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Ten-day harvest festival 'Onam' concludes

     Kochi: The ten day long harvest festival 'Onam' concluded with gaiety in Kerala on Friday. The festival that began on Tuesday saw the religious fervor of the people soaring high as the thousands of people celebrated the festival with gaiety. The festival is celebrated after harvesting of the principle crop and filling the granaries to full, a sure sign of prosperity. It began with 'Atham', the 17th day of the Malayalam month 'Chingam' this year and the main day of the festival is called 'Thiruvonam' on which people celebrate the day with a grand feast. "We are expecting around 7000-8000 persons to attend the feast hosted by us. Very good feast we are hosting," said Pankajakshan Pillai, President, Thrikakkara Temple Advisory Committee. Elephants are a part of most of the celebrations in Kerala and spectacular parades and processions of caparisoned elephants, fireworks and traditional art forms are associated with Onam as it is with other festivals. In olden days the festivities used to begin 28 days earlier but the fast paced life and lack of time has reduced it to ten days. During the ten days, people make floral decorations outside their homes, buy new clothes and present gifts to friends and relatives. Onam festivities are a commemoration of the visit of mythical king Mahabali to see his former subjects in his kingdom now known as Kerala. Keralites spend their year's savings to welcome the benevolent king on Thiruvonam that is the tenth day of the festival. -Sept 12, 2008

Manmohan Singh greets nation on Onam

     New Delhi: Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh today greeted the nation on the occasion of Onam. In his message, Dr. Singh said that 'Onam', the festival of Harvest, signifies the importance of love, unity and brotherhood. "May this festival usher in all round prosperity, peace and harmony, he added. Onam, a harvest festival, is celebrated in Kerala when young girls and women make flower patterns called 'Pookalam' in local parlance to welcome the mythical King Mahabali. Onam recalls the story of mythical demon king Mahabali who created a kingdom in what is now Kerala. The festival falls during the month of Chingam (August-September as per the Gregorian calendar), the first month of the Malayalam calendar and lasts for ten days. Traditionally celebrated as a harvest festival, mythologically it is linked to Malayalee-Hindu folktales.
-Sept 11, 2008