Culturama May 2015

culturama your cultural gateway to india

May 2015 Volume 6, Issue 03

Rs 40

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In the Footsteps of the Buddha

We take a virtual pilgrimage through the hallowed spots visited by the spiritual master.

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Dear Readers, Human beings are just that – ‘beings’, not human ‘doings’. And religion is the force that lets us ‘be’ and not get lost in the frenetic pace of our activity-filled lives.

There are immense mental health benefits to practising a religion, which in turn improves physical health. After all, what the mind says, the body does.

When we practise the rituals of peace and well-being, we experience a sense of catharsis. Prayer, chanting,

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visiting places of worship, reflecting on the words of mystics, and especially meditation leads to stress reduction. A recent study in Los Angeles showed that the grey matter actually functions longer in those who meditate when compared to those who do not. Dementia is delayed in spiritual practitioners, and heart disease, which is a high risk for fatality, comes down.

Being in the now, spending time to introspect and being aware of a force that keeps the worlds in order are all spiritual practices. After all, as Hinduism says, we are all spiritual beings having a temporary human experience. One way in which we can better live out this transitory life is through mindful moderation – neither giving up all material things nor submerging ourselves in them completely. Detached attachment is the key.

This lesson is central to Buddhism, which sets out the Eightfold Path. This month, to honour the occasion of Buddha Purnima (Festival of the Month, Page 58), we take a virtual pilgrimage through the different parts of India that the Buddha traversed – first as a Prince and then as a spiritual leader – in our Feature (Page 22).

On another note, an expat shares her wonder at finding a whole pantheon of divine beings in India – Gods for all reasons and seasons. Read about it in The Lighter Side (Page 60).

Ultimately, what matters is not the faith we choose to follow, but the way in which we uphold its teachings. After all, multiple Gods are but manifestations of the one divine being that dwells within us. All we need to do is ‘be’ in the moment and not blindly ‘do’. After all, isn’t that why are called human ‘beings’?

Ranjini Manian Editor-in-Chief globalindian@globaladjustments.com

Commemorating 20 years of learning, sharing and promoting Indian culture at Global Adjustments With 10 hand-picked snippets about each of the 29 Indian states this book is a collector's item.

Visit www.globaladjustments.com to read t he book for free. For bulk orders, write to info@globaladjustments.com.

This animated video is a guide to the unique cultural markers of all 29 states, as well as a mnemonic tool to View t he 29 States video at help you remember them in www.globaladjustments.com alphabetic order.

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This painting of the Buddha with Ganesha, by artist Sarla Chandra, brings together elements of Hinduism and Buddhism.

Interestingly, in one of his former births, the Buddha is said to have been born as a white elephant.

Photo by Hansa Piparsania in Sarla Chandra: A Journey of Four Decades

Editor-in-Chief Ranjini Manian Associate Editor Yamini Vasudevan Sub-Editor Shefali Ganesh Senior Designer Prem Kumar Finance V Ramkumar Circulation S Raghu Advertising Bengaluru Meera Roy Chennai Amritha Suresh/Sindhuri Rajkumar Delhi/NCR Neha Verma Mumbai/Pune Arjun Bhat To subscribe to this magazine, write to circulation@globaladjustments.com or access it online at www.culturama.in Chennai (Headquarters) 5, 3rd Main Road, R A Puram, Chennai – 600028 Telefax +91-44-24617902 Email culturama@globaladjustments.com Bengaluru 17/16, Ali Asker Road, Off. Cunningham Road, Bengaluru – 560 052 Mobile +91 99869 60316 Email culturamablr@globaladjustments.com Delhi-NCR 1414, DLF Galleria Tower, DLF Phase IV, Gurgaon, Haryana – 122009 Mobile +91-124-4389488 Email del@globaladjustments.com Mumbai #1102, 11th floor, Peninsula Business Park, Tower B, SB Road, Lower Parel, Mumbai – 400013 Tel +91-22-66879366 Email mum@globaladjustments.com Published and owned by Ranjini Manian at #5, 3rd Main Road, Raja Annamalai Puram, Chennai – 600028, and printed by K Srinivasan of Srikals Graphics Pvt Ltd at #5, Balaji Nagar, 1st Street, Ekkattuthangal, Chennai – 600032 Editor-in-Chief Ranjini Manian Disclaimer Views and opinions expressed by writers do not necessarily reflect the publisher’s or the magazine’s.

Letters to the editor Dear Editor,

“I have been an online subscriber of Culturama for the past few years. I enjoyed reading the special issue (April 2015) about cows. The feature about how cows have had an important place in history and culture was very interesting and informative.”

Sajjad Hussain, USA

Dear Editor,

“Your magazine is a throwback to all the times I lived in India. Many of the photographs make me chuckle. I especially liked the collection of cow-centric photos in the ‘Picture Story’ of the April 2015 issue.”

Ananth. V , Canada

Dear Editor,

“Your new column, ‘Passage to India’, gives a very nice perspective to history, in a story format that is easy to read. Kudos!”

Shabina Suhail, UAE

We are always looking to do the best we can for our readers and supporters.

If you have any suggestions or comments, or would like to contribute to Culturama, write to us at culturama@globaladjustments.com.

culturama – Subscribe Now! Get your copy of Culturama as a hard copy or as an e-magazine visit www.culturama.in to subscribe For other enquiries, e-mail us at culturama@globaladjustments.com or call us on +91-44-2461 7902

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Culturama’s contributors 01 Susan Philip is a freelance writer based in Chennai, and the editorial coordinator of Culturama’s various coffee table books.

02 Dr. Chitra Madhavan is an author and eminent scholar in the fields of history and archaeology.

Apart from several research papers, she has also written a series of three books on the ‘Vishnu temples of South India’. She is also a soughtafter speaker for talks on history and heritage walks.

03 Pratibha Jain is a Chennaibased writer and translator, well known for the award-winning cookbooks Cooking at Home with Pedatha and Sukham Ayu. She specialises in documenting the spoken word – be it grandmother recipes or spiritual discourses. www.pratibhajain.org 04 Jen Mullen is a language graduate, who has lived in the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, Australia and India.

Her greatest linguistic faux-pas was to call someone a ‘buffalo’ instead of saying ‘good morning’ in Tamil.

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05 Eknath Easwaran (1910–1999) was a spiritual teacher, author, and translator and interpreter of Indian literature. In 1961, he founded the Blue Mountain Center of Meditation and Nilgiri Press in northern California.

06 Devdutt Pattanaik is the Chief Belief Officer of the Future Group, and a writer and illustrator of several books on Indian mythology. www.devdutt.com 07 Pavithra Srinivasan is a writer, journalist, artist, translator and editor - not necessarily in that order. She's fascinated with history,

and loves writing children's fiction for adults. www.facebook.com/ pavithra.srinivasan 08 Anita Krishnaswamy is President of Global Adjustments and a relocation expert. She has several years of experience working with expat clients across the country.

09 Helen Taylor is a freelance writer, photographer and English tutor. She is British and has been living in Chennai for three years. www.tayloredcomms.co.uk

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Advisory Board members 10 N. Ram is an award-winning journalist and former Editorin-Chief of The Hindu. He is Director of Kasturi & Sons Limited, publishers of The Hindu.

11 Suzanne McNeill lived in India for seven years, first in Chennai and then in Delhi. She has now returned to Scotland, where she works as a freelance writer and graphic designer.

12 Marina Marangos is a lawyer by profession but enjoys travel and writing. She lived in India for four years before moving to Australia. She blogs at www.mezzemoments.blogspot.com

13 G. Venket Ram is an acclaimed photographer and the creative mind behind many a Culturama issue. To know more about his work, log on to www.gvenketram.com

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Contents Regulars 14

India Now

A recap of events, people and places that made news in the past month.

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22 Feature As a seeker and as a spiritual leader, the Buddha left his mark on several places in India. We visit these hallowed spots.

India’s Culture 10

Ten for the Road

Trivia about an Indian state – featuring Maharashtra this month.

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India Writes

A space for discussing the best from India’s world of literature.

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Look Who’s In Town

Short Message Service

Short, engaging snippets of Indian culture.

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In your Kitchen

Sandesh, a simple, everyday dish in Bengali home, takes on new avatars in the hands of a talented home cook.

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Festival of the Month

Celebrating the principle of enlightenment on Buddha Purnima.

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Myth & Mythology

Stories from India’s mythology, reinterpreted for practical living.

Journeys Into India

Expats in India share their stories on a practical theme for everyday survival in this country.

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Picture Story

Calendar of Events

See what’s going on in the main cities and suburbs.

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India Diaries

The fun, the interesting and the out-of-the-ordinary – an expat shares her experience of learning a new language.

60 Explore the Periamet District of Chennai – where pieces of leather are fashioned into luxury items.

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Passage to India

A Persian Prince goes on a quest to find 10 swords – and ends his journey in the Indian subcontinent.

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Seeing India

Explore the lesser known historic and cultural hotspots of Goa, or explore the different animal fairs across the country.

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Holistic Living

Once we have mastered the freedom of juggling our preferences at will, we can face all that life throws at us, calmly and courageously.

The Lighter Side

When you need divine intervention, there is a pantheon of Gods to turn to in the Hindu tradition.

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Give to India

Featuring worthy NGOs and charitable organisations across the country.

Relocations and Property 68

At Home

Tips to harmonise the energies in your home – the Indian way.

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Space and the City

Property listings across the metros.

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by Suzanne McNeill Short cultural snippets for an easily digestible India

He Lives On Raja Ravi Varma Reproductions of Raja Ravi Varma’s sensuous paintings of sari-clad Hindu goddesses and heroines from the epics adorn India’s homes, shops and offices.

Varma was born in the princely state of Travancore (part of modern-day Kerala) in 1848 into an aristocratic family of poets and artists. His uncle taught him to paint devotional Tanjore paintings, but exposure to the works of European masters at the court of the Maharajah of Travancore brought about the meeting of East and West in his work. Varma learnt the Western academic techniques of oil painting, of perspective and Realism. His success as an artist was almost immediate as he accepted commissions from wealthy patrons, both Indian and Western, who delighted in his meticulous artistry.

To this day, his paintings are taken to portray a vision of Hindu India’s classical Golden Age.

Art, Textile and Craft Katki Chappal – Orissa

Words Vastu vs Vaastu

Chappal is a term commonly used across India for an item of slip-on footwear. Katki chappals are made by women from the Moharana community of craft workers in Orissa and named after the ancient state capital Katak or Cuttack.

The shoes are made of leather to a traditional design and often embroidered with floral motifs using resham or silk thread. There is no left or right in a pair – both shoes can be worn on either foot.

Vastu translates as a ‘thing’, meaning something real or existent, and which contains ‘substance’. It refers to any physical thing that is part of the material world, but which is given less importance in the spiritual world.

Vaastu derives from the Sanskrit word vaas, which means ‘to reside’, and broadly means ‘dwelling’. Shastra is ‘study’, and the term Vaastu Shastra is given to the ancient Indian science of architecture that embraces the harmonious arrangement of buildings, interior design and the right way of living according to the influence of the cosmos.

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Photo: Helle Stromholt, Denmark

Food and Drink Achappam – Kerala These sweet and crunchy rosette-shaped snacks are popular in Kerala, particularly at festival times such as Onam and Christmas. Achappams are made with rice flour, coconut milk, sugar and eggs, mixed to form a thick batter that is then fried in adecorative iron mould (the achu), cooking them one by one. The frying technique needs a little practice – the mould is heated to a very hot temperature in oil, dipped into the batter, and then re-immersed in the hot oil. After about 10 seconds it is gently shaken to detach the achappam, leaving it to turn golden brown in the oil. This home video demonstrates the technique: http://tinyurl.com/ljodk94

Interpretations: Drivers in India will often have a small icon of one of the deities propped on the dashboard of their cars to provide inspiration and act as a safeguard as they dodge cows, rickshaws, oxen carts, motor scooters and other cars.

Ganesha is one of the best known and most widely worshipped gods in the Indian pantheon and his status as the god of Protection, represented by his upraised hand meaning, ‘Fear not, I am with you’, makes him a natural choice for India’s drivers. As the remover of obstacles, Ganesha has particular resonance on India’s roads!

