Today (02Sep09) is the Onam day in Kerala, India. To those that go “Oh, now what?”, here is a short extract from wikipedia:
“Onam is the State Festival of Kerala. It is celebrated in honour of Mahabali (also Mavaeli, Balichakravarthi or Bali, not to be confused with Vali), the mythical Asura king of ancient Kerala. According to legend, Mahabali returns to visit his (former) subjects on the day of Onam. Also a harvest festival, it falls in August/September. It was officially declared State Festival in 1961. Onam is now celebrated by everyone in the region irrespective of caste or religion.”
It is to Malayalis (people of Kerala) what ThanksGiving is to North America .. of course, including the big TG Dinner (sadya, in Kerala).
Below are pictures that I had taken during Onam time four summers back. They are mainly from Thrissur and Aranmula (boat races).
These are photos that I had tagged Onam on Flickr. I see that Flickr has titled this mashup as Onam Tag, which coincidentally means Onam Day in German. Unintentional but very appropriate!
Events captured in the above slideshow are:
- Puli Kali or Cat Dance. See http://www.onamfestival.org/pulikali-kaduvakali.html
- Kummati Kali or Masked Carnival Parade. See http://www.onamfestival.org/kummatti-kali.html
- Vallam Kali or Boat Race. Famous is the Chundan Vallam or Snake Boat. See http://www.onamfestival.org/vallamkali-boat-race.html
Here are links to some posts and photoblogs on Onam that I found interesting:
- Onam Ashamsakal = Happy Onam!
- An American’s Journey to understanding Onam
- Global Onam Photos Group on Flickr
Here is wishing a very Happy Onam or Onam Ashamsakal in Malayalam!
Tags: aranmula, Kerala, kummati kali, Onam, puli kali, Thrissur, vallam kali
![Yíhé Yuán, del Sol [2/2]](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7018/6598785693_871de66fff_s.jpg)
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