Behind the scenes : Gods own country, A Story from the leaves to the wheels.
It is a brief explanation behind this simple story or blog
https://www.murmursofvitraya.life/2019/06/gods-own-country-story-from-leaves-to.html
It is an attempt to tell a story. Human history can be considered as a collection of stories. That includes myths, mythical stories, stories written - both facts and of imagination. Here the attempt is to tie these stories, histories, and facts with the current Indian/Kerala context.
A brief explanation of the context and the background behind the words.
1. Keralites call their state as God's own country. In 1999 National Geographic listed it under one of the 10 places you should visit. Also, it was listed as a paradise found.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/intelligent-travel/2009/09/17/50_places_of_a_lifetime_1/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerala
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/india/kerala
1. Leaves and Wheels
Humans started as nomads, then became the farmers and later with the industry it changed further. First humans mastered how to control the fire, which changed their lifestyle and eventually the society and the structures. Human life very much connected to nature (Leaves). Spices were one of the major trade along the silk road. Mastery over the wheels and how to control it, how to move and control it along with the fire eventually paved the way for the Industrial revolution.
2. Story of creation from the Bible. How Adam and Eve tempted against freedom with peace. How the human being's quest to conquer the next adds complexities to the existing system.
Genesis 2:25 - Now the man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame.
Genesis 3:7 - At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.
Sometimes a new invention or a new way of living shows us many things, it can also blind/hide us from many things that can be peaceful.
Like the snake's poison beamed us with a direction and took away the peace, in the new world television beams visions and soundbites, some times that of propaganda which can blind us.
https://www.bibleinfo.com/en/questions/what-are-7-days-of-creation
https://www.bible.com/bible/116/GEN.2.NLT
https://www.bible.com/bible/116/GEN.3.NLT
3. Here just portraying the mythical paradise as something that is away from the dangers of the world and how it is bridging its gaps with those dangers.
Also geographically the Indian plate was not part of the mainland, Until roughly 140 million years ago, the Indian Plate formed part of the supercontinent Gondwana together with modern Africa, Australia, Antarctica, and South America. Gondwana broke up as these continents drifted apart at different velocities, a process which led to the opening of the Indian Ocean.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Plate
A similar story there for Kerala too. The Western Ghats are not true mountains but rather faulted edge of an upraised plateau.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S167498711630202X
http://westernghats-paimohan.blogspot.com/2008/07/geological-history.html
Both these mountains, Himalaya & Western ghats, apart from acting as a natural barrier also affect the weather, flora, and fauna on both sides.
4. Maveli - was a benevolent Asura King. When Bali Became Pious
"According to the Yoga Vasistha, after inquiring about the realm beyond the universe, heaven, devas, and asuras, which is ruled by the mind, Bali thus concentrates on the mind and being satisfied in himself, and teaches the asuras to do so likewise. He is hailed to be a supreme example of the highest and the ultimate Sadhana"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahabali
5. Asura is divine nature spirits. In contemporary Indian mythical stories, Asura's may be portrayed as negatively in contrast to other kings like Arjun, Lakshman, Bharatha, etc. But in the Vedic period, they were the nobles and the concept of Sura was not that prominent. Somewhere in history, we have started portraying Asuras as the villains or demons.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asura
6. Story of Onam
Talks about a time, when the people were equal and there were no cruelty or lies. Gods were jealous and tricked Maveli and pushed him to the underground. We can draw some parallels with the creation story mentioned at (1). One can even ask the question of whether the Gods are the real villains?
https://medium.com/plowns/the-story-you-want-your-kids-to-know-about-onam-cd01aeff7295
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/who-penned-onappattu-the-debate-is-on/article7581147.ece
7. The Wheel stands for greed and progress. It also stands for the disruptions and complexities brought along with our never satisfying nature of progress and ever-increasing stock price based "progress".
One of the prominent and early civilizations of the Indian subcontinent, Indus Valley (Harappan) civilization during the fag end faced threat from migration from outside. The Harappan language is not directly attested, and its affiliation is uncertain since the Indus script is still undeciphered. A relationship with the Dravidian or Elamo-Dravidian language family is favored by a section of scholars. Maveli can be seen as a Dravidian King.
