Thai Pongal enhances strong bond between humans and nature - President
I am extremely happy to convey my greetings to all the Hindus across the world celebrating Thai Pongal, the festival that expresses gratitude to the Sun God, the supreme provider of light, warmth, water and wind essential for agriculture, the lifeline to human sustenance, states President Maithripala Sirisena in in his Thai Pongal message.
The release: “The prime status bestowed upon agriculture by the Tamil community denotes in the historic quote ‘We’ll worship agriculture’ of the great Tamil poet Bharathiyar. The people, who live close to nature by making the agricultural their vocation for livelihood, extend their greatest gratitude to the nature for its generosity on this festive day of Thai Pongal.
“Symbolizing the intention of creating love, happiness and reconciliation in the hearts of all, the Tamil people boil milk in the clay pot until it overflows and mix it with the first harvest of rice and juggery for the traditional festive meal. I earnestly believe this kind of cultural festival will pave the way to protect and preserve the values of different religions, ethnic communities and cultures.
“The Tamil community believes that the dawn of the New Year will open new paths to life. I wish all the Hindus in Sri Lanka and abroad a happy and prosperous Thai Pongal, which enhances the strong bond between human beings and nature while demonstrating the values of the Tamil culture and art”.
Thai Pongal, one of the most cherished cultural festivities - PM
Thanksgiving to the Sun God and expressing gratitude to the natural environment for the blessing of the harvest has been a religious practice of most of the farming communities, states Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in his Thai Pongal message. The message:” Thai Pongal is one of the most cherished cultural festivities which involves feasting, visiting relatives and giving gifts celebrated among all the Tamil communities in the world.
“The celebration that reflects the deepening relationship between humans and the environment delivers the value of gratefulness to the world. It is with immense pleasure I convey best wishes on our Tamil community for blissful celebrations recognizing the blessings of our multi-cultural society accredits shared respect and unity”.
