Pongalo pongal-பொங்கலோ பொங்கல்
It is that special day every year, we celebrate the harvest of rice, turmeric and all other food grains from the field and the farmers thank the Sun God for being so kind and for showing up everyday unconditionally. The warmth that allows our life to not just survive but flourish. This festival is called Pongal in Tamilnadu household and as Sankaranthi in Karnataka.
As a part of our tradition, we welcome almost every festival with கோலம் (Kolam) at the entrance of our house. I enjoy doing this with my mom so much and I am thankful that I get to recreate the same memories with my little one too.
I will walk you through the various patterns that we have been using at home. Based on the occasion, usage of these patterns differ. This pattern of art on floor can be with
வண்ண கோலம்(Vanna kolam) — Colourful free hand patterns
புள்ளி கோலம் (pulli kolam)— Dot Pattern
படி கோலம் (padi kolam) — Line Pattern
சிக்கு கோலம் (sikku kolam) — Curves Pattern
We use rice flour to draw the outlines of the pattern during general celebrations and festivals. We use colours along with it. For everyday kolam pattern and almost for all the independent patterns, we use the rice flour alone. Rice flour was used as a feed for squirrel, crow and ants that co-exist and share a co-habitat with us. If we try to pin it to a particular era for origin, we see the mention of Kolam in ‘Kuravanji’ nool , a tamil literature work from 15th/16th century.
Kolam are seen as a way of paying gratitude to Mother Earth — Bhudevi. It is a mark of respect to welcome Goddess Lakshmi inside the house and signifies the environment that is ready to thrive with abundance.
In ancient days, to express their sorrow, a family that is not celebrating a festival used to avoid putting a kolam in front of their house for an year as a mark of respect for the lost loved one in the house. Recent medical studies signify that kolams have a therapeutic effect on kids and adults.
Types of Kolam:
Ponga-paanai — kolam -வண்ண கோலம் — Colourful free hand patterns:
Kolam representing the festival, pongal with a வண்ண கோலம், displaying the pots used to make the pongal dish which is made from the fresh harvest of rice and moong dal from the field today as part of Pongal celebration. Sugarcane and turmeric plant shoots are the other harvests that are cherished during this festival. The entire month of Margazhi (Tamil month — December mid to January mid in English calendar)is dedicated to intense Kolam drills in the state of Tamilnadu.
புள்ளி கோலம் — Dot Pattern:
We did this above pattern during a kolam competition in our street. Kolams, with their hexagons, dotted grids, hidden motifs, and loops, have also been used in mathematical studies. The pullis (dots), straight line, circle, triangle, and square all have symbolic meaning in expressing the universe’s essential energy. Vanna Kolam and Pulli kolam are explored more during this margazhi month and for some celebrations like Bhogi and Pongal.
Padi kolam -படி கோலம் — Line Pattern:
This is our house traditional pattern that we use for wedding and for some of the important festivals like Krishna-Janmashtami, Karadayan Nombu, Deepavali and Karthigai. Geometric, figurative, and landscape styles, as well as combinations of these, can be seen in the designs.
சிக்கு கோலம் — Curves Pattern
To symbolise particular forces or qualities embedded in some aspect of creation, evolution, or dissolution, basic geometrical shapes are merged and overlapped in increasingly complex designs.Large, complicated labyrinth kolams are created on a series of dots as their base in complex designs.
There are much more varieties and intricacies that are explored with kolam. Some of these designs are specific to the household and they are handed down across generations. I have observed this first step of every festival, marks a joyous colourful event and it instantly fills up the family and the neighbours who see it with a festive mood.
Hope you enjoyed reading about our practice. Pongalo Pongal to you!
Have a wonderful day 🙂!
