Lord Ganesha – Why he has an elephant head and why he’s the first to get a pooja?

Mr.Ganesha… Adhya-Poojita (first to be worshipped), my husband’s favourite whom he lovingly calls our Ganapanna, & whom a Kannadiga householder would have lovingly addressed (him) as Nam-Ganeshaa.. as if talking about a child who has gone out to play & may return any time soon!! An artists’ delight towards imagination… Often woven funny stories around, {even sometime ridiculed by other religious salesmen.. anything for gains/commission I guess}. Yet He somehow somewhere fits in to any mold. It’s a freedom enjoyed by the followers of Sanatana Dharma what is today known as Hinduism. A liberty to perceive the Devas & Devatas as they reckon with.

It is said that when Sage Vyasa wanted to write the Great Epic Mahabharata, the only one who was able to grasp & note the dictation was none other than Mr. Ganesha. Ganesha is said to have agreed to write only if Vyasa never paused in his recitation & on the other hand, Sage Vyasa agrees on condition that Lord Ganesha takes the time to understand what was said before writing it down! A grandeur beyond human contemplation. In the Indian culture since yore, the scriptures are passed from Guru to Shishya. Indian civilization is the oldest surviving culture & the knowledge is passed from mouth to mouth, a tradition which seems to have started from Ganesha. His teachings seem eternal & fit in best today even more so. So Who is He in reality?

Everyone says he was born out of Mother Parvathi’s palm-dirt (or the turmeric from the body), to guard her bathroom & Lord Shiva cut off his head when not allowed to go inside his own house. Later to calm a furious Parvathi (who challenged to destroy the entire creation itself) & to appease her, He got his head fixed with a baby elephant’s head as the original head could not be located… perhaps rolled down the slopes of Kailash. When Lord Shiva’s Gana (army) went in search of the head they could not locate it. Then Lord Shiva told them to get the head of anybody sleeping with their head to north. The only being sleeping with its head to north was the baby elephant. So is it really factual? An era when they could travel between Lokas (world) & create at will was having a bathroom door or getting a head a problem or impossible task?

When young, everyone (at least 99.5%) loves their life & do not want to lose their head at any cost… So Mothers often recite this tale to discourage youngsters from sleeping with their head to North, which is considered bad as the magnetic field in the north could affect the blood flow to brain in the longer run.

According to scriptures, Mahadeva (highest among the Devas) was the first tribal head who lived in Mount Kailash & was known as Adinath (he has one too many names like Shiva, Vrishabadeva, etc., etc.,). Lord Ganesha (Ganapati, Vinayaka, etc., etc.,) was the eldest son of Adinatha & Parvathy & born as a handsome regular boy. As a son of divine beings, he was very gifted & spiritual. As he grew up his spiritual knowledge grew along with him making him one of the most powerful in terms of spirituality. He was the master of all the Vedas & Upanishads, an erudite of every Vidya in totality. So much so even the Mahadeva himself had accepted his teaching & considered him as his Guru. It’s not an easy task for a father to accept his son as his teacher as it’s a well-known fact that a father is considered as Guru & not son. Lord Ganesha was an exceptional case & Lord Shiva out of love & respect had said to him, “you will be worshiped even before me always!”. True to that, even to this day Lord Ganesha is the first one who receives the offerings, & worshipped everywhere. And in every Shiva temple for that in every temple there is Lord Ganesha’s idol & everyone offers their obeisance first to him. He is considered as the remover of obstacle, bestower of knowledge & it is believed that if he is happy everything goes smoothly with his grace.

One of his most powerful teaching was that humans & animals should live in harmony otherwise there will be an imbalance in nature. In other words, symbiotic relationship is the Universal secret of Survival. Compassion towards the fellow creature will not only create harmony & peace but will also maintain the balance of nature. For example, if all the insects particularly bees disappear then it’s very unlikely that human race would survive. So even though we humans presume that most of the insects & animals around us are useless & purposeless, we are gravely mistaken. In the play of things, in the very fabric of creation everything is inter-linked & balanced together. Directly or indirectly everything has a role to play. It is something man took too long to understand because of his selfishness & ignorance but now slowly everyone is realizing its truth.

