Diwali is not the only festival of lights but also a festival of tradition, gratitude and most importantly food. Diwali marks cooking of delicious savory snacks and Mithai. This festival has many legends signifying celebration and happiness. Many important events occurred on Diwali day, Lord Ram returned to Ayodhya after killing king Ravan, Lord Krishna killed Narakasur, Samudra Manthan or churning of ocean happened on this day, Lakshmi goddess of wealth married Lord Vishnu on this day.

For Jains Mahavir attained nirvana, celebrate Bandi Chhor Divas in remembrance of the release of Guru Hargobind from the Gwalior Fort prison by the Mughal emperor, Jahangir, and the day he arrived at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. During the Diwali week everybody starts to prepare savory snacks and sweets, there is an exchange of gifts and sweets. The auspicious Diwali lamps are lit and the whole country is shining, with the Diwali decoration. But there are some traditions that do things differently; they have their own foods and customs to be eaten on the Diwali day.

Annakoot

Annakoot means Lot of Food, A mountain of food is made to please Govardhan Mountain, He is also called Giriraj or king of mountains. Annakut is celebrated on the fourth day of Diwali, that is the very next day after Amavasya,  to offer gratitude to Krsna and Govardhan. This festival is celebrated mainly in Rajasthan and near about of Mathura. The origin of this festival dates back to Lord Krishna when he asked Vrajwasis to give up worshiping Indra and instead worship Govardhan as it is the mountain that provides food for the cows, and they were cowherds men so serving cows were really dear to them. Govardhan means one who nourishes the cows.

Later Lord Krsna lifted the Govardhan mountain to save people of Vraja from the wrath of Indra. From that day onwards worship of Govardhan began. Since Govardhan is a mountain and is humongous in size, it is perceived as it needs a lot of food. Therefore to satisfy the hunger of Giriraj mountains of food are made. Those in Vraja do parikrama of the sacred mountain and offer Bhoga to Giriraj. Those away from Vraja either worship a Shila or rock of the mountain or make a mountain of cow dung, having eyes and mouth and perform the rituals. Abhishek is performed of Govardhan, later mountains of food are made along with Chappan Bhog to seek Mercy of Giriraj.

The Bengal’s Shaak

When everybody is eating sweets, the people of Bengal eat Shaak during the second day of Diwali. The elders would say “Na khele bhoote dhorbe,”. If you do not eat it, ghosts will haunt you. According to Charak Samhita, it is believed that during the month of Kartik, that is the pre-winter month, the doors leading to Yamloka are open and the evil spirits move freely. to protect oneself from these evils, and in order to retain our strength and ward off the dangers, one must eat this Shaak. This unique Shaak is made of 14 different kinds of leafy vegetables.

This Shaak consists of red amaranth leaves, Kalmi (water spinach), spinach, Kochu (Colocasia), Notey (amaranth), Kumro (pumpkin), mulo (radish), Lau (bottle gourd), Paat (jute), Motorshuti (green peas), methi (fenugreek), Palta (pointed gourd leaves), Betho (Bathua), and Shorshe (mustard) Shaak. This Shaak also has no specific recipe, each household makes it differently. The vegetables are first washed and soaked before cooking. And then the soaked water is sprinkled in and around the house to ward off any evil spirit. 

 

Goan Poha

 

Poha, seriously, who eats Poha on Diwali. Poha is a flattened rice Maharashtrian preparation mostly eaten as breakfast in Maharashtra and Goa.  In Goa there are different dishes are prepared with the Poha during Diwali, and it is mandatory to eat Poha during the festival. According to popular Goan legend lord, Krishna loved eating poha, it was his favorite preparations. After lord, Krishna returned to Dwarka after killing Narakasur lord Krishna was offered his favorite Poha. poha is known as Fau, in Goa.

The five dishes with Poha are Bataat Fau, which is poha cooked with potatoes and a tempering of curry leaves, lentils, and mustard seeds; then there is the sweet and the spicy Kalayile Fau, prepared by mixing the poha (by hand) with a fiery spice blend, grated fresh coconut and a hint of jaggery. The Doodhatlye Fau is a simple, delicate dish of flattened rice in milk; the Rosathle Fau is poha prepared in cardamom-infused coconut milk, and the Dhayatle Fau is a simple sweet poha prepared with curd or buttermilk. The poha is usually served with dried pea curry, Vatana Usal.

