Bhog Naivedya: Food offerings to the gods by Sujata Shukla Rajan; An Excerpt

Bhog Naivedya by Sujata Shukla Rajan delves into the origins of sacred foods in India and brings forth its incredible diversity. An edited excerpt from Attukal Pongala: When A City Becomes A Hearth

For a few days in a year, the atmosphere of the city changes, normal life comes to a standstill and the women of Kerala take over every street and pavement. In early March 2020, just when the pandemic was beginning to sweep the globe, I had the unsurpassable experience of being part of this women’s congregation. Reading about the festival did not prepare me for the sight of thousands of women coming together to worship the Goddess. Two to three days earlier, the pilgrims had begun trickling in and then came in waves, carrying pots, firewood and materials like rice, jaggery, coconuts, etc. Some had the good fortune of having relatives or friends who welcomed them into their homes. Others, like me, took recourse to guest houses, Airbnbs, hotels, hostels or whatever was available. A large number slept at the roadside and in the compounds of the bus and train stations. This as much a cultural event as a religious festival and women who participate are from every religion, caste and creed, and from Kerala and outside. From at least three days ahead, a set of three bricks with a slip of paper bearing the name of the devotee, marked the hearths ‘reserved’ by the pilgrims along every road around the Attukal Bhagavathy Amman Temple, Padmanabhaswamy Temple and the Palace, the most coveted spots. In fact, every street and by-lane across the city, within a radius of about 20 km from the Bhagavathy Temple, had these ‘brick reservations’ made on the pavements. Many had placed empty earthenware or aluminium pots with lids, on the bricks. The spacing between hearths was almost exact, each pilgrim leaving just as much elbow room as she would need for carrying out the rituals.

The city administration had ensured that the roads were cleaned and had publicized the rules through posters and announcements by loudspeaker—no hearths may be set up on tiled footpaths or on roads earmarked as emergency access roads; devotees and vendors are asked not to use plastic or to throw waste anywhere except in waste bins. The temples were filled with long queues of women in their off-white sarees, seeking darshanam of Padmanabhaswamy, Pazhavangadi Maha Ganapathi and Bhagavathy Amman before the festival. The streets and shops had a festive air and a wide variety of goods were on sale. Coloured bulbs lit up every facade, including the temples and traffic stations. Devotional music blared from loudspeakers at every street corner.

Many people across the globe, including interested foreigners, come to witness the festival, which has been recognized in the Guinness Book of Records, but in 2020, because of the pandemic, the local administration had barred the entry of foreigners to the areas where Pongala was being celebrated.

I had come to the city at this time especially to observe the festival and take notes, and had assumed that fires would be lit, and pongala prepared and offered, and it shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes for me to see everything I needed to and take a few photographs of the event. I soon realized how wrong I was!

That Monday morning, on 9 March 2020, I left early for my appointment and by some miracle, was able to flag down a passing autorickshaw. The discussion with a senior priest of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple was both engrossing and illuminating and my head was filled with all that I had learnt when I walked to the main road nearby. Seeing a small restaurant just at the crossroads opposite the entrance to the temple, I stopped for breakfast and coffee. The scenario around me had quickly changed— the road was no longer empty. On either side as far as the eye could see, a row of women had taken their place behind their hearths. I no longer wanted to get back to the room, not when this promising scene was ready to be enacted before me. Stopping by four gorgeous ladies in their traditional gold-bordered Kerala sarees and eyes lined with kohl, I introduced myself and got into conversation with them. As it happened, I spent the day with them and by their kindness and friendship, became a participant instead of a mere observer of the Attukal Pongala Festival.

It is an edited excerpt. Bhog Naivedya: Food offerings to the gods, authored by Sujata Shukla Rajan published by Rupa. Pages 232-234.

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