After understanding this reality, to pass on this secret of survival to the future generation, his early followers created the stone statue of Lord Ganesha in the form of man with the head of an animal. They captured the essence in stone idol expecting that in case of disaster like fire or any other calamity, the statue would still remain carrying his eternal message. Guess they under estimated human ability (remember Bamiyan Buddhas??) They also made Mushika (Rat) as his Vahana (vehicle), to represent parity that whether big or small they have a role to play, a dignity & importance of their own & all beings are equal. (We can even consider the same application to gender, wealth, etc., whichever differentiate, as all imparities are human creation). Unfortunately, we have managed to wipe out scores of animals & insects in our journey towards modernization & still continue to do so…

When I think of the animal killings in India, the very culture where this truth was revealed, it astounds me as to how the illusion of proving that they are better than others, draw men mad. In this RAT-race (of what I still don’t understand), we are becoming not just the undisputed predators in the creation but also we will end up ruining our own future.

His second most important teaching is that the detachment from Vyamoha*… he says attachment is unhealthy. Attachment even to the God itself will not take you to God because one gets obsessed with the attachment hindering the very purpose of God realisation. For example, we are so attached to our body, family, food, comforts, wealth, etc., etc., we would go to any length to hold on to that attachment even to the extent of committing the heinous crimes. This part of detachment is showcased by his early devotees which are followed even to this day without even knowing the very purpose of it. What it is.. Take a pick!!

Every year after Ganesha Chaturthi, after worshiping Lord Ganesha to one’s heart’s content his idol will be immersed in water body what is called Visarjane. Those days it was made out of simple clay & then immersed in water which had no environmental effect. But now it’s become a fancy… & all sorts of chemical colours, etc., are used. Sadly, even with God we have created our own competition… who spends more money or who creates the biggest or who does it with fanfare. It’s so funny… in the name of progress & competition we are even selling our own souls. If the almighty God & Devas-Devis are so powerful & plentiful, materialistically what would they want from us mortals? Do they really want shelter, food & protection from us? All that they need is for us to live like human beings.. the real crowning glory of creation.

Ganapati literally means leader of all the Ganas (classes of beings ranging from insects, animals & humans to the subtle & celestial beings) & is considered as the destroyer or remover of the darkness created by ignorance & guide us towards ultimate truth. Hope the humanity understands the secret of survival before it is too late.

No wonder he commands love & respect without demand.

{Vyamoha… there is no equivalent in English something like cocktail of lust, whim, desire, etc…)

Even though the coorgstories’s lady calls me “SAKUI” I have absolutely no idea what my name is.. But I am definitely not from Japan. Let me tell you little about me…

I am a desert termite … after coming to Kuwait from the Red Sea area of Saudi Arabia I managed to propagate.. a quantum leap in the game of evolution the secret of which I cannot tell you. You have to figure out yourself… but first learn to live in harmony which is the substratum of creation. I hitch hiked from Saudi aboard a Conocarpus tree because it’s my favourite food. This tree is as tough as I am & it’s fast-growing as well as tolerant to heat, draught & salt.

If you are wondering how am I helping evolution? Well I am a super bug… I am functioning under harsher climate & managed to survive & expanded my family from scratch.

How do I help Mother Nature? Well I am creating fertile top soil. If I get a place with trees & water I can convert the place into fertile land within a decade or so. That’s my story in a nutshell….

One fine day I stumbled upon this beautiful fascinating artwork with array of vivid shades of brown under Conocarpus tree but could not make out what it was. I never saw something so unique before. A well-planned nest, as if someone had painted a canvas with array of different shades of brown, starting from fresh wood colour to light brown to chocolate brown. And the water was dripping constantly from the drip irrigation pipe without disturbing the pieces. There was small vent for the excess water to drain too. The fresh wood turns brown eventually, guess because of the chemicals in the glue turning the wood there by creating different shades of brown.

Took a picture & asked around sent to my family members, colleagues & friends, no one could guess what it is. Everyone said it’s something they never saw in their life. That’s when my curiosity increased & the nest became a passion… whenever possible I went to see the nest & spent few minutes there yet I could never see the owner of the nest.

