Kerala News wishes all readers a happy and prosperous Onam.

This year, on the occasion of  Onam,  the entire nation is in a contemplative and argumentative mood over the debate about corruption. Ironically, when King Mahabali, the legendary icon, in whose remembrance Onam is celebrated, ruled Kerala, there was no corruption. 

  Mahabali was a king with a difference. There was happiness and prosperity in his kingdom, discrimination of any kind was unheard of, there was no sorrow or poverty or disease and contentment reigned supreme. And Onam commemorates this bygone era and the glorious reign of Mahabali. Whether such an era existed or not, legend says this king provided corruption-free governance. And this is something that people across the world, at all periods of time, have yearned for. 

During Mahabali’s time there was no crime and thieves and therefore, no need for people to lock their doors at night. His citizens were truthful, because they had no reason to deceive. Or loot. Also, they were people with high moral and ethical values and did not encourage corruption by paying bribes!   Onam is an occasion for Keralites to rededicate their lives to stand up for such high moral and ethical values in life. This makes them a group of people who constantly fight against various injustices in society. 

Onam is also a food festival and other several related cultural extravaganzas are also part of Onam. However, the overriding spirit of Onam is the longing for the coming back of an era where there is no corruption, poverty, hunger and injustice. 

Onam’s political relevance is that citizens of modern Kerala  get  an opportunity to imagine and hope for a corruption-free government. Corruption-free governmental system catches their imagination every year and they celebrate that, which is their satyagraha, a hope for the coming back of a rule by Mahabali.