ATTUKAL
PONGALA - ART & CULTURE
News:
Thiruvananthapuram turns
city of devotion as thousands offer Pongala at Attukal
What's
in the news?
●
The annual event dubbed the ‘Women’s Sabarimala’, is witnessing a
huge turnout this year with devotees arriving from different parts of Kerala
and even other States.
Attukal
Pongala:
●
It is a 10-day long festival celebrated annually at Attukal Bhagavathy
Temple in Trivandrum, Kerala.
●
This festival is dedicated to Attukal
Bhagavathy, also known as Goddess
Kannaki or Bhadrakali.
Features:
●
It is celebrated every year and falls in
the month of February or March.
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Pongala, which means 'to boil over’, is the ritual in which women prepare sweet payasam
(a pudding made from rice, jaggery, coconut and plantains cooked together) and
offer it to the Goddess or ‘Bhagavathy’. This ritual is performed on the 9th
day.
●
It is one of the largest congregations of
women for a festival in the world.
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During the 10-days festivities, a
sacrificial offering known as Kuruthitharpanam
is also included in the religious event.
●
The temple is often referred to as
Sabarimala for ladies.