Plot 1: A woman blinded by love chooses the wrong man.Her mother kicks the wayward son -in-law out of the house and she follows him without heeding her mother’s well- meaning advice. Soon enough ,he shows his true colours, kills her when she is most vulnerable and flees with her gold. She is reborn as a princess but gets abandoned by her family as she shows signs of being a yakshi (a vengeful spirit).She was indeed one whose sole aim was to avenge herself,which she does by killing the reincarnation of her husband.
Plot 2: A tribal girl and her friends wander inside a royal temple shrine deep inside the forest, used by the king for his worship. Angered by what he thinks is their audacity ,the king unleashes a carnage on their village.They take refuge inside a cave where the girl gets bitten by a furious flock of bats which changes something inside her and gives her unimaginable powers ,including the one to stave off death and ageing.
Both the stories are recognisable,one from Aithihyamala and other,of course,Lokah,common element being the name of both the protagonists- Kalliyankattu Neeli.The moviemakers used a popular name from folklore and created an entirely different story. I won’t be surprised if the second version will be remembered more after half a century, pushing the former into relative oblivion. Myths and legends are dynamic entities that change with time, sometimes like words in a game of Chinese whispers. They are like water poured in a jug, taking its shape and flavoured by the time ,space and culture it occupies.
Similar is the evolution of festivals, intimately tied to the myths often associated with their origin. Most festivals initially began for reasons like thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest. It cemented community camaraderie when people started agriculture and began to live as families in a wider society. Eventually they developed religious and spiritual sentiments and their celebrations were given such a spin, perhaps an origin story rooted in their local myths and legends. In the modern era, festivals have evolved into their commercial forms or as a platform for artistic expression, like the pandals in Durga Puja which use the opportunity and exposure associated with the festival to raise awareness about social issues, recently even using AI for designs. Festivals are also dynamic like myths changing with time. The associated myth is often an add-on because stories can bind people better and faster than other media. A festival thus comes with multiple dimensions which caters itself to different people and what they could resonate with,some may be interested in the associated worship, some are all for the cultural aspect, some just need a season for fun and frolic, but festivals bring something for everyone like Santa Claus with his bag of gifts. As Bengalis call the DurgaPuja,sarbojonin(sarbo=sarva=all ,jon=jan=people),every festival and celebration is made to be for all, regardless of the origin of the associated legends. Onam is no different.
Onam may have begun as a religious festival,as the birthday of Mahavishnu according to ancient Tamil texts. But it is also a harvest festival and that is how it has always been in our collective memory. It was instituted as the state festival by the then state government in 1961 , probably with the intention of having something uniquely and exclusively Malayali which every Keralite can be a part of, wherever they are. It worked wonderfully with Onam weaving itself into the Malayali psyche as a marker of the state identity. Of course the bit where Mahabali made the request to visit his people is fiction added on with the purpose of creating a backstory for the festival. Like how the makers of Lokah drew on a name and created their own story blending creative liberty with modern themes .The power of stories to function as a social glue cannot be underestimated. Onam thus became a reminder of an erstwhile era under a kind and just king with the region enjoying its golden period. The mere thought that we may once have been part of such a legacy also makes it possible to think that such days could come back only if we work for it. But the same story has come under scrutiny now as the king in question is an Asura featured in Hindu mythology. Mahavishnu reincarnated in human form to push him down to the netherworld for whatever reason .In that case why is he being celebrated if he was an evil Asura whom God himself punished? It just does not add up.
It seems illogical simply because it is not the actual story. Mahabali was indeed a just king who ruled better than the Devas ever could .He was born in the Asura clan too,as the grandson of the great Prahlada, one of the most well-known devotees of Mahavishnu for whose protection he once emerged through a pillar as the fierce Narasimha, to kill Prahlad’s evil,arrogant father Hiranyakashipu who had set out to play God. The apple did not fall far away from the tree in Mahabali’s case, the tree being Prahlad. He took after his pious grandfather, learnt well from him and became a great ruler who conquered earth and even the heavens. That is where the plot thickens.The ousted Devas approached their mother Aditi who appealed to Mahavishnu to help her children. Some versions say that Bali’s administrative prowess and popularity threatened the Devas and they decided to nip him in the bud before he took over heaven. Mind you,Vishnu had nothing against Mahabali. He knew he was a better ruler on his own merit , albeit with a tinge of arrogance, fresh from his recent victories, but one completely fit for the post he was aspiring for. And he was his dear Prahlad’s grandchild to boot. But Indra was promised the position of the ruler of heavens for an entire Manwantara(a period of time) and that had to be honoured. He knew Mahabali’s time would come, but just not now. Hence,to preserve the cosmic balance ,he incarnated as Vamana and set out to the altar where Mahabali was performing a sacred yajna to seal his newly acquired position. His request as a young boy for just three paces of land amused Bali, now the ruler of all of earth and heavens. The disguise was pierced by the sharp gaze of Bali’s guru Shukracharya who forewarned him. Bali instead of being alarmed felt elated that God himself has come to seek something from him and there can be no greater fortune. The real action begins from then on. The young,short boy with seemingly puny feet grew to humungous proportions and measured both earth and heaven with his first two steps. All that Bali earned till then now belonged to Vamana, or rather, they already did and the truth that God is the supreme power and owner of everything he thought he possessed dawned on Mahabali. When the child asked about the remaining third step, Bali knelt down, bowed before him, stripped of all arrogance, in complete surrender and humility and offered himself, his only possession at the moment. Honestly,what he did captures the essence of “Thy will be done” taught by Jesus Christ himself in the Lord’s prayer. If someone degrades Mahabali as a demon from Hindu mythology, it is worth noting that he displayed the highly cherished Christian/universal values of humility and ultimate surrender to God. Besides,Asura is not an equivalent of Satan in Christian theology. There have been noble,virtuous Asuras .If God does not differentiate people based on the families they were born into, why should we?.
