Sinhala and Tamil New Year’s Eve in Sri Lanka in 2023 – Celebrating Festivities

The Sinhala and Tamil New Year’s Eve is a significant cultural event in Sri Lanka, known as Aluth Avurudda in Sinhala and Puthandu in Tamil. This public holiday is celebrated on April 14th in the Gregorian calendar, which marks the beginning of the Tamil year, also known as Varusha Pirappu.

The festivities hold special significance to Hindus as it is believed to be the day that Lord Brahma started creation. The celebrations include various rituals such as wearing light golden clothes and facing the east. People prepare milk rice mixed with curd and sweetmeats at specific propitious times of the morning.

In Sri Lanka, the day is also the time of the traditional first ploughing of the ground to mark the start of the new agricultural season. It is customary for elders to give gifts of money to the unmarried young as a sign of good luck, marking the first financial transaction of the year.

The Sinhalese New Year is also recognized as a public holiday, which like the Tamil New Year, marks the end of the harvest and the arrival of spring, as indicated by the sun moving from Meena Rashiya (Pisces) to Mesha Rashiya (Aries). Most hotels and 5-star resorts also celebrate this significant say and carry out customs for their guests to experience. Those travelling to the island during the month of April and staying at a beachside hotel or Pasikudah resort the likes of Amethyst Resort Pasikudah are most likely to have experienced some of these traditions and customs during their stay.