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The new controversy over ONAM

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prasad1

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There is a thread about Onam in ritual section. This a political piece.

Ahead of the Onam festival, a controversy is brewing over steps to erect a statue of demon king Mahabali, the mythical ruler around whom festival lore revolves, in the premises of a temple in Kerala.

The Travancore Devaswom Board's move to set up a bronze statue of Bali, modelled on a painting drawn by a Travancore king, adjacent to Trikkakkara Vamanamoorthy Temple in Ernakulam district, has been opposed by devotees and right wing outfitsHindu Aikya Vedi leader E S Biju said they were not against Mahabali and were extending solidarity to devotees opposed to installing the statue in the temple premises.

"Bali was a people-friendly ruler and devotee of Lord Vishnu, according to legend. So there is nothing wrong in installing his statue. But devotees have objection to setting it up in the ground of the temple, dedicated to Lord Vamana. We also support them," he said.

The leader also alleged that the Board was taking unilateral decisions in this regard and devotees had already approached the Devaswom Ombudsman against the TDB's move.

The issue gained attention in the wake of RSS mouthpiece 'Kesari' kicking up a controversy last year questioning the legend behind Onam, arguing that it marks the celebration of birth of Vamana and not the homecoming of demon king Mahabali.

Popular belief in the state has it that Mahabali's homecoming in the Malayalam month of Chingam to see his subjects is celebrated as 'Thiru Onam' annually, which falls on September 4 this year.

As per mythology, Onam, the harvest festival, is connected with demon king Mahabali, under whose reign everyone
lived in happiness and equality.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/nati...king-statue-at-thrikkakara-vamana-temple.html
 
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The Travancore Devaswom Board's move to set up a bronze statue of Bali, modelled on a painting drawn by a Travancore king, adjacent to Trikkakkara Vamanamoorthy Temple in Ernakulam district, has been opposed by devotees and right wing outfitsHindu Aikya Vedi leader E S Biju said they were not against Mahabali and were extending solidarity to devotees opposed to installing the statue in the temple premises.

I think the dispute is because of the location only. The entire Kerala loves King Bali and still sing the song in unison "Maveli Nadu vaneedum Kalam Manusharellarum onnu pole" means during Maveli"s (Mahabali) regime all people were equal. He still command a lot of respect among People of Kerala and don't think any one will have any objection in erecting his statue. However, the present communist Government just to keep opposition BJP/RSS busy with issues, is trying to create more room for controversies and the Travancore Devaswom Board which is totally under their control is being used as a pawn. So this decision to install a statue within the premises of Thrikkakara temple should be seen as calculated move to create another political controversy.
 
What is wrong in erecting his statue...He was a benevolent king...He is the grandson of Prahlada

hi

nobody against mahabali in kerala...in fact theylove him during onam period..the problem is location of the statue...
 
Vamana avatar is one of the most controversial avatars...He had no grounds to get rid of Emperor Bali.

In fact Bali turned out to be truthful and kept his word but Vamana cheated by changing his size...Vamana was sly like an advocate who would twist and turn to win by hook or by crook on technical grounds but not subscribing to Truth.

Its strange that its supposed to be Sathyam Eva Jayate when Vamana avatar clearly didnt adhere to Truth...but just played around with twisted logic.

Its also strange that all good Kings who were termed Asuras were mainly from South of India.

Mahishasura....Bali...Ravana.

Strange?

vamana was upholding brahmana dharma.

this is the only avatar when he was brahmin.

even krishna was not without controversies. he is being accused as more cunning in warfare than sakuni.
 
Vamana avatar is one of the most controversial avatars...He had no grounds to get rid of Emperor Bali.

In fact Bali turned out to be truthful and kept his word but Vamana cheated by changing his size...Vamana was sly like an advocate who would twist and turn to win by hook or by crook on technical grounds but not subscribing to Truth.

Its strange that its supposed to be Sathyam Eva Jayate when Vamana avatar clearly didnt adhere to Truth...but just played around with twisted logic.

Its also strange that all good Kings who were termed Asuras were mainly from South of India.

Mahishasura....Bali...Ravana.

Strange?

hi

everything is strange in this avatar.....small brahmachari brahmin avatar.....sometimes KUTA NITI is required for brahmins to survive..

like chanakya...all avatars not for lord vishnu....its for common people like us to understand the DHARMA AND ADHARMA..
 
hi

everything is strange in this avatar.....small brahmachari brahmin avatar.....sometimes KUTA NITI is required for brahmins to survive..

like chanakya...all avatars not for lord vishnu....its for common people like us to understand the DHARMA AND ADHARMA..

But Vamana displayed " Adharma".

Somehow that Avataram does not make sense somewhere.

Wonder if it actually even happened cos why would Vishnu give in to Indra fearing loss of position and unfairly take down Bali for no valid reason.