Eating Sooran

Yam or Sooran is something which drives the kids away; Sooran might be one of the favorite vegetables of many people. But in Uttar Pradesh is and parts of north India eating Sooran on Diwali day gives the blessings of Goddess Lakshmi. Yam grows by corns and even after harvest the corns remain, symbolizing the abundances of the produce. Since goddess Lakshmi and Diwali symbolizes abundance in wealth, eating Sooran became the tradition. There is no specific recipe but Sooran has to be had in any form. Generally, Sooran is eaten stir fried with spices, or as Chokha with Pooris.

 

The Tamil Nadu’s Diwali Medicine

The foods eaten during festivals can be heavy to the belly, and you may need help to digest. Therefore in Tamil Nadu, a Marundu or medicine is prepared and is mandatory to be eaten empty stomach on Deepavali day. This can be had anytime but during Diwali this is mandatory. Various ingredients such as carom seeds, poppy seeds, dry ginger, dry grapes, honey, jaggery, nuts, ghee are used to prepare this medicine. This preparation prepares your digestive system for indulging in good festive food.

Kerala’s Ginger Jaggery preparation.

Dhanvantri the god of medicine was the last person to appear from churning the ocean, with The elixir of immortality, ‘Amrit’. It is believed that Samudra Manthan happened on the Diwali day and the following day after Diwali is celebrated as Birthday of Dhanvantri. This is a very popular tradition in Kerela. Their Diwali morning starts with a pre-bath Abhyanga, a herbal massage with turmeric, gram flour, and Oil. After this massage, they have a ritual bath and wear clean clothes. Then a concoction made of Jaggery and Ginger is offered to Lord Dhanvantri to seek his blessings. Dhanvantri is the god of health and medicine worshiping him with this preparation showers health and protection from diseases.

Sukhsuptika or Kashmiri Diwali

Deepavali or Sukhsuptika is oldest known Kashmiri pundit ritual that is mentioned in the Nilamat Puran, a text of 6th – 7th century A.D. This text is named after King Nila of the Nagar dynasty that ruled Kashmir in the beginning. King Nila describes sixty-five rituals and festivals which were celebrated by the Nagas, Sukhsuptika is one of those important festivals being celebrated.

Diwali of Kashmiri pundits start on Ekadashi and ends on Kartika Amavasya, Kashmiri Pundits keep a fast during Diwali. In the evening they worship goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. They light lamps in temples, crossroads river banks, and every part of their surroundings. The evening Feast is arranged to be enjoyed with relatives and friends.  And sweets are distributed since Kashmiris were not so used to eat sweets they substituted sweets with sweet puris to be offered to Lord Narayana and then distributed among relatives and friends. After the pujas and worship the next day people wear new clothes, gamble and listen to folk songs.

Ningol Chakkouba of Manipur

Diwali in Manipur is celebrated the same way it is celebrated in other parts of the country, by lighting lamps, exchanging sweets, gifts and bursting crackers. But before or after Diwali comes a very special Manipuri festival of “Ningol Chakkouba”. The festival of “Ningol Chakkouba” is a very important and popular festival of Manipur, especially the Meitei Community. It is celebrated on the second day of the lunar month of Hiyanggei , which falls a day or two either before or after Diwali. “Ningol” means the daughter of a family, and  “Chakkouba” stands for a feast. On this day, the married women of Manipur go to their paternal homes for a feast and receive gifts from their parents and brothers.

The children of the daughters are also excited as they get to wear new clothes, get gifts, dokhina (token money) on this auspicious day. The invitation of this festival is sent formally a week ahead of the festival by the brothers. The feast is prepared by bamon a Chef or by mothers and elders of the family. The dishes include vegetables and fish preparations such as nga thongba (fish curry), iromba (spicy chutney), ooty (a type of dal), soibum mathel (bamboo shoots dishes), hei thongba (a dessert made of fruits) and a long list of food follows. After a long lunch session with all the family members, the daughters spend quality time with their maternal family and relish their childhood memories. Daughters and their kids are presented with gifts. This festival is so special that daughters wait the whole year for this day to come.

 

 

We all relish Pineapple, this tropical fruit is cultivated only in few regions of the world. It takes five to ten month for a pineapple to flower and further six months for its fruit.

How do you think pineapple originated. The Philippines seem to have an answer to this question.

