Festivals

 Festivals

There are a number of festivals observed in Tamil Nadu. Very famous festivals are Pongal, Deepavali and Karthikai. Among them Pongal is considered to be the special festival of Tamil Nadu and it is called Tamizhar Thirunal, the festival of harvest celebrated for four days in mid-January. . Pongal festival takes place towards the final stage of harvest.

The first day of Pongal is known as Bogi or Bogi pandikai. On that day people worship the Rain God. Also, all the old and unusable articles are burnt in bonfires. The second day of Pongal is the Pongal proper. On this day people worship the Sun God. The third day is Mattu Pongal. On this day they bathe the cattle and worship them, as they are the mainstay of farm life. The fourth day is known as Karinal or Kanum Pongal or Kanni Pongal. On this day villages assemble at a public place and many native games. They meet with their friends and relatives on this day. The young virgins pray to the god to get good partners and happy life .Deepavali is enthusiastically celebrated in both urban and rural areas of Tamil Nadu. It is believed that Deepavali is celebrated in memory of the demon Narakasuran who was killed by Lord Vishnu on the day of Deepavali. Symbolically this means god destroys evil. 

Karthikai is commonly celebrated by all Tamils putting Diibam (lights) out every night throughout the Tamil month Karthikai. During this period people worship Lord Murugan also called Kartikeyan or Subramanyan son of Lord Siva.  Apart from these popular festivals, there are several other festivals such as car festivals in many villages and towns. Tamil Nadu is full of fairs and festivals in particular, car festivals. There are also a number of folk deities who are worshipped with equal if not more fervor all over Tamil Nadu. Also the rituals and ceremonies that take place at birth, naming, ear boring, puberty, marriage and death differ from region to region, from caste to caste, and from religion to religion.