The unique குத்து விளக்கு (kuthu vilakku) is a quintessential element to any important Thamil event.
Apart from their practical uses, lamps are often employed for symbolic purposes, emblemizing the idea of driving away darkness, with all its dangers and negative influences, and bringing illumination. Early lamps were made from stone, then pottery, but as civilization entered the bronze age, metal lamps began to appear. The earliest metal lamps were simple affairs, but as technology advanced, so did the appearance and complexity of lamps. An oil lamp is one which uses a wick with the end dropped into the container holding the oil, so as to draw up the fuel to the flame.
The vilakku is a brass cast lamp, the shape varying based on the type of lamp. The traditional vilakku is made by creating a mold, casting the brass, typically in four separate parts which are assembled, then polished and decorated. Some of the types of lamps made include the nilavilakku and the thattu vilakku. The difference between these lamps and the kuthu vilakku is largely based on the style and shape, as well as the purpose for which they are intended.
The kuthu vilakku is a tall, columnar lamp which stands on the ground, kuthu literally meaning “standing vertically”, and vilakku meaning lamp. It is made up of four parts: the heavy base plate which allows it to sit on the ground, the slender vertical column, the wick plate which sits atop the column, and the decorative head. The wick plate has anywhere between five and nine lips, which serve as wick holders. The crown or head is usually a rooster or a mythical bird known as an annapakshi (divine swan in Sanskrit).
The guidelines for dictating how and in what shape vilakku should be made are believed to come from a collection of ancient Hindu scriptures called the Agama Shastra, which set out rules and regulations for all aspects of worship. These writings not only detailed the construction of the lamps, but how they should be lit and utilized in Hindu rituals. The lamp is said to symbolize the major gods of Hinduism, with the base representing Brahma, the column Vishnu, and the top Shiva. The number and type of wicks are also important, as the wicks themselves can represent the goddess Parvathi and the heat of the flame the goddess Lakshmi.
In all auspicious events in Thamil culture, lamps feature prominently, but particularly so during the Thamil New Year celebration. The light of the kuthu vilakku is said to signify knowledge, and is usually lit by the elders of the community. It is only after this ceremony is completed that the festivities can begin.