This is a very important festival for the people of my region and for few others.. not for all Tamilians... could be because my area has very less other culural mixing up and it has preserved many old-traidiotns... It falls on the first week of April is last week of Panguni month, the last month of Tamil Calendar..


It always celebrated for three days, saturday, sunday and monday.. does not follow one particular date or astronomically any star/moon position at all, it is always, last weekend along with the following monday of the month of Panguni...

previous weekend, it will be announced officially ... (announcement is very important)... a community worker (temple worker) will come around all the streets with a drum and play the drum and loudly will say that, the temple has decided the next week is going to be the Panguni pongal where we pray to our Goddes Mari (sister to kali but a gentle type, unlike the ferrocious kaali.. the word mari also means rain)...

once announced, no one should leave the town.. (my town is very famous for this festival and it also a tradition for people from other nearby places and all people who have gone from this place (like me and my brother and my uncle etc..) come back and stay in our place for this festival).....


if anyone (mainly old) is very ill (expecting death) their family hope that the death happens before the announcement or after the festival is completed, because they beleive that his/her soul won't get good rest if he/she died during this time..


just after the announcement, all grain seeds (rice, and millets) are sown in several bamboo plant pots and kept inside a dark room within temple premises.. and grown there by people... by visiting the temple every day to water them..


some people declare that 1) carry the grown grain plants - muzaippaari (only women)
2) carry lighted brass pots (normally used for carrying drinking water) (only women)

3) carry fire pots... (mostly men, but women can also do this)


then the first day of the festival comes.. saturday is muzaippaari day... around 4pm, whosover has declared and have been growing those plants, will go to temple conduct a prayer and take their pots on their head and wait in a que... in every street and in temple.. people from nearby villages come and wait in another place.... head of the community has to start first.. he always carry similar pot decorated with jasmine flowers that cover the pot completely and has few more extra decorated arms-like... he starts the procession.. all those who have been waiting join behind him as he goes... the whole procession thing come around the town.. everybodyelse (who is not carrying those pots) walk with them in the procession... then we all go to temple and leave the plants in temple pond, finish another session of prayer in the temple... the whole thing has to be completed before sunset....

the main day, second day, sunday... maavilakku day.. freshly deskinned rice kernals are ground to prepare rice dough.. lights (have you seen old pottery that were used as oil-lights? same as that) are prepared from rice dough.. three of them are stuck around the neck of the pot (shown above) and rice dough is used to stick the head part of on the mouth of the pot... the pot is decorated with some jasmine flower.. ground nut oil is used to light all the lights on the pot. a procession of people carrying light following the head of the community, same like previous day, come around the town... others walk with them, looking after the lights, refilling oil, and wiping oil spillage (before reaching faces of the people who carry it, because it is going to be hot)... (I have done this three consecutive years.. once declared to do, it always has to be three years and has to be consecutive years)... this whole thing is done after it got dark (looks nice with lights)

same day, people who have declared to carry the fire pots will carry (in their hands) a pot with little coal-fire inside the pot... they use neem leaves as a cushion, to protect their hands.... they lead the procession (in front of the head of the community)....

village sports such as silampam (fighting sport using long wooden sticks) are played in front of the procession to keep the crowd entertained.. it is not real fight.. it is just a play...

procession is finished by leaving all pots in front of the deity in the temply and conducting a session of prayer...

rice dough is then (the next day) used to prepare a dish called paniyaaram..

monday, the deity comes in procession around the town, people pray and offer banana and coconut to God.. this procession is during day time...


all three days, many sports and cultural funs are arranged by the temple management ... generally music, dance by professional singers and dancers.... some fun competition are arranged ...

girls generally go very well dressed and wear all sorts of jewels these days.... people say this is the time unmarried men get to see unmarried girls in well-dressed form and select girls for marriages...


has been very important festival for me.. it has been several years (18 years) since i last attended this...