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Pongal
Pongal was celebrated on the first day of the Tamil month 'Thai'. The
pot in which Pongal is cooked is called "Pongal Panai". The
word Pongal means rice cooked in milk and jaggery. 'Pongal' is a celebration
of spring on the occasion of the 'ascent' of the sun to the north. It
is the celebration of the harvest season. It is celebrated for four days
in Tamil Nadu.
The first day is called 'Bhogi Pongal', the second day
'Surya Pongal' and the third day 'Mattu Pongal'. Bhogi Pongal is celebrated
as a family festival. Bhogi pongal is dedicated to Lord Indra. It is the
day for spring cleaning. All old and unwanted things are thrown away or
burnt. At that time boys beat little drums known as Bhogi Kottu which
are specially made for the occasion with buffalo hide. The second day
is dedicated to the sun (Surya) when Pongal is boiled by women and offered
to the sun. Friends greet one another by asking whether rice is boiled.
 The
Chakhara Pongal made of rice and jaggery, seasoned with ghee, cashew nut
and other spices, is a speciality for the occasion. Mattu Pongal, the
third day is a day dedicated to the worship and veneration of the cattle
(mattu). The Chakhara Pongal that has been offered to the local deity
is given to the cattle to eat. The cattle are bathed, decorated and their
horns are painted in bright colours. Coloured balls of the pongal are
also made and left in the open for birds. In the villages of Madurai,
Tirucherapalli and Tanjore, the final day of pongal called Kannum Pongal
is indulged in existing past times like 'jallikettu' or manji virattu.
Jallikettu is a kind of bull fight. Bundles containing money are tied
to the horns of ferocious bulls and armed villagers try to wrest the bundles
from them. In Manji virattu young man ride on bull's back for some distance
and remove the money bag tied around the neck. Some men were seriously
wounded and immediately removed.
Pongal is prepared in two big earthen pots and it is
offered to a special miniature Ganesh made of cow-dung. The cow dung Ganesh
was decorated with arugampal, thumbai flowers and avarama flowers. special
kolam was drawn on the floor, decorated with red sand and the pongal pots
placed over it. Turmeric, ginger, sugar cane, yellow garlands and a stick
which is used to drive the bulls is offered to Ganesh in puja.
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