On the Origin of Onam

Kerala, sobriquetically known as God’s Own Country, is bountiful in its culture and traditions and this is clearly emphasized in the main harvest festival of the state; Onam.

The origin of this festival is fairly familiar, although it is known more commonly as the story of the fifth avatar of Vishnu, Vaman. The premise of the tale remains the same wherein the gods are afraid of the power of the demon, Bali and request Lord Vishnu to “put him in his place.” However in the history of Onam, the evil demon is known as the benevolent king of Kerala, Mahabali who was known to be a kind and giving king loved by all his subjects. But as all stories go, his greatest strength was also his biggest flaw as he took great pride, bordering arrogance, in his charity. Even though Lord Vishnu refused to join the gods in any violence against Mahabali, as he was a just ruler and his own devotee, he decided to test him and approached Mahabali during a ritual, disguised as a poor young sage, desiring three steps of land.  And as it goes, the acceptance of this meagre request caused the Vaman to grow large enough to cover heaven and hell in two steps. Mahabali then humbly offers his head for the third step with which Vaman pushes him into the depths of hell. The story continues that Vishnu, pleased with Mahabali’s devotion offers him a boon to which he asks if he may visit his beloved kingdom once a year. This auspicious day of Mahabali’s return is what we know as Onam.

The festival is celebrated for ten days in the Malayalam month of Chingam (in August/September), starting with Atham and ending with Thiruvonam, the day that is usually celebrated around the world as Onam. Festivities are often spread across the ten days and includes but is not limited to making a Pookalam (flower carpet), a major attraction of Onam, on Atham from the colourful blooms of the season, traditional dance forms like Thiruvathira (dance around a lamp), Pulikali (tiger dance) and Kummattikali (dance with masks), and games like Vallam kalli (boat race), Vadam Vali (tug of war) and Uriyady (similar to Dahi Handi).  People dress in the traditional Kerala sarees or kasavu mundu (gold bordered cotton) and partake in the festival in large gatherings or as a family function. The main event of the day is the Onasadhya (grand feast) wherein Kerala “Matta” rice is served on a banana leaf along with two dozen dishes over nine courses. The dishes include many varieties of curries, pickles and payasams, the aim of which is to leave all guests with full stomachs and fuller hearts. Another important part of this tradition, observed in most households, is in keeping a leaf separately for Mahabali, as gratitude for the annual visit of the ruler’s spirit.

Although Onam has Hindu origins, it has risen above all borders of caste and religion to become the official state festival of Kerala. It unites friends and family, no matter the distance or time. Malayali communities around the world never miss an opportunity to come together and celebrate Onam , and more often than not make it an integral part of the foreign society they may reside in. Such unity can also be seen in all the IISERs including IISER Mohali where Onam has always been celebrated on a grand scale every year, due to the combined efforts of all the members of the institute. Our goal in celebrating Onam here is for one to get a taste of Kerala and for those from Kerala to feel like they’re home again.

By Ardra Nandakumar