Urban Adventure Kannauj Fragrance Market – Uttar Pradesh Intoxicating perfumes and essential oils – called attar – have been distilled in the city of Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh since the Mughal period, when new flowers and techniques were introduced from Persia. Despite competition from synthetic perfume manufacturers, there are still over 200 perfume houses in the city making natural perfumes derived from flowers, herbs and sandalwood, which are manufactured using a traditional steam-distillation process. The medieval alleyways of Vijay Market are brimming with sweet-smelling shops that sell high-quality attar, rose water, scented oils and incense. A recommended sweetshop treat is thick lassi infused with rose water.

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India now

by Susan Philip

The month that was

As we enter a new month, we take a quick recap of events, people and places that made news in the past month

will collect Flipkart shipments from hubs and reach them to customers while carrying on with their own delivery routine.

The dabbawalas have earned international recognition as a self-managed group of mostly semi-literate people, who have perfected a simple system of moving well over a lakh of lunchboxes or dabbas across the bustling city day after day, with almost zero error in their 120 years of existence.

England’s Prince Charles and entrepreneur Richard Branson are among their biggest fans. To learn more about them, look up http://mumbaidabbawala.in/

Arty Happenings A record-setting selfie

The Supreme Court of India delivered a landmark judgement when it struck down Article 66A of the country’s IT Act, thus giving a shot in the arm to freedom of expression.

The controversial Article made posting material deemed ‘offensive’ on social networking sites punishable by imprisonment. The Apex Court, which found the provision untenable, said it affected the right of the public to know, and contravened the right to freedom of speech guaranteed by the Constitution of India.

Indo-Hungarian artist Amrita Sher-Gil (pictured on left) made news when one of her self-portraits (pictured on right) sold for Rs. 18.2 crore ($2.9 million) at a recent auction at Sotheby’s – the highest price commanded by a painting by an Indian woman. The oil on canvas, done in 1933, was bought by a private collector in the United States. Amrita died at the young age of 28. Her works are classified as national treasures, and those that are in India cannot be taken out. They seldom come up for auction, so the present piece was a rarity. The auction was conducted by Priyanka Mathew, the first Indian auctioneer at Sotheby’s.

Did you know? Shreya Singhal, a young law student, was the first to file a public interest litigation against the controversial provision.

Awards and Accolades

Politics and Policies Apex court bats for free speech

Business Matters Out-of-the-box thinking In a unique business move, e-retailer Flipkart has tied up with Mumbai’s dabbawalas – the much-admired network of lunchbox transporters in India’s financial capital – for lastmile delivery. The dabbawalas, who have been delivering the lunch boxes from homes to offices with enviable precision,

Filmy fare Sashi Kapoor (see picture on top left corner of page 15), scion of the famous Kapoor dynasty of Bollywood, has been conferred the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award for outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian cinema. The actor-producer has over a 100 Hindi films to his credit. He was also one of the first Indian actors to assay roles in international cinema. He has acted in English and

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American films such as The Householder (1963), Shakespeare Wallah (1965), Bombay Talkie (1970), Siddhartha (1972), Heat and Dust (1982) and Muhafiz (1994).

Women’s Singles segment by the Badminton World Federation.

Q: Can you name two other members of Sashi Kapoor’s family who also received the Government’s Dadasaheb Phalke award?

Q: Sania and Saina – their names are so similar! Can you name one striking factor (apart from their world ranking) that these two sportswomen have in common?

A: His father, Prithviraj Kapoor, and brother Raj Kapoor.

Meanwhile, the movie Queen was adjudged the Best Film at the 60th Britannia Filmfare Awards.

The movie won two more of the top prizes at India’s oldest film award ceremony – Kangana Ranaut was chosen Best Actor in a leading (female) role, while Vikas Bahl walked away with the prize for Best Director. Shahid Kapoor won the ‘Black Lady’ for his lead role in Haider.

A book worth re-reading Indian-American writer Akhil Sharma has won the Folio Prize for the best English-language fiction of the year, regardless of form, genre and geography. The autobiographical Family Life tells the story of an emigrant family’s search for the American dream. It took Sharma 13 years to complete the book, which has been a best-seller in the United States. This is the second edition of the prize, which carries a purse of 40,000 pounds. The judges described the book as “lucid, compassionate, quietly funny” and “a work of art that expands with each re-reading.”

Sports Spots Top of the charts Sania Mirza and Saina Nehwal have done India proud. The two women have achieved World Number 1 ranking in their respective fields – tennis and badminton. Sania was placed at the top in the Women’s Doubles category by the Women’s Tennis Association, while Saina was ranked first in the

A: They both hail from the city of Hyderabad.

End of an Era The last climb India lost an intrepid son when Malli Mastan Babu died on the slopes of the Cerro Tres Cruces Sur, the second highest mountain in Chile, South America. He had been attempting to scale it solo. He was just 40 years old.

Babu, who hails from a family of agriculturists in Andhra Pradesh, got interested in mountaineering while studying at the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta. He went on to become the world’s fastest ‘7 summiteer’ in 2006 – climbing the tallest mountains in the seven continents in record time.

He conquered the seven peaks in 172 days between January 19 and July 10 that year. He had told his friends that he was giving up his solo attempt on the Chilean peak because the weather had turned ugly, but he never made it back.

This and That A mega star and a minor planet 4538 Vishyanand – no, that’s not a social media ID of India’s Mega Chess Star, it’s the name of a minor planet out there in the universe! The ‘speck’ in galaxy terms lies between Mars and Jupiter and has been named by Michael Rudenko, a member of the Minor Planets Committee.

Rudenko has never met Vishwanathan Anand, but he’s a fan, nevertheless, being a chess buff. And guess what? Vishy, on his part, is an astronomy buff!

Vishwanathan Anand was the Guest Editor of the January 2014 issue of Culturama – read the magazine online at http://tinyurl.com/l89fsxt

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Global Adjustments has created an animated video that captures the unique cultural markers of all 29 states. View the video at: http://tinyurl.com/m734xsm

Ten for the Road

by Susan Philip

Maharashtra the 29 states of this fascinating subcontinent. This segment will set out a collection of interesting, bite-size facts from each state – this month, we look at Maharashtra

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How the land lies: This western Indian state is world famous for its capital, Mumbai (earlier called Bombay) – also known as the financial capital of India and home of Bollywood, the Hindi film industry.

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Political Pressures: Many stalwarts of the Freedom Movement, such as Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Dadabhai Naoroji and Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, hailed from Maharashtra. The state, particularly Mumbai, was the venue of many a pivotal moment of the Freedom Movement.

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Past Glories: The area has long been prosperous. Even the seventh-century Chinese explorer, Hiuen Tsang, was impressed by its wealth. Satara, an ancient port town, was a busy centre of trade. Over the years, the region has been ruled by diverse dynasties, including the Vakatakas in early history, the Sultans of Delhi, and the mighty Marathas.

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Ethnic Fingerprint: The Bhils, Warlis, the Gonds, Govaris and Korkus are some tribes native to different parts of Maharashtra. The Kolis were the original residents of the group of seven islands, which has now been merged into the landmass called Mumbai.

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Culture Quotient: The state has contributed much to India’s repertoire of the arts. The lavni and povada are two popular genres of folk music, while the tamasha is a much-loved form of rural folk theatre. Playwrights such as Vijay Tendulkar have done modern theatre proud. Of course, no description of the state’s culture would be complete without mention of the inimitable Bollywood style of cinema, music and dance.

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Personality Plus: Shivaji is a name to be reckon with in Maharashtra. A scion of the Maratha warrior clan, he won decisive battles against the Sultanate of Bijapur and later

challenged the might of the Moghul Empire. After his coronation in 1674, Shivaji introduced progressive concepts of good governance.

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Sights to See: The Ajanta, Ellora and Elephanta Caves, famed for their murals and sculptures, are World Heritage Sites. Hill stations like Lonavala, Mahabaleshwar and Panchgani are wonderful places where you ‘chill out’. In Mumbai, the stalls at Colaba, Chor Bazar and Fashion Street sell everything. For those with stars in their eyes, a visit to Film City is a must.

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Tasty Treats: The tangy, spicy chaats of Maharashtra are the street foodie’s ticket to heaven! The vadapav (regarded as an ‘Indian burger’) and dabeli are fun and filling. The Parsi impact is not least seen in the cuisine – akoori (a form of scrambled eggs) on toast makes a great breakfast. Try the Bombay Duck – a popular local fish! To round off, tuck into puran poli – a flatbread with a sweet stuffing, or shreekhand – a curd-based sweet.

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Crafted with Care: The paintings of the Warli tribe are world famous. One step more than stick drawings, they were originally done with ground rice paste on the brown mud walls of huts. The lively figures depict everyday scenes. Other trademark Maharashtrian handicrafts are Kolhapuri chappals and Paithani saris.

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Worshipfully Yours: Ganesh Chaturthi, the birthday of Lord Ganesh, is the biggest festival of the state. The whole of Maharashtra goes into celebration mode for up to 10 days!

Localities compete to put up the most unique or largest idol of the elephant-headed God, vast amounts of his favourite modaks (steamed dumplings) are made, and on the last day, streets resound with chants of Ganapathi Bappa Moriya – O Lord Ganapathi, return to us next year!

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India writes

iREAD

My Clingy Girlfriend

by Madhuri Banerjee

Reviewed by Yamini Vasudevan At the very outset, let me tell you that if it is deep literary stimulation you are after, this book is not for you. This book is one of those that are you willing to take up on a day when you are completely relaxed and ready to do some extremely light reading. Oh, and take everything you read with a pinch (or more) of salt. Okay so far?

The story is centred on Obrokranti Banerjee (OB in short; a Bengali guy living in Mumbai) and his girlfriend Radha (a Punjabi girl, who lives with him). True to its title, Radha proves to be clingy – and near abominable in her behaviour. From calling OB every 10 minutes to scouring his phone and laptop and deleting the contact details of all women other than his mother, she spells trouble with a capital ‘T’. OB comes across as the quintessential henpecked boyfriend, torn between his insecurity over finding another girlfriend and his struggle to keep pace with Radha’s antics. His efforts to untangle himself from the relationship land him in an even more pitiable state. The story takes the reader through the rough-and-tumble episodes of his love and work life – leading one to wonder if the poor chap will ever find deliverance.

If you like light-hearted chick-lit or a strong dose of melodrama, this book may prove to be a good read. For those unfamiliar with the workings of the Bengali man’s brain, this book proves to be a reasonably good primer. The references to the mother’s constant concern about her son catching a cold or the need to drink Horlicks add a touch of domestic humour. However, the plot tends to sound rather predictable, especially when Radha claims that she is pregnant. However, it is a reasonably quick read – and would be a good pick for those transit times in airports or while waiting for a friend. A note from my experience – be prepared for a couple of people looking curiously in your direction when they glance at the title!

About the Author A media professional, Madhuri Banerjee runs a production house and is an ad film director. She is the author of five novels, and also gives relationship advice in a column called ‘Love Guru’ in the Asian Age and Deccan Chronicle, and writes a blog called Chastity Belt for CNN-IBN. Follow her on Twitter @Madhuribanerjee.

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New@Global Adjustments

by Cross Cultural Services

Indecent Proposal(?)

There is a fine line in the corporate world between wellintentioned friendly overtures and sexual harassment – and both Men And women are affected by it

“Global Adjustments's SHW programme owas an excellent learning on a subject that is rarely discussed, and it was presented most efffectively.”

- Participant Vivek Kumar Choubey, Praxair

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Even when she first met him at the interview, Sudha was struck by how friendly Ravi seemed. She was happy when she was told that he was her reporting manager, as he seemed like an easy person to work with. However, Sudha soon began to feel that Ravi went beyond being just ‘friendly’. He would often wink at her when making a comment, and touch her shoulder when speaking to her. Once, he even grabbed her hand to pull her towards the canteen. For fear of offending her boss, Sudha kept quiet.

In the hypothetical scenario given above, would you say that Ravi’s behaviour constitutes what is deemed as ‘sexual harassment’?

Answer: It does. It is deemed as sexual harassment for a boss to make intrusive inquiries into your private life, or persistently ask you out or touch you.

Did you think otherwise? Maybe you felt that Ravi was just ‘being friendly’? Sexual harassment is one of the most misunderstood concepts in today’s corporate environment.

Given that there is a fine line between well-intentioned friendly overtures and uncalled-for advances, men and women are often confused about how they should react if they find themselves in situations like the one given above.

One of the reasons behind the lack of awareness in corporate Indian is that it has been just six years since the Supreme Court recognised sexual harassment as a human rights violation and provided guidelines for employers to redress and prevent it. Around 40% to 60% (www.indiatogether.org) of working women in India are said to have experienced some form of harassment. Men also experience harassment, but it is often overlooked, and the time has come to raise awareness.

