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There are beautiful stories woven around this festival, which is over 500 years old. The first to find mention in Onam-related legends is that of King Mahabali. It is believed that the people of the region were extremely happy and content during his rule. So much so, that the gods got envious of him and asked Lord Vishnu to take away his kingdom. Lord Vishnu disguised as a Brahmin dwarf Vamana, asked the King for three steps of land, which he readily granted. Vishnu then shed his disguise and covered the earth and heaven in two steps. For the third, King Mahabali offered his head. However, before putting his foot on Mahabali’s head, Lord Vishnu granted the King’s last wish, that he be able to visit his kingdom once every year. It is to welcome Mahabali back to his kingdom that Onam is celebrated with such joy.
According to another tale, once many years ago, a boat named Palliodam floated down the river laden with food. All of sudden on a turning in the river, the oarsmen tried to move it but were unsuccessful. The spiritual head, Bhattathiripad, believing that it was a bad omen climbed up the riverbank. He saw a hut where a dim light was glowing. When he went towards it he found a poor widow weeping, a few children were sleeping around the kitchen floor. She told the Nambudiri that she had no food and that her children had gone to sleep hungry. The Nambudiri brought out food from the boat and gave it to the poor family. Since then it has become a tradition amongst the Nambudiris to feed one poor person before the Onam feast.
Another legend has it that once about 10 kilometers up the river Pampa from Aranmulla, the head of the Katoor Mana, a Nambudiri family, offered prayers and had a bath and waited to feed a poor man. After a long wait he began to pray to Lord Krishna. When he opened his eyes there stood before him a poor boy almost naked. The Nambudiri took him to the river, gave him a bath, a new set of clothes and a splendid meal. Much to the surprise of the Nambudiri, soon after eating the meal the boy disappeared. The search for the little boy led the Nambudiri to the Aranmulla Temple. But after a brief encounter the boy disappeared again. The Nambudiri thereafter brought the food to Aranmulla Temple every year during Onam.
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