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The Paradox of Onam

From the Onam celebrations at my school today 


Kerala has started Onam celebrations, the most colourful and joyful festival of the state. The schools in the state will be closed for a whole week from tomorrow. Even the government offices will not function for most part of the week. Onam is not just a festival, it is the heartbeat of the people of Kerala. 

The legend that sustains Onam is quite paradoxical. Mahabali, or Maveli as he is affectionately called in Kerala, was an Asura king. He was the paragon of goodness though he belonged to species called demons, Asuras. During his reign there was no corruption whatever. People possessed and practised all good qualities. In short, Kerala was a utopia under Maveli's tutelage. 

The gods became jealous. That's the paradox. Gods who should be happy to see humans living happily in peace and harmony became jealous! None but Vishnu himself decided to decimate the utopia on earth. He took the form of a dwarf named Vamana and deceived Maveli. The greatest king who ever ruled on the earth was expelled from his kingdom by the deception of a god. Another paradox is that the king was an asura, a demon. 

Gods are worse than the a demon in this legend. Onam celebrates the goodness of a demon and keeps gods away for a while. 

Appearances can be deceptive, Onam teaches us. Gods can be deceptive and demons may be far more benign. 

We live in a time which Shakespeare's witches would describe best: fair is foul and foul is fair. What comes garbed as religion is actually hate. The present king of the country travels the world preaching the ideal of One earth, one family, one future, when his devotees are killing whole communities of people who don't subscribe to the king's religious and other affiliations. You can be killed while travelling on a train in this country for something like wearing a skull cap. Your dress matters. Your food does too. Many other things matter too. Your house may be bulldozed if you criticise the king. Your office may be raided. A whole tribe can be dispossessed of their homelands within days in this new utopia under construction. 

It's sad times though we were promised Achche din [Happy days]. 

How do we celebrate in sad times? "In the dark times / Will there also be singing?" Bertolt Brecht asked that question. His answer was: "Yes, there will also be singing. / About the dark times." 

Let Maveli return this year too from the netherworld to which he was sent by the gods. Let us sing about his goodness. Let us celebrate the goodness of a demon if only to remind ourselves of the potential for goodness that we all have, even the demons among us.

PS. This post is a part of Blogchatter Half Marathon 2023 

 

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Comments

  1. Yamini MacLeanAugust 25, 2023 at 2:21 PM

    Hari OM
    Well said, sir! It is a paradox of life that there can be no concept of 'good' without 'bad' to offset it. We are destined always to be fighting for the balance. Onashamsakal! YAM xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalAugust 25, 2023 at 6:41 PM

      Thanks, Yam, for the greetings. Wish you too the joys of the season.

      Delete
  2. magiceyeAugust 25, 2023 at 4:54 PM

    Happy Onam! May the Maveli will prevail!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalAugust 25, 2023 at 6:42 PM

      Yes, let's strive to create a Maveli kingdom. Happy Onam.

      Delete
  3. Harshita NandaAugust 25, 2023 at 7:16 PM

    You certainly have a knack of taking potshots Sir :) Onashamsakal in advance...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalAugust 25, 2023 at 7:26 PM

      Thanks, Harshita. Greetings to you too. Onam is such a contrast to today that potshots come spontaneously.

      Delete
  4. SuchitaAugust 25, 2023 at 9:54 PM

    To think what is being preached right now "a return to the old" of sorts is actually just a return to how I the king define the old. As always your posts help me articulate my anger.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalAugust 26, 2023 at 9:55 AM

      How the past is defined - that's the problem. The past is being recreated to suit the political needs of a handful of people.

      Delete
  5. Pandian RamaiahAugust 25, 2023 at 9:58 PM

    Appearances can be deceptive. The story of Karna depicts this also. Someone needs to retell the story from Maveli's perspective. I believe it should have been attempted in Kerala.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalAugust 26, 2023 at 9:57 AM

      I'm not sure if anyone has done that seriously. Apart from the legends and songs related to Onam, I'm not sure there are any good works of literature that tried to take a deep look at Maveli.

      Delete
  6. peppylady (Dora)August 26, 2023 at 7:02 AM

    Never heard of Onam.
    Coffee is on, and stay safe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalAugust 26, 2023 at 9:57 AM

      Kerala is just a tiny corner of India, Dora. Don't worry.

      Delete
  7. A student of 12 CAugust 26, 2023 at 7:09 AM

    What's more interesting than a festival which unites all the people in Kerala! I really wish if keralites are united by a common thing, then it'd be great. Unfortunately, I missed the celebration at school due to some family reasons. Anyway, Happy Onam Sir.

    ReplyDelete
  8. marietta pereiraAugust 27, 2023 at 12:42 PM

    Happy Onam! You certainly have told it like it is.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Pooja MahimkarAugust 27, 2023 at 1:58 PM

    Oh! I didn't know of this story, thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anupama JoshyAugust 29, 2023 at 12:00 PM

    Happy Onam!

    ReplyDelete

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