the meaning of thaipusam

Thaipusam as everyone knows is a celebration by the Hindus. As a Christian, I am not celebrating it but I guess it's not a problem to know and understand the meaning of this celebration. According to a source (The Tamil Thaipusam Festival), Thaipusam is celebrated every year on the full moon day in the month of Thai, and this year (2011) it falls on the day of tomorrow. (20th of January) The best thing is, it's Holiday. Yeah~ For me holiday means no lecture, so no pressure.

So back to the meaning of this festival, it marks two occasions in Hindu tradition:

• The birth of Lord Murugan (also called as Subramaniam, Skanda or Karthikeya), the Tamil god of war and youngest son of the Hindu gods Shiva and Parvati.
• The victory of Murugan over the evil demon Soorapadman.

The Tamil word pusam actually refers to a star that is at its highest position during the festival. Since it is celebrated in the month of Thai, therefore it is called Thaipusam. Behind this festival, there is a legend of a demon called Soorapadman. He was protected against death from the hands of mortals and deities alike. Since he felt invincible, he soon started to tormenting those he deemed weak.

To overcome the protection of Soorapadman, Shiva created a new deity which is Lord Murugan. He was given a spear by Parvati so he could go out and fight the demon. The demon sensing defeat turned himself into a tree but to no avail, Murugan split the tree with his spear in half. Half of the tree turned into a flag and the other into a peacock by himself. Murugan ordered the latter to embed itself onto the flag and used it thereafter as his battle standard.

Back at my hometown, there's no Hindu so I could only watch them on TV when I was little. One thing that I remember was a scene where they will pierce their own body with spears and other sharp objects. My teacher used to say that it is something like atonement? Whatever it is, there are also some other ways to celebrate this festival. It can be in the form of:

• Giving out water to devotees or providing first aid and other services.
• Preparing special food (annadanam); daal, rice or vegetarian curry.
• Carrying a 'burden' called kavadi or kavathi.

In Malaysia, Hindus will visit Batu Caves to celebrate it. Batu Caves is a place where the shrine dedicated for Lord Murugan was made. The devotees will be observing various rituals that are meant to purify body and mind.

• Observing a 48-day fast before the festival consisting of one vegetarian meal a day.
• Praying extensively at home and at the temple.
• Abstaining from carnal pleasures.
• Observing silence as much as possible.

On this day, an idol representing Lord Murugan will be carried from one Karthikeya temple to another. Devotees shave thier heads or facial hair as a sign of penance before joining the procession. The kavadi attarm is a popular kavadi dance performed by everyone in honor of Murugan, the Lord of Dance. Thaipusam is a family affair and supporting a kavadi bearer is every family's duty and honor.

Here are the list of different kavadis:

• A pot of milk carried on the head.
• A small spear pierced through the tongue to symbolize the vow of silence.
• A metal rod pierced through the mouth signifying that the devotee has denounced the gift of speech temporarily and channeled his energy toward god.
• Hooking smaller burdens like lemons, oranges or coconuts into one's flesh (on the chest or back)
• Bigger hooks attached to a devotee's back and used to pull a cart
• A portable altar of around 15 kg that is placed on a devotee's shoulders and secured with metal rods to back and chest.

Bearing these burdens are not painless. It also hurt our own eyes to watch the whole scene. So, how they can bear such burden? Carrying the kavadi cannot be done without devotion and belief. Therefore, the bearers are put into a trance (half-conscious state) by swami who will then skewer the skin or otherwise attach the various burdens. In fact, the atmosphere is so charged that even many a bystander is said to have fallen into a trance.

Once the kavadi beares reach the Murugan temple, a swami will remove the various hooks and spears and sprinkles holy ash on the pierced flesh. The kavadi bearer is said to feel no pain throughout and no scars remain, just elation and relief to have fulfilled the vow.

Wow. This celebration is for sure so full of meaning and rituals for them. Sometimes when reading the article about it, I could sense some similarities between my own religion and this festival especially the using of ash. and fasting days. Whatever it is, it's nice to know something about others and I believe the meaning of this festival is no other than the victory of good over evil which could be accepted by everyone.

 The statue of Lord Murugan in Batu Caves

 Carrying the kavadi

Piercings