Onam and the legend behind it

    19-Sep-2022
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S Balakrishnan
Contd from previous issue
That is how Onam festivity was born. On Onam day, Keralites wear their best, decorate their homes and especially the front yard with flower rangoli, and prepare a great feast to welcome and show their king that they live happily. If lucky, you can encounter a Mahabali here and there visiting the homes of his citizens!
What is interesting is that Mahabali’s  great grandfather, Hiranyakashipu, was the cause for the Narasimha avatar of Lord Vishnu. Vishnu took this fourth incarnation to save Prahalada from his father, King Hiranyakashipu, who insisted that everyone should worship only him and not Lord Vishnu or any other God. Narasimha appeared from a pillar when Hiranyakashipu kicked it, mockingly asking Prahaladha if God existed even in the pillar. The same Lord Vishnu appeared in Vamana avatar, His fifth incarnation, to banish Mahabali into the netherworld.
Religious legends apart, Onam is a great occasion to visit Kerala.
The writer can be reached at [email protected]/9840917608 Whatsapp