Chitra Pournami is a unique festival celebrated across Tamil Nadu dedicated to the worship of Chitragupta. Chitra Pournami is celebrated on the full moon day of the month of April-May (Chitirai Masam in Tamil), believed to be his birthday. This year it falls on 26th &27th April. The pournami thithi starts on 26th afternoon and ends on 27th morning.
Chitragupta is said to diligently record and maintain the account of the good and bad actions performed by every human being who is born on this earth. On the completion of a person’s life time, Chitragupta prepares the final report to be presented to Lord Yama. This forms the basis for the God of Death to decide the fate of that particular individual.
People celebrate this festival by taking bath in holy rivers to wash off their sins and offer special pujas and prayers at temples. Interestingly, some of the temples dedicated to worship of Chitragupta are the Chitragupta Temple on Nellukara Street, Kanchipuram, Chitragupta Mahadeva Devalayam in Hyderabad, Chitragupta temple at Kajuraho, and Chitragupta Maharaj Temple at Chitragupta Ghat on the banks of the Gandak river in Hajipur, Bihar.
In the temple at Kanchipuram, the main deity of Shri Chitragupta is depicted in a seated position with a palm leaf in his left hand and a pen in his right hand. The utsava murthy of the Lord with his wife Karnika Ambal is beautiful. Priests and devotees offer Sarkarai Pongal and other delicacies without salt as neivedyam for the Lord.
There is another legend associated with this festival pertaining to Lord Indra and his Guru, Brihaspathi. The story goes that they had an argument, after which the Dev Guru refrained from giving advice to Lord Indra. Bereft of the wisdom and proper advice of his Guru, Lord Indra committed various sins. Later he realized his folly and sincerely repented for his mistakes. Out of sympathy and compassion the Dev Guru resumed his duties and advised Devraj Indra to undertake a pilgrimage on Earth. After a long journey, at a certain place, Devraj Indra sensed that he had been redeemed of his sins. He found a Shivalingam under a Kadamba tree and wanted to offer puja to the Lord in gratitude. He looked around and surprisingly, in a pond nearby, he found a golden lotus. He worshipped the Lord with the golden lotus. The place was the holy city of Madurai and the day was the auspicious Chitra Pournami day. Even today this divine event is commemorated with an Indra Puja on Chitra Pournami day at the Madurai Meenakshi temple.
Here is the Recipe of Sarkarai Pongal which is the main neivedhyam offered to Lord Chitragupta on Chitra Pournami day.
Sarkarai Pongal
Ingredients:
Raw Rice – 1 cup
Yellow Moong Dhal – 1/4 cup
Milk – 1/2 cup
Yellow Moong Dhal – 1/4 cup
Milk – 1/2 cup
Water - 2 cups
Jaggery – 2 cups (grated)
Cashews – 3 tablespoons
Raisins – 3 tablespoons
Powdered Cardamom – ½ teaspoon
Ghee – 3 tablespoons
Method:
Raisins – 3 tablespoons
Powdered Cardamom – ½ teaspoon
Ghee – 3 tablespoons
Method:
Roast the moong dhal in a teaspoon of ghee till it slightly changes color. Remove on to a bowl and soak it along with raw rice in water for 10 minutes. Strain it to remove water.
Take a vessel and boil milk. Add the soaked and strained rice and dhal to the milk and water and cook till the rice is fully cooked. Mash it up with a spoon and keep aside. Alternatively you can cook the rice, dhal with milk and water with a teaspoon of ghee in a pressure cooker for 4 or 5 whistles.
In a separate bowl add the jaggery to water and bring to a boil. Strain to remove impurities. Add this jaggery water to the milk, rice and dhal mixture. Stir well on a low flame till they are completely mixed.
Take a pan and pour the rest of the ghee in it. Fry Cashews and raisins in the ghee to a golden brown and add to the pongal mixture. Stir on low flame till they blend well. Add cardamom powder and mix.
Your Sakkarai Pongal offering is ready.
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