Jeevan's Bhogi celebrations

Tommarro is Bhogi Festival. The first day of Pongal known as Bhogi Pongal is a day for family gathering and is dedicated to Lord Indra, the king of the deities and God of the Clouds and Rains. Offerings are made to him to please him so that he blesses us for the plentiful harvest. It is also the beginning of the New Year according to the Malayalam calendar and before sunrise, a huge bonfire of useless things in home is lit that is kept burning throughout the night.

Some years back i used to celebrate Bhogi, before the Bhogi day, i will buy buffalo-hide drums. me my brother and ourneighbouring friends will beat little buffalo-hide drums known as 'Bhogi Kottus' till night 11pm and we will plan how to celebrate the next morning. we all will plan to wake in morning 3.00am, but me and my brother will will wake only after 5.00am. we will not audomaticaly wake, our friend will coe to front of our house and beat the drums.

We will burst, old Papers, and Mats, my friends will tell us to burst Tyers, but my mom will not allow to burst tyers. then finish bursting, me and my friends will go a round in our area, with giving sound on our drums. while we are in round, we need to give heat to our drums, so when ever we see some one bursting fire on front of there house, we will go there and heat our drums, an continue our rounds, we will go rounds untill 7.30am in our round, we take sugarcanes with us, when we get tired, we used to eat. All of them will tell us to broke the drums and put it in fire, but we will not do that, we used to beat drums untill out Pongal Holydays end, we will heat our drums in the cooking stove. some time i will hide the drums some where and tell my mom that i lost my drums, and i will take the same drum next year and beat. My brother will buy two drums every year, he will broke one on before bhogi day, and buy another on early morning. In villages some people will cook pongal in the Bhogi fire, but our neighbours will heat water for taking bath. For the last 3 year we have not burst Boghi and beat drums, because we have grown now no.

Every year on Boghi day, we hae school, because we have studing in christian school, so they will not give leave. when my mom tell us to get ready for school, we will start crying and tell, that our friends all have leave so we also like to put leave, them my mom will complain to our dad, but our dad will tell, only one day no, its ok. on Boghi, we clean our house for next day boghi. Boghi is the last day of Margazhi month, so my om used to put big kolams in front of our house, and we will put colors on that. they are the very happy and unforgetable days. Wish you all a Happy Boghi.