Onam is a harvest festival observed in Kerala, India's southernmost state. It is the state's official festival and is a prominent annual event for Keralites and encompasses a wide range of cultural activities.
Every year, the harvest festival ‘Onam’
is celebrated by Malayalee people all around the world. The festival takes
place in the Chingam month, on the 22nd Nakshatra Thiruvonam, which falls in
August and September according to the Gregorian calendar.
The festivities begin on Atham Day and
last for 10 days, culminating on Thiruvonam Day, which is considered the most
auspicious day of the festival. This year's Onam celebration began on August 12th
and will conclude on August 23rd. The main celebrations, however,
will take place on August 21st.
Onam's Importance
According to mythology, the Onam
festival is commemorated to honour King Mahabali, who was supposed to be a
descendant of a Brahmin guru named Kashyapa, Prahlada's grandson, and
Hiranyakashipu's great-grandfather. According to traditions, Kerala's harvest festival,
on the first day of Onam, popularly known as Uthraadam, King Mahabali returned
to Kerala.
Mahabali is described as an Asura who
attained nirvana at the feet of Vishnu via compassion and religious piety,
according to the textual tradition (Mahabharata). Other interpretations of the
same myth cycle exist, though. In one
account, he is honoured as a lower-caste Dravidian who resisted Brahminic power
for a year, according to the Bali tradition.
Mahabali is depicted as a cultural hero
in state-sanctioned celebrations: a just and benevolent ruler who opted to give
up his rule/life for the protection of his followers and was allowed to return
once a year by Vamana. The celebration
is thought to have ancient beginnings, and it was later closely tied with Hindu
stories. Maturaikkci – a Sangam poetry – references Onam being celebrated in
Madurai temples, which is the oldest recorded reference.
Onam celebrations have been documented
in temple inscriptions since then. The Panchangam happens on the 22nd
Nakshatra Thiruvonam in the month Chingam of the Malayalam calendar, which
corresponds to August–September in the Gregorian calendar.
In Hindu mythology, Parashurama, an
incarnation of Vishnu, is credited with creating the Western Ghats, which
stretch from the southern point of Kerala to Karnataka, Goa, and Maharashtra. According
to tradition, Vishnu was enraged by the monarchs and military caste, who were
always at war and arrogant towards others.
In the era of King Kaartavirya, Vishnu
assumed the form of Parashurama, or "Rama with an axe," also known as
Rama Jamadagyna. The people, the sages, and the gods were all tortured and
oppressed by this king. The king came to Parashurama and his mother Renuka's
hermitage one day, and when Parashurama was away, the monarch seized their
cow's calf without their permission.
When Parashurama returned, he saw the
monarch's injustice and summoned him to war, where he slew the king and all of
his oppressive warriors. Finally, he hurled the axe, and the sea receded
wherever it landed, forming Kerala and other coastal western parts of the
Indian subcontinent.
According to another legend, Parashurama
brought Namboodiri Brahmins to southwestern India by forging a mini-Himalayan
mountain range with his axe. According to folklore, the Onam festival
commemorates Parashurama's foundation of Kerala by designating those days as
the New Year. Texts and epigraphs from the second century CE witness the tale
and adoration of Parashurama.
Here's a glimpse at Onam's day-to-day celebrations
·
12 August (Atham):
People decorate their houses with yellow flowers. The flowers are called
Pookalam.
·
13 August (Chithira):
Cleaning of the entire house takes place on the second day. Also, another layer
of flowers is added to the Pookalam.
·
14 August (Chodi): On
this day, family members meet each other and exchange gifts called Onakodi and
jewellery.
·
15 August (Vishakam):
Considered as one of the most auspicious days of Onam, people prepare for the
Onam Sadhya on the fourth day of the festival.
·
17 August (Thriketta):
Kids start their preparation for the prayers. The schools remain shut on this
day.
·
18 August (Moolam): On
this day, Onam Sadhya begins and many dance performances take place.
·
19 August (Pooradam):
Idols of King Mahabali and Vamana are cleaned by the devotees on the eight-day
in the Pookalam's centre.
·
20 August (First Onam
or Uthradom): To prepare the traditional meals, people buy fruits and
vegetables on this day.
·
21 August (Thiruonam
Onam): People offer prayers and exchange gifts with each other. As a part of
the celebration, people also prepare Thiruvona Sadya (a special feast).
·
22 August (Third Onam
or Avittom): The immersion of the Onathappan idol takes place as devotees
prepare for Mahabali's return journey to Patal. After Mahabali's departure,
people also clean the Pookalam which marks the conclusion of Onam festivities.
·
23 August (Fourth Onam
or Chatayam): With Pulikali dance performances and boat races in various
districts, Kerala tourism continues the Onam Week program.