SrI:
Dear Members :
Sriman Kidambi Narayanan shared some thoughts on Pongal Festival and
its significance . It is my pleasure to share them with you with his permission
.
Have a wonderful Pongal celebration ,
V.Sadagopan
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Dear Readers,
I am writing as to what i know about pongal festival. It would nice if
some one could enlighten more on this tradition festival and its
importance in our sampradayams.
Pongal is the only festival of Hindu that follows a solar calendar and
is celebrated on the fourteenth of January every year.Pongal has
astronomical significance: it marks the beginning of Uttarayana, the
Sun's movement northward for a six month period. In Hinduism, ttarayana
is considered auspicious, as opposed to Dakshinaayana, or th southern
movement of the sun. All-important events are scheduled durig this
period. Makara Sankranthi refers to the event of the Sun enteing the
zodiac sign of Makara or Capricorn.> In Hindu temples bells, drums, clarinets
and
conch shells herald the joyous occasion of Pongal. To symbolize a bountiful
harvest,
rice is cooked in new pots until they boil over. Some of the rituals
performed in the temple include the preparation of rice, the chanting of
prayers and the offering of vegetables, sugar cane and spices to the
gods. Devotees then consume the offerings to exonerate themselves of past
sins.
Thai Pongal is an occasion for family re-unions and get-together. Old
enmities, personal animosities and rivalries are forgotten. Estrangements
are healed and reconciliation effected. Indeed, Thai Pongal is a festival
of freedom, peace, Unity and compassion crystallized in the last hymn on
unity in the Indian spiritual text the Rig Veda. Thus, love and peace are
the central theme of Thai Pongal.
Pongal signals the end of the traditional farming season,
giving farmers a break from their monotonous routine. Farmers also perform
puja to some crops, signaling the end of the traditional farming season.
It also sets the pace for a series of festivals to follow in a calendar
year. In fact, four festivals are celebrated in Tamil Nadu for four
consecutive days in that week. 'Bogi' is celebrated on January 13,
'Pongal' on Jan 14, 'Maattuppongal' on Jan 15, and 'Thiruvalluvar Day' on
Jan 16. The festival is celebrated for four days. On, the first day,
Bhogi, the old clothes and materials are thrown away and fired, marking
the beginning of a new life. The second day, the Pongal day, is
celebrated by boiling fresh milk early in the morning and allowing it to
boil over the vessel - a tradition that is the literal translation for
Pongal. People also prepare savories and sweets, visit each other's
homes, and exchange greetings. The third day, Mattu Pongal, is
meant to offer thanks to the cows and buffaloes, as they are used to
plough the lands. On the last day, Kanum Pongal, people go out to picnic.
A festival called Jalli katthu is held in Madurai, Tiruchirapalli
and Tanjavur,all in TamilNadu, on this day. Bundles of money are tied to
the horns of Pongal ferocious bulls which the villagers try to retrieve.
Everyone joins in the community meal, at which the food is made of the
freshly harvested grain. This day is named and celebrated as Tamiliar
Thirunal in a fitting manner through out Tamil Nadu.
Thus, the harvest festival of Pongal symbolizes the veneration
of the first fruit. The crop is harvested only after a certain time of the
year, and cutting the crop before that time is strictly prohibited. Even
though Pongal was originally a festival for the farming community, today
it is celebrated by all. In south India, all three days of Pongal are
considered important. However, those south Indians who have settled in
the north usually celebrate only the second day. Coinciding with Makara
Sankranti and Lohri of the north, it is also called Pongal Sankranti.
Best Wishes,
Kidambi Narayanan, Tokyo , Japan
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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