As per Filipino legends, there was a little girl named Pina who lived with her mother in a fruit plantation, in the countryside of Philippines. Her mom was hard working so was Pina, but when it came to household chores Pina showed no interest; she only loved to play all day. Pina always procrastinated and ignored the household work her mom gave. She would start the work and then leave it half done for the next day. Her tomorrow never came and the work always remained incomplete.  Pina often stopped in the middle of her household chore to play. She always complained that she could not find anything her mom kept or she would not understand the instructions her mom gave. The folklore further says that her mom was too vocal with her careless ill wishes and would curse people who did not please her. However, she was tolerant when it came to her daughter.

One day Pina’s mother asked her to get her wooden shoes from under their hut. She went down their hut and looked under it. Pina in her usual procrastination cried out “I can’t see it”. Her mother was trying to guide her but Pina kept on repeating that she is unable to see it. Her mom in rage cursed her “May you grow a thousand eyes”. Suddenly Pina disappeared.

A search party looked all over the plantation for Pina and there was no trace of hers. One day while Pina’s Mom was in her backyard she discovered a new plant species. This fruit was of the size of Pina’s head it was covered with eyes. Looking that the fruit covered with eyes she remembered her last curse, where she asked Pina to grow a thousand eyes. From then on, she called the plant, a pineapple, or “Pinya” in Filipino.

During the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi every one is busy cooking Modaks, the sweet shops sell varieties of Modaks. Ganesh loves the sweet stuffed rice or Khoya dumplings. It is said that in the early Sanskrit literature Modaka appeared to have the similar resembles as laddu or ladduka. In Anushasan Parva of Mahabharat and Yuddha Kanda of Ramayana Modaka is mentioned. It is believed that after this era Modaka became associated with Ganesha. The Shushruta Samhita mentions Madhumsaka or Madhukroda as a sweet which was prepared with wheat flour but had honey or clarified butter stuffed inside. The Agni Puran also mentions Morendaka was a kind of sweet prepared from curdling the milk. The solid part of it was formed into the shape of the eggs of a peacock, fried in clarified butter and coated with sugar. The Mansollasa by King Someshwara the II, Mentions Modaka as prepared with rice flour, sugar and some aromatic spices such as cardamom and camphor were called Varsopalagolakas because they looked like hailstones as mentioned in Manasaollasa.

Once Anusuya, wife of sage Atri invited Lord Shiva with his family for lunch, Lord Shiva came along with goddess Parvati and Ganesha. They were served with delicious mouth-watering delicacies, Lord Ganesha then started eating and ate all the food that was served. Inspite of eating so much his hunger was not satisfied. Anusuya was really worried as sending a guest unsatisfied is a sin. Finally only thing that was left with Anusuya was a plate of Modak. She served Ganesha with 21 Modaks as her last resort. After eating the Modaks Lord Ganesha was satisfied.

There is another story where in Modak is referred as symbol of divne knowledge. One Shiva and goddess Parvati wished to present a unique divine Modak of knowledge to their sons. This Modak had the ability to bestow the person eating it with incredible knowledge of everything. Goddess Parvati decided to test her sons and decided to give it to the one who passes the test. She asked her sons to circumambulate the universe three times and the first one to do this would win. Kartikeya instantly flew on his peacock. Whereas Ganesha sitting on his mouse went around Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati , giving the logic that for a son his parents are the universe and the universe revolves around Shiva and Parvati. By the time Kartikeya returned Ganesha had already won and received the Modak of knowledge.

We all crave for our morning tea, without which the day seems incomplete. A steaming cup of tea during a breezy or rainy day seems so pleasurable. Tea is one beverage that has become a culture. Tea is an integral part of Asian, Indian and English cultures. Tea is also not a simple beverage to make; it is made differently in every part of the globe. There are over 3000 ways of making tea, can you believe this? The Japanese and Chinese also celebrate the art of making tea with a traditional ritual known as “Tea ceremony”. How did this legendary beverage appear in this world?

The Origin story.

 The discovery of tea is credited to Bodhidharma, a Zen Buddhist monk. He is known as Daruma in Japan. Bodhidharma is also credited to create Shaolin kungfu. He traveled from India to China around the year 475 CE. Bodhidharma was born as a prince of southern Indian Pallava kingdom. He then was converted to Buddhism in his youth and was instructed by his spiritual master to go to China and preach. Bodhidharma came to China in wearing a simple robe and carrying an alms bowl to observe his vow of poverty. He preached that nirvana or enlightenment can be attained through meditation. He adhered to a routine of harsh self-discipline and extreme asceticism, rigorous practices that he transmitted to his followers. Bodhidharma is accredited to strong vows of uninterrupted meditation, his mediation tales say that he meditated up to an extent where his arms, legs withered away he even lost his shadow. One such vow led to the discovery of tea.

