Deepavali 2025 fireworks at Triplicane

 

Firework celebrations at Triplicane – Deepavali day (20.10.2025).

Sri Parthasarathi Emperuman with Acharyan   Manavala Mamunigal purappadu .

: - https://youtu.be/8Inq1fX99i4

Swami Manavala Mamunigal Uthsavam 2025 - day 1- காலே காலே வரவரமுநி: கல்பயந் மங்கலானி

Swami Manavala Mamunigal Uthsavam 2025 - day 1-

காலே காலே வரவரமுநி: கல்பயந் மங்கலானி

 

Srivaishnavaites  are ecstatic.  Today    18^th Oct 2025 – Saturday - (Aippaisi 1)  started the grand uthsavam of Swami Manavala Mamunigal uthsavam – it is Mamunigal’s  655^th   birth day celebrations.    In 2 days’ time it is Deepavali - and  10^th of Aippaisi ~ 27.10.2025 – is the exalted day ‘Aippaisiyil Thirumoolam’ ~ the day when our Acarya Swami Manavala Mamunigal’s thiruvavathram occurred. 

There is the illustrious lineage of Purvacharyargal – the hierarchy of Srivaishnava preceptors – through whom the glorious traditions passed by in generations.  Its happy culmination with Namperumal Himself becoming disciple of Acarya Mamunigal redounds the wisdom of our holy lineage.  Swami Emperumanar (Sri Ramanujar) and Manavala Mamunigal – both were incarnation of Adisesha.  Born as Nayanar, Mamunigal was an ocean of knowledge, yet learnt at the feet of his erudite father and others – the way Sri Rama and Sri Krishna did, during their stay on earth – through courses under great sages of their times like Vasistha, Viswamitra, Sandeepani .. ..  

The whole Sri Vaishnava World is rejoicing at the very thought of sarrumurai celebrations of great Acaryar.   Getting back to our own place,  there have been rain forecasts – nothing unusual for Chennai, though this year there have been some good rains at the start of the season itself.

On day 1  – and after Sri Periyazhwar’s Thirupallandu and Periyazhvar thirumozhi rendering in the afternoon, evening at 0645 pm there was purappadu of Swami Manavala Mamunigal with Sri Azhagiya Singar.

During Thiruvavathara uthsavam Mamunigal has purappadu with Sri Parthasarathi Emperuman on sarrumurai days and on some special days.  On hastham day, it would be Sri Varadharajar – today being celebrated as 5^th sanivaram of Purattasi, it was purappadu of Acaryar with Sri Thelliya Singar, which is somewhat rare. 

 

Sri Erumbiappa in his work  to Varavaramuni Sathakam  extols Acaryar Mamunigal :  

ஸ்ரீமத் ரங்கம் ஜயது பரமம் தாம தேஜோ நிதாநம் |

பூமா தஸ்மிந் பவது குசலீ கோபி பூமா ஸஹாய: ||

திவ்யம் தஸ்மை திசது பகவந் தேசிகோ தேசிகாநாம் |

காலே காலே வரவரமுநி: கல்பயந் மங்கலானி ||  8

 

ஒளிக்கு நிதி போன்ற சிறந்த தலமான செல்வமுள்ள ஸ்ரீரங்க நகரம் விளங்க வேண்டும். அதில் ஒளிகளுக்கெல்லாம் ஒளி(யான எம்பெருமான்) க்ஷேமமாக வாழ வேண்டும். ஆசார்யர்களுக்கு ஆசார்யரான மணவாள மாமுனிகள் காலந்தோறும் மங்கலங்களைச் செய்துகொண்டு அவருக்கு ஓர் ஒளியை அளிக்க வேண்டும். மணவாள மாமுனிகளே உமக்கு வணக்கம் !!

The Lord once decided to depute Adisesha  to the world on a mission to reform men and women and remain there for 200 years. Adisehsa  spent 120 years as Sri Ramanuja, for the rest of the determined period (80 years) he was reborn as Swami Manavala Mamunigal. That our Acharyar Mamunigal  was a manifestation of Adisesha was proved in an incident when some jealous people set fire to his house but he slipped away to safety under certain compelling circumstances and to continue his task uninterrupted he took to ascetic order.  

