VAVULSAVAM
Kadalundi Vavu Festival
Kadalundi Vavu Festival: The Start of the Festival Season in North Malabar
The Vavu Festival is a major festival at the Pediyatt Bhagavathi Temple located in Kadalundi, Kozhikode district. It is known as the festival that marks the beginning of temple festivals in North Malabar.
Timing of the Vavu Festival
Month: The Vavu Festival takes place on the day of the dark moon (Amavasi) in the Malayalam month of Thulam (during October/November).
Connection: This festival usually falls around the time of Diwali.
Frequency: It is celebrated annually.
Main Attractions and Legend
The central figure of the Vavu Festival is Pediyatt Bhagavathi. The festival is celebrated in connection with the legend that Bhagavati’s son, Jathavan, comes to visit his mother once a year.
Jathavan Purappad: This is one of the important rituals of the festival. Seven days prior to the festival, the procession starting from Jathavan Kottta moves through the locality accompanied by the Kudirappava (Kudireduppu), representing Jathavan’s mount, the horse.
The Day Mother and Son Meet: On the day of the Vavu Festival, the idol of Pediyatt Devi is taken in procession to the Vakkadave beach for the Aarattu (ritual bath). Here, Jathavan, who had set out to tour the locality, meets his mother, the Goddess. Following this, the idols of the mother and son are taken back to the temple in a procession.
Padakalithallu: This is a ceremonial ritual art form performed when the Goddess is being led to the Kunnath family house. It is believed that the Goddess sits on the Manithara (sacred platform) and enjoys this Padakalithallu.
Balitharpanam: Balitharpanam rituals (offering to ancestors) are also held at Gotheeswaram in Kadalundi on the Thulam Vavu day for ancestral propitiation.