It is also said horses or chariots were not prevalent in early periods of the civilization and later brought by the migratory or invading groups from Central Asia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_Valley_Civilisation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ratha
https://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/op/2002/03/05/stories/2002030500130100.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keezhadi_excavation_site
8. There are 44 rivers in Kerala, all but three originating in the Western Ghats.[1] 41 of them flow westward and 3 eastward. The rivers of Kerala are small, in terms of length, breadth and water discharge. The rivers flow faster, owing to the hilly terrain and as the short distance between the Western Ghats and the sea. All the rivers are entirely monsoon-fed and many of them shrink into rivulets or dry up completely during summer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rivers_of_Kerala
9. We cannot say the early Vedic period is of the Hindu religion, the same way we cannot say the early Abrahamic period as of Christianity. Christianity got its current definitions very late after Jesus. Definitions of modern Hindu religion also formed very recently, in the ADs. In ancient India there was some concept of Siva, then there was the concept of Indra and some other gods. The concept of Krishna/Rama evolved comparatively later periods of history.
The indication here is before the caste system, everyone shared knowledge and all part of the society has equal opportunities for upward social mobility under Maveli.
10. Indra, destroyer of the cities. After the discovery of the Indus Valley Civilization in the 1920s, it was immediately associated with the indigenous Dasyu inimical to the Rigvedic tribes in numerous hymns of the Rigveda. Mortimer Wheeler interpreted the presence of many unburied corpses found in the top levels of Mohenjo-daro as the victims of a warlike conquest, and famously stated that "Indra stands accused" of the destruction of the Indus Valley Civilization
Indra, chief of the Aryan gods, is repeatedly referred to as "destroyer of cities" and exterminator of dasyus. In Tamil literature 1500 BC is the date of the mythical destruction of Tamil civilization; this coincides with the Aryan invasion. Besides, Sanskrit contains many loanwords of Dravidian origin. Shiva is one example (Tamil"civa"). Some sounds are also of Dravidian
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indra
http://www.kolki.com/peace/Aryan-Invasion.htm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAqQ-tQQEyQ
11. The story tries to connect the Aryan migrations and the caste system. Aryan migrations paved the seeds for the caste system. Knowledge is restricted and society started more and more stagnant. Hierarchical society pushed social mobility towards a downward spiral.
One other aspect is, Indra has a crucial role in Indus Valley civilization's decline. Also, Indra has a crucial role in the story of Maveli, where Vamana pushed him to Patala (the underground)
12. The lesser one - a short brahmin Vamana who pushed Maveli to the underground or Patala.
Destroyer of the cities - Indra
13/14. The caste system put people into boxes and into the decayed system of hierarchies, which can be considered as some form of Slavery. The ruling class who own the wheels completely neglected the Dalits.
15.Budha of Maya, Yeshu of Marya, Krishna of Yashoda: there were some similarities and parallels around the myths and stories around these supreme beings. Virgin birth stories around Budha and Christ. Stories of Kamsa and Herod trying to kill the infants of the town to eliminate the godly send saviors of mankind, Kristu, and Krishna.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maya_(mother_of_the_Buddha)
https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/ngier/KrishnaChrist.htm
16. Before the industrial revolution, spices and silks dominated global trade. Both India and China shared a major pie of this trade. Arabs were the middlemen/tradesmen between India and Europe. Later more strengthened Europe wants direct trades with India. That brought many western powers to India, mostly through Kerala, a land of spices. Black peppercorns were a golden spice of that time. Gradually the traders brought their military power to this coast and became the invaders and the rulers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silk_Road
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasco_da_Gama
17/18. Referring to many religious/political leaders who tried to refine and renovate, revolt against the status quo. Guru Nanak, Gandhi, Sree Narayana Guru, Sahodaran Ayyappan, Ayyankali, and so many others.
Many people moved away from hierarchical caste-based religion to other religions with a hope of better living and respect.
19. There was social progress and social mobility, Kerala HDI went up. Thanks to many political, religious and civic leaders worked towards it. Now Kerala is a model to many developing worlds on the aspect of how to achieve better HDI even while you are not rich enough.
20. People progressed. But often blinded by the propaganda. Like in the story of Genesis, the snake beamed and blinded us, televisions blind us with propaganda and consumerism. The attempt is to tie the contexts of Indra to Narendra Modi, the new nationalistic populistic right-wing leader.
