Karthikai Deepam is an important festival in the Tamil calendar. From the 1st day of the Karthikai (Vrichikam) month small terracotta lamps are lit in the front of the house and on Karthikai day many lamps are lit. In the evening, pooja is offered to Lord Shiva after lighting the lamp in the pooja room. The neyvedyam includes sweet pori, Neyyappam, Adai and fruits. 31st December 2009 - Thiruvathira
There are two views about the exact date of the festival. Some calendars say it is on the 31st December 2009 and yet others say it is on the 1st of January 2010. Well, I am going to decide when to celebrate only closer to the festival.
The neyvedyam for Thiruvathira is of course, Kali and Kari.
In my previous post on the important festivals for August 2009, I had mentioned 13th August as Janmashtami day. Like so many other customs and rituals, people from different parts of India celebrate Janmashtami on different days. This year too, while most people celebrated Janmashtami on 13th August, some people celebrated Janmashtami on the 14th. Even in south India it is usual that the Vaishnavites and Saivites celebrate the festival on consecutive days.
At the famous Sree Krishna temple at Guruvayoor in Kerala, the festival is being celebrated on the 11th September, one month from now. The reason for this being that the birth of Lord Krishna is celebrated on the Ashtami Rohini day in the month of Chingam in Kerala. As I have explained before, some festivals are celebrated when a particular star (nakshathra) and thithi (the lunar calendar day) fall on the same day like Thiruvathira, Thrikarthika, ChitraPournami, etc. In the malayalam month of Dhanu, the Thiruvathira star falls on the full moon day and Thiruvathira festival is celebrated on that day. Similarly in the malayalam month of Vrischikam, the Karthika star falls on a full moon day and Thrikarthika festival is celebrated on that day. Likewise, legend has it that Lord Sree Krishna was born in the month of Chingam (Shravana) on Rohini Nakshthram and Ashtami thithi (the eighth day in the lunar calendar after the full moon day). The Malayalam era follows the Solar calendar and month of Chingam begins this year only on the 17th August. In the month of Chingam, Ashtami and Rohini fall on the same day on September 11th and hence the festival of Lord Krishna's birth will be celebrated on this day in Guruvayoor temple and elsewhere in Kerala.
However for people observing the Lunar calendar, the month of Shravana began on the 22nd July, 2009, the new moon day, and hence Janmashtami was celebrated on the Ashtami after the full moon day of Shravana month.
As Krishna was born on Rohini nakshathra and killed his maternal uncle Kamsa, there is a belief in Kerala that birth of a boy baby on Rohini nakshathra is not a good omen for the maternal uncle.
I realize that I have just completed 200 posts. I am dedicating this 201st at the lotus feet of Puthucode Bhagavathy, Sri Annapoorneswari, whose blessings have guided me in all my endeavours and who showers Her blessings to one and all by her enchanting smile. A while ago, at the request of a fellow Puthucodean, I had written up a piece about our Bhagavathy. Parts of this have been published earlier at Hindupedia as well as here. I am now republishing it here.
Puthucode is a small picturesque village lying at the westernmost border of Palghat Dt and bordering Trichur Dt. It is approximately 40kms away from both Palghat and Trichur towns. The nearest railway stations are Palghat and Trichur. The nearest airports are Coimbatore and Cochin. The village is located 6 km west of Vadakkencherry on the Palakkad-Thrissur stretch of National Highway 47. There are regular bus services from Trichur and Palghat to Puthucode.
Puthucode agraharam has four streets with row houses and was exclusively inhabited by Brahmins until a few decades ago. Where the four streets meet is the famous Annapoorneswari temple. It would be apt to say the four agraharams radiate from the central Annapoorneswari temple. The temple occupies a vast ground with a large outer prakaaram and an inner prakaaram. The main entrance to the temple faces the east and as you enter the temple there is a deepastambham beyond which is the entrance to the inner prakaaram of the temple. The inner prakaaram is also very large with wide halls known as vathil madams on the four sides where discourses and concerts used to take place. The madapalli or the cook house is also situated here. As you go inside is the Mahaganapathy Sannidhi facing east. Going around Mahaganapathy Sannidhi you reach the main temple of Annapoorneswari. The Deity faces west. The Deity is also known as Santha Durga and is a very powerful Devi bestowing her benevolent blessings to all her devotees. The idol of Devi is almost 4 feet tall with four hands. She is always dressed in a pattu pavadai. To see the Devi in her full chandanakappu after the deeparadhana in the evening is at once electrifying. It gives one such joy, peace and real happiness. One just cannot take the eyes off Devi when she is adorned in full chandanakappu. It is said that Sage Parasurama installed 108 Durga temples in many parts of Kerala and this is one among them. Currently it comes under Naduvil madom Devaswam. The daily poojas are performed by Tamil Brahmins except during Navarathri festival when they are performed by thantris affiliated to Naduvil Madom Devaswam.
In front of the garba griham or sanctum is the namaskara mandapam, where veda parayanams and other daily recitals of Devi Mahatmyam and Shyamala Danadakam are done by devotees. When you come around the namaskara mandapam, there is the prathishta for Naga devata, Dharmasastha and Palliyarkkal Bhagavathy on the north west corner of the main temple. A unique offering (vazhipadu) of azhil is conducted in front of this sannidhi. A new cloth (a set of four thorthus) dipped in gingelly oil is hung on the pole in between the two stone pillars. After doing a special pooja the archaka lights the cloth dipped in oil and allows it to burn down to ashes. This ash is used as prasadam and smeared on the forehead. It is believed that this offering will relieve one of all types of obstacles and misfortunes in life.
The other important offerings (vazhipadu) in the temple are kalabhabhishekam, niramala, chuttuvilakku, archanas, etc.
On the outer prakaaram, is the west nada, which is also known as aanapandhi which has the gold plated dwajasthambam. This is where the thayambaka and keli take place during navarathri celebrations.
Along the northern compound wall of the temple is the agrisala, where cooking and dining take place during the annadhanam of navarathri.
The sarat navarathri during the months of September and October is the biggest festival in the temple. All the Devi’s devotees who are far from home assemble at Puthucode for these nine days. The dwajarohanam for the festival is on the prathama after Mahalaya Amavasya and the aarattu on vijayadashami day or the tenth day from the dwajarohanam. There are processions with caparisoned elephants twice a day for the first four days inside the temple around the outer praakaram and on the following four days the procession of caparisoned elephants with accompanying panchavadyam and chendamelam is taken to the four villages on successive days, starting with the South Village on the sixth day. The utsavamoorthy of the deity is taken atop the caparisoned elephant to all the villages for Her to see Her subjects. There is a pallivetta on the ninth night followed by aarattu on the tenth day. During navarathri the utsavamoorthy is taken atop the elephant to the nearby stream every morning where the deity is given a bath and after due alankarams taken back to the temple.
Offerings of measures of paddy and rice, puffed rice, flowers, etc known as parayeduppu are made to Bhagavathy during the procession of elephants to the respective villages. The parayeduppu for the south village is on the aarattu day when the deity returns to the temple after her holy bath in the stream.
After aarattu the elephant has to touch the dwajasthambham which marks the end of the festival for that year. In 2003, a tusker pushed the kodimaram instead of touching and it came off at the root. Devotees took this as a signal from the Goddess and installed a new one covered with full gold at an expense of over Rs. 50 lakhs.
True to Her name there is annadhanam on all the nine days of navarathri for all devotees. Puthucode pulinkari which is served with rice and olan is unique to this navarathri sadhya. (There is a famous saying among the Palghat Brahmins which goes like this – Puthocode vitta gramamum illai, pulinkariye vitta koottanum illai – which can be translated to “Puthucode is the ultimate in agraharams and pulinkari is the ultimate in vegetable curry") The sadasadaya payasam (Idichu pizhinja payasam) offered to Bhagavathy during these days is also very famous.
In the past the Navarathri Sadhya was conducted from the annuities offered by various people to the temple. However with the enactment of land reform bills in the early 70s all the annuities to the temple were stopped and for sometime there was not enough funds even to conduct the daily poojas of the temple. With the cooperation and effort of the villagers a trust called SAPCO (Sri Annapoorneswari Pooja Coordinators) was formed and the poojas and other daily rituals have been reinstated with increased vigour. The Devi has blessed all Her children with wealth, health and great careers and they in turn pay their respects to Her by donating to the temple funds.
The temple is open from 5.30am to 10.00am and 4.30pm to 9.00pm daily for worship. The deeparadhana in the evening is at 6.30 pm.
At the end of North Village is a Siva temple. The temple is situated at a lower level than the surrounding village. There is a large tank known as ayyankulam in front of the Siva temple. The presiding deity faces east. There are also sannidhis of Mahaganapathy and Dharmasastha inside the temple. The annual festival in the Siva temple starts on the Thiruvathira day of the Malayalam month of Dhanu and the aarattu is on the eighth day. Mahasivarathri is also celebrated in a grand manner with Maharudram, Abhishekam etc. Annabhishekam on the Pournami day of the Malayalam month of Thulam is very famous.
The temple is open for worship at 5.30am to 10.30 am and again at 4.30pm to 9.00pm.
Just outside the Siva temple there is a newly constructed SivaMahal in North Village, which can be used for functions like weddings, upanayanams etc.
We are already at Pongal, having gone past Thiruvathira in a jiffy. Let me write about Thiruvathira first. For Thiruvathira this year, we had all home grown vegetables, Red pumpkin, Kavathu, Avarakkai and Toovar pods. I had planted a piece of Kavathu left over from last year's Thiruvathira hoping to get a good big Kavathu. It did sprout and the veins spread well, giving me hopes of a good harvest. The day before Thiruvathira, when I dug the earth, all I got were a few beetroot sized Kavathu. Well that would suffice for my requirements, I told myself. So I prepared Thiruvathira Kali and Kari and offered it to Lord Uma Maheshwara. I have saved few pieces of Kavathu (they are called mooku (nose)in Malayalam to plant in my garden). Let's hope we get a better crop next year.
Between Thiruvathira and Pongal, I travelled to Bangalore. Bangalore is much colder that Hyderabad and on arriving, within a day I managed to get a chest congestion. On Bhogi day, I once again prepared Kali and Kari for my younger handsome and charming son and husband who were in Bangalore during Thiruvathira.
On Pongal day, as usual we had Sarkkarai Pongal and Venpongal, Sambar and Vazhaipoo kari and Vadams.
Readers of my blog have been asking me to post about the important events in advance so that they can observe the festivals according to our tradition. I have wanted to do it for a long time but every time I missed it. I am making an effort to post the important events of the current month starting January, 2009. Please wish me success.
Here are the important festivals for January which we are celebrating. Customs and traditions and rituals differ from household to household and hence this by no means is a guide to observe the festival. I am posting what we have been observing in our family for generations. I believe the spirit of festival is in remembering and enjoying it with family and friends in whatever manner and not in sticking to rule books.
10th January 2009 – Thiruvathira (2006 Thiruvathira post, all Thiruvathira related posts) The important rituals for Thiruvathira are an early morning oil bath followed by a visit to Shiva temple. Preparing Kali and Kari and offering to Lord Shiva. Visiting elders of the family and taking blessings from them. Also take along the Kali and Kari you prepared for their reviews. Have a nice Thiruvathira.
13th January 2009 – Bhogi We don’t observe any special rituals on Bhogi day. In the evening, the house is cleaned and Rangolis made in front of the house for next days Pongal festival.
14th January 2009 – Pongal (all my pongal related posts) The important ritual observed on Pongal day is preparing Pongal and offering to Lord Suryanarayana.
Actually at home, the practice was to prepare Pongal with just milk and no sugar or jaggery. Our echiyamma would put one jaggery piece on top of the unsweetened Pongal and offer it to Lord Suryanarayana and we all would fight for that piece of jaggery. A portion of this neyvedyam is kept aside for the next day’s offering to crows.
15th January 2009 – Kanu / Mattupongal The important rituals on Kanu day are taking blessings from the elders, (The elders in the family used to apply turmeric on the foreheads of younger girls and bless them), offering curd rice topped with coconut pieces and turmeric pieces and jaggery pieces to crows and taking oil bath.
Of course, the most important ritual of Kanu is the variety spread for lunch which includes various types of mixed rice and Keerai masiyal and vadams and karuvadams.
Another Thiruvathira. As has now become a practice, I get ready for Thiruvathira festival the previous evening: the vegetables are bought, rice roasted and powdered, dal roasted, jaggery measured, pressure cookers kept ready. After I have roasted the rice and dal (I do it in my oven, for uniform roasting and also to save myself of the pain in my arm from constant stirring), I put some peanuts for roasting. I just could not resist shoving in handfuls of peanuts into my mouth, whenever I saw them. Perhaps this, caused a very bad sorethroat by evening and I started getting spells of dry cough and my throat became very hoarse. I knew if I did not take a medication for this, I may perhaps wake up with an upper respiratory tract infection, which I am very susceptible to and then if I took an antihistamine, this may make me drowsy and I may oversleep and my Thiruvathira plans would get upset. I decided I did not want to get an URTI and took an antihistamine and went to sleep. Thankfully, I could wake up at 4.45am(!).
After the usual oil bath and works, I started preparing Kali and Kari. Hubby dear had cut the vegetables by then. I put the vegetables in one pressure cooker and cooked the dal in the other. This time around, I used Kavathu, Red pumpkin, sweet potatoes, Avarakkai and Toovar pods. I just cooked the vegetables for one whistle. The dal was also cooked for one whistle. Meanwhile I melted the jaggery in 4 cups of water (I used 1½ cups of rice flour this time) and poured the melted jaggery into the cooked dal and when it started boiling added the rice flour and closed the cooker. I put the weight on the cooker and reduced the heat and switched off the stove after 10 minutes. After 20 minutes when I opened the kali was perfectly done.
Though the Kerala Iyers make the Thiruvathira Kari with kavathu, red pumpkin and avarakkai (traditionally), the Tamil Iyers make a different type of Kari, almost like sambar. They make what they call as 5 curry or 9 curry or 11 curry or 13 curry depending on the number of different vegetables used (5 curry will have 5 different types of vegetables, 9 curry 9 types of vegetables and so on..)
Kalyani mami told me today that she made 13 curry, using carrot, beans, cluster beans, avarakkai, mochakottai, peas, white pumpkin, red pumpkin, potato, sweet potato, chenai, chembu, capsicum and chow chow. They use tamarind and dal and made a sambar masala with coconut, dhania, bengal gram dal and red chillies. She has not heard of kavathu she said. We still use only the traditional vegetables and do not use the so called English vegetables (carrot, beans, peas, etc. are generally referred to as English vegetables) for preparing the Thiruvathira kari or for that matter during Sradhams etc.
THIRUVATHIRA KARI OR PUZHUKKU OR KOOTU, as it is known differently in different regions.
The main ingredient, in the thiruvathira kari, is a root vegetable known as "KAVATHU" or "KACHIL" in Kerala. This vegetable is availbale in all the big cities all over India, during thiruvathira season. This root comes in two colors, white and light pink. It is a big yam like root. This yam is also available in the Indian and Pacific stores (it comes from Fiji Islands, we were told) in the US.
The other ingredients are avarakkai or flat beans(Sem), red pumpkin and raw tur. Raw banana, sweet potatoes, koorka (another root vegetable available in Kerala) are also used in some regions.