Appropriate behaviour and communication play a critical role at the workplace. Often, it is difficult for a victim to decide if an incident could be regarded as ‘harassment’. In turn, they may suffer from shame, loneliness and insecurity.

On an organisational front, this could result in a drop in productivity and attrition of talent. Combating sexual harassment involves an understanding of your rights as an employee/employer – and actively putting them into practice, so as to ensure that a productive and harmonious working environment is established.

Global Adjustments has developed an effective programme, ‘Sexual Harassment at the Workplace’ (SHW), which gives participants improved understanding alongwith the right tools to address and prohibit such acts. For more information, please contact us at courses@globaladjustments.com or +91-44-2461 7902.

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In Your Kitchen

by Pratibha Jain

The Thief of

Hearts

A simple sweet dish that is both healthy and delicious, sandesh is an indispensable part of aLL celebrations in Bengali households

Photo: Sanjeeta K.K.

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Rose-flavoured Sandesh Ingredients For the paneer Milk – I litre Juice of 1 lemon (or Calcium lactate – 1 flat tsp)

For the sandesh Paneer – 1 cup Sugar – ½ cup Rose essence – 2 drops

Method To make paneer Heat 1 litre of full cream milk and bring to boil.

Add the calcium lactate or lemon juice. The milk will curdle within a minute (if it doesn’t, add another ¼ tsp calcium lactate). Turn off the flame, strain the curdled milk (paneer) and rinse it gently with water to wash away any remnants of calcium lactate or lemon juice. Set the strainer aside for 30 minutes until all the liquid has drained away. The best paneer is obtained from cow’s milk, but the yield of paneer may be less.

Hence, on a practical basis, use full-fat milk.

To make sandesh Grind the paneer with sugar until it turns soft but not pasty. Roast the paneer mixture in a pan for 1 to 2 minutes. Allow the mixture to cool on a plate and mash it with the heel of your palm for 3 to 5 minutes until the mixture turns soft. The ideal texture of sandesh is fine and grainy. Add the rose essence and mix well. The sandesh is now ready. You can flatten it out in a serving dish or mould it into creative shapes. The most common method is to roll the mixture into lemon-sized balls. Using the rounded back of a ladle, make a depression on top and gently press a rose petal into it. Serve chilled.

Tip: Many people prefer to make the sandesh without roasting the paneer. However, roasting it helps it to stay fresh for 4 to 5 days in the refrigerator.

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Sandesh, also known as sondesh or shondesh, is a traditional Bengali sweet, made by rolling a mixture of paneer and sugar into balls. What makes it really special is that it can be made very quickly and easily, and can be adapted to elaborate and decorative forms as well – it is often a part of everyday meals in its simplest form, while it can be moulded into elaborate shapes, with added flavours, for weddings and festivals.

In what might come as a pleasant surprise to those with a sweet tooth, many Bengalis start their day with a bite of sandesh as it is considered healthy.

Interestingly, sandesh is also known as ‘pranhara’ or ‘heart thief’ in Bengali.

True to its name, it finds its way into the hearts of those who have tasted it – be they from Bengal or from any other part of India.

Indu Bokaria, a Rajasthani, is one such sandesh afficionado. Indu, who says that sandesh is her favourite sweet dish, adds that it is a means by which she relives the memory of her childhood in Kolkata. She reminiscences, “I remember that if there was one dish apart from the khichdi (rice and lentil porridge) that was eaten when you were well or unwell, it was the sandesh.” In 1971, when she moved to Chennai after marriage, she realised that there were hardly any shops in the city that made sandesh – which led her to decide that she might as well roll up her sleeves and make the sweet herself.

“I remember calling a friend of mine, asking her for the recipe and preparing the sweet. That was the beginning. I think my new family liked it very much and that prompted me to prepare it again. And again. Over the years, if there is one dish I have prepared the most, it is this very sweet. Of course, now many sweet shops sell delicious varieties of sandesh, yet I enjoy making it myself,” she says. Before she knew it, the initial surge in interest morphed into a consuming passion, and she began to experiment with different flavours. With time, her repertoire of recipes grew and her family decided that they would try and get it published in book form. It was in this context that Indu and I met.

When I first saw close to 30 varieties of sandesh in Indu Bokaria’s diary, I was fascinated! “Sandesh is so versatile that it can be transformed into a hundred varieties. For me, it is like an art, one that allows creativity and experiments. And above all, the basic recipe is so simple and easy to make.

Some of my favourite sandesh creations are the ones made with fruits – such as stuffed apples, mango roll, fig, strawberry, pineapple, orange and kiwi,” says Indu.

Those who wish to follow in Indu’s footsteps, and steal a few hearts, should try their hand at making sandesh. Don’t be put off by the thought of making paneer from scratch - this is one of the easiest sweet dishes to make, and will definitely win you several compliments. And what better way to make a start than with a recipe from Indu’s book, Recipes from a Diary? So, begin your journey of discovery with rose-flavoured sandesh – an extremely tasty dish for which the recipe for which is given on the left.

Photo: Dan Morelle/Creative Commons

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Feature

by Suzanne McNeill

In the Footsteps of the

Buddha Follow the trail of the Buddha’s life – from his birth as a prince to attaining enlightenment and his life as a spiritual teacher – through this virtual pilgrimage across the places in India that are associated with the different stages of his life The image of a journey sits appropriately within the Buddhist faith. At the heart of the religion is the story of the prince who became a pauper, abandoning his comfortable existence and embarking on a spiritual quest to discover the meaning of life. The truth, or dharma, taught by the Buddha was presented as a spiritual path, and before he died the Buddha suggested that it would be of great benefit to his followers to make a pilgrimage to the places associated with the most important events of his life.

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Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha, is the first of the four holy sites of Buddhism, and for devotees the rural landscape offers a very real sense of walking in the Buddha’s footsteps. The event of the Buddha’s birth is marked by a pillar erected by the Emperor Ashoka, a convert to Buddhism in the third century BCE. Prince Siddhartha Gautama was born in 566 BCE into the aristocratic Shakya clan which ruled an independent state in the Terai lowland plains, just inside the borders of modern-day Nepal. His birth is said to have been surrounded by miraculous events. He was conceived when his mother Queen Maya dreamed that a white baby elephant (a rarity, so a symbol of greatness) entered her side. This dream was interpreted to mean that she would bear a son who would either be a great emperor or a great religious teacher. Maya embarked on a journey to the home of her relatives to give birth. She reached a delightful grove at Lumbini and, spellbound, she went into labour, supported by the trunk of a Sal tree. Her son, the future Buddha, emerged from her side so as not to cause her pain. The earth shook, and he was bathed in a miraculous shower of water.

The queen was to die a few days later, and the king, overprotective and fearful that his son, as predicted, would leave home and pursue a religious life, swaddled the prince

Photo: Rienke Van Nieuwland, The Netherlands

An encounter with a religious mendicant inspired prince Siddhartha to seek a solution to the fundamental problems of the human condition ANd he set out in search of spiritual knowledge in luxury. So that his son would not be troubled by the sight of anything unpleasant, he removed all the aged and infirm people from the prince’s surroundings.

Siddhartha, however, found palace life unfulfilling and yearned for a deeper and more spiritually satisfying existence.

He began to make visits outside the palace and chanced upon an old man, then a sick man, and finally a corpse on its way to burial. Shocked to be told that these states were part of life, Siddhartha found himself reflecting on the transient nature of human existence. An encounter with a religious mendicant who was trying to understand the impermanence and suffering of life inspired the prince to seek a spiritual solution to the fundamental problems of the human condition: birth, sickness, old age and death. Siddhartha turned his back on family life and departed in search of spiritual knowledge.

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The decision to leave his family and set off on a spiritual quest was not unprecedented in ancient India. The Buddha was one of many who renounced the world and joined bands of wandering seekers and philosophers. These religious mendicants chose lives of hardship and poverty, often wandering alone in the forests as they sought answers to the deepest problems of life.

The Buddha learnt to meditate to enter and abide within a profound state of trance wherein consciousness disappeared and the self could be fully realised. He practised extreme austerity to subdue the appetites and passions, and fasted so strictly that his stomach touched his backbone. These practices, however, were not beneficial – the meditational techniques failed to provide any philosophical insight, and the extremes of self-mortification were unproductive.

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The Buddha returned to the practice of meditation, adding a new technique called ‘insight meditation’ that 1 sought to probe and observe the mind during the trance-like state. He made rapid progress, and, in the course of one night, seated beneath the Bodhi tree, he attained the complete state of awakening that he sought. During this night’s meditation, he was taken back through various and deeper levels until, his mind at perfect stillness, he remembered his previous lives.

Next, he saw others being born and reborn into their many lives, according to their karma. He found himself in a state of great clarity in which he felt no sense of self and others as separate entities – this is the enlightenment that Buddhists call anatman (not-self). This elimination of self-centredness released the Buddha from the cycle of endless rebirth, called samsara, into the pureness of understanding that is nirvana, Buddhism’s ultimate end.

Photo: Lakshmi Krupa

Buddhism’s most sacred place of pilgrimage is Bodh Gaya in Bihar, the site where, meditating beneath a Bodhi tree, Siddhartha was to attain enlightenment. From this momentous event, he took the honorific title ‘Buddha’, meaning ‘the Awakened One’. A giant resort has grown up around the sacred Mahabodhi Temple, which holds the offshoot of the original Bodhi tree. Visiting Bodh Gaya bestows blessings on the pilgrim, earns merit for a better rebirth and makes a karmic connection with the place of enlightenment.

Pilgrims tie coloured threads to the branches of the Bodhi tree and decorate it with prayer flags.

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PhotoS: Suzanne McNeill, UK

A few kilometres from the ancient city of Benares (Varanasi) is Sarnath, and the Deer Park where the Buddha preached his first sermon. As the place where the voice of Buddhism was first heard, the Deer Park is considered one of the most holy sites of Buddhism.

Japanese and Sri Lankan pilgrims pray to the Buddha, decorating makeshift altars with flowers, gold foil and incense sticks, whilst large groups of devotees sit in the shade of the Park’s trees receiving instruction from Buddhist teachers.

Initially, the Buddha was concerned that people were not ready to hear his teaching. The idea that everything is impermanent, that nothing has a soul, ran counter to the way people lived their lives. Then the Buddha saw an image of a lotus pond, with lotuses at different levels, some in the mud, others blossoming above the surface, and from this recognised that there were some people who were more ready to understand his message. The Buddha was moved to proclaim his teachings, or dharma, to the world. He set out for Benares on the River Ganges to seek out five former associates who had earlier turned their back on him when he rejected the path of austerity in favour of self-moderation. Amazed by the obvious transformation in him, these men became the first disciples of the Buddha.

As the Buddha expounded his teachings at Sarnath (preserved as a discourse called ‘Setting in Motion the Wheel of the Dharma’), his disciples achieved spiritual

Initially the Buddha was concerned that people were not ready to hear his teaching.

Then He saw an image of a lotus pond, with lotuses at different levels, some in the mud, others blossoming above the surface, and He recognised some people were ready to understand his message and was moved him to proclaim his teachings, or dharma to the world understanding, were ordained as monks and then attained full enlightenment. Their teachings spread quickly – most traditions of Buddhist monks and nuns trace their origins back to these five disciples – and the Buddha charged the growing number of monks to go forth as missionaries and spread the teachings to the world. The Buddha himself spent his later life travelling on foot through the towns and villages of northeast India, addressing audiences of all levels of society. His manner was always courteous and calm, and he made numerous converts. Wealthy patrons made donations of land on which residential centres were established for the monks, which evolved into monasteries.

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The Buddha’s Teachings The Buddha’s doctrine of salvation is framed by the belief in samsara, that is reincarnation or repeated birth, which had existed in India for several centuries before the Buddha’s time. There are six realms of rebirth in the Buddhist universe: (1) hell; (2) the animal realm; (3) the realm of ghosts; (4) the realm of the violent, demonic Titans; (5) the human world and (6) the abode of the gods. Within this cosmology, the natural law of karma – that is moral actions – determines the key aspects of a person’s next rebirth.

The ultimate goal of Buddhism is to put an end to suffering and rebirth by fulfilling the human potential for goodness and happiness. The way to realise this aim is presented as a selfreliant spiritual path that leads to nirvana.