Some say he unites, some say he divides. There were many riots during and after the "rath yatra" (chariot of a few wheels) by Advani, where Narendra (Indra of Nara or men) Modi was an organizer. Also after the infamous train (of many wheels) journey through Godhra during Narendra Modi was a chief minister. Many thousands of people got killed during these riots. Now people are a bit confused also blinded by propaganda and appeasements from both sides of the political spectrum. They cannot see who is crooked and who is going (Vamana) to push them backward.
21. The story behind Onam, we celebrate it. The myth is Maveli is going to visit us during those days of the festival.
https://www.murmursofvitraya.life/2019/06/gods-own-country-story-from-leaves-to.html
It is an attempt to tell a story. Human history can be considered as a collection of stories. That includes myths, mythical stories, stories written - both facts and of imagination. Here the attempt is to tie these stories, histories, and facts with the current Indian/Kerala context.
A brief explanation of the context and the background behind the words.
1. Keralites call their state as God's own country. In 1999 National Geographic listed it under one of the 10 places you should visit. Also, it was listed as a paradise found.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/intelligent-travel/2009/09/17/50_places_of_a_lifetime_1/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerala
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/india/kerala
1. Leaves and Wheels
Humans started as nomads, then became the farmers and later with the industry it changed further. First humans mastered how to control the fire, which changed their lifestyle and eventually the society and the structures. Human life very much connected to nature (Leaves). Spices were one of the major trade along the silk road. Mastery over the wheels and how to control it, how to move and control it along with the fire eventually paved the way for the Industrial revolution.
Genesis 2:25 - Now the man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame.
Genesis 3:7 - At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.
Sometimes a new invention or a new way of living shows us many things, it can also blind/hide us from many things that can be peaceful.
Like the snake's poison beamed us with a direction and took away the peace, in the new world television beams visions and soundbites, some times that of propaganda which can blind us.
https://www.bibleinfo.com/en/questions/what-are-7-days-of-creation
https://www.bible.com/bible/116/GEN.2.NLT
https://www.bible.com/bible/116/GEN.3.NLT
3. Here just portraying the mythical paradise as something that is away from the dangers of the world and how it is bridging its gaps with those dangers.
Also geographically the Indian plate was not part of the mainland, Until roughly 140 million years ago, the Indian Plate formed part of the supercontinent Gondwana together with modern Africa, Australia, Antarctica, and South America. Gondwana broke up as these continents drifted apart at different velocities, a process which led to the opening of the Indian Ocean.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Plate
A similar story there for Kerala too. The Western Ghats are not true mountains but rather faulted edge of an upraised plateau.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S167498711630202X
http://westernghats-paimohan.blogspot.com/2008/07/geological-history.html
Both these mountains, Himalaya & Western ghats, apart from acting as a natural barrier also affect the weather, flora, and fauna on both sides.
4. Maveli - was a benevolent Asura King. When Bali Became Pious
"According to the Yoga Vasistha, after inquiring about the realm beyond the universe, heaven, devas, and asuras, which is ruled by the mind, Bali thus concentrates on the mind and being satisfied in himself, and teaches the asuras to do so likewise. He is hailed to be a supreme example of the highest and the ultimate Sadhana"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahabali
5. Asura is divine nature spirits. In contemporary Indian mythical stories, Asura's may be portrayed as negatively in contrast to other kings like Arjun, Lakshman, Bharatha, etc. But in the Vedic period, they were the nobles and the concept of Sura was not that prominent. Somewhere in history, we have started portraying Asuras as the villains or demons.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asura
6. Story of Onam
Talks about a time, when the people were equal and there were no cruelty or lies. Gods were jealous and tricked Maveli and pushed him to the underground. We can draw some parallels with the creation story mentioned at (1). One can even ask the question of whether the Gods are the real villains?
https://medium.com/plowns/the-story-you-want-your-kids-to-know-about-onam-cd01aeff7295
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/who-penned-onappattu-the-debate-is-on/article7581147.ece
7. The Wheel stands for greed and progress. It also stands for the disruptions and complexities brought along with our never satisfying nature of progress and ever-increasing stock price based "progress".
One of the prominent and early civilizations of the Indian subcontinent, Indus Valley (Harappan) civilization during the fag end faced threat from migration from outside. The Harappan language is not directly attested, and its affiliation is uncertain since the Indus script is still undeciphered. A relationship with the Dravidian or Elamo-Dravidian language family is favored by a section of scholars. Maveli can be seen as a Dravidian King.
