The relevance of temple festivals

Temple festivals are unique in many respects. In the earlier days temples were one of the centres of village activity, and the festivals had a great role in mending the minds. Festivals brought together the rural folk and along with them the rustic values. But today, the scenario has changed; villages are slowly disappearing and the urban settlements extend to kill many rural landscapes and even their pretty old names; temple festivals have been reduced to mere exhibition grounds of tradition, culture and religious values. But festivals, like the Attukal Pongala festival has retained its rustic charm even amidst the choking city dust. It's a unique experience to see the urban hypocrisy giving way to rustic values; the entire metropolis turns to a village at least for a day to regain the values it has lost, all in the name of Amma.