Wednesday, 21 December 2016

Kolam 'A Traditional Drawing'

We Indians have a tradition of drawing, arts on the floor in front of our homes with chalks, rock powder, rice flour etc. This is named as Kolam. Mainly this month, Margazhi (in Tamil) is the month during which ladies perform this artwork in a grand manner (big Kolam in front of their home looking like a carpet). We get up early in the morning before sunrise, clean the floor, sprinkle water, sometimes use cow dung to wax the floor (believed to act as an antiseptic) in the place before drawing Kolam and then have the necessary items for the Kolam ready in hand to start with. It is a belief that the Goddess Laxmi will be pleased at seeing the kolam and shower us with her blessings to bring prosperity to our homes. The kolam design includes motifs, planetary symbols.

It has got many health benefits. We usually sit, stand and do many postures multiple times to finish a Kolam. It is one of the best yoga. This makes the process of blood flow properly in our body and this way of exercise strengthens our body muscles. 

As said earlier, practicing kolam before the sunrise gives good effects. Getting up early in the morning and drawing the kolam in the airy place makes us to breathe in a lot of oxygen which is accumulated in the air. It refreshes our body. Also, it refreshes and relaxes our mind. Mainly the young women eagerly wait for the month of Margazhi to showcase their skills and fill the roads with kolam.

There are many varieties of kolam. For Eg., Rangoli –exhibiting the art form with colors, *Dot kolam – this consists of full of dots, you have to successfully join the dots in a definite pattern to finish the kolam

We also draw kolam with rice flour. This rice flour invites ant like insects, birds and other small creatures to our homes and feed them. This is a form of feeling for other living being as mentioned in my previous article. The dots kolam can be performed only if we have a better concentration, thereby creating a focused attention. Also, looking at the dots to join them is an exercise to our eyes for powerful vision. Those who haven't tried it can just do it in any form as you like and you will really like it. It will bring out your creativity and reflect your imagination skills.

Doing this task gives you better thinking, the power to calm down and solve intricate problems. You can take better decisions in difficult times. That’s the reason this artwork is being passed from our granny’s to our moms and from our moms to us -generation wise. Thanks for reading this article.


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