Vishu, the Malayalee Hindu New Year is usually celebrated on April 14 or 15 of every year. Celebrated with much pomp and fervor after the harvest festival Onam, the festivities is marked by a sumptuous feast, new clothes, and prayers’.
In Kerala, Hindus celebrate Vishu with traditional fervor and devotees throng the temples from early morning. Kerala women dressed in traditional two piece saris, known as Dhavani and men in conventional dhotis visited temples.
There was a heavy rush in famed temples like Sabarimala, Guruvayoor Krishna Temple, and also Shree Padmanabha Swamy temple in the capital city.
The most important event during Vishu is Vishukani Darshan. It is an auspicious site of the main deity along with a host of other addendums.
The start of the Vishukani starts a night before New Year with ‘urali’ or a vessel being cleaned. Farm products are collected and tastefully arranged.
The ingredients include rice, pulses, cucumber, jackfruit, pumpkin, coconut, bananas, mangoes, areca nut, fruits, gold coins and flowers arranged in brass vessels, symbolizing hope and promise.
Farm products are collected and tastefully arranged. The ingredients include rice, pulses, cucumber, jackfruit, pumpkin, coconut, bananas, mangoes, areca nut, fruits, gold coins and flowers arranged in brass vessels, symbolizing hope and promise.
Check out Vishu greetings and messages here.
The Vishu Kani is arranged in the prayer room, and the entrance is decorated with yellow Kona or cassia flowers. Today readymade kits are available in the market at Rs 150 as compared to Rs 50.
In the wee hours of Vishu, the elderly and the young come in front of their favorite deity with their eyes closed and feel lucky to have a glimpse of their favorite deity, on the first day of the Malayalam New Year.
The next important even is the 26 course Vishu lunch which is served on banana leaves. Central and Southern Districts of Kerala have purely vegetarian dishes whereas the northern Malabar district includes nonvegetarian dishes.
The last essential of Vishu celebration is bursting of crackers. However due to the Kollam tragedy fresh in everyone’s mind, there has been a lull in bursting crackers across the state.
