Pongal

Pongal is a four day harvest festival celebrated in India, beginning on January 13th or 14th. The word Pongal means “overflowing and abundance”. It's celebrated as a shift in the season - the end of winter - the day on which the sun begins to move northwards

Pongal might have originally been a solstice celebration, but I appreciate this extra reminder of the returning light: The sun is a symbol of wisdom, divine knowledge and spiritual light, and now it is turning towards us and blessing us with life and energy.

Each day of Pongal has a slightly different focus and theme: 

Today is called Bhogi Pongal, which means "enjoy abundance"; it's a day to honor the rain god, Indra, for providing rain for the harvest. Today farmers anoint their plows and sickles with sandalwood paste to bless them, then bring in the fresh harvest of rice and sugar cane.

 

The second day is called Surya Pongal, named for the sun god, Lord Surya. On this day people cook sweet rice at sunrise, and watch for the rice to bubble out of the clay pot. The boiling over symbolizes good luck and prosperity for the family.

 

The third day is Mattu Pongal, focusing on the cattle who pull the plows. (Mattu means "cow".) The cows are cleaned, decorated and fed treats.

 

The fourth day is Kanum Pongal. Kanum means "to view": It's a day to visit friends and family.

Agenda for Pongal:

1. House clearing
2. Have a fire ceremony
3. Make a rangoli

1. House clearing:

Cleaning and clearing is a theme for Pongal, as it is for many change-of-season festivals. Today, on Bhogi Pongal, everyone cleans house and clears out unneeded stuff to make way for the new. Folks burn and get rid of old household items and clothing, and buy new things.

This week I collected a car load of things to donate to the thrift store: Old cookware, clothes, books, and some folding chairs... and today my son will cart them off for me.

2. Have a fire ceremony:
The Bhogi fire is, of course, symbolic. Tomorrow the sun shifts to bring us wisdom, life, and energy, and so today we sacrifice our ignorance, delusions, bad habits, attachments, and vices on the fire.

A couple of years ago I celebrated Pongal with my art class students, and they wrote down the things they wanted to clear from their lives-- pollution, sadness, racism-- then we started a small fire in the fire pit, and tossed in our words.

Simpler ceremony: This year I had a ceremony alone in my room, with a candle, and I burned up all of my aches and pains, impatience, laziness, and gluttony.

3. Paint a rangoli:

Women paint new rangoli designs each day for Pongal, onto the floor or the ground outside. Rangoli painting is an art handed down from mother to daughter in all parts of India. The artist uses very simple materials- rice flour, natural colors, and her fingers. In some places, women paint new designs each morning outside the doorway of the house, to protect those who come and go. In India rice flour is thought to have protective power.

I've put together a gallery of Rangoli and how to make them here, but I'm in Toddler Mode right now, so our rangoli this year was simple and fast (I observe a 5-minute rule for Toddler Art).