Showing posts with label Kashmiri Festivals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kashmiri Festivals. Show all posts

Friday, March 22, 2019

Teela Aetham

Teela Aetham festival is celebrated by Kashmiri Pandits. This is a festival held on the 8th day of the bright fortnight of Phalguna month (February - March) of the lunar calendar.
In effect it is the culmination of the Shivaratri festivities as also bidding adieu to the shivering winter. To begin with, pooja is offered at home and a number of oil lamps are lit. These lamps are taken to the river bank and floated on grass bases in the river after the prescribed pooja. Afterwards, old Kangris (fire pots) are filled with grass. A long rope is tied to its handle and fire is lit in it. Then the kangri is moved round and round in circles rhythmically till the whole kangri burns down. Then it is hurled faraway into the waters of the flowing river. While doing so the children cryout, ‘Jateen teen, Jateen teen’; meaning that it is a flame, it is burning.

Sonth

Sonth for Kashmiri Pandits heralds the Spring season, similar to Navreh which is the New Lunar Year. It is customary in Kashmiri Pandit community to celebrate with ‘Thal Barun’ (loosely translated as filling of plate). A plate is filled overnight with rice, yoghurt, milk, nuts, cake, flower, bread, pen, gold coin, vhy (a herb root), picture of a deity or the goddess, except for to place the new Panchang which is done only on the occasion of Navreh.
This is kept covered for the night and early in the morning every member of the family views the contents of the plate, first thing after getting up from the bed and seeks blessings for the year to follow.
It is considered as an omen of prosperity, happiness and knowledge. In earlier times people would go to the river bank, take a dip and throw these nuts in the water then offer Puja at homes or in temples.
A Vedic explanation of Sonth (Thal Barun) is explained as follows;
Ancient Vedic Rishis have bifurcated our Solar system into 12 slots known as 12 signs (Rashi’s).
Each slot comprises of 30 degrees out of total of 360 Degrees.
Sun takes a month i.e. 30 days to cover these 30 degrees and when ever Sun enters new 30 degree slot (sign or Rashi) that event or Day is known as Sankrati.
There are total 12 Sankrati in a solar year except during Malmass year wherein the name of 13th Sun is known as Malinmunch (mal mass).
While as the Moon takes only 2.25 days to cover a 30 degree slot. Moon covers the entire ecliptic path in just approximately 29 day while as sun takes a year.
Whenever creation of this Universe started, it must have started from 0 degree.
We celebrated our new year when both Sun and Moon reach to their starting point and that happens on Navreh day.
The Solar year reaches to its last slot of 30 degrees, when sun enters Meen Rashi - Pisces. The Sun as usual stays in this last slot for 30 days.
The day when Sun enters last slot to reach Zero degrees to start its new year is known as Sonth.
Sun remains in this last slot from Sonth day upto Vaishakhi day.
Meanwhile Moon too completes the 2.25 days in Pisces – Mean Rashi to reach 0 Degree, the day of Navreh.
The dark fortnight of Moon during this last slot is known as Kreel Paksh. This fortnight was used to give a just of calander for queries if any from public. Those queries were incorporated in new Jantri to be used on Navreh.
We start the Solar year from Sonth and Lunar from Navreh.


Friday, February 10, 2017

Kaw Punim

Kaw Punim is one of the unique festivals of the Kashmiri Hindus. The full moon of the lunar month Magha is also known as Purnima of the crow. Two sticks are tied in the shape of a cross and on the open ends of the cross grass is woven to make a long handled flat spoon. Again after some pooja, yellow rice is served on this spoon to be offered to the crow. The children sing a melodious song while making the offering to the crow. The song loosely translated reads thus:
Kaw Bhatt Kawo,
Khechrey Kawo.
Gangabala Sharana Karith,
Gurey Mechey Tyoka Karith.
Walbha Saney Larey Pyeth,
Dal Bata Khyene
(O clever crow;  
O, the lover of khichri, crow;  
Come to our new house along with your spouse;  
Be seated on the threshold of our roof – 
And partake of the salty pudding)


This festival is indicative of the love that the Kashmiris have had for the birds and the care they took of them. It may be worth mentioning that every Kashmiri household will scatter some cooked rice on a wooden shelf kept outside the house everyday before serving food to any member of the house. This shelf kept near the top right hand corner of the window is called Kaw paet - a shelf for the crow. Likewise every person keeps apart a little rice from his or her plate to be fed to the dogs. This is called Hoonya myet - the roll of rice for the dog. This shows the compassionate nature of the Kashmiris for the animal world. No doubt the Gita defines a Pandit as one who treats equally a well read Brahmin, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a downcast chandala who devours dog-flesh.

