Vela, Pooram, Kummaatty etc

The Vela, Pooram, Kummaatty etc are all harvest festivals ..

Vela and Kummaatty are conducted on some fixed date or week day in a particular month, whereas pooram, of course is celebrated on the pooram star of that season.

The focal point of the celebrations will be the mother Goddess,, Devi, Kaali, Kannagi, and so on.

The pongala in the south, and vellaattu, theyyam etc in the north are all essentially, seasonal festivals similar to the above.The deities may be different.

The temples in Kerala were usually sponsored or maintained by some local rulers or chieftains. and even at the time when the temples were built and consecrated, landed properties were assigned for the day to day maintenance and also for the conduct of some annual festival..

The control over the rituals of the temple were assigned to some brahmin priest named tantri and the administration to some local persons in royal favour... and also popular locally.. these people were called ooralan... etc..

The affluence for the temple and the local people as also leisure time could be found essentially in the post-harvest period,, and the spring or Vasantham( April-May in Kerala) was the best time for celebrations.

So the festivities are conducted mostly during that period..

The stories behind such festivals are usually culled out from some incidents in Purana or local lore, and some incidents that happened exclusively for that temple or deity too..

For example the Kongan Pata at Chittur Bhagavathy temple is based on the fight undertaken by the local goddess to save the people of the area from the attack of some intruders from Kongu nadu.. the adjoining pollachi and coimbatore..

Invariably the rituals also simulate the fight of Devi with demons like Daruka..

The aattanga eru in Angadipuram thirumandaankunnu has also a similar background..some simulated old battle

Even Kondungalloor Bharani is in remembrance of similar situations.

The poorams etc have also had greater significance for people who were not allowed entry into the temple in good old days. .( Usually all people irrespective of caste and religion were permitted to participate in such festivities.. and even to enter the temples in those days of untouchability)

But that scenario has changed since there is no untouchability today

Also, the landed property assigned to the temples have all been alienated, and now the people of each locality conduct the festivity as a collective endeavour of all around.

Fun and frolicking is a part of each such festivity..

Hooch.. raw or decently bottled is a major ingredient for celebrations..

Of course, ever sort of flirtation and romance among the youth is the hallmark of such collective functions.

Then the dwindling local art forms get a lot of encouragements during such festivities..

And finally, even the miser in a desam(village or locality) has to open up his purse strings during such festivals..

And the festivals are stress busters.. and focal point for camaraderie and feeling of equality..

The origin for many such functions have been described in the monumental work of Aitihyamaala by Kottarathil Shankunni..