Nettipattam is an ornament used in Kerala to adorn the forehead of temple Elephants during Temple festivals and other auspicious events. Nettipattam is often translated into English as an elephant caparison. Nettipattam is made with Gold and Copper. It is an integral part of Kerala culture. The Legend has it that Lord Brahma was the first divinity to design a forehead embellishment for Lord Indra's white war elephant, the Airavata.[1][2]
Each bubble depicts pancha-bhoothas, thrimoorthies, navagrahas, ashta-vasus, saptarishis, moola-ganapathi etc. It is widely used on auspicious occasions since its believed that Nettipattam brings prosperity, peace and blessings. There are different types of Nettipattam like Chooralpoli, Nagapadam, Vendod, etc. Nettipattam are mainly of three types—chooralpoli, nagapadam and vandodu.[3]
- ^ Gopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam (ed.). India through the ages. Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p. 64.
- ^ "Elephant Regalia: A Living Tradition".
- ^ "The gold-standard in nettippattam making for 4 generations and counting". 30 April 2019.