Looking for bliss

These are turbulent times - easily, the worst in my over two score years of existence. There is impatience, unrest, vehement pro/ anti news & views - here, there and everywhere! Often, I have wished that I could live far away from all of this - somewhere in a cave under the deepest sea!

On second thoughts, I could settle for transforming myself into a child again!

Thoughts that came to me yesterday when I passed by these children on my way elsewhere...

Schools in Karnataka were shut yesterday - for Kanaka Jayanti. These kids had spent their morning making a small cart of sorts, using old bicycle tyres and sticks. They were on their way to the periphery of the forest nearby to collect firewood. When I caught them, they were thoroughly enjoying the tough time the calf tied to the yoke was giving them! It was quite obvious that he was in no mood to pull a cart on a sunny afternoon.

After appreciating their cart and exchanging a few pleasantries, I waved my byes to them. As I watched the receding team, I wished I was one of them. The calf.....for, he had his way!!

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Ash gourd & beliefs

Whenever a farmer comes to my doorstep selling vegetables, I buy them. The other day, one of the regulars dropped in. This time, he had only ash gourds. Since my own ash gourd vine was looking good, I had to tell him that I didn't want any. He then expressed a desire to see the vine - to check out the variety, etc... Soon after seeing it, he told me that the vine would produce only one gourd and that I should be offering it to some temple instead of using it! Well! I hadn't heard this one before! Though nobody knew why, every single person advised me against using the ash gourd if it turned out to be the only yield from that vine. And, 'Give it to some temple' was the final line that everyone added! You know, as far as vegetables and beliefs go, the ash gourd is one that has many attached to it... each one of them, meaningless and without logic. My mother believed that a whole ash gourd should not be cut with a knife by people whose parents were alive. Fortunat...

Ganesha's water-pot!

You will not find this place on the tourists' list of places to visit in Chikmaglur. However, you'll find it on my list of favourite places in Chikmaglur. Let me take you there..... A half-an-hour's drive from home will take us to the not-so-sleepy town of Koppa. From here, onto the road to Kesave village. About 3-4 kms on this road, to the right - a rusty arch and the mud track beyond welcome us. Blink, and we'll miss the place! We are now on private property. This part of the estate is open to all. Because, it is here that the river Braahmi has her origins. The Braahmi is a small tributary of the river Tunga. Infact, she joins the Tunga within 20 kms. from her place of birth. The presence of an idol of the elephant-headed God lends some piety to the place. Someone has done a neat job - making it seem like the water is gushing out of a water-pot. This, and the presence of God Ganesh... the place is locally known as 'KamanDala Ganapati'. Lik...

Plant Mythology

One thing I like about Indian mythology is that we have very beautiful stories about how rivers, plants, flowers, etc. came to be. The stories are so reassuring that sometimes, I wish science and its complicated theories didn't exist! According to Indian mythology, all plants have been created from the hair of Lord Brahma. I had read this in a book called Brahma's Hair by Maneka Gandhi. The book is a collection of myths and stories from all over the country - of about thirty sacred plants and trees, along with some historic and botanical details. The book has very few stories from the South. Some flowers and trees that have mythological and religious importance here are missing. Of course, writing an exhaustive book on this subject would be quite a task! Recently, I have been curious about the mythology behind some flowers common to my surroundings. The plant is a parasite and is always found attached to the branches of huge trees.... The flowers bloom once a y...

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