Knowing More.... Onam
It's Onam time round the corner! People in Kerala from all faiths are waiting for the pookalam competitions, the festivities, the shopping season and of course, welcoming Mahabali back!
For those Karimeen inc. lovers who have bought an Onam T-shirt, you may have a brief knowledge about Onam, and for true-blooded malayalis, no explanation is required! Every Onam T-shirt comes with a tag that briefly explains each icon.
This post, like the next few 'knowing more' posts, will engage those of you who don't know, to revel in a festival celebrated only in Kerala, and hopefully, you get to visit Kerala during the Onam Season!
So what is Onam? Onam is in short, a harvest festival, with a deep connection to the mythical story of King Mahabali and Vamana avatar.
King Mahabali was a demon king from Patala (a cool sanskrit way to say he was from hell). However, despite being a demon, he was a good guy and ruled righteously, and he managed to conquer all three worlds (heaven, hell and earth). The Devas (celestial beings or the 'heaven dudes') were not so pleased with a non-heaven dude as their boss, so they decided to call for help from the god Vishnu to remove Mahabali (or Bali) so they can reinstate the lord Indra as the rightful ruler of heaven. Looks like the heaven-dudes were a little jealous eh? But anyway, Lord Vishnu said 'OK cool, i'll do it' ..... looks like somebody is gonna experience a world of pain..... wait scratch that..... 3 worlds of pain!
So Lord Vishnu went to visit King Mahabali in the form of a dwarf brahmin. At the time of his visit, the king was giving various gifts to everybody as part of a sacrifice he was performing, in order to retain control of all 3 worlds. The dwarf (Vamana) was invited with utmost courtesy, and his feet were washed by the king himself.
When asked what the dwarf Vamana desired, he replied by saying anything that he could cover in 3 strides. Mahabali's preceptor smelled something fishy, but Mahabali, not listening to him, decided to give his word for it...... that's when it all went down!
Vamana suddenly increased in size, and grew and grew until he was large enough to cover an entire world with one of his feet.... and he did! His first stride covered the netherworld and earth, his second stride covered the heavens! When it came to the third step, Mahabali had nothing to offer, so he offered his head to step on.
Upon seeing this, Mahabali's grandfather, Phrahlad, an avid devotee of lord Vishnu, pleaded with Vamana to spare the king's life. Lord Vishnu finally blessed Mahabali and allowed him to resurface from hell each year to visit his people. And so a happy ending which is celebrated every year!
The pookalam is one of the ways people in Kerala welcome their king Mahabali back to earth.... a simple floral decoration (sometimes not so simple) and 2 small mounds that represent the king and Vishnu.
As Kerala is a multicultural and multi-religious society, this festival is not only celebrated by hindus. Christians and muslims also happily partake in the celebrations and pookalam arrangements! It is a great example of religious and cultural harmony in a world where people don't always get along everywhere.
Nowadays you will tend to find some awesome floral masterpieces during the Onam festivities, as there are competitions held... .sometimes by TV channels, sometimes by colleges or schools.
Another great reason to celebrate Onam is for the Ona-sadhya, or Onam feast!
The sadhya can comprise upto 26 different vegetarian dishes, served on a banana leaf. You will be able to have dishes that represent all tastes: salty, sweet, sour, bitter, spicy. Boiled white rice, with some ghee-daal, then some sambar curry, some delicious crispy papadums and with all the side dishes, some chips, ... and to end it all later, a choice of a variety of payasams for desert... ah... to live like royalty by eating like one yeah? After the payasam it will be inevitably time for a great siesta...time to sleep like royalty too!
In different parts of Kerala Onam festivities have their own distinct flavour... in Thrissur, one of the iconic forms of celebration is the Pulikali
Pulikali basically means 'tiger's play', and is a form of dance where the performers paint themselves with tiger faces and stripes and dance in celebration of nature.
It is said that the old king of Cochin introduced this around 200 years back to show off the macho 'wild side' or the 'animal spirit'... later on it slowly evolved and has become a raw form of fervor and animal instincts translated into dance. It is a great spectacle to witness!
Pulikali can be found in other parts of kerala during other festivities, but it is best known as a part of Thrissur Onam celebrations.
For those who are planning a trip to Kerala this September, don't forget to partake in the Onam celebrations, which would end around the second week. Help with a pookalam, read more about Mahabali, and don't forget to have a great sadhya! Wishing all the mallus around the world and everyone else a happy Onam!
Oh yes, one more thing, to all who have reached the end of this post, do share this post with others if you liked it, or if you want to explain Onam to those who don't know! :)