Let’s move on to the rest of the story. Mahavishnu was extremely pleased with Bali’s self-sacrifice to honour his word. He explained that the job he is after, of that of the ruler of heavens will be his in the next Manwantara. It has already been decided but pushing for it now is challenging destiny and disturbing the balance of the cosmos. I consider that a hidden theme in the entire story, to accept God’s will and the fact that sometimes it is not yet the ripe time for us to get what we deserve and have been promised. Vishnu did not push him to a dark,damp hellish Pathala as is misunderstood by many to suffer for all eternity. He blessed him with a spot in another world called Suthala,one not lesser than heaven in peace and luxury and he even promised to stay guard there and be his constant companion. Does that sound like an evil demon king being punished? Rather,he was protecting Mahabali from the designs of the jealous Devas to overthrow him one way or the other. Vamana and Mahabali don’t share an equation like Ram-Ravan or Krishna-Kamsa.They have always been on the same team.
People often raise a valid question why Keralappiravi/or the date of the state formation was not chosen to be the official state festival. It may have been a random choice but Onam is a clear winner as the more obvious choice even in hindsight, as it is more of a complete package and a symbol of abundance, tradition and culture –both as a harvest festival and also for celebrating the legend of a great ruler under whom everyone enjoyed equal rights and a golden era. Keralappiravi is more of an administrative milestone that is important but does not quite invoke the same appeal in a celebratory manner. Of course, It is all fictional to begin with. Moreover, Mahabali’ s kingdom is supposed to be along the Narmada in western India, miles away from Kerala. Incorporating this story to the Onam celebration may have just been a smart marketing tactic tapping on the power of stories and legends to bind and unite.It is unfortunate that the same story is now being used as a tool to divide people. Let’s set something straight.
Accusation 1- Mahabali is a demon/satan- No,he was born in the Asura clan,which does not make him evil/Satan.The two concepts are different. He should be judged by his good fruits,as mentioned in the Bible and not his birth family.
Accusation 2- Vamana himself punished this king for his doings and why admire him then- Hope the story is clear. It is not the usual story which ends in good vanquishing evil. Mahabali was being put to a test and he passed in flying colours.And Vishnu loves him. End of the story. Choosing to be part of a celebration or not is a personal choice that must be respected. But even if someone is fictional, speaking ill of him out of ignorance and making him out to be someone he is not is unfair.
Xenophobia will not get a society anywhere. Labelling and boxing people and even demonizing stories because they come from a different culture deprives us of the chance to get to know something amazing and their hidden essence which is perhaps not very different from what we grew up learning For instance,Shivaratri commemorates the night Devas prayed for Mahadev who gulped down the deadly Kalakoot/Halahal poison to protect the earth. Is there truly a difference between Mahadev who , without a second thought swallowed a terrible poison to protect the world and its people and Jesus Christ who sacrificed himself on the cross to pay for the world’s sins?.If any of you finds the comparison blasphemous, kindly just focus on their actions and the intention behind it, rather than their origins or the cultures they represent. A different belief need not be demonic, they might have expressed the same truth in different words. I have noticed that anyone who insists otherwise reiterates that they do love everyone irrespective of their beliefs and is always willing to help them out in need. But love without respect is empty and calling another’s belief demonic, when they proclaim the same truth in a different manner is hardly respectful.
Building fences to keep each other out when we all possess
treasure troves of what could benefit everyone will ultimately be our own loss.
Why must we restrict ourselves to drab cramped rooms when we have the entire
meadow to ourselves? Or do we really have to wait for an alien invasion to
forget these minor differences once and for all? A thing of beauty is a joy forever
and beautiful things can be celebrated by anyone who can savour its goodness. Let
Onam and all festivals teaching something good remain sarbojonin,for all
people,for all eternity.
