The story behind Onam
The legend, drawn from the Bhagavata Purana, is among the most beautiful in Hindu mythology. Mahabali — grandson of Prahlada and a great Asura king — ruled Kerala with such justice and generosity that…
The legend, drawn from the Bhagavata Purana, is among the most beautiful in Hindu mythology. Mahabali — grandson of Prahlada and a great Asura king — ruled Kerala with such justice and generosity that his kingdom became a paradise. Concerned by his power, the gods asked Lord Vishnu to intervene. Vishnu took the form of Vamana, a small brahmin boy, and approached Mahabali asking for three paces of land. The king agreed; Vamana grew to cosmic size and covered the heavens with one step and the earth with another. With nowhere left for the third step, Mahabali — true to his word — offered his own head. Vishnu pressed him into the netherworld but, moved by the king's devotion, granted him a boon: once a year, on Thiruvonam, Mahabali could return to visit his beloved subjects. Onam is the day Kerala welcomes him home.
The festival is observed through ten days: Atham (the first day), Chithira, Chodhi, Vishakam, Anizham, Thrikketta, Moolam, Pooradam, Uthradam, and Thiruvonam. Homes are decorated with elaborate floral carpets (pookkalam) that grow larger each day, the Onasadya — a 26-dish vegetarian feast served on a banana leaf — is shared on Thiruvonam, traditional vanchipattu (boat songs) accompany snake-boat races on the backwaters, and the rhythmic dance of Thiruvathirakali brings women together in joyful kalams.