Festival of Kerala

Over 10,000 festivals are celebrated in the state every year. Each festival celebrated with great zeal and enthusiasm, as they speak volumes about the state's history, culture and beliefs. A common characteristic of these festivals is the hoisting of a holy flag which is brought down on the final day of the festival after immersing the deity.

Some famous festivals celebrate in each corner of Kerala;

Onam

Onam is the most important and popular festival in Kerala. Celebrated with much pomp and fervor, Onam is a harvest festival, which falls in the months of August/September annually. Onam is also called Thiruonam and it is celebrated at the beginning of the month Chingam of Malayalam calendar.

Vishu

Vishu marks the Malayalam New Year and is celebrated with great fervour by Malayalis across Kerala, Karnataka and other parts of the country. Based on the Hindu calendar, Vishu is the first day of the first solar month of Medam.

Pooram

Pooram is an annual festival, which is celebrated in temples dedicated to goddesses Durga or Kali held especially in Valluvanadu area and other adjoining parts of north-central Kerala after the summer harvest.

Vijaya Dashami

In Kerala and in some parts of Karnataka three days: Ashtami, Navami and Vijaya Dashami of Sharada Navarathri are celebrated as Sarasvati Puja in which books are worshiped. The books are placed for Puja on the Ashtami day in their own houses, traditional nursery schools, or in temples. On Vijaya Dashami day, the books are ceremoniously taken out for reading and writing after worshiping Sarasvati. Vijaya Dashami day is considered auspicious for initiating the children into writing and reading, which is called Vidyāraṃbhaṃ.

The Vidyarambham day tradition starts with the baby or child sitting on the lap of an elderly person such as the grandfather, near images of Saraswati and Ganesha. The elder writes a letter and the child writes the same with his or her index finger.