Created from rice flour, the art form known as kōlam is made using only the artist’s fingers, trickling the flour in abstract, typically-symmetrical geometric mandalas, often in front of houses. The art form, also known as hase, muggu, and rangoli, is mostly practiced by female Hindu family members.
The designs are created every day at sunrise, just after each house’s threshhold is washed. They are meant to be a visual prayer, walked over, rained on, and usually worn away by the end of the day. They bless all who pass over them, and are thought to bring prosperity to the house. Regular, everyday kōlams are made from just white flour, while the more brightly-colored versions are usually created to celebrate holidays and special events.
Although they are certainly beautiful and artistic, kōlams have a deeper meaning. They are made out of edible rice flour rather than ground stone or chalk to attract insects, birds, and other small creatures. They are meant to be a daily welcome to other beings, an effort at harmonious co-existence with nature. What a lovely idea!
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My OBT 
September 13, 2020 at 7:18 am
How amazing!
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September 15, 2020 at 9:50 am
I think so, too!
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September 13, 2020 at 7:25 am
I wonder if each person has their own mandala design that they recreate every morning. Beautiful.
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September 15, 2020 at 9:51 am
Some of the pictures I saw on the internet looked like the design from the previous day could just be seen underneath the present day’s art. Looks like some families repeat, and some do not.
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September 13, 2020 at 8:25 am
detail is amazing.
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September 15, 2020 at 9:52 am
I was so interested by how they start with a grid of dots, then connect them to make their designs symmetrical. Fascinating!
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September 13, 2020 at 11:15 am
What beautiful work!
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September 15, 2020 at 9:52 am
I agree. Such a lovely way to send up a prayer!
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September 13, 2020 at 2:01 pm
They are so beautiful. I could not even draw something this precise let alone create it with grains – and then accept how impermanent they are. I have watched people creating them in real life and it is really mesmerizing.
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September 15, 2020 at 9:53 am
I’d love to see someone making one in person. That must be wonderful!
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September 13, 2020 at 5:08 pm
I would love to see from the start to the end. Don’t care how long it might take. If the name is “Rangolicolors” it looks like cake icing. Give me two weeks and I still could not do one of these. I just can’t think of these being temporary. They were should be kept somehow. Hal
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September 15, 2020 at 9:54 am
I am sure I would feel the same, but maybe the impermanence is a statement about the shortness of life. Maybe they’re telling us to appreciate today.
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September 14, 2020 at 11:18 am
Beautiful! Rangoli’s are also made up of medicinal leaves and flowers e.g. neem, basil leaves, etc, to keep bacteria and viruses out of the house.
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September 15, 2020 at 9:55 am
That’s so interesting! Thank you for telling us that.
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