First, the Buddha expounded the Four Noble Truths of life that identified the problem and causes of suffering:

Photo: E. Blignaut

Kushinara, near Kasia in Uttar Pradesh, is the site of the Buddha’s death, and its cluster of temples, Tibetan, Burmese and Chinese monasteries and ruined stupas is the final site of Buddhist pilgrimage within India.

It was here that the Buddha retired, aged 80 and in failing health, to make his final instructions to his followers. There was to be no successor, he declared. Instead, the dharma should be the guide after he was gone. Devotees should think for themselves on matters of doctrine, evaluating their views and opinions against the scriptures. They were to test his words in their lives, and not follow him blindly. Consequently, there never arose a central source of authority in Buddhism on matters of doctrine, and no central institution or body to promulgate dogmas and creeds for the religion as a whole.

1. Life is unsatisfactory – this disappointment in life’s ups and downs is called dukkha, meaning restlessness and suffering.

2. How dukkha arises – the Buddha identified a ‘thirst’ of selfish desire that is linked with ignorance, greed and hatred.

3. Dukkha can cease – by following certain moral and spiritual disciplines, suffering can be eliminated.

4. The path that leads to the end of dukkha is called the Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path offers the way to self-transformation, telling adherents how to live an appropriate life and achieve release from suffering: 1. Right understanding – seeing life as it is 2. Right thinking – filling the mind with love, kindness and compassion

The Buddha died at Kushinara, lying on his right-hand side between two Sal trees, which burst into bloom. He instructed that his remains should be cremated and enshrined in a bell-shaped monument known as a stupa, which could be used as a site for offerings and devotion.

3. Right speaking – no gossip or lies

Urged by the Buddha to pass on the Noble Truths he had given them, Buddhist monks followed the 1st- and 2nd-century merchants who travelled along the Silk Road into China, then Korea, Japan and Tibet and the kingdoms of South-East Asia. Long linked by overland and maritime trade networks, Indian civilisation started to influence these kingdoms, and local rulers imported Indian advisors to guide them on the practices of Indian kingship and ritual. They founded Buddhist kingdoms across the region, and adopted the Indian script and its sacred texts and literature. Yet even as it flourished beyond India, Buddhism lost influence within the land of its birth as Hindu Brahminic ideology evolved, and the religion lost royal patronage. It had all but disappeared from India by the 13th century CE. However, small pockets of Buddhist adherents remain in Himalayan areas such as Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, and the migration of many Tibetan exiles into northern India has created, in the city of Dharamsala one of the main centres of Buddhism in the world.

6. Right effort – meditating on what one says and does

4. Right acting – not taking life, stealing or indulging in sexual misconduct 5. Right living –one’s livelihood must not involve one in destroying life or hurting people

7. Right mindfulness – being wholly alert and awake in life 8. Right concentration – with this, one achieves a deeper level of attentiveness, characterised by peace and calm The truth about the way things are involves seeing how unsatisfactory life is as long as we cling to our obsession with ourselves.

Photo: Manfred Zink, Germany

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Postcard from India ew – the e old and the n The mix of th ructure in ill beautiful st st t bu ed er th wea my heart, d and, closer to the backgroun odern-day street life of m the incredible along the d of scenario, India. This kin er failed to Vadadora, nev of s et re st n ai m living on ople making a fascinate me. Pe out ments or just ab ve pa e th on , the road will find re their wares any place whe spent a lot e customers. I th to ay w r ei th in India, and g and cycling of time runnin dly smiles ed by the frien was overwhelm met. of all whom I – Paul Fejer,

Canada.

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Interpretations

by Team Culturama

Guided By Nature The Buddha imparted some valuable advice to his son, Rahula, on the means to enlightenment – we have selected some parts of his discourse on meditation and presented it here

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Before he attained enlightenment and became known as the Buddha, Prince Siddhartha had a son. The boy was named Rahula. When Prince Siddhartha decided to renounce his family to go in search of the eternal truth, he went into the chambers of his wife, Princess Yasodhara, to look at his wife and son one last time. However, the mother’s arm lay over Rahula’s head, and Siddhartha left his home without having a look at his son’s face. After six or seven years, after he had attained enlightenment, the Buddha visited his paternal home. During his stay there, Princess Yasodhara told Rahula: “This is your father, Rahula! Go and ask him for your heritage!” Rahula was ordained as a novice monk and the Buddha guided him through the years. Of the several words of wisdom imparted to Rahula, the Great Discourse of Exhortation to Rahula (Mahā-Rāhulovāda-Sutta), spoken to him when he was 18 years, chiefly contains instructions on meditation – the most important elements of which are given here.

‘Towards Moksha’ (Diptych) by artist Sarla Chandra.

Photo by Hansa Piparsania in Sarla Chandra: A Journey of Four Decades

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“

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“

Like unto earth, Rahula, practise meditation...Just as pure and impure things...are cast upon the earth, and yet the earth neither abhors, nor loathes, nor dislikes such things; even so yourself, Rahula, earthwise, practise meditation...

Like unto fire, Rahula, practise meditation...Just as fire, Rāhula, burns pure and impure things... even so yourself, Rāhula, like fire, practise meditation...

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May 2015

Like unto water, Rahula, practise meditation...Just as pure and impure things...are washed (away) in water... and the contacts that have arisen will not continue to obsess your mind...

Like unto air, Rahula, practise meditation...air neither abhors, nor loathes, nor dislikes; even so yourself, Rahula, like air, practise meditation...”

Like unto space, Rahula, practise meditation...Just as the vault of heaven is not attached to any place; even so yourself, Rahula, like the vault of heaven, practise meditation...

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May 2015

Look Who’s In Town Delhi

Chalo Delhi – Act Three Derek and Liz Nazareth had a long innings with India – starting as early as 1982. After their first visit to Delhi, they came back in 1984 and it is this visit that they remember most. “We arrived on the morning of the funeral of Indira Gandhi and found our booked hotel burnt to the ground and gangs of youths walking the streets with machetes! A very nervous Sikh taxi driver deposited us at the gates of the amazing Imperial Hotel where we were holed up for 48 hours until it was safe to leave. We watched the funeral on TV!” Derek and Liz, currently on their third visit, have been in Delhi for the past three years. They mull over the pros and cons of life in India, with not being able to drive being one negative. Liz discovered the positives as well, “Something that totally amazed us was when my doctor gave me her mobile phone number and actually answered it when I rang! That would be unheard of in London!”

Guide to Delhi A must-do is a trip to India Gate, Rajpath, and Old Delhi with a rickshaw ride into Chandni Chowk – its incredible markets, and the famous Jama Masjid to get a feel for the real India! End the day with gin and tonic on the veranda of The Imperial Hotel.

• A regular Sunday treat is an outdoor brunch, offered by many good hotels and restaurants.

• Visiting the Taj Mahal in Agra is, of course, another must-do romantic experience, as is staying a night at The Neemrana Fort Hotel – one of our favourite places. It is just two hours from Delhi but has amazing architecture and wonderful bedrooms, built within a 500-year-old fort on the side of a hill with a step-well nearby.

•

British-Irish couple Derek and Liz Nazareth share with us memories and experiences of their love affair with India

Tips for Expats • Try everything and go everywhere. The more you see and do, the easier it is to understand and accept.

• Join expat groups – it is a great way to meet new friends and get to hear of the events going on in the city.

• India can frustrate and delight at the same time – an open mind, tolerance and patience are three virtues that will greatly help you.

When In London Visitors to London should spend a couple of days walking around the city and West End. It is a beautiful city with a long list of must-dos!

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Look Who’s In Town Chennai

Art of Living Polish artist Justyna CwiekBodelot discovers the artistic side of Chennai India is probably the best palette of colours that Polish artist Justyna Cwiek- Bodelot has worked on. When Justyna landed in Chennai three years ago with her husband and two children, the heat of the city – in sharp contrast to the weather back home in Poland – hit her first. Soon, she discovered more contrasts. “At the airport, the smell of incense and spices surrounded me. The colours on the streets of Chennai struck me next. In Poland, winter is dark and grey and people wear sad-looking clothes. Even our colourful summer clothing is nothing compared to those in India! The pinks, blues, greens and orange sloshed my eyes. The gold and silver sparkled together on women’s hands. The sounds of horns mixed with the colored sarees caused much dizziness. Life seemed so different, like on another planet.” In fact, after a short visit to Poland recently, Justyna compared the streets in her hometown to the frames of a black-and-white movie!

Postcard from Poland Back in Poland, I think paintings and art seem to be a little sad, maybe because of the glum weather or because of Poland's tragic history. India made me fall in love with the colours and, in turn, allowed me to look at colours from a different perspective. I began to use more colours in my paintings and even started to mix hues that I might not have used together.

In Poland, art is not as popular; to be an artist does not make you proud. Here, I noticed that my Indian friends like to surround themselves with paintings or sculptures. Art is an integral aspect of life.

Art Stop In Chennai, there are many galleries and art places, but a must-see is DakshinaChitra – you can observe the art pieces there and participate in workshops as well. Another interesting place is the Lalit Kala Akademi – this art academy promotes many forms of fine art such as drawing, painting, sculpture, ceramics, graphic and contemporary art forms and photography.

Foreign cultural centres, such as Alliance Francaise and Goethe Institute are worth a visit for their exhibitions and art performances.

Galleries such as Forum Art Gallery, Veda Gallery and Apparao Gallery have good exhibitions.

Apart from famous Indian artists, there are many local artists whose paintings are a good representation of Indian culture and life. When you want to buy an antique painting, it is best to ask a professional for a proper estimate about its antiquity.

When in Poland There many famous painters from Poland – one of my favourites is Rafal Olbinski, a poster designer and painter. His work can be seen in the Museum of Poster in Wilanow. If you visit Poland, you should visit the Zacheta Gallery in Warsaw, which holds many famous modern art exhibitions. The Royal Castle in Warsaw has a large collection of old paintings.

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IN T HIS MAGAZINE Global Wellness Series

Eye Care The eye is the body’s most important organ. Dr.E Ravindra Mohan of the Department of Ophthalmology tells us how to care for the eyes.

The eyes are the most import organ in the body, even the slightest blemish to the eye has to be attended immediately. Ophthalmologists specialise in eyes and also the delicate tissues that make up eyelids and eyebrows. Eyelids are affected at times by birth defects such as droopy eyes or injuries that lead to scars. These problems can be corrected surgically using reconstructive and cosmetic operations.

Changes occurring with age like puffy eyelids, wrinkles around the eye can be corrected by surgical as well as non surgical treatments.

Watery eyes are a condition that could arise from allergic conditions or mild surface level diseases; this can be treated by eye plastic surgeons through medical or surgical procedures.

Eye care tips:

Loss of an eye results in tremendous amount of psychological and emotional handicap. Oculoplastic surgeons help the patient not only with reconstructive operations to restore normal appearance but also that the help of an expert, called an Ocularist who helps in fitting of lifelike artificial eye. This boosts the self-esteem of the individual and helps them lead a normal life.

• IT professionals must follow steps prescribed by a doctor to reduce eye.

• Do not neglect anything that looks different.

• Never ignore a squint in the eye; the condition does not go away.

• Children often have refractive errors in their vision, which is usually corrected by wearing the right pair of glasses. Look out for are the child holding a book too close to the face, a child complaining of frequent headaches, or a child with hereditary vision disorders • A full eye check up is required if you have frequent headaches.

• Diabetic patients need to have an annual eye check-up done that includes a detailed examination of the retina.

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Passage to India

by Pavithra Srinivasan

the swordsman`s prophecy The search for a series of clues leads a prince from Central Asia on a hunt for 10 swords – a journey that leads him to India and paves the way for a new chapter in history

May 2015

Illustrations: Lalithaa Thyagarajan

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Day 27, Month of Rabi’al-awwal (First Month of Spring), CE 1502, Ferghana (present-day Uzbekistan) It was cousin Haider’s idea – this trip. Haider had always loved travelling. Frankly, His Highness Prince Zahir-uddin Mohammad couldn’t care less. His mind felt numb; his heart was heavy. I’ve lost everything, he thought. Samarkand – again – and Ferghana…My home – my land…has slipped through my fingers. I’ve nothing left. No past, no present and certainly no future.

But Haider wouldn’t leave him “to stew in his own juices”, and proposed a journey to Umar Sheikh Mira’s tomb. Zahir had agreed. It was, after all, his father’s final resting place. Once there, he’d knelt on the floor in heart-felt prayer, when… … the sound of scrabbling jolted him into the real world.

