Mid-winter Festivities in India continued...

The weekend celebrations continued with Pongal and Makar Sankranti.

Pongal is celebrated in various forms in many parts of India. I was reminded of my stay in Sri Lanka two years ago. I was in Colombo during January. Sri Lanka has a large Tamilian population and Pongal was a big celebration there as well. It’s a holiday that falls in the Tamil month of Thai on Jan 14th each year. So it’s called Thai Pongal and it is the only Hindu holiday that follows the solar calendar. It coincides with the rice harvest and thanks is given to the sun for a good harvest that has passed and for a good harvest season to begin for the next year. So the sun is worshipped and celebrated.

The following article is copied from the Sri lankan newspaper The Island, and provides a good description of this festival:

Pongal in Tamil means "boiling over or spill over".

The saying "Thai Pirandhal Vazhi Pirakkum" meaning "the birth of the month of Thai will pave the way for new opportunities" is often quoted regarding the Pongal festival. People believe ‘Thai’ shows new ways to find peace, love, harmony, prosperity, joyfulness in everyone’s life.

The act of boiling over of milk in the clay pot is considered to denote future wishes for the family. The fresh earthen vessel is adorned with flowers, turmeric leaves and roots.Traditionally, the rice was cooked on a hearth specially built for the occasion. Of course, these days, the hearth has been replaced by the gas/electric stove in urban homes. Pongal, which is also essentially an agrarian festival, is devoted to the boiling of milk in a pot to which rice, Chakkarai (jaggery) and the syrup extracted from crushed sugarcane is added.

This sweet rice pudding is offered first to Lord Surya (Sun), Ganesha and other deities and is then eaten at the climax of a family festive meal. People also prepare savouries and sweets such as vadai, murukku, payasam etc. Although it started as a festival for farmers, today it has become a national and popular festival for all Tamils.

On the day of Pongal, early in the morning, everyone bathes and wears new clothes. Family members then jointly draw the Kolam (a decoration laid on the floor). Rice-flour (plain and coloured) is used to draw the Kolam. Parallel straight lines can be drawn using a cylindrical rod (Ulakai) as a guide. A Kolam can be a plain one or can be artistically drawn with symbols of cosmic interest. The Kolam defines the sacred area where the Pongal is prepared.

Within the perimeters of Kolam, typically, firewood is used to cook the rice. The Pongal is set up in the direct view of the Sun (East). Traditionally, the Kolam is laid in the front or side of the house, but in areas where cooking indoors with firewood is hazardous, the Pongal is prepared in kitchen and brought to the location where Kolam is set up.The moment of climax is the spill over of the Pongal during cooking. The spillover of milk is a propitious symbol of abundance. Sometimes, firecrackers are lit to signify the moment. Once the Pongal is ready, a Padayal (the offering) is first made. Sharing of the Pongal with friends and relatives follows a few minutes of meditation or a prayer.

Pongal coincides with the festival Makar Sankranti which is celebrated in various parts of India. Sankranti means ‘sacred change’ and occurs every month as the Sun moves from one house of the Zodiac to another. But special sanctity is attached to the movement of the Sun to Capricorn this weekend and is called Makar Sankranti.Makar Sankranti is also a farmer’s festival celebrated on the occasion of the harvest coming home.