The Biggest Festival of the year in my area : Ganga Jatara

Day 64: Friday Challenge Entry post

Hi friends, In my post I try to give my experience about my area biggest festival of the year Ganga Jathara.

My native place is Etteri village Chittoor, AP due to Job purposes now I settled in Chennai. But every year for this festival we go with family and spend there up to one week and enjoyed a lot.

My parents still live in village and also having agriculture land too. So every year we spend up to seven days for this festival.

We live in village so all we call all villagers with relation ship like Atta, Mama, Pinni, Babai, so all villagers we live like a family. Hear we see lot of differents in each person living style but we live together as a family. That's the beauty of village.

In this festival all religions will be allowed, all together we celebrate and surrounding villagers are also joined.
This festival charge by our village village sarpanch. All most all decisions about village taken by sarpanch only, but before taking any thing he must collaborate with all villagers.For this festival expenditure amount also taken from all village people, using those we celebrate very grade. In my village function each person is in valve, all have equal rights too.

Ganga Jathara means our local God which is protected from all of us, this God sit in our village ends so this festive also celebrate in end of village, every year we celebrate on First Tuesday of Vaisaka Masam end in Second Tuesday of Vaisaka Masam. In these days according to villagers wish we choose one day for this Ganga Jathara Festival.

This festival we celebrate in mainly in one day, before week we process started.

Ganga Jathara Festival is local folk festival, this festival celebrated in South India only. No other places we don't have this festival.

One week before we get chatipu from village head, they give full details before one day. After this chatipu no villager not possible to go other places, If they go he must return with in night. This is our rule.

Chatipu means one man taking big drum, on beating that making huge noise on listening this sound all villagers came out from house and get information about festival. According to this they plane their days. This chatipu go through out the village.

Before week of this festival start we need to poar Ragi Ambali, in middle of village putting a big drum. This drum decorated with pasupu and cuncumma with neam leaves. Hear also one man taking drum and making noise thoughts out the village, on following him we taking ragi Ambali pot all villagers.For reach to middle of village then poar all those in a big drum. There some process also there, they doing Pooja, then after they share all this Ambali to all villagers. We take this Ambali as a breakfast for that. For completing this process it take nearly two hours. So all kids participating hear. Our elders do their work in home. This is big together function for kids.

Ragi Ambli we prepare using ragi flour with rice. It is traditional dish, and give more energy and cool ness to our body. For preparing this is very long process.

Now I give details about exact festival day what we do.

In this day we weak up at early morning, taking head bath, there is small Pooja in each home. In this day we prepare five different Prasadam to the lord Gangamma.

First one is Ambali, again morning we poar Ambali in the temple of gangamma this time. Before week we poar in middle of village, but today all Prasadam we offer directly in the temple. Hear also chatting person came with Drum, all villagers followed him reach to temple, there they arranged big drums for collecting Ambali. After finishing our worship we poar our Ambali to big drums. Hear first step finished. This process completed 7-8 am.

In this day some other persons dressed up as Bhairagi Vesham, Banda Vesham and many more. They collect rice and money for their needs, after using they prepare Prasadam for lord. All those going through out the village.

Second Prasadam is Panakum.we prepare this on using jaggery, ginger, Lemmon, ellachi powder with water. This drink give full refreshment. Again all villagers taking this Panakum, all villagers following that chatting person reach the temple, again there is worship after finishing that we poar our Panakum in big drums. This later distribute as Prasadam through out the village. This complete around 11 am.

Third and major step is Pongal making in temple. This we start at 3pm completed at 4 pm.

Again all villagers taking their ingredients we reach to temple an following that chatting person with bid sound making drums. Hear all most all villagers try to prepare Ven and sweet Pongal in temple promises on using stone stove. After finishing offering some part of Pongal we offer to lord, then after we taking. This is our lunch on that festival day. Third step finished.

Fourth step is on taking Molakalu(sprouts of all nuts) we prepare those in previous day. On taking those again we teach the temple, we offer those to lord. Later it distributed to all village formers. They use this sprouts in this farming. Because we have a faith, on using this lord offering sprouts we get good profit in agriculture. Now four step in finished.

Last and most important one is Kumbakudu with Garuda Deepum.I think no one known about it. Kumbakudu means south Indian thali, having rice, Sambar, Rasam, two types of thalimpu, Curd. All those taking in a plate along with rice made deepam. Taking those we reach temple and offer to lord. This is our Dinner.

Coming to Garuda deepam, it is we prepare using rice flour and jaggery. My mother prepare it. Using both ingredients they prepare lamp. On paring ghee we lighting those. From home to temple with out shutdown lighting we reach. This is major thing in this festival. After teaching temple we offer to lard again we get back as Prasadam. Final step also finished. At complete around 8 pm.

Then after 10 pm lord gangamma came all through out the village, then this festival finished.

Coming to arrangements, we lighting the through out the village using lights, neem leaves. For Childers lot of small small arrangements are there like roller coaster and many more.

For youngsters village head conduct lot of sports activities, given prizes in this festival day.

Main moto of this village festival is improving relationship between all villagers.

But this year no celebration due to virus, but with out leaving our culture all villagers on maintaining social distance all precess completed with out chatting with out no arrangements. According to their each one wish they join this festival. But this year I feel very sad on seeing this, this year I am also not participate.

This year, we celebrate very sadly due to virus. In last 150 years we celebrating this festival, oy this time we celebrate like this. Very very hard days for all villagers but we accepting it too. For hoping with good days coming soon.

Hope next year we celebrate double arrangements, double happy to.

This festivals we celebrate very grandly in our district Chittoor up to Five days. Hear nearly 10,000 to 20,000 people join surrounding towns also. But this year no celebration due to virus my friends.

Not available all images copyright free so I taken from Google.

This is our big festival day in our village, Thanks for reading.