Tamaso Ma Jyotir Gamaya

From Darkness, lead me to Light!

Diwali, the festival of lights, is believed to be based on this philosophy. There are several mythological tales and folklore associated with this festival; but curiously enough Kerala is one state where this festival is pretty low key. The stories I have heard as a child have associated Diwali to the triumphant return of Rama to Ayodhya after killing Ravana; and then in Hindi class in School, we were also taught about Narakasura Vadh and how Goddess Bhoodevi killed Narakasura and the earth rejoiced the death of this evil Asura. As the world shrunk, and we got more cosmopolitan and got exposed to a few more cultures in India, I also got to hear of Kali pooja in Bengal and Lakshmi poojan in Maharashtra and Gujarat. From mythological tales, we came down to earth, and began associating these to local customs ' especially to rural India; Diwali acquired the nuances of a harvest festival, similar to Onam and Pongal ' but at the end of the Kharif season. The harvest had just been completed, and people were celebrating and offering thanks to Mother Earth for a bountiful crop ' or perhaps asking for such prosperity to continue in the future too.

With the passage of time, and inter-mingling of cultures, these festivals also get exported, modified, acquired new meanings and morphed and finally merged into the local milieu. The best possible example of this is possible Ganesh Chathurthi. Once a very low profile festival, probably associated more with Modak (Kozha kattai and Sundal in the south), this today has become a major festival, which also engages all the people in the society (with all those processions, traffic hold-ups, and at times, lathi charges) whether they like it or not. Credit for this becoming a major festival in the Indian calendar is ascribed to Bal Gangadhar Tilak ' who at the height of the freedom struggle, used this as a vehicle to revive nationalism, patriotism and got all Hindus together into the freedom struggle. I think advances in technology and communication did the rest. With TV becoming a powerful medium, the culture of Ganesh rath yatras became a phenomenon in the south too. In the last 10 years or even less, we have witnessed this becoming a major festival in Chennai too, with gigantic Ganesha idols being taken in procession to be immersed in the sea.

So, is Mohan Lal going to bring Diwali to Kerala(or should that credit go to Oceanus)!!! I found it quite amusing to see Mohan Lal dressed in white kurta against a backdrop which reminded me more of Al Burj Hotel, Dubai (it may have been Cochin or Ernakulam ' I need to take a closer look) than anything that even remotely resembled traditional Diwali (except for those diyas). The folks at the Ad agency decided to maximize the time slot Lal ettan gave them, and had him wishing the entire country for all the significant festivals in the same shot. They then probably decided to change the backdrop to suit the occasion. I guess, they forgot to change Lal ettan's clothes. Well, they just might have succeeded in sowing the seeds of Diwali in Kerala. After all, who else but a Mallu is going to be watching these Ads repeat themselves on Asianet and Surya TV? And we can blend this nicely with the preparations that begin just after Thulam where they clean up the field, burn all the dead leaves and prepare for the next harvest.

However, how do we associate a mythological tale to this?

Why did Lord Rama not return via Kerala? Rama's incarnation took place after Parashuram, so logically, a Kerala should have existed then; and he could have very well passed through that region on his way to Rameshwaram and then to Sri Lanka. Or was it that even then Mallus in Kerala were famous for their trade unions and red flag marches, and Sri Ram decided not to have his yatra delayed by Bandhs and strikes? I guess he knew that these guys were not so good at construction work as the Bihar, Orissa and Tamil folks and decided to restrict his recruitment of volunteers predominantly from these regions. However, I am sure, the Mallu used the bridge to get to the other side as soon as it was constructed and set up tea shops there!

With so many Bhagavathy temples, Devi pooja is also quite prevalent in Kerala, as it is in Bengal. Yet we could not find Narakasura's death (by Bhoodevi) or the slaying of Shambhu and Nishambhu (by Kali) as sufficient reasons to celebrate Diwali. Why?

Oceanus seems a rather weak reason can we find something that is more solid?!!!

I also leave you with another doubt that recently cropped up: If Kerala is believed to have been carved out from the sea by Parashuram's axe, then how come we celebrate Onam and attribute it Mahabali. Parashurama's avatar came after Vamana avatar, which means that technically Kerala should not have existed then

Wish you all a very Happy and Prosperous Diwali. And if possible, try and keep the decibel levels low celebrate with more lights and less sound!

Asat toma Sat gamaya
Tamaso ma jyotir gamaya
Mrutyo Ma Amrutam Gamaya

Om Shanthi Shanthi Shanthih.