He raised his head, to see his cousin, pressing the brick walls of the small tomb systematically.

“What on earth are you doing?”

Haider looked at him over his shoulder, sheepish. “If you promise to not yell at me – I’ll tell you something.”

And then, in Zahir’s astounded ears fell a tale: of an ancient prophecy that foretold a man who could become an Emperor – if he fulfilled one condition. “The Ten Swords of Glory,” Zahir repeated, disbelief colouring his voice. “A man finds ten swords, each belonging to some great king or era – and he becomes an Emperor. Really, Haider?”

His cousin’s face flushed. “It’s said that a powerful saint of Genghis Khan’s times buried these swords centuries ago, to be found by a true Emperor.

He who wields these swords ten Will find himself, the master of men.

If we went on this adventure, I thought…I wanted to…”

Make you feel better, Zahir finished, mentally. His heart swelled with love for this thoughtful friend – and also with that rush of wanderlust that had once pushed his ancestors out of their homes into conquering empires.

“Lead on,” he grinned, looking like the 18-year-old he really was. “Where do you think is the first sword?”

“In your father’s tomb,” was the surprising answer. “I read in his diary that he kept a kilij – our traditional TurkishMongol sword. It was a favourite. He told me once that it had strange lettering, so I wondered if it might be the first sword.”

“I remember it being stashed with his dull poems,” Zahir said, caustically. “Look for an engraved trunk set within these walls…they were put away separately.”

The trunk was quickly found – in an alcove – and Zahir brandished the kilij triumphantly. “Well, this one was surprisingly easy.”

“The others won’t be,” Haider warned. “The clue to the next will be found on the sword itself.” He turned the dull blade. Under the hilt were a few letters, crudely scratched:

“In the abode of ancient stone, Lies a blade, roughly hewn.”

Day 28 Their destination turned out to be Samarkand, and they found the blade in the Gur-i-Amir, tomb of the legendary Timur. Zahir hefted the flint knife, serrated for sawing through hard objects. “This thing must be at least 10,000 years old!” he said.

Earlier, they had found the Viking sword of Ingvar the Far-Travelled in Kabul; and discovered an iron blade under a small memorial stone erected at a battlefield, in Attock.

Day 30, Taxila The fifth blade was buried in the ruins of King Omphis’s palace. “It’s a kopis – a Greek sword,” said Zahir. “A scythe, developed from an agricultural tool. Look at the grip made of bone.”

Day 5, Month of Jumada al-awwal, Hastinapura They stumbled upon the sixth sword in front of an ancient, ruined temple. “Isn’t this a Rajput khanda?” Zahir asked, feeling a thrum of exhilaration. “A double-edged straight sword.”

“I’ve read that it’s mentioned in the Hindu sacred text of Rig Veda,” Haider whispered. “It used to be called asi. Wielded by their god, Shiva.”

“Where’s the next blade?”

Haider recited, from the sword’s hilt:

“By their coloured, wondrous tassels, Ye shall see these knives dazzle.”

Day 13, Nalanda (present-day Bihar) “These ruins depress me,” Zahir shook his head. “Once again, a centuries-old university, razed to ashes.”

“By no less than a Turkish commander, Bakthyar Khilji, a mere 300 odd years ago,” said Haider. “This place hosted almost 10,000 students, I believe. Quite a renowned Buddhist centre.”

If it hadn’t been for Zahir’s eagle eyes, they would have missed the knives, cunningly stuck into the boots of a wooden Chinese statue.

“Bi shou daggers,” Zahir pronounced. “They’re usually found in pairs.” A faint suspicion was beginning to rear itself within him. “The tassels are to stabilise the blades in a fight.”

Haider shrugged. “Where do we find the next?”

Day 23, Meerut The duo was engaged in scrutinising a cluster of swords they’d just dug up from what Haider claimed was the site of

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the clash between Timur’s troops, and Meerut’s armed forces.

It had been a massacre – Timur had simply trampled over the place, on his way to Delhi.

“Got it!” Zahir crowed, and picked one up.

Haider gazed at it reverently. “This one has come from Europe,” he said, in hushed tones. “Look at the long, clean blade. Singled-edged. Must have been used in the crusades…”

“But how did it end up in the middle of Hindustan?”

“Timur had excellent political relations with the kings of Spain and France. I’m not surprised that a European

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sword found its way here…” Haider looked up to find Zahir watching him. There was a strange expression on Zahir’s face – a mixture of wonder, affection and…was that amusement?

“What’re you staring at?” Haider demanded.

“Nothing,” Zahir shook his head. “Where next?”

Day 25, Outskirts of Delhi “An Egyptian short-sword,” Zahir pronounced, holding up the blade they had just retrieved from a cunning niche, within the Qutb Minar complex, where Shamsuddin Iltutmish, hailing from the Slave dynasty lay in eternal rest,

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having risen to great heights from slavery, to kingship. “This must have been presented to him by the Abbasid Caliph Al-Mustansir in Egypt,” Haider explained, looking at the sword, which was smaller but possessed a beautifully wrought golden hit, with a Middle-Eastern design, and a gold-coated handle.

Zahir’s eyes glittered; he gazed far away, as though seeing something into the future. “On to the next…and last.”

Haider stared at him, nonplussed. “But, that’s it. This was the last one. The Chinese blades count as two, remember?”

Zahir smiled but said nothing.

Day 28, Panipat (present-day Haryana) “I don’t understand,” Haider murmured. “This place isn’t really important in any way. Why are we here?”

Zahir stared at the vast, open space, devoid of natural obstructions except for a few trees, and thorny bushes. Slowly, he drew his own sword – a beautifully crafted Persian saber, and threw it down on the sandy ground. Then, as Haider watched, astounded, he wrenched it up again. “The shamshir shekargar,” he said, enunciating each syllable. “The Shah of all blades, and the one that accompanies the king to a hunt. With this…” he swung it in the air, “I shall hunt the Lodhis – and this site shall see which of us will remain standing. It shall decide the fate of Hindustan.” He sheathed his sword again.

Tears of emotion sprang to Haider’s eyes.

Zahir walked towards his cousin, moved. “How many months did it take for you to set up this prophecy?”

Haider gawked at him. “How did you know?”

Zahir threw back his head and laughed. “For one thing, you never had the slightest difficulty in finding any of the sites. For another, you slipped up – once. When you showed me the crusader’s blade in Meerut.”

“I did? How?” “You’re a scholar; I’m a warrior. The moment I saw the blade, I recognised it as a landsknecht sword – used by German-speaking mercenaries in Europe. A crusader’s greatsword has a sharp edge to pierce victims, but a landsknecht sword has a blunt edge. Also, these mercenaries came into existence less than 20 years ago, so a saint from Genghis Khan’s period could have hardly buried one of their swords centuries earlier.”

Haider shook his head, smiling. “All I wanted was to shake you out of your depression – to make you aware of our strength.”

The man who would one day rule India as its first Mughal Emperor, Zahir-ud-din Mohammad Babur, laughed. “And I will win. Not because of a prophecy – but because of sworn friends such as you.”

Facts from the Past: The prophecy may have been fictional, but Zahir-ud-din Mohammad Babur (February 14, 1483 to December 26, 1530) did eventually face Ibrahim Lodhi in the First Battle of Panipat, on April 21, 1526. He won, and set the stage for a brand new era in Indian history: the age of the Mughals.

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May

Calendar of events

Presenting the best of India’s events in different categories across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and nearby suburbs

Art & Exhibitions

Wildlife Photo Exhibition Delhi

Photo Exhibition Bengaluru

Passionate forester and photo artist Jozsef Mesterhazi will display his collection of photographs of birds and animals native to the Bakony Mountains and Lake Balaton regions of Hungary at the Hungarian Information and Cultural Centre. A key element of his photographs is his ability to capture rare moments of animal and forest life in their own habitat. Recipient of the Hunting Press awards, Jozsef’s photographs have been published in several magazines and children’s books. His mission is to get children acquainted with forests at a young age and to make them responsible citizens who will love and protect nature.

‘Before the Birth of Time’, an art exhibition

by Saibal Das, explores some of the most significant pilgrimage sites, spiritual ideologies and religious practices in India.

Sensitive, empathetic illustrations, the black and white photographs embody the sense of divinity experienced by the subjects in the spiritual environment.

Date: April 14–May 8 Venue: Hungarian Information and Cultural Centre, 1-A Janpath, Near Claridges Hotel Time: 1000 to 1600 hrs

‘The Art Shop – A blend of colours & creations’, an exhibition at Cosmic Heart Gallery, features exquisite art in the form of jewellery, mandalas, bags, cushions, paintings, fine art prints and porcelain.

A unique concept that brings together a plethora of artists with distinct styles, this is an opportunity for you to experience art in varied forms, and even pick up a special souvenir. Featured artists include Alison Pinto, Ajay Anandamurthy, Gool Lalla, Leslie Pinto, Nicholas Roerich, Raja Ravi Varma, Soojata Kapoor, Vishal Sabley and others.

Date: April 16–May 15 Venue: Tasveer Gallery, Sua House, 26/1, Kasturba Cross Road Time: All day

Art Exhibition Mumbai

Date: April 7–May 21 Venue: G2-A Court Chambers, New Marine Lines Time: 1100 to 1700 hrs

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Events

Mixed Media Art Exhibition Chennai Gallery Veda will showcase Seema Kohli’s works in an art show that is conducted in collaboration with Park Hyatt Chennai. The display will include the artist’s works with mixed media on canvas, plywood, fiberglass, with 24 karat gold and silver leaf.

Date: March 28–June 1 Venue: Hotel Park Hyatt, 39 Velachery Road, Near Raj Bhavan Time: All day

Jazz Theatre Bengaluru The Jazz Theatre at Windmills Craftworks provides an opportunity for music lovers to experience exceptional talent at close quarters, in a beautiful, comfortable setting.

World-renowned trumpeter Saskia Laroo and international pianist/vocalist Warren Byrd will create a smorgasbord of music for a wide palette of occasions – from the grand gala-fest to the intimate hang. Whether performing dance classics, the American songbook, hot afro-Latin grooves, or their own catchy, poignant originals, the two cast a spell on their audience every time. For more details, visit www.bookmyshow.com Date: May 8 and 9 Venue: Windmills Craftworks, #331, Road 5B, EPIP Zone, Whitefield Time: 2030 hrs

Dance Fest Chennai The Verb School of Dance is back with a bang for its 5th Annual Summer Dance Show – HOTSTEPS 2015. The event will showcase a variety of dance styles, including Latin American forms of dances, Bollywood, Hip Hop and Indian Classical fusion. This year, The Loyola Dream Team, one of the best Hip Hop teams in Chennai, will participate in the event with a power-packed performance. For more details, visit www.bookmyshow.com.

Date: May 15 Venue: Kamaraj Arangam, New No.492, Old No.574 A, Anna Salai, Teynampet Time: 1900 to 2100 hrs

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English Theatre Pan India

Pottery Workshop Delhi

Set in the French Quarter of New Orleans during the restless years following World War II, A Streetcar Named Desire is the story of Blanche DuBois, a fragile and neurotic woman on a desperate prowl for a place to call her own. As Blanche's fragile world crumbles, she turns to her sister Stella for solace, but her downward spiral brings her face to face with the brutal, unforgiving Stanley Kowalski. With Gillian Anderson as Blanche DuBois, Ben Foster as Stanley and Vanessa Kirby as Stella, this adaptation of the 1947 play promises to be a real treat. Visit www.bookmyshow.com for show details and to book tickets.

Want to keep your kids occupied, and help them learn a new skill? Enroll them in a pottery and clay modelling workshop.

Organised for children aged 6 to 10 years, the workshop will touch on the basics of the use of the potter’s wheel and clay modeling. For more details, visit www.bookmyshow.com

Date: May 17 and 23 Venue: Across venues in National Capital Region, Pune, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Nagpur and Kolkata

English Theatre Delhi One of the most humorous writers of contemporary times, Woody Allen’s humorous classic Side Effects is a real treat for people who know his work, as well as those who are just discovering it. Inspired by three of his wittiest and funniest stories (The Lunatic’s Tale, Retribution and Remembering Needleman), this Indian adaptation is a real delight for theatre lovers and Woody Allen fans!

