Mampatti

Location

It is located 43 km North from District headquarters Sivagangai. Other nearby towns are Melur and Tirupathur. It is about 10 km away from Thirukoshtiyur which has one of the 108 Divya desam temples dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It is well connected to Tirupathur, Melur and Madurai by private and Tamil Nadu State Transport bus lines.

History and people

It is a modern village with long history. Main occupation of the people is agriculture and trading. Twelve villages that are situated around are administratively and culturally linked with Mampatti. Name of the 12 villages are 'Mampatti, Oppilanpatti, Santhirapatti, Thumbaipatti, Idaiyapatti, Kilukiluppaipatti, Thirupathipatti, M.Valaiyapatti, Kachapatti, Kalungupatti, Thoppupatti, Indira nagar'.

Everyone knows the festival Deepavali/Diwali(Tamil: தீபாவளி), which literally means “row of lights” celebrated by Hindus across the world and is the most important festival in Hinduism. It is the celebration of good over evil, and light overcoming darkness. Regarding Diwali, astounding fact of this villages is that they never celebrate this festival. No new clothes, sweets or fire crackers here. For residents of the villages, Diwali has never been an occasion for celebration. For the past six decades, the villagers have shunned the festival. The reason behind this is that they faced a severe drought on that period and also the festival occurs at the wrong time of the year during October November, where everyone will be in the midst of Samba Season where they incur agricultural expenses.

While the entire village was suffering due to drought, few affluent families celebrated the festival, as usual indifferent to the plight of others. It hurt many of the people in villages, particularly the kids. That was when they decided not to celebrate it. Everyone in the villages strictly adhere to the resolution adopted during a village meeting held 60 years ago. Even those who moved from the village to settle elsewhere have not violated this unwritten diktat of the village.

Also many youths from villages moved to foreign countries for survival as monsoon fails for a continuous time. Now the villagers' economic condition improved as farming picked up for some extent. But, they continued to shun celebrations. Youth who marry girls from this village are told about the practice in advance so that they do not expect to be honored during 'Thalai diwali'(Tamil: தலை தீபாவளி), the first diwali after marriage. However, the villagers celebrate Pongal in a grand manner wearing new clothes and preparing sweet Pongal along with the engagement of a bull taming sport called Manju Virattu(Tamil: மஞ்சு விரட்டு).

Apart from the above, Goat rearing is also prohibited here in order to protect and safeguard smaller plants, flags and trees around the villages.

Sri Kadukavalar Swamy Temple

There are many temples around Mampatti. Main attraction of this region is "Sri Kadukavalar Swamy Temple"(Tamil: ஸ்ரீ காடுகாவலர் ஸ்வாமி திருக்கோவில்). The Deity of this temple is called "Kadukavalar Swamy" (Tamil: காடுகாவலர் ஸ்வாமி) situated in the middle of 12 villages. As every village deity, this too situated in-between the shore of a Rivulet called 'ManiMuthar' and a Lake that running through the villages for cultivation. The rivers and tunnels flooding through this area get the source of water from a Tropical forest of Alagar Hills.

Chola Vinayagar and Choleswarar Temple

Chola Vinayagar/Cholesvarar Temple is a Hindu temple. The presiding deity of this temple is Lord Ganapathy. This ancient temple comes under the Jurisdiction of 'Sivagangai Samasthanam Devasthanam'(Tamil: சிவகங்கை சமஸ்தான தேவஸ்தானம்) which is administered by the Rani of Sivagangai, 'Sahiba Madurantaki Nachiar'.

Karanthamalai Aiyanar Temple

This is the Aiyanar Temple of this region worshipped by the 12 villages mentioned above and other nearby villages. 'Puravi Eduppu' is the festival that will be conducted once in every 3 years for this temple.

Another temple located in front of a village courtyard is 'Manthaiya Ayya'. The people entering into the village will worship this deity first.

Vaikasi Thiruvizha

“Vaikasi Thiruvizha”(Tamil: வைகாசித் திருவிழா) festival celebrated every year in the month of April/May is one of the major annual festival in this village. It is a 5 days festival for Deities "Ponnadai Selvi" and "Piriya Vidai Naynar" situated in Vadavanpatti(Tamil: வடவன்பட்டி) village. Deity will be carried through the villages towards the river that flows near the village Oppilanpatti in order for a 'Ganga Snanam'. This festival attracts devotees from around the villages. Most of the natives living outside of the village returns home to participate in the festival.