Once Bodhidharma vowed to mediate for nine long years without sleep, he was successful for some years but towards the end of his vow as he sat with eyes closed he fell asleep. Upon awaking, he was furious at his weakness, he in self-disgust savagely tore ripped out his eyelids and threw them to the ground. As the leaf-like lids of flesh lay bloody in the dirt, they sprouted miraculously into tea plants. Bodhidharma then left the place and returned after a few days. To his surprise, he discovered the tea plant. Bodhidharma then happened to Instinctively, plucked a few leaves from the bushes to chew and he felt a revelation as “one who awakens.” His sleep magically disappeared and His mind was much clear and focused, he resumed his meditation. since this day Buddhist monks drink tea to help in meditation.

A God’s Drink

 Shennong or Divine Farmer is a Chinese medicine and agriculture deity.  Shennong was credited with various medicines and farming inventions such as the hoe, the plow, axe, digging wells, agricultural irrigation, etc. Shennong is also thought to be the father of Huang Emperor carried on the secrets of medicine, immortality, and making gold. Shennong, the god of medicine, used to research on medicinal properties of various plants and herbs. He used to experiment herbs on his own body, he also used always have his tea, which was considered an antidote. During one such experiment, he swallowed a yellow flower of a weed, that immediately ruptured his intestines and caused his death. He missed having his antidotal tea. This story shows that the antioxidant and antidotal property of tea was already known. Having thus given his life for humanity, he has since received special honor through his worship as the Medicine King (Yàowáng)

Accidental tea.

Once Chinese emperor Shen Nung , was relaxing under a tree, on a serene warm afternoon. He had asked his attendants to boil some water for him. While the attendant was boiling water, a mild breeze caused some tea leaves to fall in the pot. The servant is a bit lazy decided not to boil another pot of water, he just served the water as it. Drinking the different tasting water the emperor loved the refreshing experience, making the world’s first cup of afternoon tea.

 Tea in literature

Lu Yu (733-804), a Buddhist monk During the Tang dynasty, composed  Ch’a Ching, worlds first and earliest treaties on tea. He describes types of teas, their mythology, and philosophy, uses and preparation methods. He wrote the treaties with a spiritual aesthetic that reflected Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian school of thought. These treaties served as building blocks for the tea ceremony and a whole sacred faith on the tea.  Following the tang dynasty came the romantic age of tea led by Sung dynasty (960-1280 AD.), many types of poetry and artistic references to tea were created during this age. Later in the Victorian age, the artistic, philosophy and emotional representation were carried on by early British and European writers, artists and philosophers.

Legend of Iced Tea

During the 19th century, tea drinking became an integral part of American social life. In the 1904s world’s fair in St. Louis, Missouri, A tea merchant was selling some hot tea samples. Since it was a hot sunny day he was not receiving a great response. He then thought of borrowing some ice from a nearby ice cream vendor and added it to the pot where he was brewing tea.  When he started to serve ice cold tea, it suddenly became a big hit.

 

 

The tempting luscious plumpy Red strawberries are irresistible. They are defined as a symbol of love and passion. The bright red color that they possess is a symbol of passion and the shape defines a heart filled with love. The strawberries have been a popular flavor for cakes, cookies, ice creams and desserts. The strawberry is also a known Aphrodisiac and the perfect shape and size for dipping in chocolate; strawberries are perfect as a simple tool of seduction. As per some Legends, it is said that if you break a double strawberry in half and share it with a member of the opposite sex, you will fall in love with each other. In the French countryside, there was once a tradition of serving newlyweds cold strawberry soup to help promote the aphrodisiac of honeymoon romance. The Native Americans also believed that if a pregnant woman carried strawberry leaves in her pocket they would relieve the pains of pregnancy and support to clear toxins and aid in child-rearing. In 2600 years B. C, The Chinese Yellow Emperor used the leaves of the strawberry plant in a weak tea to detoxify and reduce the effects of aging. The Romans used Strawberries to lift the spirits and relieve bad breath as well as to treat a variety of digestive complaints. The popular reputation of love fruit has roots in ancient cultures, the fruit is associated with the goddess of love and fertility across civilizations. Here’s how the fruit got originated and associated as the fruit of love.

