Malayali families in Coimbatore celebrated Onam at Siddapudur Ayyappan Temple. The festival, marking Vishnu's birthday and Vamana's incarnation, saw traditional attire and pookkalam decorations.
Coimbatore: The Siddapudur Ayyappan Temple in Coimbatore became a hub of Onam celebrations as numerous Malayali families gathered to observe the festival with traditional fervor. Onam, a harvest festival of Kerala, is celebrated from Atham to Thiruvonam in the Malayalam month of Chingam.
Devotees, dressed in traditional Kerala attire, flocked to the temple for darshan, embracing the spirit of Onam. The temple premises featured a pookkalam (floral carpet) beneath the flagpole, attracting visitors who eagerly captured photographs of the colorful display.
The celebration extends beyond the temple, with Malayali residents creating pookkalam designs in their homes before visiting the temple for darshan. This practice aligns with the legend of King Mahabali visiting Earth during Onam, for whom these floral decorations are prepared.
Onam is celebrated over ten days, each corresponding to a star in Kerala's astrological tradition: Atham, Chithira, Chodi, Vishakam, Anizham, Thriketta, Moolam, Pooradam, Uthradam, and Thiruvonam. While primarily a Kerala festival, Onam is also celebrated in parts of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, Nilgiris, Coimbatore, and Kanyakumari.
As part of the celebrations, a special ceremony of feeding rice to infants for the first time was conducted at the temple. Parents consider this an auspicious tradition to begin on Onam day for babies who are a few months old.
The Siddapudur Ayyappan Temple's Onam celebrations not only preserve Kerala's cultural heritage but also foster community bonding among the Malayali population in Coimbatore.