Tamilian Traditions by Kalai Selvi Arivalagan (books to read for 13 year olds txt) 📕

One more celebration that highlights the traditional value of Tamilians.

Lord Vinayaga has been considered as the diety who helps people to thrash hurdles and achieve success in all endeavours. 

In the month of August-September, the festival is celebrated with more colors and varieties of food prepared and offered to get the blessings from Lord Vinayaga.

People at home and temples prepare food that are considered sacred to be presented to Lord Vinayaga.

Every year people in Tamil Nadu celebrate 9 days of colors enriched with fragrance of flowers and food.

This is another festival that marks the creativity of Tamil people.

The Tamil month 'Margazhi' that comes during December-January every year brings into every Tamil household prosperity with mesmerizing patterns and colors of Kolams. 

Kolam is a divine art that gives a woman the freedom to express herself in different patterns of kolams.  This ancient art with intricate patters and designs using curved lines, straight lines and circles is a blessing for the Tamil community.

Forget about the houses in the cities. Every home at a town or a city never forgets to welcome this month of chilliness with warm and bright colored Kolams that vows to bring in prosperity to the house where the woman lives.

  Bull Taming - A Pongal Event

Jallikattu or Eruthazhuvuthal, the traditional Bull Taming event, dates back to the Tamil Classic Period (400-100 CE).  Jallikattu is an annual event where men try to tame and hug the bull and has been a part of the traditional celebrations of the four-day harvest Tamil Nadu festival, Pongal.

The word Jallikattu has two components, Jalli also known as salli or kasu, which translates into coins, and kattu which means bundle or pouch.  This is a reference to a yellow punch of coins, which is tied to the bull’s horns.  The sport is also called as Eruthazhuvuthal, which means ‘hugging the bull’.

The sport, which is played on the third day of Pongal (Mattu Pongal), has a natively reared bull being left free in an arena. Groups of people enter this arena and try to tame the bull with their bare hands. The participants try to do this by holding the bull by its tail and horns.  The bulls are specially prepared for this event by various farmers.  The bulls are often taken for swims to strengthen the legs, and various measures are taken to make the bull strong and healthy. Bulls are bred specifically for the event.

The calves chosen to become Jallikattu bulls are fed a nutritious diet so that they develop into strong, sturdy animals.  The bulls are made to swim for exercise.  The calves, once they reach adolescence, are taken to small Jallikattu events to familiarize them with the atmosphere. Specific training is given to vadam manju virattu bulls to understand the restraints of the rope.  Apart from this, no other training is provided to Jallikattu bulls. Once the bulls are released, then instinct takes over.

There are three versions of Jallikattu:

Manju Virattu

This version takes place mostly in the districts of Madurai, Pudukottai, Theni, Thanjavur and Salem and has been popularized by television and movies.  It involves the bull being released from an enclosure with an opening. As the bull comes out of the enclosure, one person clings to the hump of the bull.  The bull in its attempt to shake him off will bolt (in most cases), but some will hook the man with their horns and throw him off.  The rules specify that the person has to hold on to the running bull for a predetermined distance to win a prize.

In this version, only one person is supposed to attempt catching the bull. But this rule being strictly enforced depends on the village where the event is conducted and more importantly, the bull itself.  Some bulls acquire a reputation that alone is enough for them to be given an unhindered passage out of the enclosure and arena.

Vaeli Virattu

This version is more popular in the districts of Sivagangai, Manamadurai, and Madurai.  The bulls are released into open ground without any restrictions (no rope or determined path). The bulls once released run in any direction.  Most don’t even come close to any human.  But there are a few bulls that don’t run but stand their ground and attack anyone who tries to come near them. These bulls will “play” for some time providing a spectacle for viewers, players and owners alike.  The magnificence of such bulls cannot be described.

Vadam Manju Virattu

Vadam means rope in Tamil.  The bull is tied to a 50 ft long rope and is free to move within this space. A team of 7 or 9 members attempt to subdue the bull within 30 minutes.  This version is very safe for spectators as the bull is tied and spectators are shielded by barricades. (Courtesy: Heritage Madurai)

 
       Tamil traditional medicines go a long way in protecting the physical and mental health of human beings.

https://siddham.in/siddha-approach-on-novel-corona-virus-or-covid-19

Text: Kalai Selvi Arivalagan
Publication Date: 04-02-2011

All Rights Reserved

Dedication:
For my ancestors who knew life better than the people who live now.