Happy Pongal

 I wouldn't call myself a "festival person." The usual revelry didn't excite me much, merely serving as another break from routine. This season, however, something shifted. Witnessing the vast labour woven into these celebrations sparked a curiosity about Pongal's origins and its influence on our ancestors' lives and culture.

In our tech-saturated world, where everything sits nestled within a screen, grasping the necessity of those old-world festivities proves challenging. Back then, farmers toiled relentlessly for six months, without respite, to secure their harvest. From coaxing seedlings to nurturing rice, they poured their all. The risks were manifold, but a successful harvest meant sustenance until the next cycle. It's no wonder such a hard-won break demanded a vibrant celebration—a festival of gratitude.

Pongal is that very celebration. A four-day Thanksgiving festival. Bhogi, on the first day, cleanses and readies the home for the bounty to come. Pongal, the main event, showers gratitude upon the sun, that life-giving star illuminating our world. The third day honours the cattle, our tillers and milk-givers. Finally, the fourth day embraces friends and neighbours, ensuring no one stands alone in the festival's joy.

Modernity, with its focus on technology, has arguably distanced us from the essence of such traditions. Yet, agriculture still feeds us, and honouring the farmers' sacrifices remains our unwavering duty. While embracing cultural evolution is vital, holding onto the core values and spirit of our traditions is equally important. After all, our ancestors' primary dance was with the land, and its legacy nourishes us even today.

So, Happy Pongal, everyone! May happiness bathe you like sunlight, making this festival season a radiant testament to joy and prosperity.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Try to Behave Ideally: A Personal Journey

  Try to Behave Ideally: A Personal Journey Back in 2003, a single piece of advice from my professor lodged itself in my memory. He said, “Try to behave ideally in every situation, encounter, and challenge that you face in your life.” At the time, I balked. “If I lived like that,” I argued, “I’d be a monk—sacrificing the full spectrum of human emotion.” He smiled and pointed out the power word: try. No one can be ideal all the time, he said, but aspiring toward that goal is its own path. I agreed, but only skimmed the surface of what “ideal” might truly mean. Wrestling with “Ideal” Lately, that old admonition has been surfacing more and more. I find myself asking: What is “ideal,” anyway? Is it fixed or does it change from person to person? Should I rigidly follow my own belief system, or defer to someone else’s? In a societal context, what guides me when ideals collide—my ideal, theirs, or the common good? These questions tumbled around in my mind, demanding deeper ...
Read more

Unified Wave-Thought Field Framework

Image
Unified Wave-Thought Field Framework (UWTF) A metaphysical-physical model of reality as continuous wave motion embedded in a dynamic thought-plasma field.  I.   Foundational Substrate Unified Medium (UM) All existence arises from a single metaphysical-physical substrate — the Unified Medium. This medium expresses itself in two complementary modes: Wave Mode → manifest matter (particles, energy, bodies). Field Mode → distributed thought-field (non-local, emotional-intellectual presence). Every phenomenon is either a wave in space or a density in thought, or a mixture of both. II.   Wave Dynamics — Matter Representation Matter is Wave Each entity is a waveform in the Unified Medium: Mass ↔ Amplitude of the wave (intensity, gravitational “weight”). Size ↔ Wavelength or Frequency (extent of influence, resolution). Velocity ↔ Rate of Information Generation (time consciousness). These waves exist in 3D space but leave ripples in the thought-field ...
Read more

Why We Must Question the Legends We Create

There’s a curious human tendency to martyrize people after their death—especially public figures. It doesn’t matter whether they were divisive, corrupt, or even responsible for atrocities during their lifetime; once they’re gone, time seems to wash away their flaws. Over the years, society elevates them to legendary or even divine status, often forgetting the moral complexity they carried. This is especially true for political leaders. We’ve seen cases where individuals convicted of corruption or responsible for violence are later remembered as heroes. Their darker deeds are softened, rationalized, or completely erased from public memory, replaced with carefully crafted tributes and sanitized biographies. It brings to mind the old saying: “History is written by the victors.” Those who gain power often shape the narrative—not just in their favor, but sometimes at the cost of truth. Our school textbooks, national holidays, and public statues often reflect a single-pointed version of ...
Read more