Tamil New Year or Tamil Puthandu marks the beginning of the new month in the Tamil calendar. Tamil New Year marks the beginning of the new tamil calendar year and is celebrated with a variety of customs and spiritual practices and usually falls on 14th or 15th of April each year.
The Tamil calendar new year is usually based on the solar cycle, and is celebrated when the Sun moves into the first zodiac sign, Aries. There are different customary practices that are followed by different communities and traditions across the tamilians in the world.
Seek the blessings of the lord and the elders in the family?
The house was cleaned on the previous day and is decorated with flowers. The front of the house is decorated with kolam, flowers, mango leaves, kumkum and turmeric. A variety of sweets are prepared and offered to the god. The members of the family wear new dresses and worship the Lord by offering puja to the Lord. After Worshipping at home they visit the temples and seek the blessings of the almighty Lord to lead a successful year ahead.
The family members reunite and celebrate the occasion with lots of happiness and happy dreams of the new year. The elders bless the young ones at home to live a happy prosperous life in the coming days.
The special dishes for the Tamil new year?
Dishes like vada, payasam, Poli and a special dish called the ‘mango pachadi’ is prepared that contains all the six tastes including sweetness, sourness, bitterness,salty, tangy and Astringent taste. This implies that every taste is important in life and a human should be able to pass through the different phases of life. The dish is shared among the family members. The sweets are shared among family members, friends and neighbours.
The food is served in a plantain leaf and the family members enjoy a complete meal on this day with a variety of sweets, cooked vegetables, and curries along with rice.
Visit the temples and participate in cultural events
People participate in Homam and poojas that are performed in the temples and worship the almighty for a happy and prosperous new year ahead. Cultural festivals are also organised in temples and in public communities where the traditional events happen.The traditional games are played and traditional competitions for elders and kids are conducted. Gifts are distributed to the winners to motivate them in social participation. Some devotees perform fasting and also donate food and other goodies to the poor and needy people.
Gifts are distributed among friends and family to mark the beginning of the new year and to spread prosperity. Buy original authentic gifts, Karungali products, photos, idols, maalas and many more only at OM Spiritual shop.