Seems as if Vishnu could not tell off Indra to lay off and buck up if he fears competition from Bali.

There must be a symbolic meaning to this whole episode that we are not really getting.

Lets see.
Indra can also mean senses.

Bali..was ruling perfectly..he did have a tinge of ahamkara that he could give anything asked...nothing wrong too cos he was King.
Royals do have some amount of healthy pride..that Rajas and a dominant trait in a Royal to keep them going.

So if Rajas goes into over drive..
Why do the " senses" a.k.a Indra panic?

Dont the senses delight when in power and position?

Or may be conscience or inner self doesnt really enjoy this state and starts to fear the consequences of Ahamkara.

So what do the senses do?

Turn to God...seeking help to get rid of the Ahamkara of the Rajas kind.

So how to defeat Rajas?

Only by Sattva!
Hence the symbolic representation of Vishnu here is a Brahmin..childlike..small..representing purest form of Sattva.

Sattva eventually steps on the head of Rajas..sending it down to Nether regions...out of the surface and Bali here is rewarded for this.

This whole Avatar could just be a symbolic representation of Sattva Vs Rajas.
 


The bone of contention may also be that as to who is the Hero of the festival…..?


Is it Vamana or Mahabali…..?


Asura statue irks Sangh


Sept. 1: A state-backed plan to install a statue of demon king Mahabali at a temple to Vamana, incarnation of Vishnu, has drawn protests from a Hindu outfit amid Kerala's ongoing Onam festival.

Mahabali, whom mythology paints as a just ruler, was banished from earth by Vamana for allegedly challenging the gods but was allowed a visit to his kingdom before the punishment began. Onam celebrates the Asura king's brief homecoming every year.

The Sangh parivar had stoked controversy last year by projecting Vamana rather than Mahabali as the central figure of Onam, drawing allegations of trying to "Brahminise" the festival.
…………………..
…………………..

"If Mahabali was a king, the statue should be installed in front of the Assembly, not in a temple," Sasikala told this newspaper.

"We respect Mahabali as a mythological ruler. But there is nothing spiritual about him for his statue to be placed in a temple compound."

During Onam last year, Sangh mouthpiece Kesari had angered many Malayalis by attempting to rename Onam as Vamana Jayanti, or Vamana's birth anniversary.

BJP president Amit Shah posted a tweet with an image that showed Vamana's foot on the head of a kneeling Mahabali, marking the demon king's banishment to the netherworld. It provoked social media outrage.

According to M.G.S. Narayanan, historian and former head of the Indian Council for Historical Research, "records like the poems of the Tamil Alwars and copper plates from some central Kerala temples suggest that at least till the 11th century or so, the hero of the festival was Vamana".

"But, by the 16th century, the festival, which had till then been confined to temples, began to be celebrated at homes as well and Mahabali gained prominence over Vamana."

Source: https://www.telegraphindia.com/1170902/jsp/nation/story_170443.jsp
 
I don't know how many of us know Malayalam This video gives some good information about Onam.

https://www.facebook.com/355302051057/videos/10153684989696058/

There is another controversy also. People believe Kerala was created by Lord Parasurama which is 6th Incarnation of lord Vishnu. Bali was removed by Vamana the 5th incarnation. Then how come a land came into existence post regime of Bali associated with his home coming?
 
I don't know how many of us know Malayalam This video gives some good information about Onam.

https://www.facebook.com/355302051057/videos/10153684989696058/

There is another controversy also. People believe Kerala was created by Lord Parasurama which is 6th Incarnation of lord Vishnu. Bali was removed by Vamana the 5th incarnation. Then how come a land came into existence post regime of Bali associated with his home coming?

As far as I know only the Brahmanda Purana speaks about Parashurama creating Kerala by throwing his axe in the sea..the Bhagavatha Purana does not say so.

So why the story comes much later?

I wonder if Brahmandapurana was written after migration of Namboodhiris to Kerala?

May be to give their new land a holy feel?

God knows!
 
Dear Renu,

Talking of Parashurama and Kerala, I am reminded of what people jokingly say in our village,

in 'ThalayaLam' (Tamil + Malayalam), about how the people living in Kerala boast.
pride.png


''Parashuramar-allE; oru mazhuva vittu eRinjnoo; adhu ivada vannu vizhunjnoo;

adhu koNdu idhu okka engaLada rAjjyamANa!'

Hope you are able to read this. ;)
 
There is another controversy also. People believe Kerala was created by Lord Parasurama which is 6th Incarnation of lord Vishnu. Bali was removed by Vamana the 5th incarnation. Then how come a land came into existence post regime of Bali associated with his home coming?

Ganesh Ji,

Going by this article, it appears they are two different mythologies….

Parasurama - The Originator of Kerala ?

