Bangalore Karaga

Bengaluru Karaga (Kannada ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು ಕರಗ) is one of the oldest festivals celebrated in the heart of Bengaluru. Bengaluru Karaga is primarily a well-known tradition of Thigala community in southern Karnataka. The Karaga festival is generally led by the men of the community. There is a legend which gives them this privilege. Thigalas believe that in the last part of the Mahabharatha, when the Pandavas were shown a glimpse of hell, one last Asura (Demon) called Tripurasura was still alive.

At this time, Draupadi, the Pandava's wife, took the form of Shakthi devi. She created a huge army of soldiers called the Veerakumaras. After defeating the Asura, the soldiers asked Shakthi Devi to stay back with them. Though she had to go back, she promised them that she would come to stay with them every year during the first full moon of the first month of the Hindu calendar.

Thigalas believe that they belong to this community of soldiers.

The roots of Karaga go back over five centuries, and to the Thigala community which has kept the festival alive over the centuries. Mystery shrouds the origin of the Thigalas. By one account, the Thigalas sprung form the loins of the sage Angirasa whose progeny were the founders of most of the dynasties of South India.

This is the festival of Draupadi. The literary meaning of Karaga is expanded and explained as Ka + Ra + Ga.

Participants in the Karaga bear the deity on their head without touching by hand and moving around. It is believed that the Draupadi will come down from heaven to earth and stay for three days with the community. In this connection the community will perform Vratha (religious practice) for 11 days in a year from the day of Chaitra Shashti.

The Thigalas believe that Draupadi Shakti (power) brims over during the Karaga festival and the Karaga carrier dressed as a female is symbolic of Draupadi. It has a high ritualistic significance for Thigalas and they celebrate Draupadi, as they believe she is an ideal woman.

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Wikipedia