Karthigai festival

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As part of the Karthigai festival, devotees light Lakshadeepam (lighting of one lakh lamps) at Sri Soundararaja Perumal Temple in Tamil Nadu. 

About  Karthigai festival

  • Tamil Nadu celebrates Karthigai Deepam as the traditional festival. 
  • It is also celebrated in neighboring states like Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka. 
  • It is very old and people for a long back have been associated with this auspicious occasion. 
  • The actual history may not be clearly stated in the scriptures but some citations have been found in the ancient writings. 
    • One can find a reference to this festival of lights in the age-old literature of Tamils known as Ahananuru, a collection of poems. 
      • It is one of the great books of Sangam literature that talks about the happenings between 200 BC and 300 AD. 
    • Avaiyyar, a renowned woman of Sangam age also mentions karthigai Deepam in her poems.

Source: TH