Nurungukal........contd.....

                Andi oottu was an annual pooja which was conducted in the end of the Malayalam month Dhanu. Father was very particular that this event took place without fail. Actually the Andi came from Pazhani in Tamil Nadu. They spoke an admixture of tamil and malayalam  words. They came in batches to the interior places of the then Valluvanadu villages. After conducting the annual pooja they had to reach Palani before Thai Puyam, the famous festival in Tamil nadu, connected with Shri Subramanyam Swamy. The Pooja was intended to ward off evil and welcome prosperity and a good paddy harvest.

                 Each team consisted of three or four.  Andi would fix an auspicious date. Usually the Pooja would be at lunch or dinner time. In our house it would be mostly for dinner. Oottu means offering a good feast consisting of Kerala’s traditional items including Payasam and sweets like Karolappam etc.

                A Kavadi , decorated beautifully with lot of pea cock feathers on both sides, tiny bells, colour and gilt paper on the arch would be placed facing west. There would be smaller ones also. A big bunch of pea cock feathers  and an iron thrisoolam were also  placed on both side of the main Kavadi. They were the essential items to be worshipped as the favourite symbols of Lord Muruga.

                 To our house an old andi, his son and daughter-in-law used to come. The old man sporting a long grey beard with long hair knotted at the back of his neck, in his kavi clothes  resembled almost like our local oracles. His forehead, arms and chest would be smeared with vibhoothi and kunkumam  which inspired the beholder a divinity in him.  The pooja accompanied by a drum and elathalam would take a long time to end. We would be eagerly waiting for the end , keeping our eyes set on the sweet prasadams. As it culminates andi would suddenly jump from his seat with the thrisoolam in one hand and the pea cock feather bunch in the other. Then he would take the bunch from head to foot on each one of us to ward off the evil.  While doing this he would be shivering and swaying in a rhythm. The drum beats and the sound of elathalam would be at their peak. Then he would hold the thrisoolam  with both his hands parallel to the ground and while moving it vigorously forward and backward would utter words  [ kalpana }which we children never understood. But mother would say that what he meant was that the Lord Muruga was satisfied with our offerings  and the Lord wanted us to conduct such poojas every year with out fail !!. After handing over the prasadams, slowly andi would come to normal........cntd