{"id":13394,"date":"2021-03-27T13:24:21","date_gmt":"2021-03-27T13:24:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kodavaclan.com\/kodaguheritage\/?p=13394"},"modified":"2026-08-08T15:12:25","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T15:12:25","slug":"pondhi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kodavaclan.com\/kodaguheritage\/pondhi\/","title":{"rendered":"Pondhi – The Traditional Fire Signal of Kodagu"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pondhi \u2013 The Traditional Fire Signal of Kodagu<\/h1>\n

Pondhi<\/em> was a traditional Kodava method of communicating important news across neighbouring settlements. The seed cake ball itself was called Pondhi. It was ignited and attached to an arrow, which was then shot using a bow known as Ambh Bill<\/em>.<\/a> The burning signal was especially used to communicate a death in the family..<\/p>\n

Shooting the Fireball or Firing the Gun\"\"<\/h3>\n

In earlier times, when modern means of communication did not exist, Kodava communities developed simple and practical ways of conveying important news to people living in neighbouring households and villages.<\/p>\n

One such traditional method was the use of Pondhi<\/em>, a dried ball made from the residual oil cakes left after extracting oil from certain seeds. These balls could be dried and then ignited, producing a visible flame and smoke that could serve as a signal over a distance.<\/p>\n

How Pondhi Was Prepared<\/h2>\n

In earlier times, when commercially available cooking oils were not easily accessible, people living in the forested regions of Kodagu traditionally extracted oil from locally available seeds.<\/p>\n

Among the seeds used for oil extraction were:<\/p>\n