It is also said horses or chariots were not prevalent in early periods of the civilization and later brought by the migratory or invading groups from Central Asia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_Valley_Civilisation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ratha
https://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/op/2002/03/05/stories/2002030500130100.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keezhadi_excavation_site
8. There are 44 rivers in Kerala, all but three originating in the Western Ghats.[1] 41 of them flow westward and 3 eastward. The rivers of Kerala are small, in terms of length, breadth and water discharge. The rivers flow faster, owing to the hilly terrain and as the short distance between the Western Ghats and the sea. All the rivers are entirely monsoon-fed and many of them shrink into rivulets or dry up completely during summer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rivers_of_Kerala
The indication here is before the caste system, everyone shared knowledge and all part of the society has equal opportunities for upward social mobility under Maveli.
10. Indra, destroyer of the cities. After the discovery of the Indus Valley Civilization in the 1920s, it was immediately associated with the indigenous Dasyu inimical to the Rigvedic tribes in numerous hymns of the Rigveda. Mortimer Wheeler interpreted the presence of many unburied corpses found in the top levels of Mohenjo-daro as the victims of a warlike conquest, and famously stated that "Indra stands accused" of the destruction of the Indus Valley Civilization
Indra, chief of the Aryan gods, is repeatedly referred to as "destroyer of cities" and exterminator of dasyus. In Tamil literature 1500 BC is the date of the mythical destruction of Tamil civilization; this coincides with the Aryan invasion. Besides, Sanskrit contains many loanwords of Dravidian origin. Shiva is one example (Tamil"civa"). Some sounds are also of Dravidian
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indra
http://www.kolki.com/peace/Aryan-Invasion.htm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAqQ-tQQEyQ
11. The story tries to connect the Aryan migrations and the caste system. Aryan migrations paved the seeds for the caste system. Knowledge is restricted and society started more and more stagnant. Hierarchical society pushed social mobility towards a downward spiral.
One other aspect is, Indra has a crucial role in Indus Valley civilization's decline. Also, Indra has a crucial role in the story of Maveli, where Vamana pushed him to Patala (the underground)
12. The lesser one - a short brahmin Vamana who pushed Maveli to the underground or Patala.
Destroyer of the cities - Indra
13/14. The caste system put people into boxes and into the decayed system of hierarchies, which can be considered as some form of Slavery. The ruling class who own the wheels completely neglected the Dalits.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maya_(mother_of_the_Buddha)
https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/ngier/KrishnaChrist.htm
16. Before the industrial revolution, spices and silks dominated global trade. Both India and China shared a major pie of this trade. Arabs were the middlemen/tradesmen between India and Europe. Later more strengthened Europe wants direct trades with India. That brought many western powers to India, mostly through Kerala, a land of spices. Black peppercorns were a golden spice of that time. Gradually the traders brought their military power to this coast and became the invaders and the rulers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silk_Road
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasco_da_Gama
17/18. Referring to many religious/political leaders who tried to refine and renovate, revolt against the status quo. Guru Nanak, Gandhi, Sree Narayana Guru, Sahodaran Ayyappan, Ayyankali, and so many others.
Many people moved away from hierarchical caste-based religion to other religions with a hope of better living and respect.
19. There was social progress and social mobility, Kerala HDI went up. Thanks to many political, religious and civic leaders worked towards it. Now Kerala is a model to many developing worlds on the aspect of how to achieve better HDI even while you are not rich enough.
20. People progressed. But often blinded by the propaganda. Like in the story of Genesis, the snake beamed and blinded us, televisions blind us with propaganda and consumerism. The attempt is to tie the contexts of Indra to Narendra Modi, the new nationalistic populistic right-wing leader.
Some say he unites, some say he divides. There were many riots during and after the "rath yatra" (chariot of a few wheels) by Advani, where Narendra (Indra of Nara or men) Modi was an organizer. Also after the infamous train (of many wheels) journey through Godhra during Narendra Modi was a chief minister. Many thousands of people got killed during these riots. Now people are a bit confused also blinded by propaganda and appeasements from both sides of the political spectrum. They cannot see who is crooked and who is going (Vamana) to push them backward.
21. The story behind Onam, we celebrate it. The myth is Maveli is going to visit us during those days of the festival.
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