Monday, March 23, 2015

Zang Trai

Zang Trai falls on the 3rd day of the Navreh. On this day all the Kashmiri Pandit Women visit their parental house as a ritual and on their return their parents give them salt and atghat (some money) as a token of prosperity and good omen.
Zang Trai is associated with the first unit of ascent in the Shakti tradition of Kashmir, Known as Vagbhava koot. The nine days of Navaratra are divided in "Three units of deliberation", the First Deliberation is revered as the Vagbhava Koot, the source of Vaakh Parampara (tradition) in Kashmir. The Rishikaas (wives of Sapta Rishis) would hold their own deliberations for their spiritual enlightenment and social awareness. This type of socio-spiritual gathering was convened by the parents of the Rishikas. A wonderful social interaction and respect for daughters is seen in this deliberation.
The Devi Kavacham also establishes that Zang/Jangha in Sanskrit is the abode of Sarva Kaama Pradayini Devi. Here Kaama means the inner recesses of the heart filled with love and dedication. 

Friday, March 20, 2015

Navreh


Kashmiri Pandits celebrate their New Year’s Day on the first day of the bright half of the month of Chaitra (March–April) and call it Navreh - the word navreh, derived from the Sanskrit ‘nava varsha’, literary meaning ‘new year’. The Kashmiri Pandit families that migrated to the plains before 1900 also celebrate Navreh with great pride. On the eve of Navreh, a platter of unhusked rice with a bread, a cup of yogurt, a little salt, a little sugar candy, a few walnuts or almonds, a silver coin, a pen, a mirror, some flowers (rose, marigold, crocus, or jasmine) and the new panchanga or almanac is kept and seen as the first thing on waking up in the morning. This ritual is more or less the same as the Haft Sin of the Iranian and Zoroastrian Nowruz. The Bhringisha Samhita says that the platter should be of bronze (kansyapatraka). The same ritual is observed on Sonth or the Kashmiri spring festival.

The Saptarshi Era of the Kashmiri Hindu calendar is believed to have started on this very day, some 5079 years ago. According to the legend, the celebrated Sapta Rishis assembled on the Sharika Parvata (Hari Parbat), the abode of the goddesss Sharika, at the auspicious moment when the first ray of the sun fell on the Chakreshvara on this day and paid tribute to her. Astrologers made this moment as the basis of their calculations of the nava varsha pratipada, marking the beginning of the Saptarshi Era. Before their exodus Kashmiri Pandits would flock to Hari Parbat in thousands to celebrate Navreh.

