Essay on Pongal Festival

Pongal is the biggest harvest festival of Tamil Nadu. Pongal Festival is celebrated on 14^th of January every year according to Hindu calendar. We are providing various essay on Pongal festival in easy English language. Let your kid know more about the festivals of India.

Essay on Pongal Festival (200 Words)

Thai Pongal is a festival of harvesting celebrated in Tamil Nadu. Thai Pongal is celebrated for four days, from January 13 to 16 according to Gregorian calendar. This falls to the last day of the Tamil month Maargazhi.

The harvest festival, falls typically on the 14th or 15th of January, it is a traditional occasion to thanks nature, for celebrating the life cycles that give us grain. The festival marks a period of plenty, peace and happiness. While each of its days marks a special religious significance. Pongal is the only festival of Hindu that follows a solar calendar. People worship god sun, earth and cattle who plays major role in good harvesting and growth of rice paddy. People offer them rice and celebrate pongal with all rituals.

People prepare sweet dish on the first day of the festival called ‘pongal’. The sweet pongal is made from rice, cardamom, jaggery, milk and dry fruits. Pongal is celebrated on the same day as ‘Bhogali Bihu’ in the North Eastern State of Assam, Lohri in Punjab, ‘Bhogi’ in Andhra Pradesh and ‘Makar Sankranti’ in Maharashtra, Makar Sankranti which is marked by kite-flying. People exchange homemade delicious sweets like ladoos and gur on this day.

Essay on Pongal Festival (300 words)

Pongal is the harvest festival of Tamil Nadu celebrated for four-days in the mid of January commencing from the last day of the Tamil month. The sun, earth and  cattle are worshipped by farmers as people thanks them for giving a bounteous harvest.

People of Tamil Nadu took participation in this festival with lots of hopes and aspirations. They clean their houses and decorate it before many days of festive occasion. They celebrated this festival beautifully on the eve of Pongal- ‘Bogi’.

They decorate the earthen pots with kumkum and swastika and fills the pot with rice, water and some milk as per tradition and boil it on fire. As per the ritual associated with this festival, rice are cooked in the courtyard or in the open fields. People of Tamil Nadu firmly believe that the sun is  watching the preparations in this way they tried to please and worship the sun god.

Pongal is celebrated mostly in the Tamil Nadu state. On the day Pongal festival is celebrated in Tamil Nadu, In North and Maharashtra that day is celebrated as Makar Sakranti. And a days before Pongal people celebrate Lohri in Punjab.

On the Pongal morning people go and bath in rivers and lakes. They wear new clothes and offer rice to the sun god, they too eat rice. In the evening they visit their relatives and distribute the rice among them. The whole atmosphere becomes festive and people of all age enjoy the joys of festivity.

The third day is Muttu Pongal. It is an honour to cattle because they helped a lot in growing paddy. Cattle are being decorated and worshiped by the farmers. They celebrates their rich harvest and say goodbye to the festival at the end of the day with a hope that it will come again next year and fill their lives with lots of happiness and prosperity.

Essay on Pongal Festival (500 words)

Pongal is the harvest festival of Tamil Nadu falls in the month of Thai. The actual meaning of the word, ‘Pongal’ means, ‘boiling over’ This festival falls in the month of January every year according to Hindu Calendar. The festival is celebrated for four-days and has huge celebrations including making ‘Kolams’ decorating cattle and preparing Pongal – a sweet porridge made with rice. Special offerings are made to the sun god, Indra to thanks for good harvesting. People also regard Pongal as highly important festival as it marks the beginning of Uttarayan. It is also an occasion when people by new clothes and burn the old clothes and useless household utensils into a bonfire. The festival is also an occasion for family get together people distributes gift and sweets exchanges to friends, neighbours and family.  Pongal marks the four days celebration of Pongal is as follows.

Bhogi Pongal on the First day

The first day of Pongal, is known as Bhogi Pongal and is celebrated to worship Lord Indra who bestows good harvest. On this day, people destroy old clothes into a bonfire. This custom is symbolic of a new ‘Thai’ when people draw kolams in front of their houses. And fresh harvest of rice, sugarcane and turmeric is brought into the house. People also perform special offerings before they cut the paddy and worship the earth and sun. People dance and enjoy this festival.

Thai Pongal on the Second day

The second day of the Pongal festival, ‘Thai Pongal’ is also known as ‘Surya Pongal’. This day is dedicated in honour to sun god, Surya. On this day, fresh rice are boiled in pots with water. And, the pots are decorated with sugarcane pieces, flowers and turmeric plants. The first handful of rice is offered to the sun. The sun god is also offered with jaggery and boiled milk and the image of sun god is drawn with Kolam flower. After this a puja is performed to seek their blessings. People also prepare a dish venpongal with rice, dhal and sugar.

Maatu Pongal on the Third day

The third day of Pongal is celebrated as Maatu Pongal in this festival prayers are being offered to the cattle – bulls, cows and other farm animals that are used in agriculture. Farmers bath the cattle, paint their horns, decorate them with multi-coloured beads, flower garlands and bunch of corn around the necks. And worship them touching their feet and feed them with Pongal.

Kaanum Pongal on the Fourth day

The fourth day of the Pongal, Kaanum Pongal is the last day of Pongal. The day is also celebrated as Thiruvalluvar day. ‘Kaanum’ literally means, to view and as the day indicates, it is the occasion of visiting relatives and exchange gifts. While younger members of family play respect and homage to the elder members, the elders  gives them blessings by giving money to them. Some people also feed cooked rice to birds.

Pongal a four-day harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu with great pomp and joy.