Here are some photos of Mamunigal and Sri Azhagiya Singar taken during purappadu at Thiruvallikkeni

ஸ்ரீமதே ராமானுஜாய நம: ஸ்ரீமத் வரவரமுநயே நம:

 
~ adiyen Srinivasa dhasan.
Mamandur Veeravalli Srinivasan  Sampathkumar

  

Thiruvallikkeni Deepavali purappadu 2025

 

Thiruvallikkeni Sri Parthasarathi Emperuman with

Acaryar Swami Manavala Maamunigal

Deepavali purappadu 2025

 

https://youtube.com/shorts/vnRHEal0kJk?si=71vhBDTKAUHmhQti

Thiruvallikkeni Deepavali purappadu 2025 ~ cleaning by SYMA

Deepavali is a festival of happiness – Gangasnanam, New dresses, Sweets and .. .. of course Crackers ! (pattasu!) 

All pyrotechnic compositions evolve heat upon ignition, and this release of energy can be used to produce colour, motion, smoke, and noise. There are applications as well for the chemically- produced heat itself. The use of incendiary mixtures in warfare can be traced back to ancient times, when it provided an effective means of assaulting well-fortified castles.  A Firecracker is a diminutive  explosive device primarily designed to produce a large amount of noise, especially in the form of a loud bang, usually for celebration or entertainment. They have fuses, and are wrapped in a heavy paper casing to contain the explosive compound.  

Firecrackers, are very popular and the town of Sivakasi, down South is very famous for manufacturing quality fire crackers.  For Deepavli, people  light up fireworks near their homes and in streets.   

For us at Thiruvallikkeni divaydesam and elsewhere, Deepavali is double bonanza ~ it couples with Sri Manavala Mamunigal Uthsavam –  this year Deepavali 20.10.2025 was day 3 of the Uthsavam – Deepavali was  celebrated with fervour.  Diwali symbolises the spiritual ‘victory of light over darkness and good over evil’. During the celebrations every house gets  decorated by lighting díyas and drawing rangolis.  

It starts early in the morning ~ ‘the pureficatory bath prior to Sun rise – is known as Ganga snanam’ – bathing in the holy Ganges.  Life starts  with lighting colour matches before bathing – then children rush to burst crackers – in earlier years,  Deepavali would start a fortnight or so in advance, siblings would share the booty of crackers bought – look at them everyday, speak fondly of their valuable purchase, dry them in heat – and in the morning – there would be din .. .. in fact, in my house, my great grand ma, into her nineties would be the first to get up and in the timber oven, she would light one cracker (cheena pattasu) and throw in the backyard, it would explode with a big bang .. .. crackers, new clothes, sweets, elders, cinema, cricket, Perumal purappadu  - life just rolled on .. .. ..  

At Thiruvallikkeni divyadesam, Deepavali evenings are extravagant – the purappadu of Swami Manavala Mamunigal with Sri Parthasarathi would take close to 4 hours even .. .. hundreds of 10000wallahs and special firework would light the air – thousands would walk along with Perumal enjoying the celebrations.  This year too, the celebrations were very very grand.  

Acaryan Manavala Mamunigal Uthsavam – Deepavali purappadu with Sri Parthasarathi Emperuman – Triplicane exploded !   so many many crackers and more than them beautiful fireworks.  So many houses burst big winding electric sarams - thousands of crackers, rockets, flower pots and many other items lit the sky.  

As so much is burnt, one sees the skyline with hued colours .. .. ..   10000 wallah leaves so much of heat and pile of rubbish – and the road itself gets hotter – Mamunigal (Sripadhamthangis), arulicheyal goshti and Emperuman, various kainkaryabarars including Battachars   walk on the road bare-footed ! –   even as the cinders remain partly extinguished, road red hot.  The unburnt crackers, remnants of fire all cause injuries too.   

