An interesting question posted in a personality contest at my firm…explain the legend of Onam and its purpose. Something you would expect every mallu to answer convincingly. Maybe the situation overwhelmed the contestants. Sitting out there my mind wandered and what struck me as odd was the legend itself. A sad and noble tale where the heavens played foul.
Here is this good king who gets taught a lesson, by Vishnu himself. One expects Vishnu to crack some sense into Lord Indra and his lot and ask them to clean up their act. Instead, Uncle Vishnu decides to entertain Indra(!) and decides to punish our poor Mahabali…comes down camouflaged as a poor Brahmin and asks for a some real estate…even when Mahabali realizes the trap set, all he asks is just an annual trip to be with his people…I tell you, the legend never made sense…
So what are we celebrating then? I believe we are not celebrating a giant personality’s (if ever there was one!) nobility or sacrifice but rather an ideal. An ‘ideal governance’ when things were just perfect…a time when things were considered the best…there are some important ‘take-aways’ in this story. One, a suggestion that, probably, there is no political system that can better a benevolent autocracy. When you have a perfect political system, what you essentially achieve is ‘heaven’ right here on earth. Two, and more importantly, heaven is not something elusive but one, that can be recreated by an human being with the right conduct.
Heaven was created in Kerala. My home state. And perhaps, that explains the label ‘God’s own country’ too.. No wonder, Indra and the devas got really pissed at the idea of losing their differentiation. Maybe the roots to communism and socialistic leanings go back to the times of Mahabali I guess.
The contestants are asked again…how do we celebrate Onam?
Again a voidness…a guilt. All we know these days is watch the latest flicks or buy some crazy discounted gadgets… Senseless consumerism. That’s how we have come to celebrate anything. With the latest malls and exclusive outlets, there is no more thrill in an Onakodi…you get better bargains during clearance sales…I was wondering how in old days, people celebrated their Onam. Perhaps, walked a mile to see a Kathakali Aattam or some Onakali. Today, a mallu would rather be glued to a IPL or teleported to some euro-soccer setting, thanks to globalisation. We have lost as much as we have gained from globalisation. With the visual media onslaught@home, nothing thrills you any more…any day can be made Onam…perhaps Onam makes a difference only to the poor these days.
And Time, the last casualty. Onam in my corporate world is just a two-day affair…no different from a weekend...but should it be just another festive season?…I believe it should have been at least a week, where, the entire system switches off to celebrate an ideal. But I guess, being connected to the rest of the world, one cannot shut shop and celebrate in isolation.
anyway, the guilt lingers…I celebrated Onam with a new 42’ inch LCD jumbo.
Here is this good king who gets taught a lesson, by Vishnu himself. One expects Vishnu to crack some sense into Lord Indra and his lot and ask them to clean up their act. Instead, Uncle Vishnu decides to entertain Indra(!) and decides to punish our poor Mahabali…comes down camouflaged as a poor Brahmin and asks for a some real estate…even when Mahabali realizes the trap set, all he asks is just an annual trip to be with his people…I tell you, the legend never made sense…
So what are we celebrating then? I believe we are not celebrating a giant personality’s (if ever there was one!) nobility or sacrifice but rather an ideal. An ‘ideal governance’ when things were just perfect…a time when things were considered the best…there are some important ‘take-aways’ in this story. One, a suggestion that, probably, there is no political system that can better a benevolent autocracy. When you have a perfect political system, what you essentially achieve is ‘heaven’ right here on earth. Two, and more importantly, heaven is not something elusive but one, that can be recreated by an human being with the right conduct.
Heaven was created in Kerala. My home state. And perhaps, that explains the label ‘God’s own country’ too.. No wonder, Indra and the devas got really pissed at the idea of losing their differentiation. Maybe the roots to communism and socialistic leanings go back to the times of Mahabali I guess.
The contestants are asked again…how do we celebrate Onam?
Again a voidness…a guilt. All we know these days is watch the latest flicks or buy some crazy discounted gadgets… Senseless consumerism. That’s how we have come to celebrate anything. With the latest malls and exclusive outlets, there is no more thrill in an Onakodi…you get better bargains during clearance sales…I was wondering how in old days, people celebrated their Onam. Perhaps, walked a mile to see a Kathakali Aattam or some Onakali. Today, a mallu would rather be glued to a IPL or teleported to some euro-soccer setting, thanks to globalisation. We have lost as much as we have gained from globalisation. With the visual media onslaught@home, nothing thrills you any more…any day can be made Onam…perhaps Onam makes a difference only to the poor these days.
And Time, the last casualty. Onam in my corporate world is just a two-day affair…no different from a weekend...but should it be just another festive season?…I believe it should have been at least a week, where, the entire system switches off to celebrate an ideal. But I guess, being connected to the rest of the world, one cannot shut shop and celebrate in isolation.
anyway, the guilt lingers…I celebrated Onam with a new 42’ inch LCD jumbo.
Good to see you blog after a long time...I remember we studying in our Malayalam books in Junior school how Onam was celebrated...Onakali, kathakali etc...Don't know how the books read these days...may be they have modernised that as well!
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