Tag Archives: festival

The “Pongal”, Arul or with “Tourism Office”…

In Mahābalipuram, you will have the choice between two possibilities to participate in this wonderful celebration, Pongal, one of the most colourful in South India.

Indeed, during your session of Ashtanga Yoga in the month of January you may participate in this rich in colours and music event.

  • The Tourism Office organizes each year for these festivities of Pongal, a visit to a traditional village some km from Mahābalipuram (singing, dancing, puja, etc.).
Pongal in Arul familly

Pongal in Arul familly

  • If you prefer, you can live this event in a traditional Indian family in a small village 4 km from Mahābalipuram, one of our Indian friends “Arul” invites the participants to the session of Ashtanga Yoga to share the Puja ceremony and share the typical Pongal meal.

The popular or folkloric ethnic dances of India

We all know the many and wonderful classic sacred Indian dances related to Shiva, under his form of Naṭarāja Shiva, the king of dance.

As colourful as they are lively, a great number of popular dances from villages, as well as sacred dances, are also found throughout India up to the borders of Himalaya. According to specialists, there are as many different folk dances as there are languages in India – which means a lot.

I admired and sometimes took part to a few ones.

In Ladakh, the Tse Shu or Nagrang dance is a ritual through which oracles make predictions. Similarly, the Kabgyat Gustor Gangon Tsedup and the masked dances (Chams) can be admired in September in Leh.

In Sikkim, the « chaam » is a religious “lamaïst” dance practiced in the Gompas temples. The most famous is the « Tse Chi », which happens in July and expresses the life of Guru Rinpoche. Another chaam happens in the beginning of February, two days before the Tibetan New Year, and symbolises the fight between good and evil.

In Penjab, the Bhangra, was originally a folkloric dance meant to celebrate the harvesting of the crops. It disappeared with the partition of the country in 1947. A new folkloric dance, the Bhangra, was then created in the years 1950. Very energetic, it is specifically practiced by men. Other dances from Penjab are Luddi, Jhummar, Dhamaal, and Gham Luddi.

In Rajasthan, there are many traditional dances such as the Kalbeliya dance, or « dance of the snake », and the « Chari dance » which involves pots full of fire. The pots that the dancers carry on their heads derive from of a ritual traditionally executed during marriages where they were used to spread light on the face of the bride.

Radha & Krishna dancing painting

Radha & Krishna dancing painting

In Gujarat, « Ghumna », which means « to turn », is a dance practiced by women using sticks. The « Teratali » dance, only interpreted by women, consists in a prayer addressed to the god Babaramdev (one the names of Krishna). Dancers carry small cymbals between each of their fingers and toes. « Terah » meaning thirteen, the dancer (who is seated) attaches thirteen cymbals on different parts of her body.

Danseur flok

In Tamil Nadu, the Kalhaï kûtthu is more of an acrobatic show than a dance, offered by traveling artists groups who turn somersaults on poles or stilts. In the Kolâttam dance, a very old local practice, dancers choke sticks against each other following various rhythmic patterns. Finally, the Bagavatha nadanam is a religious dance, executed around a ritual oil lamp in the Madapam of temples, and practiced in honour of Krishna.

Mahābalipuram, during your stay to practice Ashtanga Yoga in winters, late December and during the month of January of each year you will have the opportunity to see in the first part of the show’s « Dance Festival », some one of these folk and colorful expressions.

See : The Classical dancing

Pongal, the Festival of rice harvest and of cows

Pongal is the festival of rice harvest and thankfulness. Generally it is celebrated with the family, at home, and lasts four days. It is one of the most colourful festivals in South India. It is based on the solar calendar. It is a bit like an Indian Easter. The houses are thoroughly cleaned. The mistress of the house (with the help of her daughter) draws a Rangoli or Kolam in front of the door on the street. The cows are painted and decorated. There is a ritual of boiling rice with cane sugar and spices in a big pot, until it boils over and bubbles out of the vessel; it is then shared with everybody.

 

In Tamil Nadu, the festival lasts four days.

Pongal is a secular festival celebrated throughout India on the 14th of January. It is called Makara samkrānti. The sun reverses its course from the Tropic of Sagittarius (Dhanu Rachi) to the Tropic of Capricorn (Makara Rachi) or the Tropic of Crocodile (makara). “Samkrānti “ means “the movement of the sun from one sign of the zodiac to another”. There are thus twelve “samkrānti“, that are considered auspicious days, suggesting a new beginning or the beginning of a phase of good omen in the Indian culture…

Makara samkrānti is the call for the awakening all the latent powers in man, not only for the development of his individual personality to its fullest potential but also for the well being and glory of society as a whole.

The Hindu philosophy praises the human activity considering it a supreme value without which nothing can be achieved in life. In a Subhaashita it is said:

Udyamam saahasam dhairyam buddhisshaktih paraakramaha |

Shadete yatra vartante tatra devaassahaayakrit | |

The Gods will help those who display the six attributes : activity, boldness, courage, wisdom, strength and courage

The very last śloka (श्लोक) of the Bhagavad-Gītā (भगवद्गीता) also highlights the supreme necessity of the human efforts in every field of human attainment:

Yatra yogeshwarah Krishno yatra Paartho dhanurdharah |
Tatra shreervijayo bhootirdhruvaa neetirmatirmama | |

Wherever there is Krishna, the Lord of Yoga, and wherever there is Partha (Arjuna), the archer, there will indeed abide, victory, Prosperity, glory, and righteousness. 

The first day (Bhogi Pandigai), during the entire night, the children pound on a small hand drum around a bonfire where old used fabrics, clothing and mats are discarded and burnt, symbolizing the destruction of evil. Traditionally the clay kitchen utensils were broken, marking thereby the start of a new life. Decorative patterns or rangolis are drawn on the ground in front of each house.

The second day (Thai Pongal), early in the morning, recently harvested rice is boiled in new clay pots with fresh milk and molasses or brown cane sugar, and cardamom, while leaving the mix to boil over and bubble out of the vessel in order to attract Gods’ goodwill. People prepare snacks and deserts, pay visits to each other and exchange greetings.

The third day (Maattu Pongal) is dedicated to honouring the cows and buffalos that serve for working in the fields. They are painted with patterns, embellished with flowers and fed with new rice before being taken for a walk in the streets to the sound of festive music.

In certain villages, the attraction of the day may be a quite violent race of young bulls, called Jallikattu, or a race of bullock-carts.

During the last day (Kaanum Pongal), the young people used to meet on the banks of rivers to look for a future spouse but this practice has nowadays fallen into disuse. During this period people eat sugar canes and also use them to decorate their homes. Also, men try to catch bundles of currency notes from the horns of bulls.

The festival has also an astrological signification: it marks the beginning of the Uttarayana period, during which, for six months, the sun takes its most northern journey in the sky. In Hinduism Uttarayana is considered as a favourable period, when important events are planned.

 

Mahābalipuram, you can during your current session of Ashtanga Yoga in the month of January participate in rich colors and music event, in fact the “ Tourism Office ” organizes each year for these festivities of the Pongal, a visit to a traditional village.

Om Shanti