It is a bit awkward to write about the Month when it is already April 13 today. But April 14 is considered to be the New Year in many of the Indian states and hence I thought of this post. When I searched Wikipedia, I got some interesting information about April.
April is the fourth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, and one of four months with a length of 30 days. April was originally the second month of the Roman calendar, before January and February were added by King Numa Pompilius about 700 BC. It became the fourth month of the calendar year (the year when twelve months are displayed in order) during the time of the decemvirs about 450 BC, when it also was given 29 days. The derivation of the name (Latin Aprilis) is uncertain. The traditional etymology is from the Latin aperire, "to open," in allusion to its being the season when trees and flowers begin to "open," is supported by comparison with the modern Greek use of ἁνοιξις (opening) for spring.
This reminds me of the flowering of the tree Cassia fistula commonly known in Malayalam as "Kanikonna" , the hallmark of the Vishukkani on the Malayalam New Year Day.
As children, we used to get Vishukkaineettam from our elders in the form of money. Vishu is also the occasion in Kerala when crackers are burst to welcome the New Year similar to the Diwali celebrations in Tamilnadu. My only request that please remember that when you burst so much of money in one or two nights, our atmosphere gets a bit more polluted, and the fireworks industry which employs childlabour extensively make a lot more profit. Cant we think of much more eco-friendly, child-friendly modes of celebrations?
Anyhow, I wish you all a happy Malayalam/Tamil/Bengali(The Baisakhi) New Year.
May be it is also new year to many others too.