Pongal Festival

Pongal (Tamil: பொங்கல் பண்டிகை), a harvest festival of Tamils which is celebrated on January. Pongal means the "boiling over" of milk and rice. As an agriculture based civilization the harvest plays an important part in this region. The farmer cultivating his land depends on cattle, timely rain and the Sun. Once a year, he expresses his gratitude to these during the harvest festival, thanking the Sun God for agricultural abundance. This festival, Pongal, falls typically on the 14th or the 15th of January and is the quintessential 'Tamil Festival', a traditional occasion for giving thanks to nature. Families will gather to rejoice and share their joy with others. This is the major festival celebrated in this region which brings the natives back home.

On the day of Pongal, the puja is performed when rice is boiled in milk in an earthenware pot and is then symbolically offered to the sun-god along with other oblations. In accordance with the appointed ritual a turmeric plant is tied round the pot in which the rice will be boiled. The offerings include the sticks of sugar-cane in background and coconut and bananas in the dish.

Next day celebration is Mattu Pongal(Tamil: மாட்டுப்பொங்கல்), the day of Pongal for Cows. Multi-colored beads, tinkling bells, sheaves of corn and flower garlands are tied around the neck of the cattle and then are worshiped. They are fed with Pongal and taken to the village centers. Arati is performed on them, so as to ward off the evil eye. As Diwali is shunned in this region, this day festival will be celebrated in a grand manner, with bull taming sport called Manju Virattu(Tamil: மஞ்சு விரட்டு) at the end of the day.

Tying a 'Salli'(copper coin) on the foreheads of the bulls, trained specially for this, the bulls are set loose. The competitors then try to capture the fierce bulls. The Tamil literature and the famous grammar Tolkappiyam(Tamil: தொல்காப்பியம்) which is created in the ancient Sangam period mentioned this as "eru taluvuthal"(Tamil: ஏறு தழுவுதல்).

Puravi Eduppu Festival

'Puravi Eduppu'(Tamil: புரவி எடுப்பு திருவிழா) is a festival beseeching the rain gods for their mercy. This is the festival taken for the deity Karanthamalai Aiyanar who protects the rural villages and their families. The festival of Aiyanar is decided upon by the entire village. After the decision has been taken, the god sometimes is consulted as well; he will answer e.g., through the "message of salvation". Once the decision made for conducting the festival, with a symbolic handful of earth from the temple the priest requests the potter (Velar) to make the necessary statues. The temple administration or the village pays for the statues of the deities and some of the horses; the devotee commissions his/her own votive offerings and pays for them. The potters also fashion the statues of the deities and of other items, be they animals or parts of the human body (legs, arms, eyes etc. offered in return for the healing of an illness). The statues are whitewashed and then painted with colors. Large old clay(terracotta) horses reaching a height of two meters and more, wonderfully molded and with intricate decorations with Vestis, Flower garlands. Devotees decorate their votive offerings themselves with flowers, pieces of cloths, balloons, pin-wheels, mirrors, etc.,.

Over a padding of straw tied to the sides of the larger statues, two wooden poles are fastened with which the statues can be carried. The smaller statues are carried on the head or shoulder of a person. The horses that given to the god denotes status, strength, power and royal qualities. once the priest completes performing Puja for all the terracotta's, the clay statues are then carried at a fast pace to the temple, where their eyes are opened and where they receive a place in front of the old statues. This terracotta horses seen inside the compound are given to the god in order to walk around his territory on night time to assert and record its boundaries.

Sevvai Pongal

‘Sevvai Pongal’(Tamil: செவ்வாய்ப் பொங்கல்) is a traditional community festival celebrated on the last Tuesday of Tamil month 'Karthigai'(mid-November to mid-December). This will happen in the entire 'MayilrayanKottai Nadu' region, which is another annual occasion for villagers to come together.

All the community members come together to make 'White Pongal' to offer worship for the deity 'Amman', in order to protect 'Crops' and 'Plants' in the Paddy Fields. Though the worship is for God, the occasion will happen in front of a square shed raised platform, which will be seen in most of the villages. This open 'dais' normally built in front of a house, temple or an Village for general use. It is the property of the entire community and a Place of public assembly of the village. The peoples in the village will gather at this common place for sitting and gathering. In Tamil language this is called as "Savukkai/Chavadi(சவுக்கை/சாவடி)."

Apart from making pongal, in some villages devotees will make Mavilakku, a rice made flour with milk and coconut, offering for the Goddess to appease her and to get her blessings.