Tears of Separation – A Greek Narrative.

The legend is connected to Myrrha the mother of Adonis, who was a mortal lover of Aphrodite.  Myrrha was a daughter of King Cinyras  and Queen Cenchras. Myrrha once got filled with lust and fell in love with her father. According to Greek tradition having one’s father was a grave crime. However, Myrrha tricked her father into having sexual intercourse with her for nine night in complete darkness. Her father then chased her and she was transformed into a myrrh tree and as per some legends, Aphrodite’s curse her to get transformed into a tree. As myrrh tree, Myrrha gave birth to Adonis. Aphrodite found Adonis and asked Persephone, the queen of the underworld to raise him. Soon the Adonis turned out to be the most handsome man on earth, causing a dispute between Aphrodite and Persephone. To solve the conflict Zeus appointed the Muse Calliope as judge of this dispute who gave a verdict that Adonis would spend one-third year with each. Aphrodite and Adonis spent hours together in arms of each other. Aphrodite also used to advice Adonis to hunt animals that were safe and not chase the wild beasts. But one day Adonis had an encounter with a wild bear. The bear happened to would Adonis badly and he was groaning in pain, As soon as Aphrodite came to know of this she ran and held Adonis in her arms. Adonis could not survive and died groaning in arms of Aphrodite. Aphrodite wept tears of sorrow and separation. The tears Aphrodite wept were heart shaped and became the strawberry and tears that mixed with the blood of Adonis became the Anemone flower. 

The Nordic Holy Fruit.

The strawberries in the Viking Age were considered sacred and a forbidden fruit to be consumed by mankind. The fruit had a strong association with Friga, the Norse Goddess of Marriage. It is said that Friga was jealous and possessive about strawberries and required all strawberries be left for her. Her possession can be defined by a rule that if anyone approached the heavens with traces of strawberry juice on then they would not be allowed. It was also said if a Viking Baby died they ascended to the heavens in the form of strawberries. The seeds of strawberry were symbolized of the souls of the babies. The Vikings believed that eating a strawberry is as good as eating a baby.

Uniting Lovers- A Cherokee Legend

The Cherokee is one of the indigenous Native American tribe of the Southeastern Woodlands. The Cherokee word for strawberry is ‘ani’. The old Cherokee country was known for its abundance of strawberries and other wild fruits. Strawberries for Cherokee are a symbol of peace and good luck. The Cherokee legend defines the fruit to be tempting and also part of the first creation. The legend says that o-gi-do-da ga-lv-la-di-he-hi, the primordial father and Cherokee creator, created the first man and first woman. They built a house at the far end of a dense forest. They were a happy couple but had occasional disagreements. Once so happened that they were arguing over something and the first woman got so annoyed that she decided to leave and never return. She started walking towards the west and never looked back. After a few days, the first man also followed the same path to get her back. Seeing the first man disturbed the Sun asked him if he was still angry and would he like to have the first woman back. The First man readily told the sun that he was not raged anymore and would love to have her back.  However, the Sun found the first woman was still angry. To calm her anger the sun grew pretty looking large and ripe blueberries. But the first woman ignored the berries. The sun further caused to grow luscious dark and plumpy blackberries. But even these were ignored by the first woman. Once again the sun grew some dainty raspberries but even this attempt went in vain. Finally, the sun made a plant that was never seen before to grow. The plant covered the ground in front of her in the area and the air with its luscious aroma.  This time the first woman stopped to look at this plant. The plant had shiny leaves and the most tempting and luscious red berries that she had never seen. The first woman immediately picked up one and tasted the irresistible berry. As she ate the strawberry her anger just vanished and her heart was filled with love. She now wanted to go back to the first man. She gathered some berries and started to walk back towards the east. She on her way met the first and both shared berries and walked back home.

The Bavarian fruit for elves.

The Bavarians consider the Strawberries to be the offerings for abundance and fertility. The country practices the ritual tying small baskets of wild strawberries to the horns of their cattle as an offering to elves. The elves are said to be fond of strawberries and this offering brings healthy calves and abundance of milk in return.

The Virgin Mary connection.

The middle Christian art and folklore identify strawberry to be the symbol of spiritual purity, decency, righteousness, and perfect nobility of spirit.it is also believed that on the St. John’s day that falls in the month of June, the Virgin Mary accompanies children to go for strawberry plucking. The three leaves of strawberry also symbolize the holy trinity and eternity of Mary’s loving mediation in Heaven.