Fwd: What is Pongal?

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Dear Swamins Very good article indeed! Our Rishis Sastras etc are giving due importance to both Ayanam. When all brahmothsavams , Vasanthothsavams,in all temples irrespective of vaishnavisam, saivisam, are celebrated from THAI to AANI in Uththarayana, mostly pithru vanthanams are done in in Dakshinayana. Pl read my books Chinna Chinna Vizhayangal Part I and II. From Karthigai month it is ushathkalam to Devas. Pl refer Karthigai deepam followed by Kaisika Ekadasi, Vaikunda ekadasi , AArdhra Darshan etc & then follwed by Uthsavams in all temples Magara Sankaranthi is important to us and because we are in Tamil nadu We refer it as Pongal We are giving somuch importance to tamil

language; it is quite O.K. but we should learn sanskrit , sanskrit also, learn Vedas atleast pancha sookthams, and one sakhai from Veda With this in mind Srikainkarya encourages Vedaprayanams Vedic pundits in a small way with it's meagre resources Dasan Srikainkarya Soundararajan P.S. Mahamandap Kainkaryam is progressing well with the spanteneous help from all of you and also the printing of Sovenier gopan <sgopan wrote: SrI: Dear Members : Sriman Kidambi Narayanan shared some thoughts on Pongal Festival and its significance . It is my pleasure to share them with you with his permission . Have a wonderful Pongal celebration , V.Sadagopan ################################################################################ Dear Readers, I am writing as to what i know about pongal festival. It would nice if some one could enlighten more on this tradition festival and its importance in our sampradayams. Pongal is the only festival of Hindu that follows a solar calendar and is celebrated on the fourteenth of January every year.Pongal has astronomical significance: it marks the beginning of Uttarayana, the Sun's movement northward for a six month period. In Hinduism, ttarayana is considered auspicious, as opposed to Dakshinaayana, or th southern movement of the sun. All-important events are scheduled durig this period. Makara Sankranthi refers to the event of the Sun enteing the zodiac sign of Makara or Capricorn.> In Hindu temples bells, drums, clarinets and conch shells herald the joyous occasion of Pongal. To symbolize a

bountiful harvest, rice is cooked in new pots until they boil over. Some of the rituals performed in the temple include the preparation of rice, the chanting of prayers and the offering of vegetables, sugar cane and spices to the gods. Devotees then consume the offerings to exonerate themselves of past sins. Thai Pongal is an occasion for family re-unions and get-together. Old enmities, personal animosities and rivalries are forgotten. Estrangements are healed and reconciliation effected. Indeed, Thai Pongal is a festival of freedom, peace, Unity and compassion crystallized in the last hymn on unity in the Indian spiritual text the Rig Veda. Thus, love and peace are the central theme of Thai Pongal. Pongal signals the end of the traditional farming season, giving farmers a break from their monotonous routine. Farmers also perform puja to some crops, signaling the end of the traditional farming

season. It also sets the pace for a series of festivals to follow in a calendar year. In fact, four festivals are celebrated in Tamil Nadu for four consecutive days in that week. 'Bogi' is celebrated on January 13, 'Pongal' on Jan 14, 'Maattuppongal' on Jan 15, and 'Thiruvalluvar Day' on Jan 16. The festival is celebrated for four days. On, the first day, Bhogi, the old clothes and materials are thrown away and fired, marking the beginning of a new life. The second day, the Pongal day, is celebrated by boiling fresh milk early in the morning and allowing it to boil over the vessel - a tradition that is the literal translation for Pongal. People also prepare savories and sweets, visit each other's homes, and exchange greetings. The third day, Mattu Pongal, is meant to offer thanks to the cows and buffaloes, as they are used to plough the lands. On the last day, Kanum Pongal, people go out to picnic. A

festival called Jalli katthu is held in Madurai, Tiruchirapalli and Tanjavur,all in TamilNadu, on this day. Bundles of money are tied to the horns of Pongal ferocious bulls which the villagers try to retrieve. Everyone joins in the community meal, at which the food is made of the freshly harvested grain. This day is named and celebrated as Tamiliar Thirunal in a fitting manner through out Tamil Nadu. Thus, the harvest festival of Pongal symbolizes the veneration of the first fruit. The crop is harvested only after a certain time of the year, and cutting the crop before that time is strictly prohibited. Even though Pongal was originally a festival for the farming community, today it is celebrated by all. In south India, all three days of Pongal are considered important. However, those south Indians who have settled in the north usually celebrate only the second day. Coinciding with Makara Sankranti and Lohri

of the north, it is also called Pongal Sankranti. Best Wishes, Kidambi Narayanan, Tokyo , Japan