The festival of Attachamayam is held on the Atham day of the Malayalam month of Chingam (August/ September), at the historical town of Tripunithura, near Kochi. It is a celebration of a legendary victory of the Raja of Kochi.
This spectacular procession marks the beginning of the Onam Festival.
Gokulashtami is a community celebration with people visiting local Krishna temples, which are specially decorated and lit for the occasion. A special ritual of the day is enacted by the local youth who form human pyramid to reach the pot full of curds (dahi-handi) tied to a rope high above the road and break it.
A little before midnight, devotees pour into temples to participate in the special 'Arati' and to relive the birth of Krishna. Till midnight, devotional songs are sung in anticipation of the holy birth. Special cradles are installed at temples and a small statue of the "Balgopal" (child image of Krishna) is placed in them.
