India is a land of different festivals, of varied
cultures and traditions. The Hindus from various regions of India
celebrate the festivals with same religious fervor as we find in other
regions. Karthigai Deepam (Karthigai Vilakku or Thirukarthigai in Tamil) is also a festival of lights that takes place after Deepavali. It is an important festival being widely observed across South India, particularly, in Tamil Nadu. It falls in the month of Kārtthikai (mid-November to mid-December) as per Tamil calendar.
On the Karthikai day, the moon is synchronous with the constellation Karthigai (Pleiades) and pournami. This constellation looks like a group of six stars in the firmament resembling a pendant from the ear. This festival marks the birth of god Karthikeya (Murugan / Subramanya (son of lord Shiva; the other one being Ganapathi). In the neighboring state of Kerala, this festival goes by the name of Thrikkarthika and in countless temples rows of oil lamps on the Vilakkumadam around the outer walls of temples are lit and they enhance the beauty and sanctity of the place of worship. In many other states, it is called Kartik Purnima, but is held on a different date!! This year, the main part of Karthigai Deepam festival - lighting of Maha Deepam falls on 2 December and it is a holy event at this temple here which is is more than 1000 years old, patronized by many Tamil saints and many rulers.
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| Karthigai Deepam at Thiruvannamalai temple. Sampath Speaking |
The most sacred part of this unique festival is lighting of oil lamps at homes, temples and in the workplace. The idea behind this festival is to get rid of the old, unwanted things in the house and replacing them with new ones and it has philosophical connotation, implying elimination of bad or negative thoughts, ignorance and replacing them with positive thoughts, just like a ray of light dispelling darkness. Hence in this festival, oil lamps are personification of holiness, welfare and prosperity. The place where it is lit, gets sanctified, creating positive energy. When you light up a series of oil lamps at home, it brings in happiness, so much so, in the temples oil lamps create an atmosphere of reverence, respect and devotion to all-pervading gods.
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| Kerala, Vaikom Mahadeva Temple, manoramaonline.com |
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| Thiruvannamalai temple, Tamil Nadu. Deccan Chronicle |
During the festival days, around the four Maada streets, each day there will be a procession of deities (Uchavars). The car (chariot / Ther) festival falls on the 7 th day and deities would be taken out on five colorfully decorated huge wooden chariots pulled manually along the four Maada streets. The highlight of the festival is lighting of the Karthigai Maha Deepam on the temple premises and on the hill (which is roughly 2668 foot tall). prior to that Shiva in the Arthanareeswarar alangaram is emerging out of the shrine to the open yard. The three-day float festival (Theppa Thiruvizha / Theppa Urchavam) will be held in the huge temple tank and is part of the festival.
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| Karthigai. Arunachaleshwara Temple, Tamil nadu. Poompuhar |
Rockfort Thayumanaswamy Temple:
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| Uchi Pillayar temple,'Karthigai Deepam,Tiruch, the hindu com. |
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| karthigai deepam wick Trichy rockfort. thehindu.com |
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| Tamil nadu Map. traveldealsfinder.com |
On the Karthigai deepam day in the city of Tiruchirapalli, “ deepam” will be lit around 6 pm atop the hill near pillayar temple. A huge cauldron made of copper is fixed permanently atop the hill close to the Vinayagar shrine. A large number of devotees will participate in this holy festival with devotion and reverence. According to temple authorities, the deepam will keep going for three long days. It is quite interesting to note that preparation for the big-sized wick for the “deepam” will be taken up at least one week before the festival. A whooping 300-metre cotton cloth is used for making the giant wick, and about1,000 liters of ‘iluppai oil' (Mahua) and Sesame oil
besides ghee will be used to get the deepam going. The Maha deepam with all its brilliance atop the rock fort will be visible all around the sprawling city. Later there will be a procession of idols around the nearby streets in the rock fort area.
Madurai Meenakshi temple:
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| Karthigai deepam, Meenakshi temple, Madurai .thehindu.com/ |
At Madurai Meenakshi temple, TN this festival is held with religious fervor and piety; oil lamps will be lit in front of houses and business places. The lighting of one lakh clay lamps on the temple premises has been a major event in the recent past years as part of the ‘Karthigai Deepam’ celebration and it draws lots of devotees to the temple. It is a grand sight to see the illumination around the temple tank enhancing the beauty, grandeur and godliness of this famous temple.
Thiruparankundram Subramanya Swamy temple:
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| Karthigai deepam, Thiruparankundram temple.thehindu.com |
At the near-by Subramaniya Swamy temple, Thiruparankundram further uphill (about 150 ft tall) Maha Deepam will be lit in the evening after puja in a special stand erected near the Vinayagar shrine. At the entrance of homes around the temple, as in other places, women will light up the clay lamp after Maha Deepam is lit atop the hill. According to the temple officials, preparation for the Maha Deepam here is done by the team from Thiruvannamalai and it takes quite a few days to make the preparation. Normally, 120 meters of cotton cloth, 5 kgs of camphor and about 350 liters of oil and ghee are needed for the Maha deepam.
In all temples dedicated to Subramanya, Ganapathi, Shiva and Vishnu, Karthigai Deepam festival is observed with reverence. Temples are well decorated with Kolam/rangoli and rows of oil lamps. The belief has been that the new year will bring in happiness, prosperity and self-contentment.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/%E2%80%98Karthigai-Deepam%E2%80%99-begins-tomorrow-in-Tiruvannamalai/article16741485.ece
thehindu.com/news/cities/Tiruchirapalli/karthigai-deepam-illuminates-rockfort-temple-precincts/article6667713.ece
https://navrangindia.blogspot.in/2015/11/colorful-karthigai-deepam-festival-india.html
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Madurai/karthigai-deepam-lights-up-madurai/article6667683.ece
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