Festive spirit in the air

by Nadira GUNATILLEKE

The New year is here again. Rural folk call it Hingala Avurudda or Bak Maha Ulela. Ordinary people call it Sinhala Avurudda or Aluth Avurudda. Some scholars and politicians who had wanted to establish ethnic harmony named it 'Sinhala and Tamil New Year' or 'Sinhala and Hindu New Year'. Anyway, however it may be called, the New Year has come again, bringing happiness to children, stress to parents and sales for traders.

This time the New Year is real. After three decades, Sri Lankans would celebrate the event without and fear or suffering. Earlier, during New Year shoppers were more concerned about bombs than the goods available in the market.

This new year is significant because shoppers only need to be concerned about what they are going to buy. They need not worry about unidentified parcels and sudden explosions. Children, wives and parents are assured of the safe return of their father, husband or son who is serving in the Armed Forces. The family is all united for the New Year celebration because there are no bombs and bullets to snatch members away without prior notice.

What is the real meaning of New Year? Every year on April (Bak) 13 and 14, Sinhala Buddhists and Tamil Hindus celebrate this festival which is based on the Sun, the energy provider in the cosmos entering the house of Aries (Mesha Rashi), the first sign of the Zodiac from the house of Pisces (Meena Rashi) the last sign.

Regardless whether you believe astrology or not, you can relax and enjoy yourself during this season. In this busy day and age, spending time with your family at home even for a few days is a luxury in itself.

There are many rituals and customs associated with this celebration. All of them mainly characterise prosperity, cultivation of goodwill in society, cooperation, harmony and family reunion. Each and every custom such as 'Weda Ath Hareema' (stopping work), Weda Alleema (starting work), Lipa Gini Melaweema (lighting the hearth), Ahara Piseema (cooking), Ahara Anubhavaya (partaking of meals), Ganu Denu Kireema (transactions) and Hisa Thel Gama (anointing oil) bear deep meanings such as laying the foundation to prosperity, a new beginning for everything, bringing freshness to the whole house including its occupants, cultivating unity in society and promoting healthy behaviour. But the question is, how many of us know the real meaning of these customs?

All family members get together during the New Year season and visit their relations and friends. They especially visit the Maha Gedera, the ancestral home. This helps build harmony and unity. Traditional games and activities such as the rope-swing, reciting Varam, playing raban, chakgudu, pancha keliya and pillow fights provide a lot of fun and ecstasy to the participants and the spectators, while also building harmony in society.

Hisa Thel Gama (anointing of oil plays a significant role in ensuring good health. The Nanu (herbal oil) is made by mixing several herbal medicines and provides numerous positive effects to those being anointed. This custom also conveys blessings to the person who receives the oil treatment. Auspicious times set by astrologers play a significant role in this cultural event.

But today, the real meaning and the spirit of celebrating this valuable cultural festival is gradually vanishing. Commercialisation of society life and social values is the main cause for this situation. Although the children look forward to this season with joy in their hearts, parents are worried about the money that they will need to buy food, gifts, suits and other requirements. This is mainly due to the mismanagement of their income. Traders are busy selling rubbish to these innocent and gullible people who want to buy anything and everything they see.

They take more than a month to realise their mistakes, but it is too late then, because they cannot re-sell what they have already bought to get their money back to re-pay the loans they have taken. Mismanagement of income creates a lot of problems in the family, including family disputes. Some of those disputes even lead to violence and could even end in hospitalisation or death! Thus one mistake (mismanagement of money) can destroy the happiness of the season of an entire family. Innocent children may also fall victim to such things.

Most historic customs and traditional games are facing the threat of vanishing without a trace except for one traditional game. In a way, it is natural because today, it seems, everything depends on money. But human life will not survive without morals and social ethics. In the past, such things had survived because of the sprit of cultural events such as New Year customs.

One traditional game, however has survived despite all transformations and will continue to thrive in this commercialised society. Guess what it is? It is the Kamba Adeema (tug-of-war)!