Date: May 17 Venue: Alliance Francaise: Delhi, 72, Lodhi Estate, Lodhi Road Time: 1930 to 2100 hrs

Date: May 11–15 / June 22–26 Venue: Epicentre at Apparel House, Sector 44, Opp. Power Grid Residential Complex, Gurgaon Time: 0900 to 1030 hrs

English Theatre Mumbai Peggy Pane is the story of a naughty handmade rag doll in a toy nursery. The little girl’s grandma makes her a new doll called Peggy Pane. The moment Peggy enters the toy nursery she starts creating havoc for the other toys by pulling tricks on them, scaring them, and troubling them. The toys keep trying to tell Peggy to stop and also try to teach her a lesson. But will Peggy ever listen and turn over a new leaf? Get tickets at www.bookmyshow.com Date: May 30 Venue: Dance Theatre Godrej: NCPA, Nariman Point, NCPA Marg Time: 1600 to 1730 hrs

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Spotlight

by Team Culturama

International Flower Festival May 1 to 30 Watch 5,000 species of flowers bloom in Sikkim in Northeast India, where the much-awaited International Flower Festival takes place this month

Sikkim, also known as the land of the Rhodendrons, is home to around 5,000 species of flowering plants – among which there are more than 500 rare orchid varieties, 60 primula species, more than 30 rhodendron species, 23-plus bamboo varieties, ferns and medicinal plants. The dendrobium nobile, Sikkim’s state flower, has a place of fame in London’s Buckingham Palace.

Nearly 80 percent of the state comes under the administration of its forest department. Despite being one of the smallest states in India (it occupies just 0.05 percent of the Indian landmass), it accounts for a whopping 26 percent of the country’s bio-diversity.

Every year, the Sikkim’s natural flora is showcased at the International Flower Festival. This year, the festival is hosted in the premises of the Governer’s residence at Gangtok. On display are orchids, gladioli, cacti, roses, trees, ferns, alpine plants, creepers, climbers and more. For the horticulturists and intellectually inclined, there are seminars and discussions centered on indigenous plants as well.

While in the region, adventure enthusiasts should try out water sports, such as river rafting or the Yak Safari when in Sikkim. The International flower festival is also the venue for a food fair that showcases regional delicacies.

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India Diaries

by Jennifer Mullen

Tongue-Tied in Tamil an australian in chennai recounts her attempts to progress from being tongue-tied to decoding the tamil language As a foreigner coming to India, most people expect to have their sense of smell and vision overwhelmed instantly. You subsequently realise that your ears are also reverberating with the incessant honking of horns, the thundering of engines and a cacophony of cows, street dogs and chickens (a bit like The Musicians of Bremen, but louder). Having used your school French or Spanish to bluff your way through European package holidays in the past, your brain will contort itself into knots, attempting to rationalise the torrent of raucous and seemingly incomprehensible dialogue around you.

Arriving in Chennai and hearing Tamil for the first time, I admit I was tongue-tied.

Easing myself into Chennai life, I felt like I was in a linguistic gridlock, particularly when trying to communicate with drivers, maids and security guards. Sure enough, people in banks and shops will have a respectable command of English; yet, in Chennai, it is very common to hear Indians from the North voice their frustrations about everyday communication. I therefore decided to grab the bull by the horns (not literally, as this may have upset the man

who drives the fruit cart along the ECR) and commence a crash course in learning Tamil. Educated Tamil people will often tell you that ‘respectful Tamil’ is good, ‘Sri Lankan Tamil’ is completely different and ‘auto driver Tamil is highly abbreviated and full of low-level slang. ‘Chennaiites’ do have the reputation of using a very colloquial and casual version of this ancient, classic language, which, in its purest form, is so rich in poetry and literature. Everyone agrees unanimously how difficult Tamil is for an outsider to pick up.

One of the reasons that Tamil is such a challenging language is because of its Dravidian routes. Those who have studied languages or linguistics will be familiar with the Indo-European family tree. In Europe, many languages have some common root words, such as Latin or ancient Greek, so it is sometimes easy to guess words. Sanskrit also plays an important part in the routes of many common words in our vocabulary today. Admittedly, Tamil has given us a few words, such as ‘teak’, ‘cot’ and ‘pagoda’, yet the vast majority of Tamil words will have little or no resemblance to English (or any other European language).

India has, in fact, 122 major languages and many more regional dialects (the Indian Linguistic Survey estimates that this number is as high as 780). Surely it would be easy to

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Photo: Diana Grieger, Germany

throw one’s hands up in defeat and question the whole point of taking the trouble to learn the language.

If you do start off with a couple of simple words, such as ‘vanakkam’ (hello) and ‘nandri’ (thanks), you will instantly notice that people will smile and nod, genuinely pleased that you are making an effort. The more you learn, the more recognition you will receive for your efforts. ‘Parava illey’ (no worries) and ‘konjam Tamil terry-um’ (I speak some Tamil) will have the locals grinning broadly.

‘panda’, so imagine this otherwise recumbent black and white animal dashing around a football pitch. In fact, the more ridiculous the image, the more likely you are to remember it! The word for ‘flower’ is ‘poo’, which needs no further discussion.

Apparently there is no common word for ‘please’ and if you have to use it, it is more in the context of ‘I am begging you’. Likewise, Tamils speak much more directly and there is practically no use of modal verbs (could, would and so on), which could appear as so “If you start off with a couple awfully upsetting and blunt to overly polite of simple words, such as English speakers. ‘vanakkam’ (hello) and ‘nandri’

Tamil has 247 characters, as opposed to the 26 consonants and vowels in English – logistically, it is far simpler to (thanks), the people around not bother learning the script, Gradually, you can lay you will smile and nod, but to write down the words the building blocks to decode genuinely pleased that you phonetically. Of course, this this language. As a bonus, are making an effort.” does have its own shortcomings. what I enjoy the most is the For example, I wished my insight into the wider Tamil daughter’s teacher ‘good morning’ and accidentally called culture. Upon asking for the word for ‘cousin’ in Tamil, I her a bull! was given a fascinating explanation of traditions and rules around marriage and relationships in Tamil society. Whether A good trick is to use word association techniques to or not I become fluent in the language, or even manage to jog one’s memory. For example, the word for hair is ‘mudi’, order a masala dosa using perfect, respectful Tamil when I am therefore think of someone having a ‘bad hair day’ and next in London, remains to be seen. feeling ‘moody’. Or the word for ball (‘pandhu’) sounds like

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Scenes from Shigmo, a spring festival celebrated in Goa. Photos: All photos by Preeti Verma Lal

Picture this. The country’s smallest state with the highest per capita income. A coastline of 101 km with history dating back to the Upper Paleolithic Age. A verdant scrap where the sand is silken, cashew nut is abundant and the mangoes are luscious. A land that is mentioned in Hindu scriptures and Ptolemy’s narratives. You know it as Goa, but for eons it has had other names: Gomantak, Gomanta, Gomanchala, Gopakapattam, Gopakapuri, Govapuri, and Govem.

parkland that showcases the culture and traditions of rural Goa through sculptures and a recreated village. Sprawled over nine acres, Ancestral Goa (commonly known as Big Foot) is the brainchild of Maendra Jocelino A. Alvares, an artist who also established one of the first advertising agencies in Goa.

Big Foot

Legend has it that Lord Parashuram created Goa by shooting an arrow from the Sahyadri Mountains into the Arabian Sea. Not surprisingly, a statue of Parashuram is one of the first in the museum. Built 20 years ago on the Alvares ancestral land, Big Foot depicts everything – the fishing community, cobblers, tipsy men, cashew crushers, cobblers, children playing traditional games, a coconut husker, a bride stepping out of a tiled house, an aristocratic landlady, a bangle seller, tinto (marketplace), taverna, an old warrior – and even a bird path!

A soldier clad in armour and holding a spear stands at the entrance of Big Foot, a first of its kind open-air museum and

However, what brings the devout to Big Foot is, well, the Big Foot – a footprint of a monied man called Mahadar who

Goa is pretty as a picture postcard – the palm swaying deliriously, the sea frothing at the banks, the sun dipping behind the gulmohar and the sound of music wafting in the air. Goa, however, is more than sea and sand. Immensely rich in culture, Goa can take anyone by surprise with its festivals, architecture, museums, art and music.

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Small Wonder Seeing India

by Preeti Verma Lal

It may be the smallest state in India, but Goa can take anyone by surprise with its festivals, architecture, museums, art and music. Here, we look at unusual Goa – one that not many know or talk of, but which is just as charming

became a destitute but did not lose faith in God. When the appeased Gods granted Mahadar a boon, he just asked for a place to stand and pray. He stood on one foot and prayed and was finally taken by the Gods to heaven, leaving his footprint behind. Legend has it that if you place your right hand on the Big Foot and make a wish, it is fulfilled. If the devout sit by the Big Foot, the aesthete gazes at India’s largest laterite sculpture that Maendra carved out of a single rock in 30 days. The Saint Mirabai sculpture has been featured in the Limca Book of Records.

Casa Araujo Alvares (Old Portuguese house) Two-and-a-half centuries ago, in Loutolim, there lived a generous, kind-hearted lawyer. His name: Salvador Eufenmiano F. Araujo Alvares. His house: Casa Araujo Alvares (now open for public viewing). The rich lawyer built a 15-room house and brought porcelain from China and Japan and crockery from Macau. The chamber pots were made of enamel,

and then building had an icon chapel that now houses 350 medium-sized and miniature icons, a long vase to keep umbrellas, and the master bedroom was lined with an ancient wooden wardrobe, a chest of drawers and a suit rack. The bar had huge garafos (wine dispensers) and miniature kegs. And, yes, a mighty machilla (palanquin) that was lifted by burly helpers and used to carry the Alvares family members.

Casa Araujo Alvares is not the largest of old Portuguese houses in Goa but here one gets transported to a bygone era where men and women had separate bathing rooms; the kitchen had an escape door towards the lower village when attacked by Ponda raiders; and everyone said the prayers together in the chapel. In the garden is a marble statue and what was once the accountant’s room now showcases an enviable collection of Ganesha idols (at the last count there were 2,500!). At Casa, the sound system is so good that you really do not need a guide. The automated voice narrates

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Tableaux, dance and street performances are an integral part of the Shigmo festival that showcases traditional art and culture.

fascinating stories of the Alvares family and of a forgotten era. Casa, a museum of lived-in resources, is a definite must-see.

Reis Magos Fort Walk up the steep laterite steps and peep from the tiny confinement cell of Reis Magos Fort and you’d know why the Portuguese built this fort in 1551 at the narrowest point at the mouth of Mandovi estuary. Colossal and flanked by a church, the Reis Magos Fort, which borrows its name from the eponymous village, predates Fort Aguada by half a century.

It was the residence of viceroys, served as a prison until 1993 and was in shambles before the 2008 restoration. Much before the Portuguese built the fort, Reis Magos was the army outpost of the Bijapur ruler Adil Shah.

The road leading up to the fort is frighteningly sharp, but the view from the top compensates for the heartbeats missed at the bends. An ancient banyan tree tells its own story of being a parasite that killed the coconut tree on which it grew.

The main entrance has a mutilated coat of arms. Inside, there is a tiled house and cannons at the turrets. Fear no longer lives in the Fort. You can laugh and chuckle and guffaw at the line drawings of Mario Miranda, the iconic Goan cartoonist.

On the walls of the large halls are Miranda’s black and white

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and colour drawings that look at Goan life with a stroke of laughter. Even as you giggle at Miranda’s sketches, watch your step for the Death Hole – a small square hole from where soldiers rained bullets or poured hot water on the enemies.

Do not fall into the hole or shudder at the gunloops. Peep into an exhibit that displays ‘real and imagined Goa’.

Shigmo When Spring comes, Goa waits for Shigmo – a Konkani Hindu festival that celebrates the end of winter and the beginning of Spring. Held in the month of phalgun, Shigmo is a fortnight-long festival that includes Holi and parades showcasing traditional music and dance as well as elaborately built tableaux that depict scenes from Hindu mythology and legends. There are two different ways of celebrating Shigmo: Dhakto (small) Shigmo and Vhadio (big) Shigmo. Dhakto begins

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Clockwise from top left: Inside Reis Magos Fort is an extensive collection of Goa's iconic cartoonist Mario Miranda's drawings; Casa Araujo Alvares is the ancestral home of artist/sculptor Maendra Alvares who founded the Big Foot Museum; Women in traditional attire at Shigmo; Big Foot Museum is a one-stop destination to know/learn all about Goa during Portuguese rule.

five days before the phalgun full moon day and ends on the full moon day in the Old Conquests area of Goa. Interestingly, Vhadio Shigmo, a five-day celebration begins on the full moon day in the New Conquests areas of Goa. During Shigmo, the Goan air resonates with the sound of dhol and taso and the lilting notes of naman and jot (two different kinds of songs). Men and women dance the talgadi, hanpet, ghopa and lamp dance. All these come together at Shigmo’s street performances and floats that borrow from Goan mythology and legends. Shigmo, thus, is not a carnival, it is the best way to experience Goa’s heritage.

