Bengaluru is the City where we can find hundreds of cultures, traditions and customs. Each and every festival has its own history and significance. Karaga, Rajyotsava celebrations, Ganesha Festival or the very famous Kadalekayi Parishe. Kadalekayi Parishe has begun on Monday November 21.
Kadalekayi Parishe, the annual groundnut fair is held on the last Monday of Karthika Masa(one of the months in the Hindu calendar) near Dodda Ganesha Temple situated near the Bull Temple at Basavanagudi in Bengaluru. The fair starts from the previous day with people thronging to the stalls selling and buying a variety of groundnuts. The day is a full moon day with vendors from all over State and the neighbouring states bringing their first harvest to the market.
A legend behind the Kadlekayi Parishe is that in the olden days farmers were aghast to learn that their crop was being devoured in the night by someone. A farmer wanted to investigate and on Kaarthika Masa night which was pitch dark, he found out that the culprit was none other than Lord Shiva’s abode Nandi or Basava. Since then farmers collectively pledged their first crop to Lord Basava.
Another legend says Founder of Bengaluru Kempegowda had come to the temple and learnt about the story. He had prayed for the welfare of the farmers at the temple, and there he had a vision of a treasure which he acquired later. The treasure thus was used to build a temple based on the architecture of Hampi of the Vijayanagara Empire. Incidentally, the big Bull Temple or the Basava Temple is on the hillock near Bugle Rock in Basavanagudi.
Farmers from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and locals offer their first crop to the Lord Basava. During this time, every year, 100,000 lamps are lit at the Bull temple. This is accompanied by the annual fair for groundnuts. The entire Bull Temple Road will acquire a festive look during this time. The road is blocked from Bugle Rock to Ramakrishna Matha.
Groundnut lovers find a variety of groundnuts from Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri, Kolar, Doddaballapura, Ramanagara and a few areas of Telangana in Andhra Pradesh. The ground nuts are spiced, fried, salted, boiled, sugar-coated, and roasted. There are not just groundnut vendors but a whole lot of funfair too. There are many toys for children and short buys and eats. Thus the Garden City with its turbulent life and lifestyle has been struggling to keep some of the traditions like Kadlekayi (groundnut) Parishe (fair) alive.