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Punn

Punn, which means thread in Kashmiri, literary continues unbroken even in exile. Punn is a festival that is celebrated by the Kashmiri Pandits with much aplomb and religious fervour in the month of Bhadon (August/September). The festival falls on the Ganesh Chaturthi (Vinayaka Tsoram) day, with worship of Lakshmi and Ganesha being a common feature of this festival.
After exodus, when many festivals and customs have lost their original charm, Punn festival is still celebrated with the same devotion with which it was celebrated in Kashmir. Perhaps it has something to do with its simplicity and the social message it carries.
Most Kashmiri Pandits remember by heart the story told during Punn Puja mostly by a elder of the household, which is quite similar to the Satyanaryana Katha. The much loved story begins``It was the month of Bhadon, Venayak Chorum te Athwar (fourth lunar day and Sunday), a long time ago, in Kashmir there was a Hindu king ruling comfortably''.
The special feature of this festival is the Roth (sweet thick pancakes fried in ghee) that are prepared and later after puja distributed among relatives, neighbours and friends for ushering in prosperity and auspiciousness..
In Kashmir where Pandits used to live in distinct localities far away from each other, Punn festival also helped in keeping social links active as each household had to distribute Naveed (prasad) of this function in the form of Roth to all their neighbours, relatives and even strangers.
According to the renowned Kashmiri scholar Dr Shashi Shekhar Toshkhani, Punn festival was originally associated with the spinning of newly produced cotton and worshipping the twin agrarian local goddesses, Vibha and Garbha to whom roths were offered. Though scholars dispute that Kashmir is not suitable for growing cotton, but the traditions seems to have preserved the earlier agricultural practices in codified rituals, which suggest that cotton might have been grown in Kashmir in the past.
The twin goddesses later seem to have merged into one another assuming the identity of the folk deity Beeb Garabh Maj (Beeb Garabh Mother), which is represented by a small brass water pot (gadwa) which is placed in the centre of the place where Puja is performed. A cotton thread is tied to neck of the water pot and a handful of runner grass (dramun) is kept inside the pot.
The Story:
There lived a poor Brahmin family comprising of Brahmin, his wife and beautiful young daughter. Brahmin used to support his family by pittance collections he used to get as Bhikshya. The daughter used to go to the forest for collection of firewood. One day during the month of Bhadoon Shakula Paksh on 4th day, when she was in the forest, she saw some Devis descending from Heaven. She hid herself behind a tree and was keen to watch them and to know why they have come to the forest. She saw Devis cardooning off an area and cleaning it thoroughly. They Devis started kneading wheat flour and mixed sugar and ghee and cardamom etc in it and then they baked it on hot plate.. After finishing Devis looked around to find a girl, as they could not perform Pooja without presence of a girl. They took the notice of Brahmin girl hiding behind the tree and called her over. They gave her a bath and a new dress to wear. After finishing pooja they gave her Roth prasad and some money as Dakshana. After this the Devis left for their abode. The Brahmin girl was dazed with what she witnessed and was happy to receive new clothes and some money. She went to her home where her parents scolded and thrashed her on her possessions. They thought that she has got it some ill means. The Brahmin girl narrated to them entire thing that she had witnessed but her parents did not trust her. Days passed by and the routine of their hardships followed.
Brahmin girl developed a desire within to do same thing what Devis had done on the same auspicious day next year. She started preparations for the same in advance. Having no money with her, she collected cow dung where from she separated wheat grain and collected them over for some days, dried them and converted them into flour. She could not afford sugar or ghee and thus made roth without these materials on the auspicious day after cleaning the area etc as Devis had done. This she was doing with absolute faith, which was being witnessed by Devis in their abode and they were happy with such dedicated faith of Brahmin girl. Devis decided to reward her. The Brahmin girl performed pooja of Roths, which she had kept under a cover. After pooja when she removed the cover she was astonished to see Roths converted into golden cakes. She could not believe her stars but knew it was a miracle possible only by blessing of Devis. Thus she thanked Devis and rushed to her home with prized possession. On seeing golden cakes, her parents locked her in a room and thrashed her to maximum thinking that this time she has done some bigger crime. The girl kept on pleading and pleading and told them everything she had done, but her parents did not believe her. During the night Devis came in the dream of her parents and told them about what girl had done and that she should be treated nicely. On listening to Devis, the parents blessed the girl with love and affection. Thus the status of Brahmin family improved and they kept on repeating this Roth puja every year. Devis kept on blessing them with prosperity and wealth.
Years passed by, and one day the King of the state was returning from hunting expedition when he took notice of Brahmin girl who was relaxing under a tree in her courtyard. Her youth and charm fascinated the king and he decided to marry her. He summoned her father to the court next day and asked for his daughter's hand. The marriage was solemnised with great pomp and show and the Brahmin girl became queen of the state.
When the Roth day was approaching, she asked the King to arrange the materials for the performance of Roth Pooja. King asked his minister to do the necessary arrangements. The Minister ill advised the King that it was just a fantasy of the queen and it was not necessary. He did not believe that she could have afforded the material that the queen had asked for while she was not married. He suggested that it was her greed that she is demanding such a huge amount of materials for doing some Puja of which he had not heard of. The king was convinced by Minister's logic and refused to give any material to the queen.
The queen was very upset and she pleaded with the king. She cried and begged of King without any luck. She went to Puja room and begged of Devis to pardon her for no fault of hers.
During the night King dreamt of Devis who warned him that he would lose his kingdom next day as he had not fulfilled the necessary arrangements requested by the queen. Very next day, neighbouring state king invaded his kingdom and he was dethroned and exiled. He realised his mistake and asked his wife to pardon him. His wife in turn asked him to seek pardon from Devis and to take a pledge not to do such things in future. He prayed and prayed and prayed. Finally Devis took mercy on him and blessed him since he vowed to perform this pooja irrespective of whatever condition he would be in. Next day the faithful soldiers of the King who got wind of where the king was hiding came to see him. They assembled in large numbers and worked out a plan to conquer back their kingdom. In next few days the King with the help of his soldiers regained his kingdom. Ever since the king and entire state performed the Roth Pooja every year.
Concluding prayer:
Now we pray Almighty to bless us in the same way as they blessed the Brahmin girl and to strive in us a true, dedicated & strong faith in the pooja.