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on fair ground Seeing India

by Chithra Madhavan

An intrinsic part of India’s vibrant culture is her rich repertoire of animal festivals and fairs

Photo: Emmanuel Mancion, France

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Photo: Balducci Secondo

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India's unique culture not only sees its people revere a number of animals but also celebrate and showcase them. And these are not isolated to any one part of the subcontinent. Here’s a quick overview of some of the popular, the unique and the lesser known animal fairs and festivals of India.

Camel Calling One of India’s most famous and colourful fairs needs little introduction. We are indeed talking about the one held in the small and holy town of Pushkar, in the north-western State of Rajasthan. The annual Pushkar Camel Fair (Pushkar ka mela) is one of the largest livestock fairs in the world. Held every year in November for five days, the most important of which is the day of the full moon, this spectacular and crowded festival, attracts visitors from across the globe. Set on the banks of the Pushkar Lake, where camels, sometimes estimated to be around 60,000 in number, and other livestock such as cows, goats, sheep and even ponies are traded. One of the fairs’ biggest crowd-pullers is the camel race. Hundreds of families camp at the river’s bank during this fair. Hawkers peddling bangles, pottery, puppets, knick-knacks and adornments for cattle alongside an array of local gastronomic

as Valero

Photo: Thom

offering add more colour to the festivities. There is also a lot of religious fervour attached to the camel festival in this town that has about 400 temples.

Taming the Bull Bull fights are a common feature in many festivals of India, especially in the Southern part of the country. This is said to be a centuries-old tradition. It is believed that in times bygone, young men who tamed the ferocious bull were the most eligible grooms! A small bag of coins was tied to the horns of the bull to be claimed by the man who tamed it as prize money. Jalli Kattu is a form of bull-fight organised in Tiruchirapalli, Madurai and Thanjavur in the state of Tamil Nadu. It generally coincides with the Pongal celebrations in January, but is now organised anytime between January and June. These festivities take place in open spaces where a large number of people can gather around to watch. The bulls are garlanded and have their horns sharpened and painted in

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Photo: Monica Bradley, USA

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bright colours. In the jalli kattu, the bulls are very aggressive and the men who are to tame them do so using only their bare hands. The calves that are trained to become jalli kattu bulls are fed nutritious diets so they turn out to be healthy and strong. Specific training is not imparted to the animals, but they are often taken to the scene of fights so that they are used to being in the midst of large, noisy crowds. The man trying to tame the bull usually tries to hang on to the hump of the bull, while the animal tries to get rid of him by piercing him or tossing him aside with its horns. In the general milieu, many are wounded, sometimes sustaining serious injuries.

The bull is usually not seriously wounded nor is it killed.

The intention is not to kill the animal, but to tame it. There have been protests by animal rights activists in recent times to stop the practice of jalli kattu.

Assorted Fare In Kaurali, a town in an erstwhile princely state in Rajasthan, an animal fair is held annually for one week in February. This event coincides with Mahashivaratri (a festival held in honour of Lord Shiva, one of the most important deities of Hindus). Thousands of different types of animals are brought here for trading, making it one of the most important animal fairs in the world. As in many such rural fairs in India, other commodities including household goods

and, most importantly, a selection of culinary assortments are also sold here.

Trunk Talk Kerala, hailed as God’s own country, plays host to a large elephant populace. Almost every temple in Kerala has an elephant on its premises. A famous festival celebrated in the town of Trissur in Kerala during the asterism (nakshatram) called Pooram, every year in the month of Medam (mid-April to mid-May) is the Trissur Pooram festival. It is celebrated in the Vadakkunnathan (Shiva) temple, which is situated atop a charming hillock. Elaborately caparisoned huge tuskers from temples in the surrounding areas assemble in procession at the Vadakkunnathan temple, making this one of the most well-attended temple festivals, drawing thousands of people from India and around the globe every year. Gold ornaments are placed on the foreheads of the elephants and on their backs are well-designed caparisons. In this elephant pageant, the mahout sitting atop each elephant holds erect a colourful embroidered parasol made with great care. A fan, round in shape, made of peacock feathers as also a fly-whisk are held on the back of each pachyderm by two men who remain standing. On the evening of the Pooram day, two lines of numerous huge elephants face each other in the vast grounds outside the temple. Nearby stand musicians playing

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on musical instruments. This festival is associated with the playing of the panchavadyam, which actually means an orchestra of five musical instruments – four percussion and wind instrument. The Pooram festival, which has been taking place for approximately 200 years, having started during the reign of the former king of Cochin, Sakthan Thampuran in 1798, is also famous for the spectacular display of fireworks on the night of this festival.

Snake Charmers In several parts of India, there is a special festival called Nag Panchami which takes place in August on the fifth day following new moon. Nag means ‘snake’ in Sanskrit, and Panchami is the fifth day following full moon or new moon. In this festival, offerings are made to images of snakes or to anthills where snakes are believed to reside. A tiny town called Battis Shirala, approximately 50 km from Kolaphur in the state of Maharashtra, is specially known for this festival. The thick forests of this hilly region have many species of snakes.

Before the onset of the Nag Panchami, men go to the forests and lure the snakes out. They are returned to their natural habitat after the festival, which lasts for eight to ten days, is over. This festival is held in honour of snakes and is believed to counter the possibility of snakebites that happen during the rainy season.

Monkey Business Perhaps the most interesting of all the festivals is the ‘monkey festival’ celebrated in Amritsar in the state of Punjab called the Langoor ceremony. It is a part of the famous 10-day festival of India known as Dusshera. This ceremony takes place in a temple dedicated to Hanuman, the famous monkey god. There are no monkeys that participate in this festival,

Photo: Balducci Secondo

Photo: Jeniffer, USA

In the ‘monkey festival’ celebrated in Amritsar, children dressed as monkeys participate in the festivities but only children! Children dressed up as langoors (a species of monkey) go bare-foot to the temple in the mornings and in the evenings for 10 days. Devotees promise to send their child dressed as a monkey, if their prayer to Hanuman for a child is fulfilled. Many childless adults also dress up as langoors seeking the blessings of Hanuman for an offspring.

The ‘langoors’ wear red outfits (including tails) with conical caps and carry gold or silver coloured staffs.

Fly Away Bhogali Bihu, also known as Magh Bihu, is a very ancient festival of the state of Assam celebrated in January after farming and harvesting are completed and agriculturists are free from their work load. Feasts, dances and buffalo fights mark the celebration of this festival. Bird fights are also part of the festivities. Birds are caught before to the festival and trained to fight. They are set free after the celebrations.

This article was published in the May 2011 issue of Culturama.

Editor’s note: Animal activists are working to ensure more humane treatment of the animals during fairs and festivals, and we sincerely hope it becomes an empathetic joint celebration of man and beast after all we are co-inhabitors of the same planet.

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A cobbler works tirelessly in the doorway to a small, roadside workshop, making shoes for retailers across India and repairing faulty stock.

Picture Story

by Helen Taylor

Tanner Town The dark warehouses of Periamet are stacked, floor to ceiling, with every conceivable kind of leather, in every colour, texture and finish, from designers and scrap yards around the world.

Tucked away in the congested far north of central Chennai, the bustling Periamet district is home to a plethora of businesses associated with the leather industry, from scrap leather importers and wholesalers to manufacturers, tailors, shoe makers, retailers and exporters. Just off the Vepery High Road, between the Madras Veterinary College and the imposing 19th-century Periamet Mosque, you’ll find a rabbit warren of narrow lanes flanked by back-to-back offices, shoe shops and warehouses, where self-made businessmen work around the clock and savvy traders flock from around the world for a bargain. Parts of the district date back to colonial times, when the central wholesale market or ‘mandi’ was abuzz with buyers from England and the northern states of India.

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A worker sifts through sacks of scrap leather – waste products from countries such as Spain and Italy – to sell in the wholesale market.

A hardware shop advertising its wares, supplying tools of the trade to the district’s leather workers and tradesmen.

A tailor works at the Periamet Market, doing small repairs and alterations for customers while they browse the meat and vegetable stalls or visit the nearby leather warehouses.

Remnants of the historical heart of the wholesale market, built by the British back in the 1940s, shortly before Independence.

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Festival of the month Photo: Ruzka Vanda Keus

Buddha Purnima May 4 Buddha Purnima celebrates the day Prince Siddhartha attained enlightenment and became the Buddha. While some regard the day as representing all three important events in his life – birth, enlightenment and death – some believe that it signifies the death of the mortal’s desires and the birth of immortal knowledge. Buddha Purnima is so called because it falls on the full moon day (referred to as purnima) of the Buddhist (and Hindu) month of Vaisakha.

Buddha, who was born into a royal family as a prince in what is present-day Nepal, gave up the pleasures of princely life and went searching for the source of eternal peace. He attained enlightenment or nirvana under a Bodhi Tree at a place currently called Bodh Gaya in Bihar, India. ‘Nir–vana’ means ‘blow out’ – literally, it means that when you ‘blow out’ your ego, you will be liberated. The Buddha advocated the ‘Eightfold Path’ – right conduct, right motive, right speech, right effort, right resolve, right livelihood, right attention and right meditation – to his followers.

Following this path, he said, can help one achieve nirvana or complete liberation.

To Do: Buddha Purnima is celebrated with great reverence in Lumbhini, Bodhgaya and Kushinagara. Prayer meetings, religious discourses, meditation and processions are held to mark the day.

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Photo: Philip Clegg, UK

The Lighter Side

by Marina Marangos

Divine Intervention

There may be 3,500 or as many as 33 million Hindu gods. They all have their assigned roles and responsibilities and one of the reasons for writing about them is to suggest that if you have a need and you are looking for a god, look no further – India is the place for you

Photo: Francois Daniele, France

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Photo: Marina Marangos, Greece

As an expatriate living in India, the adjustment process takes a while. Language, food, the markets, the way people shop, the way they dress – all seem so different to what we are used to. Gradually, over time, these aspects fall into place and we start making some headway accommodating them into our daily life.

Trying to get to grips with Indian religion is a much bigger task – so much so that I felt compelled to buy a book on religions in India in the hope that it would enlighten me. The Religions of India by Roshen Dalal is a concise guide to nine major faiths (I would not even mention the minor ones). Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Baha’i and Zoroastrianism are a few of the major religions. Most of us come from a monotheistic background, and it may be Jesus or Mohammad for us, but their lives have been well recorded and you don’t have to be particularly religious to know the salient points. Mainly blonde and blue-eyed, with tunics and fish for one; less images of the other, but clear rules and regulations governing religions.

Not so in India, where explanations of all these religions occupy volumes, if not tomes, of works and years of study. We are lucky if we master the four or five more important Gods of the Hindu religion – Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma, Hanuman and Ganesh. There may be 3,500 or as many as 33 million Hindu gods. There are no tunics and torn clothes for them – more beads and bangles, tigers, cats and elephants to ride on,

serpents for good luck and protection, and, dare I say, more arms and legs than you or I could possibly count.

They all have their assigned roles and responsibilities and one of the reasons for writing about them is to suggest that if you have a need and you are looking for a god, look no further – India is the place for you. If you are not convinced, I have collected a few of the more unusual ones for you as powerful evidence of their versatility. Nandini is the goddess of cows – now that is a job and a half on the subcontinent.

Lakshmi, the consort of Vishnu, is often worshipped as the Goddess of good fortune and wealth. There is a God of craft called Ribhus, and a God of architecture called Vishwakarma.

Dharti Mata is revered as the Earth Goddess or Mother Earth.

Prajnaparamita, a deity followed in the Buddhist tradition, stands for wisdom. Banka-Mundi is the Goddess one prays to for protection against wild animals in the jungle. Women look up to Shashthi to help them during childbirth. And this is not even taking into account the many minor divine beings and fabulous creatures – and there is an abundance of both.

