in return King Puru accepted her as his sister. During the war when King Puru came face to face with Alexander he refrained from killing Alexander and kept his promise.

Another folklore that one can recall is the auspicious bond forged between Mughal Emperor Humayun and Rani Karnavati of Chittor, during the perilous times of the invasion of Chittor by Sultan Bahadur Shah. It is believed that Humayun set off with his troops to defend Rani’s fortress in Chittor during the dreadful attack.

Rabindranath Tagore, the Indian Nobel Laureate for literature, initiated a mass Rakshabandhan festival during the infamous Bengal Partition(1905),  to inspire love, respect and a vow of mutual protection between Hindus and Muslims during India’s colonial era. In 1905, the British empire divided Bengal, a province of British India on the basis of religion He used the idea of Raksha Bandhan to spread the feeling of brotherhood. In 1911, British colonial empire reversed the partition and unified Bengal, Rabindranath Tagore and encouraged Hindu and Muslim women to tie rakhi on the wrist of men from other community,and make them brothers for life. The decision to partition Bengal was withdrawn in 1911, after six years of widespread protest by both the communities from West and East Bengal.