Tamil festivals
Tamil is one of the oldest languages, with a rich tradition that spans thousands of years now. Tamil has a culture and the traditions that are based on scientific background. Tamil is also known as a spiritual language where as you speak, the sounds are produced from your chakras or energy points thereby keeping your spiritual fire alive, always.
Traditionally, Tamils celebrate many festivals, some have been celebrated for a long time, while some have blended into the culture over time.
The first and foremost festival that comes into mind when you say tamil festivals, is Pongal. Pongal is a harvest festival, where the farmers offer their gratitude to the nature for their good harvest.
Jallikattu is a famous celebration in the villages of Tamilnadu, where young men participate in the taming of wild oxen that run amuck around a closed arena, hailed by the crowd of excited onlookers.
Vinayaka Chathurti celebration is not just part of tamil festivals, but all over India. He is everybody's God. He is called upon on this day who is the remover of all obstacles.
Saraswati Pooja or Vijayadasami is the day on which the children are introduced to education in the present of Goddess Saraswati, the prime Goddess of learning.
Apart from these, there are a whole lot of tamil festivals like the Aayudha poojai, Navaratri, Tamil new year and others.
Tamilnadu is a mixture of culture from all over India; especially the cities, where Malayali, Telugu, Kannada and people from the northern India are all part of the population.
There are many cultural associations that celebrate their own regional festivals, some of them also celebrate tamil festivals though, introducing Tamilnadu to many such celebrations; there is a sizeable number of Muslim and Christian population celebrating Ramadan and Christmas; inviting their Hindu friends for celebrations; which contribute to the cultural and religious harmony of the state.
Last but not the least, the new year celebrations on the 1st of January, is undoubtably the most popular of the festivities, where on the night of December 31, the entire town becomes a an array of colours and light and sound, where the celebrations continue till the wee hours of the morning of 1st January.
In these times of satellite television and lesser and lesser interaction between friends and relatives, it is these tamil festivals and the celebrations that keep the bond of friendship and give and take alive, where people interact with each other, share their love and affection while keeping the traditions alive.
Different festivals of Tamil Nadu and the significance of these festivals
Tamil Nadu is the land of rituals and festivals in this state are celebrated with full joy and fervor. The state is also called the land of festivals and festivals here connect the people from various backgrounds and develop a universal brotherhood and bonding. Tamil festivals are quite popular for their extended celebration and most of the festivals in Tamil Nadu are related to religion and traditional temples. Every festival is celebrated with full enthusiasm and joy and give people a chance to show their gratitude towards the almighty.
Popular festivals celebrated in Tamil Nadu and their significance-
Tamil Nadu is the land of festivities and festival in this land is celebrated every fortnight. Such is frequency of festivals in this state that Tamil festivals get one of the most trending topics on the net in some local searches in Tamil Nadu. Festivals in this state have mythological and religious significance and people of the state celebrate the festival with full intensity and joy to make these festivals remembered for the longest period of time.
Popular festivals of Tamil Nadu
Pongal
The festival of Pongal is the most important festival for the people of Tamil Nadu and represents the faith and belief of people. This festival is most significant for the people of Tamil Nadu as it is celebrated in mid January that marks the arrival of the harvest season in the state. The festival is known for prosperity and people celebrate the festival by greeting each other with a smile. Tamil festivals follow traditions and ritual and the festival of Pongal is no exception.
The people of the Tamil Nadu on the day of Pongal festival place an earthen pot on the hearth in the central of a place and cook the newly harvested rice with milk. Once the milk boils member of the family shout in chorus ‘’Pongalo pongal pongalo pongal’’. The preceding day of the festival is called Bhogi or the day of enjoyment. This day is devoted to God Indra who is the supreme enjoyer. People on this day indulge in various activities of playing and celebration and enjoy their day to the fullest with joy and celebration.
The New Year day of Tamils
The Tamil New Year comes in the middle of the April and this day heralds the beginning of the spring season for the people of Tamil. This festival is quite important of Tamil festivals and people of Tamil Nadu Start their year from this day itself. Astrological predictions for the whole year are read and people usher in the new beginning. This day marks the beginning of the year and to make sure that the year goes smoothly for everyone people visit temples on this day and offer special prayers to their deity. Tamil festivals are all about following the rituals and expressing gratitude to the almighty. The people of Tamil Nadu exchange greetings on this day and mark the beginning of a new year. This day is quite important festival and is of vital importance to the people of Tamil Nadu.