Sri Thirucherai Sarathy (fondly Lamba Sarathi to us) – is a Vadhyar, Swayamsevak, kudaikarar, Sripathamthangi –  has been sweeping  the deepvali rubbish regularly for Perumal purapadu over the past few years. Srinivas Youngmens Association [SYMA] had organized equipments and people for cleaning. SYMA stands for social service and  back in 1977 – it started with civic activities of cleaning the mada veethis and kairavini thirukkulam.  This year for this cleaning -   Me (S. Sampathkumar), AMR Sundar, VP Manivannan, Aravind, T.P. Srikanth, M.A. Sadagopan, D. Sudarsan, Boopalan, G Parthasarathy, Durai @ R Seshadry and many other  volunteers took to the streets engaging themselves in cleaning with broomsticks and placing the debris at corners, making the streets safe for walking. 

It took hours, it was difficult, strenuous considering the heat, fire and the smoke – yet it was service to Emperuman and to his devotees.  Fall at the feet of all Sri Vaishnavas and pray our Emperuman to give the intelligence of mind in being humble and never criticize or speak ill of those involved in every type of kainkaryam

 

Here is a short video of the cleaning taken by our friend Shyam Balakrishnan. : https://youtu.be/dtlpfYGaxo0

 
 
~adiyen Srinivasa dhasan
Mamandur Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar
21.10.2025 
  

Swami Manavala Munigal uthsavam day 6 - sky lights

 

Swami Manavala Mamunigal Uthsavam day 6 (the day after  Deepavali, yes!!) at Thiruvallikkeni  :  https://youtu.be/kel8CjrwUSE

 

Swami Manavala Mamunigal Deepavali purappadu 2024

 

Thiruvallikkeni Swami Manavala Mamunigal  Deepavali purappadu 2024

– looks surreal !!

Cleaning Thiruvallikkeni veethigal - Deepavali 2024

 

At Triplicane, Deepavali purappadu of Acharyan Manavala Mamunigal & Sri Parthasarathi Perumal is a grand affair, to be seen to be believed.

 

Scores of 10000 walahs and fireworks light the sky ! – there would be empty shells, not fully lighted ones, the ones suddenly burst besides the intense heat on the floor, making it difficult for Sripadhamthangigal, arulicheyal goshti, Battargal and other kainkaryabarar to walk ..  hence some of us clean, immediately enabling smooth purappadu.

 

Thanks to Shyam Balakrishnan for this nice video

 

உனக்கு பணி செய்திருக்கும் தவமுடையேன்! ~ திருவல்லிக்கேணி

தீபாவளி  புறப்பாடு. பட்டாசு குப்பை, நெருப்பு துண்டுகள் சுத்தம் செய்தல்

cleaning Deepavali crackers debris !!

 

உனக்கு பணி செய்திருக்கும் தவமுடையேன் !

~  திருவல்லிக்கேணி தீபாவளி புறப்பாடு

பட்டாசு குப்பை, நெருப்பு துண்டுகள் சுத்தம் செய்தல்

Mamunigal Deepavali 2024 purappadu

 Acaryar Swami Manavala Mamunigal Deepavali purappadu 2024

@ Thiruvallikkeni divaydesam

Manavala Mamunigal Sarrumurai 2023

  

Mamunigal uthsavam 2023 – 10 days of bliss – at this rate, most of the temple photographers have cameraful and can post uthsavam post for an year or so !!

Deepavali purappadu @ Triplicane - Pyrotechnics - the fireworks that lit the sky !!

Life offers so many opportunities to learn ! – there are so many people whom we need to admire !!  – on a festive Deepavali day, thousands congregated at Thiruvallikkeni divyadesam to have darshan of Acarya Swami Manavala Mamunigal and Sri Parthasarathi.

 

For Srivaishnavaites  at Thiruvallikkeni divaydesam and elsewhere, Deepavali is double bonanza ~ it combines  with Sri Manavala Mamunigal Uthsavam – this year on day 6 of the Uthsavam – Deepavali was  celebrated with fervour.  Deepavali is the festival of lights, is the most popular festivals of Hindus and is celebrated all over the world.  Deepavali symbolises the spiritual ‘victory of light over darkness and good over evil’.  During the celebrations every house gets  decorated by lighting díyas and drawing rangolis. 

During the evening special purappadu – thousands walked with Emperuman, some doing kainkaryam, some enjoying the festive mood of fireworks lighting the sky, some feeling happy being part of the crowd, few bursting crackers and more ! – then there was this group to (who are the subject matter of this post!) 

