HYDERABAD: We may have forgotten, but our ancestors and the elderly of Telangana have long believed that if they angered the gods, they would be cursed with pandemics, epidemics and seasonal diseases. And, the only way to appease the gods is by praying to them and offering sacrifices. Only then will they bless the people with health and good life. There’s also this belief that when gods fight demons and evil spirits, it causes fear and disease in humans.
Take for instance the festival of Bonalu, which starts on Sunday and is celebrated every year to appease goddess Jagadamba to keep infectious diseases away. “The temple of Jagadamba was established during the early 1880s when cholera (gattara in Telugu) pandemic took millions of lives. The goddess is known for fighting diseases, we have been praying to her for a year-and-a-half now and will continue to do so until the pandemic subsides,” says B Raju, the priest at the Golconda Jagadamba temple. “After a gap of one year, the government has allowed us to hold celebrations and please the goddess with our sacrifices. I am sure we will all be blessed with a good and healthy fortune ahead,” he says.
Back in 1921, English author Henry Whitehead wrote about the festival of Bonalu in his book, The Village Gods Of South India. “...The village deity, in this particular village, is called Peddamma, the great mother. The epidemic is a sign that she is angry and requires to be propitiated. So a collection is faade for the expenses of a festival, or a rich man offers to pay all expenses, and a propitious day is selected, which in this village may be any day except Sunday or Thursday. Then the potter of the village is instructed to make a clay image of the great mother, and the carpenter to make a small wooden cart, and a buffalo is chosen as the chief victim for the sacrifice,” he wrote. “A public festival is held whenever an epidemic breaks out,” says the book written 100 years ago.
In fact, every village in Telangana has its own goddess and festival, but these seem to be fading over the decades. “In some villages, it is the same goddess, the great mother, who would be associated with different times for different illnesses. In Telangana, goddesses were in seven different forms, generally in the form of Nalla Pochamma, Durgamma, Yellamma, Maisamma. They were further classified into Katta Maisamma, Gandi Maisamma and Dhandi Maisamma, each with a different function. Even now, Hyderabad has temples dedicated to each of these goddesses,” Anuradha Reddy, an oral historian and State convener of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage, says.
Last year, a Nallapochamma temple was demolished to pave the way for the construction of a new Telangana Secretariat, recalling which Anuradha Reddy says, “It’s a common belief that when we disturb religious places from a community that have contained faith and belief over aeons, it would not only disturb spirituality but could also manifest upon us in many unhappy forms.”
K Sugnamma, a village elder in Ibharimbagh, says that people in the region used to offer sacrifices to goddess Pochamma before every monsoon so that she protects us from malaria. “We have another goddess, Katta Maisamma, located near Ibharimcheruvu. She is the protector of the lake and the goddess of fertility. Village couples who had fertility problems used to pray to her and the goddess would bless them with children. We have been praying, maybe not in a proper way, maybe less. Something is wrong, the gods are not happy with us,” she says while referring to the ongoing pandemic.
According to the residents of Shaikpet, where one of the many Chinnammatalli temples is located, people infected with chickenpox were considered gods. “We pray to goddesses to bless us with a good immune system and the strength to fight the disease,” says Sadananda Kumar, the temple priest.
Many people across Telangana have believed for ages that pandemics, epidemics and seasonal diseases occur when they anger gods and goddesses. We take a look at some of the deities in Hyderabad, who are known to keep the people of the city safe from ailments.
Jagadamba
The first goddess
The temple of Jagadamba was established in the early 1880s when cholera pandemic killed millions of people. Jagadamba is venerated in the Bonalu festival. She is believed to have been the healer of cholera in the erstwhile Hyderabad State. Every year the Bonalu procession starts at the Jagadamba temple in the Golconda fort and culminates after weeks touring all other Mahankali temples in the city.
Peddammatalli
The Mother of Mothers
She is one of the 11 forms of village deities and is known as the supreme-most goddess. In most Telugu villages, including in the capital of Hyderabad, Peddammatalli is worshipped for providing hope and to heal different diseases which break out throughout the year.
Chinnammatalli
Goddess of Chickenpox
She is believed to curse people with chickenpox. When the family and community members pray to her and offer her neem and turmeric, she heals the infected and blesses them with good health
Kattamaisamma
Katta means lake bund and maisamma means divine protector. There are many lakeside temples attributed to goddess Kattamaisamma. The goddess was responsible for protecting water bodies and keep people safe from water-borne illnesses. In some villages, the goddesses is also worshipped for fertility.