Pongal in South India -how is it celebrated
Pongal is considered the day on which the morning happens in God’s abode after the night of six long months. On Pongal worshipping the Sun holds a high significance since it is also the beginning of the Sun’s movement toward the North. Since the Sun’s movement toward the North is considered auspicious in Hinduism, all auspicious events take place during this time.
The day is celebrated in the mid of January and generally on 14th January every year. In the Tamil calendar, it is the Thai month in which Pongal is celebrated. This year, Pongal will begin on 14th January and end on 17th January.
In South India, the festival encounters a high festive mood where every Hindu temple is adorned, and the sound of bells, drums, and conch shells keep filling the environment for four days. Many rituals are performed in homes as well as holy places. People make Pongal, which is the main dish of the festival that is prepared using boiled rice, jaggery, mung dal, ilaichi, and more ingredients.
People prepare Pongal at their home; they offer it to God and then distribute it with other people and their family. They offer prayers to God and thank him for providing food and resources. They thank the Lord Indra, who makes rainand the right climate according to the need of the crops. They thank the Sun for providing the right amount of warmth and shine to the crops so they can be harvested.
Pongal among Tamilians is celebrated after harvesting the crops. The farmers become joyous after yielding the crops that they take care of for months. They then sell their crops and earn money; everyone receives the grains and cereals, and hence the whole community becomes grateful to farmers as well as God.
In other parts of India, too, Pongal is celebrated; however, the ritual differs, and the name differs too; in North, India Pongal is celebrated as Lohri, and it is only a celebration of one day. Pongal in South India is celebrated for four days, namely Bogi, Pongal, Maattuppongal, and Thiruvalluvar.
On the first day, which is Bhogi pongal, people clean their homes. They collect all the useless items such as wood. They donate old clothes and collect any agricultural waste to later throw into the bonfire of Pongal. This is also the day when they worship Lord Indra for the rain and pray to him to make the clouds stream every year.
On the second day, which is thai Pongal, people make the sweet by combining milk, boiled rice, jaggery, mung dal, and other ingredients as per the taste palate. Due to the sweet “Pongal,” the festival is named the same.
The third day is Maattu Pongal, which is about worshipping the animals that help the farmers plow fields. In the old days, farmers used to bring animals such as cows and oxen to help them in agriculture. These days too, several farmers use animals instead of technological advancements. They become grateful to their cows, buffaloes, and oxen. They decorate their animals with garlands, bells and paint their horns. Later they worship them or do the Arti and pray for their wellbeing.
On the third day, a festival known as Jalli Kathu is also organized. Here Jalli means a bundle of coins, and Kathu means tied. A bundle of the coin is tied on the horns of bulls, which the villagers or people there try to own. The one that successfully tames the bull receives that bundle of coins as prize money. Generally, these are silver or gold coins.
On the same day, everyone savors the dishes made from the fresh grains of the harvested crops. The festival is majorly celebrated in Tamil Nadu as being the oldest tradition during kaanum Pongal.
On the fourth day, which is Thiruvalluvar, people arrange a turmeric leaf in an open space. Women of the home collect all the Pongal leftover and other Puja items. They place it all in one place, and then women pray for their brothers and family for prosperity and happiness. They thank God and perform the Puja in the end.
This way, in South India, Pongal is celebrated for four days. However, in other regions of India, such as in the North, people only the second day, which is also known as Lohri or Makar Sankranti.