 

All pyrotechnic compositions evolve heat upon ignition, and this release of energy can be used to produce colour, motion, smoke, and noise. There are applications as well for the chemically- produced heat itself. The use of incendiary mixtures in warfare can be traced back to ancient times, when it provided an effective means of assaulting well-fortified castles. Naval warfare was revolutionized by  the use of flaming missiles to attack wooden ships, and much effort was put into improving the heat output, portability, and accuracy of these thermal weapons.  To understand the chemical nature of pyrotechnics, one must begin at the atomic level.  A couple of  hundred years of experiments and calculations have led to our present picture of the atom as the fundamental building block of matter.  (don’t even think of the atombomb of Deepavali – this is much more Science!) 

An atom consists of a small, dense nucleus containing positively-charged protons and neutral neutrons, surrounded by a  large cloud of light, negatively-charged electrons.  A particular element is defined by its atomic number – the number of protons in the nucleus (which will equal the number of electrons surrounding the nucleus in a neutral atom). For  example, iron is the element of atomic number 26, meaning that every iron atom will have 26 protons in its nucleus. Chemists use a one or two-letter symbol for each element to simplify communication; iron is given the symbol Fe, from the old Latin word for iron, ferrum. The sum of the protons plus neutrons found  in a nucleus is called the mass number. For some elements only one mass number is found in nature. 

A Firecracker is a diminutive  explosive device primarily designed to produce a large amount of noise, especially in the form of a loud bang, usually for celebration or entertainment. They have fuses, and are wrapped in a heavy paper casing to contain the explosive compound. Firecrackers, are very popular and the town of Sivakasi, down South is very famous for manufacturing quality fire crackers.  For Deepavli, people  light up fireworks near their homes and in streets. Additionally, cities and communities have community fireworks. 

The word “ fireworks as a metaphor,   describes the higher flights of oratory, of literature, or of human strife, whether it be in Parliament or party meetings, or merely descriptive of domestic discord, is familiar, even threadbare, the metaphor has generally a humorous flavour. The rapture from many thousand throats, at the bursting of a flight of shell, or the darting up of the wonderfully tinted rays of the “ Magical Illumination ” at the Crystal Palace, maintain that the most dramatic moment on the stage is more affecting to the spectators. 

Pyrotechny is possibly the only art which can compete with nature ; anyone who has seen a first-class firework display will admit that for impressive grandeur, colour effects, and contrasts of light and shade, pyrotechny is unapproached.   Many artists have tried to record their impressions, but the results have been generally disappointing.  That fireworks are popular there is no doubt; no form of amusement is capable of giving enjoyment to so many people at one time; there is no entertainment which so appeals to youth and age of all classes and tastes. And yet it is doubtful if there is an industry concerning which the public at large is so profoundly ignorant.  To the average onlooker any firework which rises in the air is a rocket, any that revolve are Catherine wheels ; both of these assumptions are incorrect.  

What is the average conception of a firework factory ? A building, let us say, in which workmen, with sleeves rolled up, are busily engaged in shovelling heaps of gunpowder. How many know that a firework factory consists of dozens of small buildings, the construction of which is exactly defined by law, separated by spaces also specified by law ; that workmen may not roll up their sleeves in the danger buildings ; or that the amount of gunpowder in each building is strictly limited to a small quantity ? All of these restrictions being enforced with the view, of course, of limiting the effects of any explosion that may occur.  

12.11.2023 evening was phenomenal !!  -  Acaryan Manavala Mamunigal Uthsavam – Deepavali purappadu with Sri Parthasarathi Emperuman – Triplicane exploded !   so many many crackers and more than them beautiful fireworks -  one flip side is – one  10000 wallah leaves so much of heat and pile of rubbish and immediately, divyaprabandha goshti and Sripathamthangigal carrying Emperuman  walk on the road ! – and before them, even as the cinders remain partly extinguished, Mamunigal sripatham walks on them.

