SSC
What is the meaning of the word 'Pongal', the name of the harvest festival of Tamil Nadu?
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Answer: Option D — To boil over
Detailed Solution
The word "Pongal" means "to boil" or "to boil over" in Tamil. It refers both to the festival and to its main dish, a sweet preparation of newly harvested rice boiled with milk and jaggery. The overflowing of the pot symbolises abundance and prosperity.
Pongal is the harvest festival of Tamil Nadu, celebrated for four days in mid-January, at the end of the Tamil month of Margazhi and the beginning of the month of Thai. It coincides with Makar Sankranti and is a thanksgiving to the Sun god, to nature and to the cattle for a good harvest. The four days are:
Bhogi: old and unwanted things are burnt in bonfires, and homes are cleaned and decorated.
Thai Pongal: the main day. Families cook the Pongal in a new clay pot in the open, in the sunlight, as an offering to the Sun god (Surya). When the milk boils over, everyone shouts "Pongalo Pongal!". Homes are decorated with kolams (rice-flour designs) and sugarcane.
Mattu Pongal: cattle are bathed, decorated and worshipped. The bull-taming sport of Jallikattu is held on this day.
Kaanum Pongal: a day for visiting relatives and friends and going on outings.
A popular Tamil saying, "Thai pirandhal vazhi pirakkum" ("when the month of Thai begins, new opportunities arise"), expresses the hope that the festival brings.
Why not the other options?
- ✗To harvest is not the meaning of Pongal, although Pongal is a harvest festival.
- ✗To share is not the meaning of Pongal.
- ✗To welcome is not the meaning of Pongal.
Quick tip
Remember: Pongal = "to boil over", the month of Thai, the four days (Bhogi, Thai Pongal, Mattu Pongal and Kaanum Pongal) and "Pongalo Pongal!".
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Festivals & Fairs of India — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Festivals & Fairs of India, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the religious, harvest, tribal and cultural festivals of India, the fairs (melas) held across the country, and the states, communities and seasons linked to them. It also includes festivals listed by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage, such as Kumbh Mela and Durga Puja in Kolkata. Most questions ask which state celebrates a festival, which tribe it belongs to, or what event it marks. Harvest festivals are especially common: Pongal (Tamil Nadu), Onam (Kerala), Bihu (Assam), Lohri and Baisakhi (Punjab) and Nuakhai (Odisha). Fairs such as the Pushkar camel fair (Rajasthan) and the Sonepur cattle fair (Bihar) are also frequently tested. Revise festivals state by state. Practise the festivals and fairs questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.