 |
Sadya that was served to Goddess Bhuvaneshwari in the Prayer room of Tharavadu
The Malayalam calendar is a solar calendar. Every Sankranti is the beginning of new month. Mesha Sankranti(मेष संक्रान्ति) is known as Vishu(विषु) in Kerala. It is the New year of Malayalis. According to the Gregorian calendar, it mostly falls on April 14th or April 15th. In Nagavanshi Nair Tharavadus it is celebrated as follows,
|
Eve of VIshu
On the eve of Vishu, members of Tharavadu start to create Kani(कणि)/Vishukkani(विषुक्कणि) from the evening. Kani is a typical way of decorating the idol of Lord Krishna with fruits, flowers, rice grains etc. for Vishu. On the day of Vishu, the first ritual is to see the Kani and pray to God. In Kani, a large cooking utensil called Uruli(उरुळि) is taken and kept in a clean place in the sitting room or near the Prayer room. In the Uruli, first, the Idol of Lord Shree Krishna is kept. Then a Kasavumundu(a traditional attire with golden border), Vālkannādi(traditional mirror), mangoes, jackfruit, gold ornaments, money, and beautiful flowers of Golden rain tree are kept with the Idol. The final part of decoration is wearing flower garlands to the idol. After the decoration is over, Vilakku or traditional lamp of Kerala is kept in front of the Kani. Vegetables for Sadya are cut and kept immersed in the water for the whole night so that on next day they remain fresh.
 |
| Vishu Kani after lighting lamps |
Kanikānal(कणिकाणल्)
On the day of Vishu, some elder members, mostly females, wake up at 3:00 am. They light the Vilakku in front of the Kani and pray to Lord Krishna for the prosperity of the family. Then they slowly bring other members by covering their eyes with hands, so that those members can see the Kani right at the opening of their eyes. This ritual is called Kanikānal, the word Kanikānal means "seeing the Kani". In ancient times, Kani was also taken to the cowshed to show it to the cows.
Vishukkaineettam(विषुक्कइनीट्टम्)
After the Kanikanal ritual, all the members get Vishukkaineettam from those who are elder than them. Vishukkaineettam is a small amount of money given on the day of Vishu. After getting Vishukkaineettam children burn firecrackers to welcome the new year.
Offering prayers at prayer room
At 4:00 am, all the members take bath, get well dressed, go to the prayer room and pray to all the deities that to fill the new year with happiness and success.
Orthodox Hindus of Thrissur district visit Shree Krishna Temple at Guruvayur on Vishu. Because on this day, at the time of sunrise, the first rays of Sun touches the feet of the Idol of Lord Shree Krishna. Normally, the Temple closes everyday after 9:00 pm. But on the eve of Vishu, the Temple remains open for the whole night and is filled with the large number of devotees. These devotees sleep in the temple and after waking up at 2:00 am, they queue up and slowly move towards the shrine to see the God. (That is instead of arranging Kani in their house, they prefer to do the Kanikānal ritual in the Temple.)
Sadya(सद्या)
After the morning prayer is over. The female members start to prepare the special meal called Sadya. Items of Sadya are rice, different types of curries, stir-fries, chips, pickles and traditional rice puddings known as Payasam. In the southern parts of Travancore region, a sweet flatbread called Boli(बोळि) is also served in Sadya.
In Kiriyathil-Illathu Nair Tharavadus, Sadya is first served to the Deity of the prayer room. First a Vilakku is lit and then with huge respect Sadya is served to the Deity. Only after this ritual, Sadya is served to the members of Tharavadu.
Vishukkaineettam for servants
A small sum of money with a Mundu is given as Vishukkaineettam to servants.