A number of myths and legends persist concerning the origin of Kerala. One such myth is the creation of Kerala by Parasuram, a warrior sage. Parasuram was the incarnation of Maha Vishnu. He was the sixth of the ten avatars (incarnation) of Vishnu. The word Parasu means 'axe' in Sanskrit and therefore the name Parasuram means 'Ram with Axe'. The aim of his birth was to deliver the world from the arrogant oppression of the rulingcaste, the Kshatriyas. He killed all the male Kshatriyas on earth and filledfive lakes with their blood. After destroying the Kshatriya kings, he approached an assembly of learned men to find a way of penitence for his sins.He was advised that, to save his soul from damnation, he must hand over thelands he had conquered to the Brahmins. He did as they advised and sat inmeditation at Gokarnam. There, he was blessed by Varuna - the God of the Oceans and Bhumidevi - Goddess of Earth. From Gokarnam he reached Kanyakumari andthrew his axe northward across the ocean. The place where the axe landed wasKerala. It was 160 katam (an old measure) of land lying between Gokarnam and Kanyakumari. Puranas say that it was Parasuram who planted the 64 Brahmin families in Kerala, whom he brought down from the north in order to expiate his slaughter of the Kshatriyas . According to the puranas, Kerala is also known as Parasurama Kshetram, ie., 'The Land of Parasurama',as the land was reclaimed fromsea by him.
Onam - The legend of Mahabali

Another mythical character of Kerala who had and still has a greatinfluence on the cultural life ofMalayalees isMahabali (Maveli) - the Asura King who was expatriated to the nether world by the Gods. The myth goes like this :

Contrary to the general concept about Asuras,who are embodiments of wickedness and depravity, Mahabali is known for his rectitude, goodness and benevolence. The rule of Mahabali brought peace and prosperity to the land. The fame and power of the king increased day to day.This growing greatness of an asura made the Gods uneasy and they sought the help of Maha Vishnu to restraint his power.Lord Vishnu who is forced every time to assume the form of an avatar to annihilatethe 'evil asuras', this time took the form of Vamana (fourthavatar), a Brahmin boy and approached Mahabali. Vamana was offered a boon bythe King for which he asked three strides of land, which the King readilyagreed. Soon the boy began to grow to such a height that his first pace covered the whole of the 14 worlds and the second covered the sky and all that wasleft. Realizing that Vamana's third step will destroy the Earth, Mahabali asked him to place the last step on his head and thus he was stamped to the netherworld. But before doing so, Vamana offered Mahabali with a boon -to visit his subject once every year. This was the origin of Kerala's most important cultural event and festival - Onam.It is the time when the exiled king returns for a brief sojourn in his former kingdom and visit his beloved subjects. Onam reminds the people of a blissful,affluent and harmonious era sans treason, deceit and fib.



Read more at: http://www.prokerala.com/kerala/history/mythology.htm
 
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It could have been religious festival or a cultural festival… but now politicized


Despite Sangh Efforts to Project it as ‘Hindu’ Festival, Story of Onam Prevails in Kerala


image.jpg


Excerpts:


This is the way that Brahmanism has repeatedly treated those whom it has vanquished to preserve its system of social hierarchy based on birth. They have been ruthlessly eliminated, treated with scorn and calumny and then accorded a small and insignificant place in its pantheon of victors. This has usually encouraged the followers of the vanquished to reconcile themselves to accept new rulers and new rules.

This process seems unlikely to be repeated in Kerala. While some in the RSS want to reduce Onam to a ‘Hindu’ festival in which the Vamana avtar is worshipped and some Muslim fundamentalists are exhorting Muslims not to celebrate Onam because it is a Hindu festival, Malayalis seem committed to celebrating Onam in their own way. Irrespective of caste and community, they sing the Onam song ‘Maveli (Mahabali) Naadu vaaneetum kaalam, maanushar ellarum onnupole’ that celebrates the equality and justice that were the hallmarks of Mahabali’s rule. Many of them believe, in fact, that his killing was necessary for the introduction of the caste system in Kerala.

In a Kerala where Communists are an important part of the polity, where opposition to the principles of social and economic equality are akin to blasphemy, Mahabali has assumed new dimensions as a symbol of social justice. His return to Kerala every year is marked with feasting made possible for even the poorest by Left government-sponsored fair price shops and markets. His ten-day sojourn on earth holds out the promise of a more permanent era of equality, justice and harmony.

The Sangh parivar has not just ruffled feathers in Kerala by trying to replace Onam with Vamana Mahotsav, it has announced an important element of its agenda. As a result, more Asuras may emerge in forgotten corners of the country where they have been buried deep in the consciousness of the descendants of their supporters, their people. The vanquished may yet emerge victorious.

Read more at: https://thewire.in/173380/kerala-onam-festival/
 
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