Propeller

Thursday, August 31, 2006

Onam is coming

This is the best season to visit kerala.

Almost all the places will have celebrations....
Boat races, Pulikali (playing with the costume of tigers), pookkalam (traditional flower decorations), Ona sadya (traditional vegetarian feast)......

This is a festival of harvest..
Nowadays although there is not that much cultivations and harvest (compared to the good old times), people of kerala still keep alive that old days with onam....

Cities will have onam fares...
Everybody would be in new clothes in the day Onam, that is 5th September(this year), kids would be fully engaged in playing....

The story is that there was a king called Bali in the world of Paathaalam (where the bad people lived), but this king was different... In his regime, there was no lies, cheating, black market etc.

Gods were jealous and feared that this king is going to take over the throne of the king of Gods (Indra), with his good deeds. They sent lord Mahavishnu to throw Bali away from his throne. Mahavishnu went to Paathaalam disguising himself like Vaamana.
He went to Bali's palace and begged him to give 3 feets of land so that he, who is very poor, can dwell. Bali who was generous and kind immediately agreed. Immediately Mahavishnu grew so that he covered all the earth with his single feet. With his second feet he covered heaven and paathalam. Then there was no place to put his third feet. He asked Bali to show somewhere to put his third feet. Bali, never wanted to break his word asked Mahavishnu bowed down and asked to put feet on his head. Mahavishnu pushed down Bali to the earth. Before going down Bali pleaded Mahavishnu to let him visit his dear people at least once in a year. Onam is the day in which Bali visits his people. And people of kerala celebrates his visit through Onam.....

No comments: