Onam
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Narayanan S , Sep 3, 2023: The Indian Express
The most famous legend associated with Onam is the return of the benevolent Asura king Mahabali to visit his people every year. The story goes like this: In Mahabali’s kingdom, everyone was treated equal and all his subjects lived peacefully and prosperously. The Deva king Indra felt threatened by the aura of Mahabali and approached Lord Vishnu to put the king in his place. Lord Vishnu transformed into his fifth incarnation, a small Brahmin boy called Vamana, and approached Mahabali.
The king, who was conducting a yajna, asked Vamana to choose anything he wanted from his kingdom. Vamana asked for just three steps of land, and Mahabali accepted the request immediately. The dwarf-sized Vamana suddenly grew into the skies and covered the earth with his first step and the heavens with his second. With no place left, Mahabali, to fulfil his promise, offered his head, and Vamana sent him to Pathala (netherworld) with his third step. However, Lord Vishnu accepted Mahabali’s wish to let him visit his subjects once a year and that day of his return has come to be celebrated as Onam.
So, that’s the story. But why is there no common ground in understanding the myth behind Onam? Has it always been observed as the return of Mahabali? Was it ever celebrated as Vamana Jayanti? Has it always been a festival limited to people living in present-day Kerala? Let us try to find out.
In his paper, The Sociology of Onam, researcher A M Kurup refers to a Sangam literature Tamil ballad from the second century CE about Onam celebrations in Madurai. This is probably the earliest mention of Onam in south Indian literature. Historian Malavika Binny also refers to one Indira Vizha festival mentioned in the Sangam records to make the point that Onam was celebrated as a harvest festival much before the Mahabali myth was ever heard of. “So, if the Indira Vizha festival later on became Onam, then one could argue that Onam has a pre-Brahmanic history,” she says.
According to historian M G Sasibhooshan, Onam was observed as Vamana Jayanti during the Pallava dynasty. “Onam was celebrated in a vast region spanning from Tirupati (in present-day Andhra Pradesh) to Kanyakumari (present-day Tamil Nadu) between the 6th and 8th centuries. In fact, Tirupati Venkatachalapathy is a form of Vamana’s Trivikrama,” he says.
“A copper plate dated back to the reign of Chera Perumal ruler Sthanu Ravi (861 CE), known as the Kulasekhara, discovered from the Thiruvattuvayi Shiva temple in Thiruvalla (In Pathanamthitta district in present-day Kerala) indicates Vamana Jayanti rituals where scholarly Brahmins were given feasts,” says Sasibhooshan, who also talks about copper inscriptions from Sreevallabha Temple in Thiruvalla from the 11th century that point to Onam celebrations.
The Thiruvalla copper plates, also known as Huzur Treasury Plates, mentioned expenditure to be incurred during the festival of Onam in the month of Avani (fifth month in the traditional Tamil calendar). “Those recorded the amount of rice given to temple servants by the temple for services rendered, and a clear hierarchy can be seen in the remuneration given. So, we can infer that Onam had become a temple-centered festival by this period,” says Binny. However, she adds that no evidence suggests that Onam was ever Vamana Jayanti.
“It seems to have been a pre-Brahmanic or Buddhist festival appropriated into the Brahmanical fold,” she says, adding that anthropologists and experts from cultural studies have pointed to the festival’s association with Buddhism. “The Onakkodi, which is a yellow cloth traditionally given to the young by elders during Onam, has been suggested to be a pointer to the yellow robes given to new converts to Buddhism. The coincidence of Onam to the Sri Lanka Buddhist new year, the vegetarian nature of the festival and the use of the Onathappan, the round flower carpet symbolising the Dhamma Chakra (The Wheel of Law) have all been considered part of Buddhist influences,” says Binny.
Mahabali to the fore in the Onam legend
In medieval Kerala, on Uthradom day (the day before the main festival day of Thiruvonam), peasants were expected to present dryland cultivation before their landlord Brahmins, who, in return, would gift them new clothes (Onakkodi) and throw them a feast. “However, frictions developed over time as landlords demanded more produce, leading to a silent revolt among the peasants. So by around the 14th century, they started to view the Onam myth differently and project the Asura king Mahabali as their hero instead of the Brahmin boy Vamana,” says Sasibhooshan.
Historian M G S Narayanan, in a way, concurs with Sasibhooshan in how he sees Mahabali becoming the centrepiece of Onam in Kerala. In his book Kerala Charithrathile 10 Kalla Kathakal, he says that Vaishnavite tradition entered Kerala temples in the 9th century and with it came Vamana worship. Onam became a harvest festival, spring festival and later, through peasants’ protests, became Mahabali worship, Narayanan writes. Narayanan, however, takes strong exception to the story of Mahabali ruling Kerala. No mythological texts ever mentioned it, and it was all the fantasy of imaginative storytellers to portray an egalitarian society, he suggests in his book.
Sasibhooshan, nevertheless, says such sacred lores are essential for a festival to exist for centuries. “Just like you need the story of Rama killing Ravana for Dussehra, you need the story of Mahabali being sent to Pathala and being allowed to return once a year to see his subjects for Onam.”
“In fact, according to Hindu mythology, the Asura king Mahabali was not sent to Pathala but to a place called Suthala. Mahavishnu blessed Mahabali by promising him protection from all ailments in Sutala and told him he would become Indra during Savarni Manu’s era. So, the story of Mahabali ruling Kerala and his return every year is the folk version of the myth that developed over time,” says Sasibhooshan.
Some others have tried to explain the connection between Mahabali and Kerala differently. Since Bali has been a figure worshipped in the Deccan and parts of north India during Diwali, people who migrated from these areas to south India might have brought the story with them, and it might have got assimilated with the local folklore over time.
The Bali myth, Binny says, has been prevalent on the western coast of India from Maharashtra to Kerala as an alternative republic ruled by an honest ruler. “Mahatma (Jyotirao) Phule has written about Balirajya or Balisthan. (Sociologist) Gail Omvedt has also mentioned the Bali tradition as a counter-narrative in Maharashtra.”
“In all probability, the Mahabali legend is an archetypal myth that resonates with later legends such as that of Cheraman Perumal, who embraced Islam or left for pilgrimage. The idea of a righteous or ideal ruler cast out to be replaced by an unjust structure and one day returning to reinstate a welfare state is seen as a trope in most ancient cultures. In the case of Onam, the myth has been beautifully preserved and celebrated.”
Even though Mahabali was projected as a symbol of the downtrodden, the upper castes in Kerala also traditionally came to accept him as the primary symbolic representation of Onam. They went about rituals surrounding Vamana, or Lord Vishnu, either in temples or at houses, as well as social celebrations, such as vallam kali (boat race), puli kali (leopard dance) and public feasts, without second guessing.
What possibly might have helped this frictionless integration is that even as Onam became more secular and crossed barriers of caste and religion, the more visible specifics of the celebration, such as the attire and the cuisines, retained an upper-caste flavour, especially after Kerala declared it the official state festival in 1961. “In the case of Kerala, Hindu Savarna practices have masqueraded as secular practices for far too long. In fact, during the social renaissance period, Savarna practices replaced a significant chunk of traditions and practices of oppressed castes, and the formation of the modern Kerala state was one modelled on a Savarna past,” Binny argues.
How a temple provides the perfect antithesis to rumblings over Onam
The debate of whether Onam should be celebrated as Vamana Jayanti or as Mahabali’s return is a relatively new one triggered by right-wing Hindu organisations that claim its commercialisation has overshadowed the rituals and traditions. Those opposing this claim say it is another attempt by the Aryan society to subjugate or hijack a festival rooted in Dravidian moorings.
While that debate can go on, the Thrikkakara Vamana Moorthy Temple in Ernakulam presents a picture of how the concepts of both Mahabali and Vamana can co-exist without additional ideological baggage. The temple, dating back over 2,000 years, is the only shrine in Kerala, and among the very few in India, with a Vamana deity.
On the day of Thiruvonam, a boy dresses up as Vamana and welcomes Mahabali from the Mahabali thara (platform) to inside the sanctum in a symbolic procession. The belief is that Mahabali would spend the day there and bless his people. While the practice may not be based on hardcoded temple rituals, it is a welcome sight at a time when people are ready to go to wars against their own shadows for no reason.
Onam
The festival
Festival of Colors, lights, tradition and customs
Onam is the biggest and the most important festival of the state of Kerala. It is a harvest festival and is celebrated with joy and enthusiasm all over the state by people of all communities. According to a popular legend, the festival is celebrated to welcome King Mahabali, whose spirit is said to visit Kerala at the time of Onam.Onam is celebrated in the beginning of the month of Chingam, the first month of Malayalam Calendar (Kollavarsham). This corresponds with the month of August-September, according to Gregorian Calendar.
History The association of Onam with Thrikkakara temple goes back to decades. It is one of the few temples in the India that is dedicated to Lord Vamana. Thrikkakara temple is situated in Thrikkakara, a village Panchayat in Kochi. The temple is the center for all the Onam related celebrations over the world and is considered to have been the adobe of King Mahabali. It is also believed that King Mahabalis presence is felt on the 10 day festivals galore. During Onam, a pyramidal statue of Vamana is placed in the temple and worshipped. King Mahabali is said to have been sent to the underworld Patala by Lord Vamana with his foot, hence marking the genesis of the Onam festival. The etymology of the name Thrikkakara ('place of the holy foot') is also derived this way.
Legend: Mahabali, an Asura(demon) was the son of Devamba and Virochana. He grew up under his grandfather, Prahalada, who installed a strong sense of righteousness and devotion in him. Bali succeeded Virochana as the King of Asuras by wrestling with Indra and other Devas. The devas then approached their patron Vishnu and entreated him to restore Indras throne over Heaven. In heaven, Bali was advised by Sukracharya to perform Ashwamedha Yaga so as to maintain his rule over the three worlds. Vishnu, disguised as Vamana to help the other devas of the heaven. A small Brahmin boy, Vamana approached Bali and requested for a grant. The grant asked by Vamana was land, although only as much land as he could cover with three paces. After repeated warnings from Balis guru, Bali went ahead and granted the boon to Vamana. Vamana then grew to an immense size, and, with his first pace, traversed all of the earth and the underworld. With his second pace, he covered Heaven in its entirety. This led Bali to accept his defeat against Vamana. Bali offered his own head as a stepping-stone. Mahabali made a request to the Lord Vishnu that he wanted to meet his people once a year; Lord Vishnu granted his wish and that is how it is indicated that the King comes every year during Onam time to visit the festival to Kerala.
Culture The cultural forms of Kerala come out during this festival and the spirit during the ten day long , is bright and rich in its form. It is a grand treat to be a part of the culture and heritage of this place during this part of the month. During Onam, the Vamana avatar is dressed in different styles using sandalwood paste, ornaments, flowers and clothing which and this is called Chaarthu. Each day indicates one style of the 10 avatars of Vamana deity. On the ninth and the tenth day of Onam, Pakalpooram, a grand procession involving leading the main deity Vamana, on a ceremonial elephant around the temple premises along with Panchavadyam. This is how it is done in every part of Kerala including Guruyavur temple.
Folklore Colorful and festive mood, kick starts in Kerala when the folklore kicks in. There isnt a better start than Athachamayan festival, which is the push for people to celebrate this wonderful tradition. The festival features a street parade accompanied by heavily decorated elephants, musicians, and various dancers.
Another enchanting feature of Onam is Vallamkali, the Snake Boat Race, held on the river Pampa. It is a colorful sight to watch the decorated boat oared by hundreds of boatmen amidst chanting of songs and cheering by spectators. Games are a huge enjoyed part of Onam.
Various games like Onakalikal, Talappanthukali(ball game), Ambeyyal(archery), Kutukutu and combats called Kayyankali and Attakalam are played during the festive season.While men indulge in activities like this, women take the creative route to enjoyment. Thiruvathira is performed majorly by women who dance in circular motion around a lamp in between Pookalam is another famous part of Onam where the house entrances or indoors are decorated with flowers. This is called Onapookolam where the women of the house are also involved in competitions to come up with interesting designs to welcome King Mahabali into their houses.
Boat race Vallamkali or the snake boat race is another event which is the synonym for Onam. The Nehru Trophy boat race is generally held in Punnamada Lake, Alapuzha. The name Nehru trophy comes from the history that happened in 1952 where the first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru was given a glorious welcome into Kerala escorting the huge snake boats. The 100-120 foot long canoes carries around 90-120 rowers who row the boat in fast movement which moves like a snake. It is definitely a pride to win the game and own the trophy. Though the competition is fierce, the main outlook of this,is to bring out the tradition of Kerala through boat race.
Music and Dance forms Traditionally, Onams famous dance forms are Kummatikali, Pulikali Thumbi Thullal that are performed by both men and women.. Kummattikali is a famous dance form which imbibes masks and colorful costumes into the picture. It is a procession where the dancers go from house to house to perform the dance form. Kathakali is a common dance form performed on the day to depict historical and mythological stories of the King, deity Vamana etc. Pulikali is the fondest dance form where men disguise themselves in the tiger dress and dance in sync with the vigorous beats of Chandi
Dress During the time of Onam, a common tradition is followed by all the Keralite elders. Onakodi is a famous tradition where the elders of the family gift the young ones with gifts and dresses. This is a custom that has been followed from the beginning of the culture. This indicates love and affection towards young members of the family.
It can also be noted that, the dress gifted will consist of Mundu(Traditional cream zari saree) for women and Veshti (Zari cloth) for men. All said and done, Kerala is rich in its true culture, folklore and colorful site. Onam is the one time that brings out the rich ethnicity and customs of Keralites. Keeping an eye on every tradition possible, Onam is the best time to visit Kerala!
Cultural Rejuvenation
Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha, August 21, 2021: The Times of India
Festivals offer us a delightful diversion from our otherwise banal routines, rejuvenating us with fresh vigour and hope. Onam, an important festival of Kerala, is one such celebration. Many legends are linked to it. One of them is about a virtuous ruler’s redemption from the vice of obstinacy.
