|
There is nothing like leaping headfirst
into a new cultural experience. Malaysia has many different festivals
and cultural events and probably none is more unique than Thaipusam.
Thai is the Hindu month which falls between January 15 to February
15 and Pusam refers to a start which is at its brightest during
the period of this festival.
The festivities centered at Batu Caves on
the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur are one of the more spectacular and
something that every visitor should experience at least once. Thaipusam
is an exciting and thrilling spectacle but it also gets very crowded and
claustrophobic and you need a lot of patience. It is celebrated in
Malaysia on such a grand scale that easily dwarves the festivities in
its place of origin - India. Celebrated in all parts of the world where
there is a concentration of South Indians, the manifestation of the
festival is best witnessed at Batu Caves and Penang.
Hindus celebrate Thaipusam on the tenth
month of their calendar. It coincides with the full moon at the end of
January and beginning of February and is a one-day public holiday for
certain states in Malaysia, which allows for thousands of Hindus to
flock to temples to pay homage to the presiding deity. Thaipusam may
fall on different dates around the same period in other years. Thaipusam
celebrates the day Goddess Parvati bestowed upon her son the "Vel" or
lance to vanquish the evil demon, Soorapadman. This lance denotes
spiritual insight, ability to differentiate right from wrong,
righteousness and steadfastness. However, for many Hindus, Thaipusam has
come to mean the birthday of Lord Muruga, the younger son of Lord Shiva.
Leading up to the event, Hindus prepare
themselves by fasting, praying and observing austerities. It culminates
in a three-day festival which begins from the Sri Mahamariamman Temple
at Jalan Tun H.S. Lee in Chinatown and ends at Batu Caves. One the even
of the celebration, Lord Muruga's image is decorated with diamonds,
rubies and other jewels. The idol, together with those of his two
consorts Valli and Deivayanai represent the spiritual and worldly
energies (shakti), is placed on a silver chariot on a bed of flowers
with burning incense on the sides. In the wee hours of the morning, the
five-tone chariot is pulled by two bulls and hundreds of devotees on its
15km journey from Chinatown to Batu Caves. The procession weaves through
major streets of the city and takes about eight hours to reach its
destination.
A prayer ceremony is held at the foot of
the caves and the flag of Lord Muruga is hoisted to announce the
commencement of the celebration. The crowd of devotees and curious
onlookers is huge and it is best to take public transport that will drop
you right at the steps of the temple grounds as parking is near
impossible. Visitors climb 272 stairs to the main cave in the outcrop of
limestone caves in Batu Caves where the main shrine is located. The
arduous climb is punishment enough at the best of times, yet for the
many devotees who are also carrying heavy offerings in gratitude to Lord
Muruga, the climb seems effortless. Devotees go through this exercise to
seek forgiveness for their past deeds, to ask for special favors or to
thank Lord Muruga for wishes granted.
Some devotees carry the kavadi, a
wooden arch with two pots of milk or honey at its end, decorated with
peacock feathers. However, bearing a simple pot of milk up to the shrine
is all that is required. These forms of offering are overshadowed by
more showy ones with huge metal frames bedecked with decorations for the
belief is that the larger the kavadi the more resolute is one's
devotion. For many, even carrying a heavy kavadi is not enough. Skewers
protruding through cheeks and metal hooks and spikes are the order of
the day. These devices are attached to all parts of the body. Nothing is
spared - tongues, cheeks and backs. This is a quaint evolution of the
celebration not found in Hindu scriptures. Hinduism advocates that the
body should not be harmed as the body is akin to a temple that the soul
resides in. Some devotees however, choose to believe that the only way
to salvation is to endure pain and hardship.
Many tolerate this hardship for they are
in a trance-like state. There is no blood and most prepare for this by
undergoing specific rites during the preceding month. Austerities are
performed and the body and soul are disciplined to refrain from all
forms of worldly activities. The devotees overcomes any form of pain as
their minds are attuned to only one thing - spirituality and liberation
from worldly desires. The atmosphere is quite tense as the devotees get
ready for their final act of penance. The air is filled with noisy
drumming chanting and the smell of incense. Families and tourists shout
encouragement and support to the devotees or merely standing around in
sheer fascination. Once the devotees go into trance and have the kavadi
placed on the shoulders or the hooks pierced onto their bodies, they
walk from a nearby river to the temple ground. From there, it is a
devotion-testing climb up the steps to the main temple high above.
On reaching the summit, they lay down
their kavadi and pour the milk or honey offering on the statue of the
deity as an act of thanksgiving. Those with hooks and skewers have a
priest chant over them as the metal implements are removed and the
wounds treated with holy ash. There is not a drop of blood, no pain and
even more amazing, no scarring at all! The number of people who throng
the temple keeps growing each year. The massive gathering and the
carnival-like atmosphere at the foot of the hills is quite exhilarating
and something all visitors to Malaysia should experience.
In a world where modernity and technology
overshadows every part of our lives, faith and spirituality still play a
huge part in the lives of local Hindus and nothing reflects the staunch
devotion of the followers like the amazing Thaipusam festivities.
#Ads - Get the above cooking ingredients here at discounted price
|