Recipe:
Ingredients:
Kavathu: 250 gms Red pumpkin 250 gms Avarakkai 200 gms Toor pods 200gms Turmeric powd. 1 tsp. Grated coconut 1 cup Green chillies 2 nos. Curry leaves a few Coconut oil 1 tbsp. Mustard 2 tsp Split urad dal 2 tsp Red chillies 2 nos. Jaggery a small piece Salt to taste Method:
Wash the kavathu in running water before cutting to remove all the soil. Scrape the skin and cut into 1" cubes. Peel and cut the red pumpkin into 1" cubes. Thread the avarakkai and cut into 1" pieces. Remove the toor from the pods. Wash all the vegetables and pressure cook, with turmeric powder and salt. Grind the coconut and green chillies coarsely. Heat a thick bottomed kadai and add the cooked vegetables and jaggery piece. Boil for 5 mnts., till all the vegetables are well mixed. Add the coconut mixture and boil for another 5 mnts. Remove from stove and add few curry leaves. In another small kadai heat the coconut oil and add the muxtard seeds. When the mustard starts spluttering add the urad dal and red chillies(cut into small bits) . When the urad dal turns brown in color, remove from fire, add a few curry leaves and pour into the prepared vegetable.
This a delicious vegetable. This goes well with rice, chappathi and dosa also.
Thiruvathira Kali and Kari are the naivedhyam items prepared for Thiruvathira. One of the rarest occasions when a savoury item, that too cooked vegetable, is offered to God along with a sweet dish (of course, ususally vada is offered with appam or kozhukkattai or payasam) as neivedhyam.
South Indians being rice eaters, most of the offerings also are made of rice. December-January being the season when root vegetables are harvested, these are included in the kari.
KALI
Ingredients:
Raw Rice 1 cup Greem gram dal 1/2 cup Jaggery 21/2 to 3 cups(depending on individual liking) Grated coconut 1/2 cup Cardomom powder 1tsp. Ghee 1 tbsp.
Preparation:
Wash the rice well and dry. Roast the dried rice to a light pink color and powder. Roast the green gram dal to a light brown color. Half cook the roasted dal. Melt the jaggery in 3 cups of water and strain to remove dirt and sand particles. In a large thick bottomed kadai pour the melted and strained jaggery and boil. Add the half cooked dal and grated coconut and cardomom powder. When the mixture starts boiling, reduce the heat and add the roasted rice flour, little at a time, stirring well all the time. When all the rice flour has been added, keep stirring well until all the water has been absorbed and rice flour is well cooked. Add the ghee and mix well and remove.
The kali should have a shining surface when done.
This is the traditional kali as was being prepared from my childhood days. It can be optionaly decorated with cashewnuts and raisins fried in ghee, to make it richer.
This kali can be prepared in a pressure cooker with more ease. Cook the roasted green gram dal with one cup of water in the pressure cooker ( until one whistle ). Open and pour the strained jaggery, coconut gratings and cardomom powder. When the mixture starts boiling add the roasted rice flour gradually, stirring well. When all the rice flour has been added, close the cooker and reduce the heat to the minimum. When steam starts coming out , place the weight and cook for 15-20 mnts and switch off. Open the lid of the cooker after half an hour and pour the ghee and mix well. The kali would be ready.
Rice and green gram dal can be roasted in the microwave oven. Place the rice or dal in a thin layer in a cermaic or glass plate (do not use a plastic plate for this purpose) and microwave high for 1 minute. Mix well and microwave high again for 1 minute. Mix well and microwave high again for 1 minute. Mix well and microwave for 2 minutes in 70% power. Mix well and microwave for 2 minutes in 70% power 3 more times , mixing well in between.
