Monday, March 30, 2015

SHOW OFF INDIANS -3 EXAMPLES

Why would men wear an ornament?W

This thought struck me when I first noticed men wearing large diamond earrings during one of my trips to Kutch. I dug a bit deeper and learnt that only men in Kutch, west Rajasthan & some parts of Sindh have this tradition. What is common to these three regions? The Thar Desert.
One Possible legend: So, many many centuries ago, a traveler wearing a diamond fell due to dehydration in the desert. Another man gets curious on observing a flickering light in the desert, and approaches the light source (light from the diamond), only to find a human in need of help. How a diamond saved a man in the desert becomes a local folklore, and slowly this idea spreads through the relevant geography (the desert). Eventually, wearing a diamond became a cultural practice, endorsed by local leaders and temples.




Considering that most weddings in North and South India recite same sanskrit shlokas (by Vedic Saints) for any wedding, this practice of showering of rice stands out in the South.

Lets go back one step. Before the Vedas were compiled, what are the specific geo-things for which South India could be known for? Heat and Rice.Rice cultivation was widespread throughout central-south India. It is also well-known that agricultural produce has always been lagging behind its market demand, which makes rice, a stand-alone monetary unit, worth equal to copper coins to both a small farmer and a big Zamindar (landlord).One Possible legend: So, many many centuries ago, a local Zamindar, during the wedding of his only daughter, throws around rice, to show the world, that his love and pride for his only daughter is much more precious than his wealth (rice). Soon the news of this spread across the relevant geography (South India), that in any wedding, the true pride and social status is reflected by the family’s show of throwaway ‘rice-wealth’. Nothing religious about it, just showing off, like all Indians do at weddings!


here are a few ‘weird’ Indian practices (weird by Western standards) that are so inherently innocent that one cannot simply unfollow or criticise them. ‘Ayudha Pooja’ and ‘Saraswati Pooja’ are among the ones which probably will never disappear from the Indian culture.One can easily find numerous religious folk stories of ‘Ayudha Pooja’ (meaning ‘Worship of Implements’), in which worship of vehicles, hardware, weapons, ammunition and most recently, software, happens. Now why is the practice of ‘Ayudha Pooja’ still prevalent, even though it is so simplistic and feudal in nature?Lets put all the cards out on the table. The festival is celebrated at the end of Navratri, on Dussera/Dasami. It is celebrated generally in the months of September or October.
One Possible legend: So, many many years ago, a strong noble King, lets call him Vijay (meaning ‘Victory’), who had reigned over the peninsula prosperously for over 20 years, was defeated at the hands of an invader, who had a much smaller army. The result decayed the growth of society, literature and arts, and eventually ended up ruining the economy. The reason for his defeat was simple: due to extended periods of peace, the army had forgotten to clean/patch up its inventory regularly. The rain in this season (Monsoon) was bountiful, and with rain comes water, which provides life but rusts weapons, rendering them useless in a fight.So, when Vijay’s grandson reclaimed the throne and restored peace, he announced the practice/ritual of cleaning up all things which protect and bring stability to family and society but could rust. So a farmer started practicing the ritual of cleaning ploughs, a warrior maintaining weapons, and a home-maker cleaning utensils – all of them being grateful to ‘things’ which secure their society & make their lives less laborious. So nothing religious about it, just instilling of good habits.

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