O-rumayude N-anmayude A-ghoshangalude M-alayaliyude ...Onam
Varavayi !!!
Onam is a ten day fun filled traditional carnival every Keralites/Mallus looks forward to. Atham is the first day and Thiruvonam being the final day of the celebration.
Onam is basically a harvest festival and mainly a
festival to rekindle the homecoming of a great legendary king ,King Mahabali
who once ruled Kerala in an ancient era ,believed to be the golden era of
Kerala where everything was just perfect, immense happiness, peace, unity in
diversity, no sickness, nothing brutal happenings and only harmony and
prosperity prevailed in the kingdom overall.
Though king Mahabali had an Asura (demon) origin , he was the great king of , for, by his people and an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu and he was such a perfect king known for his extreme generosity and kindness that his subjects literally worshiped him and which eventually became a threat to Gods in heaven and the legend has it that Gods unanimously plotted against the end of his reign.
Though king Mahabali had an Asura (demon) origin , he was the great king of , for, by his people and an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu and he was such a perfect king known for his extreme generosity and kindness that his subjects literally worshiped him and which eventually became a threat to Gods in heaven and the legend has it that Gods unanimously plotted against the end of his reign.
Lord Vishnu himself took his fifth avatar as a
Vamana ( a dwarf Brahmin) and took advantage of the king’s weakness, his nature
of generosity and extreme kindness and requested lands in the form of alms and just about his three foot long.
For which King agreed happily though he was warned by his advisor that the Vamana is no ordinary Brahmin, which king ignored saying he gave the word already and he was going to keep it at all cost and he did at the cost of everything including his life.
As once the king agreed to gift lands,Vamana’s foot size increased to the size of cosmic proportion and he with his first step covered the entire Earth and second step covered entire skies and for third King himself bowed down his head and asked Vamana to place his foot on his head as king understood this was certainly not an ordinary Brahmin and his third step if not it was his head would have led to the destruction of the Earth.
For which King agreed happily though he was warned by his advisor that the Vamana is no ordinary Brahmin, which king ignored saying he gave the word already and he was going to keep it at all cost and he did at the cost of everything including his life.
As once the king agreed to gift lands,Vamana’s foot size increased to the size of cosmic proportion and he with his first step covered the entire Earth and second step covered entire skies and for third King himself bowed down his head and asked Vamana to place his foot on his head as king understood this was certainly not an ordinary Brahmin and his third step if not it was his head would have led to the destruction of the Earth.
It was mission accomplished for Lord Vishnu as he
placed his foot on the King’s head and pushed him to the nether world,the paathala
loka where Lord Vishnu revealed his true supreme self and was quite pleased with king’s true devotion
towards him and as well as to his people of his kingdom and asked him to have a
wish fulfilled.
Upon which King Mahabali requested that he would love to visit his people of his kingdom once a year and it was happily granted which is nowadays celebrated with great pomp and show by Malayalees not only in Kerala but also in every part of the world as a tribute and like a thanksgiving day to the king of kings who definitely made Kerala once God’s own country as Onam.
Upon which King Mahabali requested that he would love to visit his people of his kingdom once a year and it was happily granted which is nowadays celebrated with great pomp and show by Malayalees not only in Kerala but also in every part of the world as a tribute and like a thanksgiving day to the king of kings who definitely made Kerala once God’s own country as Onam.
Isn’t that a wonderful story? My achcha/papa told me this story. Since I was raised in North India , my parents would always remind us of
our Kairali traditions and fables associated whenever possible and I love stories and my dad is a great story
teller .The way he would narrate any story acted like a time travel machine,
definitely would transport me back to those times .Not to mention, I was glued to my
seat and loved all those stories from my daddy dearest…hmmm…Nostalgiccc !!!
Anyways, though Onam is a 10 day festival , it's like a month long preparation and celebration.It is at this time it would be quite memorable to
walk down the streets of Kerala where there are happiness in every face,there
are twinkles of joys in every eyes,peace at heart,worries sans smiles more,unity
in diversity , family reunion at every house irrespective of how busy life is..
in all rekindling and recreating traditions with hearty participation &
merriment from one and all.
The best part,it is also the best time to shop as there will be hell loads of discounts in every shop and best time to buy more,spend less.Also best time to get Onakodis meaning Onam dresses from relatives.During my childhood days I wished every day was Onam .😋
So, on this day people irrespective of any
religion,caste,creed would do special prayers,
wear new clothes,make sure their house is tidy and decorated especially with a flower carpet called 'Pookalam' or rangoli of flowers in Hindi in front of
their houses, to welcome King Mahabali, followed by a family gathering,
relishing a lavish feast with 14-30 or even more homemade curries and sweet
payasam especially on a plantain leaf. Followed by dances,music, magnificent
Carnivals of elephants, fireworks, boat races etc. In fact ,a day for sheer
enjoyment and remembrance.
So,today being the first holy day of Onam , I am gonna start
with the sweet of the feast that can make anyone drooling especially my man ,the payasam or kheer
in Hindi made with moong dal /yellow dal payasam popularly know as Parrippu Pradhaman in Malayalam.
Here is how I make my quick and easy Parrippu Pradhaman/Parippu payasam :
Parrippu Pradhaman/Parippu payasam
Ingredients
Split Mung beans/split yellow moong Dal - 3/4-1 cup
Grated jaggery - 1 - 1 1/2 cup
Thin Coconut Milk /Moonam Pal - 1 1/2 cup
Semi thick coconut milk/Randaam Pal - 1 1/2 cup
Semi thick coconut milk/Randaam Pal - 1 1/2 cup
Thick Coconut Milk /Onnam Pal - 1-2 cups
Dry ginger powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Cumin powder - 1/4 teaspoon (optional)
Cardamom powder- 1/2 teaspoon or 3-4 cardamom pieces
Salt a pinch (optional)
Salt a pinch (optional)
Ghee - 4 tbsp
Cashew nuts ,Raisins – As desired
Coconut pieces,broken/chopped- A few
Preparation method: Pls watch my video that will show you how to make this parippu payasam/pradhaman at home :
Notes:
1.For making the homestyle coconut
milk , grate a coconut, mix it in a glass of warm water,keep it aside
for a few minutes and then squeeze the milk using hand or mixer and
strain it,which will be the thick coconut milk/Onnam paal in malayalam.Take the squeezed grated coconut used before repeat the method again and extract which will produce the thin coconut milk/Randaam paal.Strain it.
There are also ready made coconut milk available in the market.That can be substituted as well.For thick version use just as it is and for thinner version, dilute little water to it.Follow the instruction on the can or pack.
or watch my video that shows how to extract coconut milk at home ?
or watch my video that shows how to extract coconut milk at home ?
2. I pressure cooked dal,jaggery and thin coconut milk to make the method faster and mashed it lightly later (my hubby likes it that way) otherwise pressure cook dal, then add jaggery and thin milk to it and boil it until the mixture gets thickened.
3. Coconut bits are the secret ingredient in this Payasam. Don't avoid it.
As someone said, "Life becomes a
festival when gaiety and culture blend. Onam delivers the message of
both."...Here's wishing all Keralites a Happy Onam in advance...Hope everyone will have a blessed and fun filled days since today for ever.....
Happy Atham in advance !