 

The purpose of our life is to do service to our Emperuman.  Swami Nammalwar ordains that - when we do kainkaryam to Lord (to Him at Thiruvenkadam), we must do service by being with HIM throughout our life and do as a slave would serve his master. Life in a divyadesam is always exhilarating – you get to mingle with so many persons whose life is entwined in service to Emperuman Sriman Narayana.  There are many many kainkaryams –   one would not have imagined this or may not have seen this earlier  -  people wielding broomsticks ! 

As Emperuman Sri Parthasarathi purappadu occurs,   thousands of crackers are burst, rockets, flower pots and many other items light the sky – one sees the skyline with hued colours .. .. .. as crackers are burst – the road itself  gets hotter, there could be remnants which could suddenly burst and it is difficult to walk on – at Thiruvallikkeni there was this group of volunteers, who without of thinking of anything else got  involved in cleaning the road to enable it being  good for the goshti, sripadham thangi and others to walk on -  more specifically for the Perumal to continue His purappadu. 

Sri Thirucherai Sarathy (fondly Lamba Sarathi to us) – is a Vadhyar, Swayamsevak, kudaikarar, Sripathamthangi –  has been sweeping s the deepvali rubbish regularly for Perumal purapadu over the past few years.   This year  AMR sundar, Tmt. Valli Ramachandran and few others joined them (there could be more – am posting the names of the people I saw and excuse me, if I had left out some!).  Grand purappadu continued even amidst slight drizzle threatening -  joyous occasion for all Triplicanites, celebrating Deepavali and having darshan of Acaryar and Emperuman. 

 

Fall at the feet of all Sri Vaishnavas and pray our Emperuman to give the intelligence of mind in being humble and never criticize or speak ill of those involved in every type of kainkaryam.

 

Azhwar Emperumanar Jeeyar thiruvadigale saranam

~adiyen Srinivasa dhasan
Mamandur Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar
14.11.2023
 
Biblio : Chemistry of Pyrotechnics- John A Conkling; Pyrotechnics - the History and Art of Fireworks making by Ala St H Brock 

Deepavali fireworks - some history and celebrations at Thiruvallikkeni 2022

After a two-year lull, with people having forgotten  Covid-related norms – Nation celebrated Deepavali this year with happiness.  Every year there are eternal negativists stating that inflation would dampen the spirits – but though by some statistics, prices of crackers had gone up by 30% - the demand for crackers was high as seen in Triplicane, especially on the evening of Deepavali day ie., 24.10.2022 -  the  demand slowly picked up last year and this year, we have reached pre-pandemic level demands though the prices are high," stated, a wholesale dealer of crackers. Traders traced the jump in cracker prices to costlier material, damp weather, and shortage of labour.

 

A Firecracker is a diminutive  explosive device primarily designed to produce a large amount of noise, especially in the form of a loud bang, usually for celebration or entertainment. They have fuses, and are wrapped in a heavy paper casing to contain the explosive compound. Firecrackers, are very popular and the town of Sivakasi, down South is very famous for manufacturing quality fire crackers.  For Deepavli, people  light up fireworks near their homes and in streets. Additionally, cities and communities have community fireworks. 

BUT life is sought to be changed in recent years – with a NGO taking to Supreme Court, which in turn brought in so many restrictions and reduced the time during which crackers can be burnt ! – can this happen to anybody else, will Courts or politicians question the belief of other religions, they fear the vote bank !!  .. .. in the small State of chaos,  Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai said that manufacturing, storing, and selling firecrackers in the national capital is a punishable offence and would attract a fine of up to ₹5,000 and three years in jail. 

Nuremberg   is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich. On the Pegnitz River (from its confluence with the Rednitz in Fürth onwards: Regnitz, a tributary of the River Main) and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it lies in the Bavarian administrative region of Middle Franconia.   The first international war crimes tribunal in history revealed the true extent of German atrocities and held some of the most prominent Nazis accountable for their crimes, and it was held in this city.  On October 18, 1945, the opening session of the first international war crimes trial in history took place in Berlin, Germany. Unable to find a suitable venue in the destroyed Nazi capital, the court soon moved to the city of Nuremberg (Nürnberg) in Bavaria, where the highest profile cases were heard in the aptly named Palace of Justice between November 20, 1945 and August 31, 1946. Over the course of nine months, the International Military Tribunal (IMT) indicted 24 high-ranking military, political, and industrial leaders of the Third Reich. It charged them with war crimes, crimes against peace, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to commit these crimes. Although many prominent Nazis, including Field Marshal Walter Model, Joseph Goebbels, Heinrich Himmler, and Adolf Hitler, committed suicide before they could be tried, the list of defendants at the trial included Admiral Karl Dönitz, Minister of the Interior Wilhelm Frick, Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, and Governor-General of Occupied Poland Hans Frank. No post on  World War or war crimes ! but on fire works !

