Onam 2027 Date – 12 September

The legend of King Mahabali

Mahabali was an asura king of Kerala whose reign was remembered as a golden age – no one was poor, no one lied, everyone was equal. His growing power worried the gods, so Vishnu came to him as Vamana, a young Brahmin boy, and asked for as much land as he could cover in three steps. Mahabali agreed. Vamana grew to a cosmic size, covered the earth and sky in two steps, and Mahabali offered his own head for the third. He was sent to the netherworld, but was granted a wish to visit his people once a year. Onam is that homecoming.

Onam is celebrated by Malayalis of every faith, as a festival of Kerala's harvest and its shared identity.

Ten days from Atham to Thiruvonam

Onam celebrations run for ten days, starting on the Atham nakshatra and ending on Thiruvonam (Shravana nakshatra) in the Malayalam month of Chingam (August–September). Each day a pookkalam – a floral carpet laid at the entrance – grows by another ring of flowers. Thripunithura, near Kochi, opens the season with the Athachamayam procession, and the Thrikkakara Vamana temple, linked to the legend, holds its main festival. Many homes also place Onathappan, pyramid-shaped clay figures, in the courtyard.

The Onasadya

The heart of Thiruvonam is the sadya, a vegetarian feast of 20 or more dishes served on a banana leaf, eaten with the hand and in a set order. Typical items include parippu with ghee, sambar, rasam, avial, olan, kaalan, thoran, erissery, pachadi, kichadi, inji puli, pickles, banana chips, sharkara varatti, pappadam and at least one payasam, such as ada pradhaman or palada. There is a saying in Malayalam that one should have an Onam feast even if it means selling one's land ('kaanam vittum onam unnanam').

Games, boats and dances

• Vallam Kali – snake-boat races on the rivers and backwaters; the Aranmula Uthrattathi Vallamkali is held soon after Thiruvonam.
• Pulikali – men painted as tigers dance through the streets of Thrissur on the fourth day of Onam.
• Thiruvathirakali – a graceful circle dance performed by women.
• Onakkalikal – traditional games, tug-of-war, and swings (oonjal) hung from trees.
• Onakkodi – new clothes, traditionally the cream-and-gold kasavu sari or mundu, gifted by the head of the family.

How to do Onam puja, step by step

1. Clean the house and courtyard and lay the first ring of the pookkalam on Atham.
2. Add more flowers to the pookkalam every day until Thiruvonam.
3. On Thiruvonam, bathe early and wear new clothes (onakkodi).
4. Place Onathappan clay figures with flowers in the courtyard, if it is your custom.
5. Prepare and serve the sadya on banana leaves, starting with the family's elders.
6. Spend the afternoon on games, songs, Thiruvathirakali and visits to relatives.