Heralding a new path

Thai Pongal marks the beginning of a myriad of festivities

By Sajitha Prematunge

Cosmic entities have baffled mankind since the beginning of time. 'Sun worshipping' or 'Heliolatry' was one of the most widely dispersed forms of worship the world has ever seen. Evidence indicate that there has been bands of Sun worshippers in Africa, Egypt, China, Indonesia and India. But only one strand of Sun worshipping still exists - 'Thai Pongal' is celebrated by Tamils the world over irrespective of their regions and religions. 'Thai' the month of January, marks the beginning of the harvesting season for Tamils who live all over the world. And 'Pongal', rice cooked in milk and sweetened with jaggery, is offered to the sun.

'Thai Pongal' is a form of thanks giving, where the first harvest of the harvesting season is offered to the sun. Though 'Thai Pongal' is known as a festival of the Tamils, it's more of a celebration in the tropical region, indicating the bumper harvest. The sun is an entity of utmost importance for the tropics, since any type of cultivation in the tropics would be affected by long durations of rain. Thai Pongal has much more than just religious implications.

In Thamil Nadu, where 'Thai Pongal' originated, it is celebrated for four full days, unlike in Sri Lanka. The first day of Thai Pongal, 15th of January marks the beginning of a myriad of festivities through out the year. There is always a great scurry of activities before this day, just as before the Sinhala New year, where all houses and gardens are cleaned and the refusal from last year is burnt. It's said that in Thamil Nadu pilots find it difficult to navigate their aircrafts due to smoke that originates from burning garbage and tires! But this burning is not restricted to material things. Thai Pongal signifies letting go of the mental burdens of the year before and expressing gratitude, it also signifies prosperity and abundance in the new year.

On 15th morning the Tamils decorate the floor of their houses with Kolam. The Kolam defines the sacred area where the Pongal is prepared. The Pongal is prepared within the parameters of the Kolam, in a clay pot and is cooked with the use of fire wood.

The milk is heated until it boils over and the rice and jaggery are added afterwards. The Milk signifies abundance. The Pongal is first offered to the senior members of the family, after the prayers.

The third day 'Mattu Pongal' is allocated for paying respect to cattle. The sun and cattle are of immense importance to the Tamil people. The cows work the fields all year round and help the farmer to yield a successful harvest by pulling the plough. Moreover, earlier the economy was mainly based on milk. The third day is also spent on visiting relatives. These days Tamils observe a strictly vegetarian diet. But on the forth day, the upcountry Tamil community of Sri Lanka starts eating meat.

On the second, third and forth days bull fights in India are the main attraction. It's not like the bull fights that you would encounter in Spain.

These take place out in the open and is a very dangerous and gruesome sport. But the players who take part are considered to be extremely brave. Many other games and festivities take place during these four days, such as bullock cart races, harvesting dances, music and festivities at temples.

There is a saying in Tamil 'Thai piranthal wali pirakkum' which means 'with the beginning of January a new pathway is also paved'. During Thai Pongal all auspicious things for the Tamils begin.

This is when they yield their first harvest and consequently this month of 'Thai' becomes a financially very beneficial month. Tamils make plans to get married, buy new assets, etc.... This particular festival is celebrated with great enthusiasm and eagerness by all Tamils in order to bring prosperity to their homes.

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