Mahabali was a kind-hearted Asur emperor who loved his subjects. A great donor, Mahabali delighted in giving more than what was sought. Shukracharya, his preceptor, pleased with his behaviour, made him perform the Vishwajit sacrifice, and win unsurpassable weapons. With pride of abundance, he usurped the throne of Indra, the king of Devas.
Once when Aditi, the mother of Devas, fell ill, she undertook Payovrat, a vow of living on a mono diet of milk and lying on the floor for fourteen days. Pleased with her penance, Vishnu appeared and said: “I shall be born to you to relieve your sorrows.”
Incarnating as Aditi’s son, Vishnu instantly appeared as a celibate dwarf, Vaman. Donning the sacred thread, wearing wooden footwear and holding a leafy umbrella, Vaman went to Bhrigukaccham, where Mahabali was performing his great sacrifice.
Mahabali received Vaman, washed his feet and asked the dwarf the reason for his visit. Vaman asked for land of the size that could be measured in merely three steps. Calling it too trifling a demand, Mahabali tried to persuade Vaman to ask for huge bounties. Vaman declined, saying greed was destructive.
Mahabali agreed. The dwarf suddenly grew gigantic and measured in two strides all that the emperor possessed. Seeing that Vaman had nowhere to take his third stride, Mahabali bent down, allowing the young swami to place his foot on his head, so that his word was not falsified.
Vaman’s intention was to awaken the Asur King to his own pride of lordship and the ‘greed to give lavishly’. Pride and obstinacy are self-destroying. The Vishnu avatar overwhelmed Mahabali with simplicity and self-restraint, making it an eternal lesson for all. Srimad Bhagavatam states that the event transpired on the banks of Narmada. The anomaly of Keralites celebrating Onam in the honour of Mahabali is thus a mystery, though adopting anything good from anywhere is great indeed.
Onam emphasises that to be generous is of no avail without being humble. It tells us how even noblemen can be blinded by pride to invite their own ruin.
Onam also shows how episodes from our ancient texts get misrepresented. There is a widespread belief that Vaman vanquished the righteous Mahabali by deceit. This was never the case. Lord’s intention was to liberate Mahabali from the wrench of pride and reward him amply. That is how he gifted Mahabali – Sutala – an abode second to none. People buy new clothes and fill their kitchens with food during Onam. ‘Sell land and celebrate Onam’ is the hallowed proverb about celebrating this festival.
People decorate their courtyards with Pookkalam, an floral arrangement. In Thrissur, outside the Vadakkunnathan Shiv Temple, people from all walks join to make a huge Pookkalam, floral design, signifying mutuality and unity. Onam combines remembrance and reverence, signifies resolve and reassurance.
Vamana Jayanti vis-à-vis Onam
BJP president Amit Shah wishing people Vamana Jayanti reflects a vested political agenda and an attempt to homogenise Hinduism disregarding local heterogeneous myths of Kerala, said historian K N Panikkar.
Shah's post caused a controversy as it came soon after a piece published in the Onam special issue of R S S mouthpiece Kesari cited the Srimad Bhagavatam to claim Onam was originally celebrated as Vamana Jayanti.
Panikkar said Onam and King Mahabali are part of a secular and egalitarian myth encompassing people of all castes and religions.
“It's a known fact that the R S S is using divisive methods to gain a foothold in Kerala. By appropriating Onam as an upper-caste Hindu festival, they are trying to divide votes along caste lines,“ he said. Panikkar said Kerala has long stood for plurality of religions and diverse voices.
“We had our own local myths that may or may not be part of other national myths. The beauty of Onam is that it speaks about a king who reigned over a just society . Denigrating the myth by superimposing it with Hindutva agenda to make political inroads is dangerous for the secular fabric,“ he said.
Rajan Gurukkal, social scientist and historian, said there are ancient scriptures that mention Vamana Jayanti and that it was celebrated by the Brahmin community .
“Vamana's birthday falls on the Thiruvonam as per Malayalam calendar. Later, myths like that of Mahabali must have been added to assert the brahminical hierarchy ,“ he said.
Gurukkal questioned the existence of King Mahabali. “It's possible that at a later stage King Mahabali got this subaltern image as the Dravidian underdog and Vamana became the brahminical deity . Onam, in due course, became a secular festival, removed of its feudal vestiges,“ he said. K T Ravi Varma, who penned the book `Mahabali: Myth and history of Onam', says there is no mention of Mahabali in Rigveda and it was a later addition.
“It seems as though the Bali myth came from outside and it was mentioned in Mahabharata. Bali, over course of time, became Maveli, the magnanimous king. Anyway , when Onam became a celebration as the return of King Maveli at least for a day, the myth finally came out of the four walls of the temple and became a popular festival,“ he observed in his book.
See also
Thrissur Pulikali (Tiger dance)
and also
