Pongal Harvest Festival
The
Pongal Harvest Festival is a traditional Indian festival that gives thanks to
the sun god for a bountiful harvest.
Mostly celebrated in India, Pongal
is also celebrated in Singapore because of the large number of Tamil people
living here.
Pongal Harvest
Festival 2019-Singapore
The Pongal Harvest Festival precedes
the start of the tenth month of the Tamil calendar and generally falls in
mid-January. During the celebration, people participate in thanksgiving
ceremonies, cooking and many other rituals.
The
eve of this day is called called Bhogi Pongal which is a day that is set aside
for spring cleaning and throwing out new belongings. This is thought to leave
the past behind and bring in a new, positive era ahead.
The Pongal Harvest Festival in
Singapore has four important days of celebration. The first day is Bhogi
Pongal; this is a day set aside for Lord Indra. It is aimed exclusively for the
household and symbolises a start to the New yearThe second day is dedicated to
Lord Surya where each family cooks a pot of rice with milk to offer to Surya at
dawn. The third day called Mattu Pongal is a day for honouring cattle. They do
most of the work during harvesting and because they produce milk, locals treat
the cattle with the utmost respect.
The fourth day of Pongal in
Singapore is Kannum Pongal. This is a day where people visit one another with
the young paying tribute to older generations. The local Tamil population considers
this a cultural arrangement where they perform, do shows and exhibits to honour
their culture and tradition.
For the festival, head down to
Campbell Lane in little India and explore the unique
festivities and daily performances held here.
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