Today, is Thiruvathira. Observed on the Fullmoon day of Dhanur Masa, on the day of Thiruvathira star, this is the day, Devi Parvathi joins Lord Siva, after her long penance. For a moment my mind was taken back to my childhood days. I also learned that there are also other legends about the importance of this day linking it with Kama deva, Srikrishna and the Gopikas. Thiruvathira used to be celebrated as a very important festival back in Kerala. Observing Thiruvathira vratham ( Nonbu, as it was called ) would bring long life to the husband and thereby prosperity and goodlife to the family. ( The Nonbu dishes will be dealt at a later date. ) It was a male-centric society in those days. The women folk, including little girls, would get up quite early in the morning during the whole of Dhanurmasa (which would be quite cold, in those days) and go to the nearyby tank or river and take bath. They will go in a sort of procession singing various songs. They will be singing while taking bath in the river also and go to the temple after the bath dressed in their best. Thiruvathira would be the day of fasting. No one eats rice preparations, but they would eat things made of wheat and all types of fruits. The practice of presenting bunches of bananas to the elders existed. During this season huge swings will come up in the backyards of most of the houses hung from strong branches of tall trees such as mango tree, jack fruit tree etc. Most of the houses in the villages of Kerala have such trees even today. The swings are made of ropes hung from the branch with a wooden plank for the seat or made of a well grown bamboo tree shoot, vertically split into two. While it is excitement and fun for the teens, it is quite scary to the kids below ten. The backyard of the houese will be noisy and boisterous with the excitement, shouts and laughs of the children. We were a lucky lot having a lot to eat, a lot of children to play around with and no care in the world. Very often I sit and compare the lot of kids of the present days with those of olden days. We children had a jolly time swinging and singing. We would visit all the neighbourhood houses (These swings were not part of the so called tamil brahmin culture). After lunch there was the practice of Thiruvathirakali. Women from the neighbourhood would get together in a common place and dance to the thiruvathira pattu. Today, the relocated lot like us get to see them in some TV Channel minus all the excitements and joy at some odd time of the day, very often determined by the sponsor.
We, tamil brahmins, celebrated thiruvathira, in the following way. The front yards of all the houses were cleaned and thick layer of cowdung paste was applied. We girls would then make "kolams" ( rangoli, as it is commonly called today ) with rice flour competing with the neighbours. The whole agraharam would look like a kolam competition venue. We didn't have cameras to phtograph them, nor did we know about kolam competitions. In our own way, we tried to outdo others. Once we finished our house, we would go to our friends and make more kolams in their frontyard also. By the previous evening the whole agraharam would be full of fragrance from fried rice flour and arali flower. This was the season of jamanthi flowers and most of the houses had jamanthi plants and we will get together and make gralands of jamanthi flowers and kanakambarams. And we would go to bed late at 8pm(!) all excited. By 3 in the morning our grandmother ( we fondly call her echiyamma ) would sound the call and we all would get up. It would be very cold and we would like to cling to our sheets some more, but by then our athai would have got all of us up. When amma and echiyamma got ready to go for bath, (lighting a kerosene hurricane lamp and keeping the soaps and soapnut powder and towels ready) , our athai would oil our hair and we all would march to the river nearby. At that hour there wont be enough space for all of us to take bath as the whole village would be there ready for their bath. Once back home, we would get attired in our best with big necklaces and earrings and flowers adorning our hair (athai helps us in getting ready). Amma and echiyamma would be busy preparing huge quantities of Kali and and kari. Then, we go to the Siva temple, joined by other friends on the way. We come back and then do the puja and offer kali, kari and butter.
The neivedyam was done in the following way. There would be one place for each of the female member of the family and individual kolam would be made for each one. One banana leaf was placed on each kolam. Two banans, two betelleaves and nuts, pieces of turmeric and flowers were placed at one end of the banana leaf. At the centre of the leaf, kali and butter were placed and on the side, kari was placed next to it. Each member would do her own neivedyam and then sit there and partake the prasadam then and there. One of the few occasions, when ladies would partake the food prepared before the menfolk did. We, girls also got to eat the betel leaves on that day. After the women had finished, the men folk would be served .
Today, I get up at 6 am and make kari and kali all alone and do the puja at 8.30am. We are the only one family observing it in the whole neighbourhood. Like all other urban neighbourhoods, ours is also inhabited by people brought up in different cultures, speak different languages, eat different foods and worship Gods in different forms and celebrate different festivals. I somehow managed to take it to my brothers, as they are not observing thiruvathira this year.
