The vilakku I chose is a smaller version of the same one that has been with my parents ever since they got married. A vilakku is essentially a lamp that has great aesthetic and ceremonial purposes. All vilakku are cast in either bronze or gold and have a tray in which the wicks and oil or ghee are placed. The wicks absorb the oil/ghee and are then lit. The top of the vilakku is typically adorned with either a peacock or rooster. Vilakku are normally associated with Hindu practices and beliefs, although there is a Christian version as well, where the peacock or other top piece is exchanged for a cross. The vilakku are typically lit during important celebrations or moment, such as during Onam or when the bride enters the grooms house for the first time following the wedding. This is because lighting vilakku during an occasion is said to be quite auspicious, bringing good fortune to those present.
Lighting a vilakku is an interesting procedure. There are three main ways that one can light a vilakku. In one, only one wick is lit and is directed towards the deity or sacred space and in another there are two lit wicks in two directions. The third alternative is with five wicks in five directions. This is final method is used primarily when there a is a large gathering or celebration.
The vilakku photographed below was actually a gift from my parents given to my on the day I moved into my dorm. As they gave me this tiny vilakku, they told me the story of the vilakku we have at home. The larger, more ornate vilakku sitting at home was brought over from India with them after their marriage. It was given to them as a gift from both of their families on their wedding day. It was one of the first few pieces of “furniture” that they had once they came back to America and moved in with each other. Each Sunday since, my mother would, without fail, would gather us all in the living room, light the vilakku, and say the necessary prayers, before we left for mass.
When they gave me my miniature vilakku, my parents told me that the vilakku was not just another cool looking paper weight, but that it was a cultural symbol that carried with it great religious and sentimental meaning. They told me that although this vilakku may be smaller and electronic, it still carried with it the same import as the one at home, or the ones sitting in the churches back in India. They ended by telling me that the vilakku served as a physical manifestation of the dreams and wishes that rested in both my own heart and within theirs as well.
