December 17, 2011
Bathukamma is a festival celebrated in an honor of Goddess
Gauri. The festival is mainly celebrated in Telangana region of state of Andhra
Pradesh. The festival of Bathukamma is
also known as Bodemma and is mostly celebrated by the women. It comes in the
month of Ashvin (Sept-Oct) and is celebrated over nine days during the time of
Navratri. The festival starts with Mahalaya Amavasya and ends two days before
Dussera. During the festival women are seen worshipping the goddess. You will
also find them in new silk saris and adorned with jewelry.
In Telgue Bathukamma literally means ‘Come alive mother
goddess’. The goddess Gauri is worshipped in the form of Bathukamma which is
nothing but the beautiful flowers of different colors arranged or rather
stacked on a little-large steel plate or wooden plank with a pumpkin flower
perched on the top of the stack. Women are seen arranging the various flowers,
brought by their men folk, on a plate with utmost devotion to the goddess. This
Bathukamma is seen worshipped by women for the next nine days and at the end of
the festival the same symbolic goddess in the form of Bathukamma is immersed by
women in local water body as per the custom going on for last many centuries.
During the festival women and young girls in their best
attire are seen gathering in large number in local area with their Bathukamma;
placing them on the ground; forming a circle of themselves around it; singing
the spontaneous folk songs praising the goddess and moving their steps in synchronies
while the men folk are seen looking on the amazing event unfolding.
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