Celebrating the Joy of Spring

Leha

Celebrating the Joy of Spring

India celebrates its harvest festivals with joy and gratitude, given the dependence on agriculture. Every harvest season comes with the cheer of an abundant and fulfiling year. A relatively lesser-known festival of Vishu brings similar happiness to our Southern folks. Let us discover what this festival is all about.

Wishing you all a very prosperous Vishu; Image Source- Vector Stock

Vishu is celebrated in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnata and Mahé district of Pondicherry by Tuluvas or the Hindu population. Like every other harvest festival, Vishu also welcomes the lush greenery and abundance of spring.

Every festival traces its roots back into mythology, and Vishu is not different. Vishu marks the commencement of the first day of the Malayalee New Year. With Lord Vishnu being the God of time, it is only logical to worship him at the beginning of the year. In addition to this, Lord Krishna (Vishnu's incarnation) is also worshipped to celebrate the triumph of killing the demon, Narkasura.

Celebrating Vishu goes back to the reign of Sthanu Ravi since 844 AD. Many rituals and customs mark the occasion. Some of the most common of them include Vishukkani, Vishukkaineetam, Vishu Sadhya and Padakkam.

Vishukanni or the Vishu Sight is a fascinating ritual. Derived from the Malayalam word Kani, which means that which is first seen, Vishukanni means that which is first seen on Vishu.

According to this custom, a specific list of auspicious items are arranged one night before and are seen first thing in the morning after waking up. Lord Vishnu's idol, rice, golden lemon, cucumber, coconut, jack fruit, betel leaves and nuts, Konna flowers are arranged for the first sight.

Ideally, the elders wake up first and blindfold the young ones for their Vishukanni. The thought behind this practice stems from the belief that seeing auspicious things would guarantee good luck for the rest of the year.

Following the ritual of Vishukanni, which is completed in the wee hours of the morning, the entire family prepare to collect Vishukkaineetam. It is a popular tradition where elders distribute the money among the young. Apart from this, alms are also given to charity.

Next comes the most exciting part of the festival. That is the feast called Vishu Sadhya. All the dishes prepared bring a balanced taste palette of sweet, salty, sour and bitter items. Kanji (a drink made of rice, spices and coconut milk), Thoran (side dish), Vishu Katta (a delicacy made of rice powder and coconut milk), Veppampoorasam (a bitter item of neem) and Mampazhappulissery (a sour, mango soup) are some of the all-time favourite items.

The ritual of Padakkam serves as the perfect ending to this joyous day. Padakkam is as vital as Diwali and literally translates to firecrackers. After a live and vivid show of firecrackers, everyone retires for the day.

Vishu is celebrated across the country with a little indigenous twist of a specific region. North India celebrates Baisakhi while Assam names Vishu as Bihu. Whatever the name might be, every festival is celebrated with equal pomp.