So you can fully understand why now, having become acquainted with some of these wonderful gods, I do not hesitate to call upon them when I need to, one to keep me creative, another to look after me on long journeys, one for luck, good fortune and healing and even one to provide a little wealth by which to enjoy this blessed life.

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Give to India

by Shefali Ganesh

A Rural Mural

Grassroutes Journeys is a for-profit social venture based in Mumbai that helps create livelihood opportunities for rural India In the months of May and June, the village of Purushwadi in Maharashtra is bustling with visitors. The day is a new experience for most visitors – with visits to the field and traditional meals with the villagers. As night falls, more excitement lies ahead. A group of villagers guide the visitors into the darkness of the valley where they await with bated breath to see a magical sight – millions of tiny bright lights flicker and dance around them. It is the season of the fireflies, and Purushwadi village is the place where city folks can witness such spectacular magic.

The firefly festival is one of the offbeat trails that Grassroutes Journeys offers to city-based tourists, to give them an idea of life in rural India. While it is making a tourist destination out of villages, Grassroutes is helping the villagers as well. Media reports in recent times show a sharp decline in the number of ‘main cultivators’ or farmers who are engaged solely in agriculture. Grassroutes, a social venture, tries to bring year-round revenue to villages that have, so far, only survived on agriculture. Its founder, Inir Pinheiro, hit upon the tourism route to bring development into these villages.

He believes that every aspect of tourism has been explored in India, except what he calls ‘community-based tourism’.

“The services sector contributes highly to the country’s GDP, especially tourism. However, community-based tourism, as we promote it, needs to be done in a sustainable manner without environmental exploitation of the villages,” he explains.

Inir firmly believes that “Joblessness creates idle minds that are easily driven to violence, insurgency and migration – factors that are detrimental to development”. While agriculture remains the mainstay in villages, Grassroutes encourages the villagers to use their skill sets to boost their income throughout the year. As Inir says, “We have created a tourism model that is managed by the villagers themselves with total ownership.” The team works with the villagers to form a committee that organises visits at the village level. Creating awareness is key – Grassroutes engages the community, especially women, as they are easy to work with. Capitalising on available resources and skill sets is also important. The natural hospitality of villagers is put to good use by training the youth in communication

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kerala BACKWATER BLISS

and basic hygiene. The villages are equipped with adequate infrastructure, such as tents with basic sanitation requirements for visitors.

Grassroutes works with select villages in Maharashtra – Purushwadi, Dehna and Valwanda, to name a few. While Purushwadi is home to the Mahadeo Koli tribe, Valwanda is where Maharashtra’s Warli art is kept alive. During agricultural lean periods, Grassroutes highlights the cultural aspects of the villages to ensure diversity in the tourist offering, thereby ensuring year-long support. Theatre festivals, folk dances and food festivals hosted by the villages celebrate long-lost art forms. Warli artists hold workshops and sell their works to visitors. By celebrating tradition, Grassroutes is conserving it.

The results are more than encouraging – youth go back to their elders to find out more about traditional remedies, such as medicinal plants exclusive to the village; interaction with visitors makes them confident and increases their interest in formal education. Also, as the villagers earn more, they are able to spend on essentials such as nutritious food and basic amenities. Grassroutes, Inir Pinheiro’s “experiment to find out where we belong”, has unveiled the beauty of rural India. For many, the visits have opened their eyes to the very purpose of their life – just as it did for Inir and his team.

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Myth and Mythology

by Devdutt Pattanaik

No escape from myth Photo: Enrice Donate SĂ nchez, Spain

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Everybody sees the world through a frame of reference. No one but the gods, perhaps, have the full picture. Fate, free will, God — three frames of references that have sustained cultures for centuries; references that can never be proved or disproved; they have to be believed. And when believed, can help individuals and communities thrive.

Greeks sought Truth using reason – an understanding of the world that, when argued at any time, at any place, yielded the same result. This was logos, logic, rationality. It gave birth to science and mathematics. It revealed how people are ‘actually’ born and how the sun ‘actually’ rises. It took man to the moon. But it never gave the reason why man exists on earth in the first place.

Science tells us ‘how’ not ‘why’. Explanations can never ever be solutions. Individuals need solutions. Cultures need solutions. A solution to the conundrum called life. A solution that gives meaning and purpose, tools to cope with crisis, justify ambition and build communities. One has no choice but to withdraw into constructed realities, cling to a frame of reference, any frame of reference with all its inherent limitations. There is no escape from myth.

Myths are however not tangible. To experience the idea of fate, free will or God one needs stories, symbols and rituals – language that is heard, seen and performed. The body of stories, symbols and rituals that communicates a myth to a people is called mythology. All cultures – Hindu, Christian, Greek or American – are guided by a myth communicated through a mythology.

When myths and mythologies of cultures are compared with one another, there are bound to similarities and dissimilarities. Similarities reflect the humanity of a culture, dissimilarities its uniqueness. Hindus and Buddhists are similar in that they both believe in the wheel of rebirths but they are dissimilar in that only Hindus believe in the concept of eternal unchanging soul. Hindus and Muslims are similar in that they both accept God as being all-powerful, but they are dissimilar in that Muslims believe in one life and one way of reaching God, by following the path revealed to Prophet Muhammad.

It has been humankind’s endeavour to find a common understanding for the world, a common frame of reference, a common myth – a uniform civil code. This may not be possible as it would mean getting all of humanity to look at

All cultures – Hindu, Christian, Greek or American – are guided by a myth communicated through a mythology. There is no escape from myth life through the same window and no other. An irrational window at that.

Any attempt to communicate myth rationally is doomed to failure. There are always questions that can challenge the discourse of fate, free will and God. In all cultures, therefore, mythology is far removed from reality and rationality: gods with three heads, demons with eight arms, virgin births, parting seas, promised lands, sacraments of fire and covenants of blood. This indifference to logic ensures myth is not reasoned with, but accepted unconditionally through a suspension of disbelief.

For the believer, myth is real; it is sacred. This allows the myth to be communicated across generation and geography without distortion. Myth, however, is not static.

Just as it informs history and geography, it is informed by history and geography. This is why beliefs and customs change over time. Myth once said people are unequal. Myth now says all people are equal.

Human life is not governed by logic. Emotions that drive humanity – love, hate, fear, greed, ambition – cannot be rationalised. Human beings therefore cannot make sense of life through scientific, evidence-based discourses. For the sake of survival and sanity, they need to believe in a frame of reference. They need myth. And myth needs mythology.

Published in Speaking Tree, Jan.22, 2015. Reprinted with permission from www.devdutt.com

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Photo: Marlene Wiegreffe, Germany

Holistic living

by Eknath Easwaran

A Fine Balance Once we have tasted the freedom of juggling at will with our personal preferences, we can face whatever comes to us calmly and courageously, knowing we have the flexibility to weather any storm gracefully. This is living in freedom, the ultimate goal of training the mind

culturama

For most of my life I have luxuriated in literature. I fell in love very young with the best from both English and Sanskrit, two of the richest literary traditions in the world, and I must have memorised thousands of lines of poetry; that was the extent of my passion. I carried Palgrave’s Golden Treasury in my pocket wherever I went, and during the summer I used to go up to a spectacular, secluded spot we called the Glittering Rocks, where mica-sprinkled stones rose above the headwaters of our river, and recite aloud the whole of Gray’s Elegy or the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám. I mention this just to give an idea of the love I poured into literature, which I haven’t lost even today. Yet today, although I still sit up reading until late at night, the one thing I almost never touch is literature.

Everything is medicine, science, political essays, economic analyses – with one or two exceptions, the most forbidding stuff. Sometimes it turns out that the writer has little to say and little interest in saying it well, either. At times like these, despite all its training, my mind still complains. ‘I don’t like this!’ it says. ‘You have a volume of Maugham short stories on your shelf; can’t we read one of those for a while, just for a break?’ ‘Like it or not,’ I tell my mind, ‘this is part of our work now. So let’s see what we can learn about emotional factors in heart disease.’ My mind has learnt to accept this answer without groaning. It has become natural, effortless, to ignore my personal preferences.

The real issue is freedom Strong likes and dislikes lead to strong passions, which are an open gateway to anger. Just contradict someone with rigid opinions and see what happens; you could insert a thermometer into his mind and watch the temperature rise.

Don’t you talk about a ‘hot temper’? A really angry person has a ‘temp’ of one hundred and four. His mind is agitated, so his attention gets scattered: he cannot listen to anybody, and he gets stirred up before he even knows what the subject is.

I have heard some good American advice for such a person: ‘Keep your cool’. When you keep your cool, the mind does

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5 Join Us Every Saturday India Immersion Centre in Chennai facilitates a weekly spiritual fellowship group following Easwaran’s Eight Point Programme of Meditation. E-mail us for more information at globalindian@globaladjustments.com.

If you are in other cities, visit www.easwaran.org for e-satsangs.

not flutter; it is still. Then you see everybody’s point of view clearly. You have the understanding to help the person who is agitated with you, and, if necessary, you can oppose his views without becoming overheated or apologetic.

Juggling with likes and dislikes, then, is much more than learning to be flexible about the relative merits of foods or jobs or people. The real issue is freedom. Our habitual responses in small matters reflect the way we respond to life itself: the person with rigid tastes in food is likely to have rigid tastes in other fields as well. All of these hold him hostage. He is happy so long as he gets everything the way he likes it. Otherwise – which may be 99 percent of the time – he is unhappy over something. He might as well be bound hand and foot. My grandmother used to tell me, ‘Don’t ever beg from life’. Life has only contempt for people who say, ‘Please give me two things I like today: one in the morning, preferably just before lunch, and another about midway through the afternoon, when I start to get irritable...

Oh, and please remember to keep everything I dislike at a convenient distance.’ This is panhandling, and we usually get what we deserve – disappointment, with a capital D. We are not beggars, Granny would say; we are princes and princesses.

We can learn to say to life, ‘It doesn’t matter what you bring today. If you bring something pleasant, I will flourish; if you bring something unpleasant, I will still flourish’. Once we have tasted the freedom of juggling at will with our personal preferences, we can face whatever comes to us calmly and courageously, knowing we have the flexibility to weather any storm gracefully. This is living in freedom, the ultimate goal of training the mind.

Reprinted with permission from ‘The Juggler’, an article by Eknath Easwaran from The Blue Mountain Journal. Copyright The Blue Mountain Center of Meditation, P.O. Box 256, Tomales, CA 94971, www.easwaran.org. (Extract from http://www.easwaran.org/assets/nilgiri/bluemountain/Autumn2011.pdf)

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At Home

by Anita Krishnaswamy

water water everywhere A channel of fertility, a representation of wisdom and a symbol of metamorphosis, water has some specific qualities that can benefit a home if its energies are harnessed in the right manner In this column last month, we spoke about harnessing the beneficial energies of fire in the home, according to the guidelines in the Vaastu Shastra. This month, we touch on another, equally important element of nature – water.

Water is essential to life. Civilisations traditionally sprung up on the banks of major rivers such as the Nile and Indus. All living things are made up of water in some part – in fact, the bodies of human beings are made up of 75 percent water. As it is such a crucial element to life, many religions have a deity that represents water – for example, Poseidon is the God of the seas in Greek mythology, Varuna is the God of water in Indian mythology, and Anuket was the Goddess of the Nile in Egyptian tradition.

Water has several connotations in a spiritual sense. It is regarded as a channel of fertility, because of its ability to nurture life. In Taoist tradition, water is considered an aspect of wisdom, as it takes on the form in which it is held and moves in the path of least resistance. The ancient Greeks felt

Photo: Olivia Taghioff, Sweden

that it was a symbol for metamorphosis, because of its ability to change from liquid to solid or vapour.

Given these qualities, water is often associated with fortune and growth, fertility and general well-being of the occupants of the home. It is also seen as a factor in enabling life to ‘flow’ smoothly.

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According to Vaastu Shastra, the northeast corner of a house is traditionally associated with the water element.

This corner of the house is also associated with wealth and wisdom. To ensure that both flow in abundance, clear all clutter in the area.

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Keep a mini fountain or a bowl of water in the northeast corner to maximise the potential of the element. If you keep a stagnant bowl of water, change the contents at regular intervals. Pictures that depict calm scenes of water bodies such as oceans, lakes and seas can be displayed here. Decor items such as cushions and rugs in light yellow are also beneficial.

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Remove things that emit heat, such as stoves, heaters or lamps from this area. Do not burn candles or lamps in this corner. If it is difficult to remove fixed objects (such as a heater), keep it turned closed when not in use.

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