 

The word “ fireworks as a metaphor, used either to describe the higher flights of oratory, of literature, or of human strife, whether it be in Parliament or the Parish Hall, or merely descriptive of domestic discord, is familiar, even threadbare, the metaphor has generally a humorous flavour; why is this ? Can any who have heard the long-drawn Ah-h l of rapture from many thousand throats, at the bursting of a flight of shell, or the darting up of the wonderfully tinted rays of the “ Magical Illumination ” at the Crystal Palace, maintain that the most dramatic moment on the stage is more affecting to the spectators ? 

Pyrotechny is possibly the only art which can compete with nature ; anyone who has seen a first-class firework display will admit that for impressive grandeur, colour effects, and contrasts of light and shade, pyrotechny is unapproached.   Many artists have tried to record their impressions, but the results have been generally disappointing.  Here is one of Nuremberg dating back to 1650! 

That fireworks are popular there is no doubt; no form of amusement is capable of giving enjoyment to so many people at one time; there is no entertainment which so appeals to youth and age of all classes and tastes. And yet it is doubtful if there is an industry concerning which the public at large is so profoundly ignorant.  To the average onlooker any firework which rises in the air is a rocket, any that revolve are Catherine wheels ; both of these assumptions are incorrect.  What is the average conception of a firework factory ? A building, let us say, in which workmen, with sleeves rolled up, are busily engaged in shovelling heaps of gunpowder. How many know that a firework factory consists of dozens of small buildings, the construction of which is exactly defined by law, separated by spaces also specified by law ; that workmen may not roll up their sleeves in the danger buildings ; or that the amount of gunpowder in each building is strictly limited to a small quantity ? All of these restrictions being enforced with the view, of course, of limiting the effects of any explosion that may occur.

PYROTECHNY, or the Art of Firework-making, is of great antiquity, and the date of its origin is quite unknown ; indeed, it would be impossible to define with any degree of exactitude what actually constitutes a firework.  It is curious how universal is the belief that fireworks were dependent upon the invention or discovery of gunpowder. Very little consideration will prove the fallacy of this view ;  in fact, will show that the reverse is probably the case. In India and China saltpetre (or nitrate of potash) is found in large quantities, and was, no doubt, used by the primitive in habitants in far-off times for such purposes as curing meat, cooking, etc. The dropping of a quantity in the camp fire may have attracted the attention of some early inventor to the extent of starting him on a series of what were probably the earliest chemical experiments. 

The most important item in early social life is fire, the implements for producing it the most valued property of the tribe ; it was the focus of religion and the centre of daily existence.  Fire would be struck with a piece of iron pyrites on a flint, small pieces of reguline particles of iron would be detached and fall on the fire mixture unlit. Afterwards, when combustion of the mass of fire mixture took place, these small pieces of metal would scintillate as do the iron filings in a modern firework composition.  The composition Greek-fire, known in ancient times as “ naphtha,” was a mixture of pitch, resin, and sulphur, with the addition in some cases of crude saltpetre.  The fire was either enclosed in hollow stones or iron vessels, and thrown from a catapult, or sometimes filled into the end of arrows and assisted to propel them forward or sustain their flight. 

Philostratus (170-250 a.d.), writing of the Indian Campaign of Alexander the Great (b.c. 326), relates that the inhabitants of a town on the river Hyphasis (Beas) “ defended themselves by means of lightning and thunder, which darted  upon their besiegers.” This has been considered as evidence of the use of firearms, but is more probably the first reference to Greek-fire.   

