Why Onam Is the Grandest Spectacle in Kerala
by Astro Ved Online Astrology ConsultationIn
the month of Chingam (August-September), as the monsoon season nears to a
close, the tiny state of Kerala in south India gears up to welcome a royal
personage from the underworld. He is none other than King Mahabali, who once
ruled the land.
Legend behind Onam
Mahabali
was a benign and just ruler who cared deeply for his subjects. During his
reign, Kerala flourished, and people enjoyed prosperity and abundance. However,
when his rise to power and his fame reached the ears of the gods in heaven,
they felt alarmed. Mahabali was an Asura or demon king, and the grandson of
Prahlada, a great Vishnu devotee. As he was an Asura, the gods did not want him
to become powerful and overcome them. So they beseeched Vishnu to cut him down
to size.
Lord Vishnu
became a dwarf Brahmin, Vamana, and went down to earth. He approached Mahabali
and asked for three measures of land which he could cover with his footsteps.
Mahabali, who was known for his kindness and generosity, immediately agreed. At
that instant, Vamana grew huge in size and covered the earth and the sky in two
steps. When he asked Mahabali where he should keep his foot for the third step,
as there was no more space, Mahabali knelt down and offered his head. At once,
Vamana kept his foot on the king’s head and pushed him into the underworld.
But, pleased with his devotion, Vishnu also allowed him to return to earth once
a year and see his subjects. The day he returns to earth is celebrated as
Onam.
Even
now, the people of Kerala, who have grown up hearing this story, have great love
and respect for King Mahabali. To show their affection for him and also to show
him that they are living a prosperous and abundant life, they celebrate Onam
for ten days, with great enthusiasm and fanfare. Truly, Onam is a grand
spectacle in the state, with even the government getting into the act. With
Pookalams, traditional song and dance forms of Kerala, folk arts, snake boat
races, and Ona Sadya, Onam is a veritable smorgasbord of sensory experiences.
Families and friends, even those in the diaspora, make it a point to come
together for Onam and celebrate the festival. People of all faiths celebrate
the festival, testifying to the social harmony in the state, which is known for
its literacy and good social indices. Onam is also a harvest festival. This
year (2020), Onam begins on August 22 and ends on September 2.
Onam Celebrations
Onam
celebrations go on for 10 days. The first day of Atham and the last day of
Thiruvonam are the most important days of the festival. The days that fall in
between are Chithira, Chothi, Thriketa, Moolam, Pooradam, and Uthradom. The
festivities begin on the day of Atham, at the Vamanamoorthy temple in
Thrikkakara, Kochi. The temple is dedicated to Vishnu’s Vamana avatar.
The
festival flag will be hoisted, and there will be colorful parades with floats
and tableaux which showcase the various elements of Kerala culture. On the
other days, there will be many activities like Pookalams or floral rangolis,
cultural programs, dances, martial arts, boat races, Ona sadya (feast), etc.
people wear traditional attire for Onam like the Mundu and Kasavu sari.
The
Pookalams or floral rangolis add color to the festival of Onam. People, young
and old, gather flowers growing in places nearby and make floral carpets on the
ground in front of their house. A fresh one will be made every day. some may be
simple, and others may be very elaborate, featuring intricate designs. Offices,
colleges, and schools will conduct Pookalam competitions in which several teams
vie to create the best design and win the top prize.
Women
attired in Kasavu Mundu, the gold-bordered off-white sari unique to Kerala, and
traditional jewelry, perform traditional dances like Kaikotti Kali and Thiruvathira
Kali.
In
small towns and villages, young men dance the Puli Kali, a folk dance in which
some paint their bodies to resemble tigers or leopards, and others dressed as
hunters and carrying dummy guns, enact a tiger hunt. This dance is a specialty
of Thrissur. It also marks the end of the Onam festivities Thumbi Thullal and
Kummatti Kali are other folk dances performed during Onam. In Kummati Kali, men
wear wooden masks and use grass to cover themselves. They go to houses and
perform, and the people of the household give them gifts like rice and jaggery.
Thumbi Thullal and Thiruvathira Kali are dances performed by women, with
singing and clapping. A traditional martial arts performance called Onathallu
or Avittathallu is performed on Avittam nakshatra (star) day of Onam. Men of
the Nair community, a warrior clan, take part in this performance, which is
based on the traditional techniques of warfare practiced in bygone times. The
men form pairs and wage physical combat, with loud cries, evoking a battle-like
atmosphere.
Since
Onam is the most important festival in Kerala, people living in other states
and countries come home to spend quality time with their families and have fun.
Ona Sadya, is one of the highlights of the festival. It is prepared on the day
of Thiruvonam and features several dishes made using seasonal vegetables as
well as freshly harvested rice. The dishes include parippu, sambar, rasam,
aviyal, thoran, pachadi, olan, kalan, upperi, pulisseri, inji curry, and three
types of payasam. It is indeed a royal feast worthy of a king.
Other Onam Activities
One
of the most anticipated events of Onam is the Vallam Kali or boat race. It is a
sight to behold several elegant snake boats slicing through the water in the
famed backwaters of Kerala, manned by men wielding wooden oars and singing the
Valla Pattu or boat song, as hundreds of spectators cheer them on. The Nehru
boat race and Aranmula boat race are two of the most famous Onam boat races and
make for grand spectacles. People from all over India and abroad come to watch
the boat races.
Important
buildings and many trees on major streets in the capital city of
Thiruvananthapuram will be illuminated with colorful lights for Onam. At night,
the city looks like a faerie land, shimmering and twinkling in a myriad hues.
It is truly a breathtaking sight! On the concluding day of the Onam festival,
there will be a spectacular display of fireworks and a grand procession of
floats featuring various tableaux by various organizations. Onam begins on
August 22 in 2020 and ends on September 2.
Though
many festivals are celebrated in India to mark religious and cultural
occasions, there is no doubt that Onam is among the most spectacular in terms
of its sheer grandeur. A land abundantly blessed with natural resources and a
scenic beauty which has earned it the moniker, ‘God’s own country’, Kerala has
always offered plenty of reasons for people to visit it. Among them, Onam is
certainly one of the most compelling as it presents Kerala at its best, like a
bride decked up in all her finery for her wedding day!
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Created on Aug 18th 2020 05:05. Viewed 273 times.