Today we will explore Kettukazhcha and Kuthiyottam!
Kettukazhcha and Kuthiyottam is an offering of the people of Alappuzha to their beloved deity - "Goddess Kali"
Kettukazhcha :
Kettukazhcha is the most marvelous visual spectacle of Central Kerala (Alappuzha ,Kollam, Thiruvananthapuram) which attracts people from different parts of the world.
Today we will explore Kettukazhcha - The great chariot festival that showcases Haripad's true culture.
Haripad - Karthikapally is my native place.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haripad
Kettukazhcha and Kuthiyottam is an offering of the people of Alappuzha to their beloved deity - "Goddess Kali"
Kettukazhcha :
Kettukazhcha is the most marvelous visual spectacle of Central Kerala (Alappuzha ,Kollam, Thiruvananthapuram) which attracts people from different parts of the world.
Today we will explore Kettukazhcha - The great chariot festival that showcases Haripad's true culture.
Haripad - Karthikapally is my native place.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haripad
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karthikappally
The preparations of Kettukazhcha starts from the day of Shivrathri and after a week there will come Ashwathy Nakshatram day on which Kettukazhcha is celebrated.
It is believed that Goddess Kali will leave the temple (http://www.valiyakulangaratemple.org/)on the Ashwathy Nakshatram day to roam around the village dancing showering protection, prosperity and blessings to her devotees. She will leave the village premises and visit back to the temple along with Chariot, Dancers and Musicians by night.
Chariot making at my family premise,
Dancers arrive at our premise.
My property starts from that Banana tree onwards,
The preparations of Kettukazhcha starts from the day of Shivrathri and after a week there will come Ashwathy Nakshatram day on which Kettukazhcha is celebrated.
It is believed that Goddess Kali will leave the temple (http://www.valiyakulangaratemple.org/)on the Ashwathy Nakshatram day to roam around the village dancing showering protection, prosperity and blessings to her devotees. She will leave the village premises and visit back to the temple along with Chariot, Dancers and Musicians by night.
Chariot making at my family premise,
Dancers arrive at our premise.
My property starts from that Banana tree onwards,
I do have a couple of coconut trees , jack fruit and mango trees.
Anna danam at my family premise,
Goddess Kali inside the temple.
Jeevatha constructed in the model of the temple structure itself is a box like carriage for the deity which rests on 2 teak-wood poles about 2 meters long and in the form of Palanquin (Pallaku in Sanskrit).
Crowd gather at my family premise,
Pooja and Offering and crowd gathering.
The priest will then roam all around the village performing the step dance with music and drums and in the night they return to the temple.
Along with Goddess Kali the chariot is also being pulled and taken to the temple.
Our chariot!
That is our chariot.
Chariot being pulled along with Goddess Kali.
Kettukazhcha showcases the architectural and aesthetic wisdom of central Kerala.
My uncle on the extreme left is a retired professor in Msc. Psychology. Today he is a famous NGO who works for women empowerment , if you visit Kerala you might see him on news channels.
Chariots reach the temple by night.
The below pictures were clicked next day early morning.
Thats our chariot and only our chariot gets permission to have a Lamp in front of the chariot for the whole night.
It is believed that our chariot is the favorite chariot of Goddess Kali - I dont know why?
Our chariot is with a Lamp!
Kuthiyottam!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuthiyottam
Kuthiyottam is a dance offered to Goddess Kali specifically in Kollam , Alappuzha and Thiruvananthapuram districts.
"Saundarya Lahiri" in sanskrit means - "The waves of Beauty" is a famous literary work in Sanskrit believed to be written by Adi Shankara sitting in Saraswati Mandapam at Kollur Mookambika Saraswati temple.
Saraswati Mandapam - Kollur Mookambika.
In Saundarya lahiri Adi Shankara describes Goddess Kali as a beauty that came out of Saraswati's Veena.
A song that describes Goddess Kali.
Kuthiyottam at my home happened late in the night, so the pics are not very great!
A glimpse of Kuthiyottam - a video.
A few pics from the temple website.
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