Maya’s new avatar

She got her hair cut last week and looks cute and different now. She didn’t allow cutting the hair on her face, so it turned her appearance and look into different style.

After the hair cut she got cotton candy like fur and I love caressing her these days and she also improved in her behavior, but still the mischievous and stubbornness bitch.

With a body like young goat and the left over beard now inspires me to call her again as aatu kutti (goat kid). Sometimes back dad passed my wheels on her tail and from then whoever pulls my wheels she used to hide somewhere and it’s one of her weakness now for us to take advantage while she behaves arrogance. But she never fears when I drive on wheels and she trusts me that I won’t strike her and always sleep beside my wheels in hope and safe.

Thekkady disaster

(taken from the boat we traveled)

The boat ride in thekkady faced a disaster today where the boat caring tourist drowned into the Mullaperiyar dam. It seems the mistake that has been followed among people is the reason for the disaster. People have forgotten where they’re traveling on and act wild in the wildness.

Couple of years back I have seen the people’s wild act while we travel alike a boat when it was near the shore in thekkady. People never think about others and rush to exit even before boat get stable. What would happen if all people run over to an edge, the boat would get pressed one side to raise other to topple. This what happen to the drown today, when people rush to either side of the boat seeing wild animals on the shore and boat lost balance and drowned.

We can’t blame people alone, because it’s the boat drivers and organizers respond to guide people on the boat before it takes off. Seeing wild animals in wildness isn’t common though and enthusiastic is usual, but we need a control or it will take over wrong. I mourn to those lost there lives and hard to think something like this in mid deep water and forest.

Golu

Golu is a decoration of dolls devoted to gods. Arranged like steps in one corner of the home, are placed with dolls of gods and few set of rituals; and beside this they create some interesting terrains like forest, hill temples, playing cricket, farming, villages... to attract people esp. children.

The golu is kept for 9 days on the occasion of Navarathri – nine nights. The women of the house who have arranged golu invite their neighbors, relatives and friends and offer varies snacks and gift little things to those visits. Sundal is the very common delicious food served at golu. Generally the visit happens in evening and thus the golu would look great glowing in enchanting decorative lights and lit lamps.

Not going deep into the custom, the homes that keep golu are followed as tradition on this yearly occasion. It’s been a decade I visited any golu. One of our relatives keeps golu every year, and this year there were three invites from our apartment homes and mom visited each home in evening and bring some things and snacks to home.

I couldn’t recall much about visiting golu, but it was a moment at our relative’s home, where I see a room dedicated to series of steps arranged from huge to small idols, with many set of moments spread on floor. There was a small gate wall separate the golu and serial lights go on and off blinking around. The pictures here show one of our neighbor’s golu.

Bonfire desire

I’m always fascinated about bonfire or campfire. Every time I visit hill stations I wish to have bonfire celebration and get warmth in cold weather.

But I never get a chance to experience the joy of sitting around the fire and mark a remarkable moment with my dear ones. Every time I ask for one, people never give it importance and try to sense what I like to feel. Whenever my cousins show me the fun pictures they took during their bonfire celebrations when they join together with there dad’s friend families, it used to strikes me with an impression why can’t I get such celebrations. I’m sure it must be a great sense of happiness and expressions of innocence while playing or having something fun around the fire along our family, friends or those who loves the share.

It was last evening in kodaikanal and dusk began to immerse. Like the day never returns, I was enjoying the cold weather sitting on the terrace looking down the twinkling lights from adobes and far away cottages, mist pass on to gloom.

While grasping the blanket, the mind began to carve about bonfire and I expressed my desire to my cousin who shares the moment. He left sometime leaving me alone and minutes later I hear roar of laughter and claps from somewhere far away beneath and I find a slight movement of flame from a distance. Been thinking about bonfire, I felt very surprise by the roar and blinking fire, I came to certain point that there was a bonfire celebration going on.

Later I indicated my cousin and uncle about the roar and fire, I expressed we need to do something now. When we asked the housekeeper, he denied doing such thing there and left. But we don’t want to miss the chance, since we no need such things in Chennai as it always burns us in heat, and thus my cousin went out in search of woods and brought some bunch of sticks and we burn it sitting outside the portico.

He then past us saying something and advised to be cautious about fire. We just sat around the fire, showing our hands on it and make warm our mass and relieve little. My dear ones are happy about doing something little to my desire and the moment last for sometime and thus we dropped some more sticks and it led glows a warm sense.

Fire step on festival

On Sunday there was a fire step on festival at my grandma’s native village Thiruvidanthai near kovalam, on ECR. It’s a yearly festival happen for 10 days on the Tamil month of Aavani (Aug-Sep). For the 10 days there would be some special festival for goddess Throwpathy Amman on each day, along with baaratham (speech on Mahabharata) and koothu (drama) in evening and nights. On this occasion, the families those could afford or traditionally following in the village, take care each day of the festival and make certain food is provided to those take part in festival.

On Friday it was our relative’s, who lives there to take care of the day and so they called us to participate in their festival. I wasn’t interested to go, but went not saying no as I like moving out and though there was none to take care of me at home. We had lunch there and elders went to temple to worship and we returned home by evening.

The last day of the festival is called 'Thei mithi thiruviza' (fire step on festival), where devotees walk on burning charcoals that spread on the floor for few feet in a rectangular shape. Those participate in this festival would go on fasting and prayer before getting down on fire.

I have seen this festival couple of times in past and it derives many people from nearby places and those native to this village. When grandma was alive she used to visit this festival often. The important festival is on the last day and they celebrate it from morning. They create three sand mounds shaped like giant and later a man dressed like goddess Throwpathy would come with a sword and strike the mounds, where pumpkins loaded with Kungumam (crimson power) are hidden. When the sword strikes the pumpkins it splashes in red and thus it indicates giant’s death, and this believed as goddess saves people from the giant.

The people come at morning would stay at there relatives place and see the fire festival at evening. The woods gathered at the front of temple would put on fire until it becomes shatter fire charcoal and couple of men with a wood would keep scattering the fire and disperse it to make certain people walk. The devotees yet to walk on fire would tie scared threads on their wrist and gather at the Nithya Kalyana Perumal Temple tank along the ECR. They keep there foots dip in the water for sometime; so thus it would feel comfort while waking on fire.

Then the devotees walk on burning charcoals with bare foot, caring neem leaves in hands and some would even carry there small children on their shoulders. The priest standing at the end of the burning charcoals would strike them with neem leaves. Before this take place, the womens in the village would make Pongal (boiling rice) in the temple and worship god.

On Sunday mom and dad went to the fire festival and clicked these pictures.