It is a thanksgiving festival celebrated by Tamils of Hindu faith. It is celebrated during the harvesting month to thank God and to offer gratitude to nature for a good harvest.
For Indians in India, it is very grand festive times for the farmers and livestock breeders.
It is the time to offer gratitude for the main essentials needs of living things, that is water, land, air. And not forgetting the graciousness of the sun, they offer the day’s prayer to Surian, the Sun god.
Ponggal is a holy festival which is celebrated for three consecutive days. I was told that it is the only Indian festival that celebrates on the solar calendar and it is on the fourteenth of January every year. For other Hindus festivals it follows the lunar calendar.
The first day it is celebrated for the harvested crops and share with friends and relatives. The main feature of this festival is the boiling of milk in a clay pot until it overflows when the family members gathered round the pot shouting, "Ponggalo oh Ponggal” then add rice to it. In Tamil, ponggal literally means boiling and overflowing
The second day known as Mattu Ponggal, cows are worshipped and given the offerings. This is the time when villages decorate the cows and also the elders seek God’s blessing for their children. The cows are given a bath, their horns painted and they are decorated with garlands.
And on the third day known as Kanni Ponggal, young ladies prays for a good life and a dashing great husband. The young unmarried ladies wearing new clothes, gold and silver ornaments will have special prayers for their future marriage.
Most homes would decorate the house with sugar cane, mango leaves and turmeric leaves to celebrate the Ponggal festival.
On the day itself,the whole family rises early and get some prayers done,and prepare for the highlight where the milk is boiled in a claypot. once the stove is lit, all we do is watch and wait for the milk to boil and overflow.
As the milk overflows, together we shout “ponggalo oh ponggal”.
Bearing in mind that once the milk spills, it means prosperity and if the milk spills as the sun rises, it is a good sign for the family.
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