MY VILLAGE.

My Village.


I was born in the little village, Kizakhancherry in Palghat dist of Kerala State in India a small Brahmin Village, consisting of about 100 houses. In the centre of the village, there is a Ganapathy temple. (Is the temple at the centre?) There is a small river flowing near the temple. We have to go through the compound of the temple to the river for taking bath (even if you are polluted?) There is always water in the river 365 days of the year, (not in summer. In summer they construct a mud dam to retain water) enough for the entire village, for its requirements. (The river water is not used for anything other than bathing.) There are festivals in the temple such as the Car Festival with Elephant procession. The elephants well decorated accompanied with music like the Panchavadhyam (How did Panchvadyam is termed as music by Anna?) consisting of five drums. Festival days are really enjoyable! I was always happy to participate in all the events. I used to climb on top of the elephant to hold a decorated umbrella over the Idol placed on the elephant. The village will be crowded on festival days. People from the nearby villages will also join in the festival. The other days, the village will be quite calm and serene. It used to be a wonderful sight watching the ladies and girls taking their bath in the river when the flow of water is less. After the bath everyone will have to go through the temple only, to their homes. This routine is followed even to this day. There is a vast difference in having your bath in the river, rather than in our own bathrooms at home. After the procession there will be a good lunch, a real great feast. It will last from 1 pm to 4 pm. More than 500 people will take part in this feast. The elephant procession is a beautiful sight to see, a feast for the eyes. Ours is a small clean typical village in Kerala.

END.
KND