People throng Kerala temples to celebrate harvest festival of Vishu
Thiruvananthapuram: People in Kerala thronged temples on Wednesday to celebrate the harvest festival of Vishu.
They woke up in the wee hours to see the traditional Vishu Kani.
At the Guruvayur Temple, Vishu Darsanam started by 2.30 a.m., while at the hill shrine of Sabari Mala, Vishu Darsanam started by 4 am.
Meanwhile, devotees in national capital New Delhi also offered prayers on the occasion of the Malayalam New Year.
Vishu is an important Kerala festival celebrated in the month of 'Medam', with much fanfare and vigour.
It is considered a festival of lights and fireworks. Decorative lights and the bursting of firecrackers (Vishupadakkam) is part of the celebration.
Other elements of Vishu include the buying of new clothes (Puthukodi), the tradition of giving money, which is called Vishukkaineetam, and the Vishu feast or Sadya, which consists of equal proportions of salt-based, sweet, sour and bitter items.