At the siege of Pian-King Lo-Yang (1232), as mentioned in the Chinese Annals, iron pots were thrown containing a burning substance which could spread fire over half an acre, and described by the historians as the “ thunder which shakes heaven.”  The Mongolians attacking Bagdad in the year 1258 made use of similar vessels, also fire arrows. Marco Polo, describing sieges of towns in China 1268 to 1273, mentions the throwing of fire.  In most of the early records although noise is remarked upon, it is apparently while the projectile is in the air or upon impact; this disposes of the impression which many writers have formed that firearms are referred to, there being no reference to an initial explosion.   

In India as in China fireworks play a frequent part in religious and civil ceremonies. In the former country, at certain festivals, a primitive device for producing a series of reports is used. These are called “ adirvedis,” and consist of a series of short iron tubes fitted to a wooden plank, charged with gunpowder and tamped with clay.  At weddings, crackers are largely used under a variety of names, such as Vengayavedi, Gola, Pataka or Koroo. Today these are simple crackers filled with country-made gunpowder.  A favourite form consisted of a small quantity of the two ingredients put together unmixed into a piece of rag with some small stones or grit and tied. The resulting fireworks were similar to the “ throw-down ” crackers sold in this country.  

It is a common practice to fix a pot at either end of a long bamboo, which is whirled quickly about by a performer ; the result produced is quite good, but seems rather to come under the heading of juggling than that of pyrotechnics proper. As the pots are theoretically the wrong shape for such a purpose, that is to say, a large mass of composition is burning through a narrow orifice, premature explosions are frequent. This want of theoretical knowledge is noticeable throughout, but such incidents seem to be appreciated as part of the show. Another use of the earth pot is the “ burusu,” a kind of red flare; the composition used being sulphur, saltpetre, and nitrate of strontia. 

 

display of fire print C 1659

fireworks on Thames 1688

fireworks at Nuremberg 1650 ! 

The most interesting reference of an early date is supposed to have been written by Marcus Graecus in his “ Liber ignium ad comburendos hostes ” (Book of fires for burning up the enemy), in which he not only gives the exact proportions of the compositions, but describes what is virtually the modern cracker, and also a primitive form of rocket.  A series of prints published in Germany during the seventeenth century are among the earliest in which a serious attempt is made to depict pyrotechnic effects ; the series includes “ Swedish Fireworks,” dated 1650 ; “ Fireworks at Nuremburg in celebration of Peace,” of the same date ; “ Fireworks given at Pleissenburg by the Prince of Saxony,” 1666 ; and the same year, “ Fireworks at Vienna ” ; all three prints show a good display of rockets, also bonfires, and there are indications of primitive wheels.  

For us at Thiruvallikkeni divaydesam and elsewhere, Deepavali is double bonanza ~ it combines  with Sri Manavala Mamunigal Uthsavam – this year on day 5 of the Uthsavam – Deepavali was  celebrated with fervour.  Diwali is the festival of lights and one of the most popular festivals of Hindus and is celebrated all over the world. Diwali symbolises the spiritual ‘victory of light over darkness and good over evil’. During the celebrations every house gets  decorated by lighting díyas and drawing rangolis. 

It starts early in the morning ~ ‘the pureficatory bath prior to Sun rise – is known as Ganga snanam’ – bathing in the holy Ganges.  Life would start with lighting colour matches before bathing – then children  rush to burst crackers – Deepavali would start a fortnight or so in advance, siblings would share the booty of crackers bought – look at them everyday, speak fondly of their valuable purchase, dry them in heat – and in the morning – there would be din .. .. in fact, in my house, my great grand ma, into her nineties would be the first to get up and in the oven using firewood, she would light one cracker (cheena pattasu) and throw in the backyard, it would explode with a big bang .. .. crackers, new clothes, sweets, elders, cinema, cricket, Perumal purappadu  - life just rolled on .. .. .. 

Here are some photos of the Deepavali crackers and Sri Parthasarathi Emperuman who dazzled on Deepavali purappadu with His benevolence 

adiyen Srinivasadhasan

Mamandur Veervalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar

31^st Oct 2022.  

PS:  all the above found with text highlighted are not mine but excerpted from a Book published exactly 100 years ago titled “PYROTECHNICS- the History and Art of Fireworks making by Ala St H Brock who is credited with 19 works in 64 publications in 2 languages and 819 library holdings