I could see the ants running around in & out of their nest nearby in couple of places where somebody usually puts some gains or sugar. But none near these beautiful nests… it looks more like the owners are the termites than the ants. When I sat down beside it, I could see the wood pieces were gleaming as if each tiny piece is polished individually. Out of curiosity I tried to touch it to pick one to show my family only to realize that it was glued permanently.

How did the termite ended up in Kuwait? Perhaps hitch hiked while importing the tree from Saudi… but I can’t understand how did they get a queen? Did they manage to breed one? So how many of them came here?

Initially there were only three nests & gradually they started expanding. One fine day, the workers who were repairing the compound wall had disconnected the water supply & that’s when I realized no water no nest. It’s a great miracle that they manage to survive in this heat but water is the most important source of survival. Since there is no underground water in a desert like in the forest, they solely depending upon the artificial water supply. Perhaps to grow mushrooms, their food. Once the water supply is cut, the nest became bone dry & within days they started their nest elsewhere but still under their favourite tree, the Conocarpus ….

Then in a sudden move they also found comforts under the date tree but only two trees so for. There are Cuba palm, bear fruit & other different trees but they are untouched. The latest one is an ideal location & they are planning to build a larger nest as the foundation seems pretty large. The one under the date tree however is growing in height faster compared to others. Perhaps the roots of the date tree decays faster than the other trees degrading into soil quicker. what is note worthy is that none of the plant or tree is dying or died… so it seems like they have a symbiotic relationship like ants & aphids or cattle & egrets.

Conocarpus lancifolius, derives its name from its cone shaped berries but does not have a proper English name. However it is known as Damas in Arabic & Qalab in Somali languages. A mangrove shrub it is found in the costal & riverine areas of Somalia, Dijbouti & Yemen, etc., etc. Also found in the mangroves of Saudi Arabia & now a days becoming a popular ornamental as well as hedge plant all around Middle East.

The interesting character of the tree seems to be its adaptation. Kuwait is one of the hottest countries in the world & in summer it grows as if possessed … it is hardy tree that grows well in sandy or rocky, alkaline soils as well as wet, saline conditions. Fast & symmetrical growth habit makes it the perfect hedgerows as well as landscape trees & maintenance seems to be practically zero except trimming when over grown as well as water supply…. However if let it grow straight it breaks easily whenever there is heavy winds. (I have seen it happening couple of times). Flowers are inconspicuous, with clusters of greenish white flowers mostly 1 to 3 inches long. They appear at the end of twigs & at leaf axils. There are no petals, & the sepals are fused. The tree seems to be having either the flower or fruits all the time!! Even though there are thousands of seeds it’s odd that I never saw one sprouting anywhere near!! The brownish red fruit look like old leather buttons & earned the nickname button wood.

However one of my Kuwaiti boss, who is very fond of plants & gardening, just hates this plant because he says his asthmatic allergy increases because of this tree!!

I nick named the termite as “Sakui” because born in Saudi Arabia, raised & propagated in Kuwait & found by an Indian… These nests are located in the northern side of the garden & I have no idea if it is by chance or choice may be to avoid direct sun.

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To point out how these are different from ants nests, here’s pics of what ants nests look like:

I AM SAKUI!

Being Kodava – “No Thank you”

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not going against the theme of this blog by saying “no thanks” to being a Kodava. That’t not what this is about. Often I get asked where I’m from and more often than not people haven’t heard about Coorg. I also sometimes explain to people how and why the culture is so different from those that surround us. There’s a lot of hype about our origins, including that we’re somehow connected with the Greeks of Alexander’s time. “Being Kodava” is my take on what it is to be a Kodava, and some of the things we should be proud of.

Someone once asked me how do you say thank you in your language. I told them in my language, we do not have words for “Thank you, Please, or Sorry”. We have never been taught it, and as far as I know, these words don’t exist. Did they once exist but were got rid of once the brits took over our educational system? We’ll never know. But what I was told was the reason for this paucity of “Golden words” is because for kodava’s, it’s our duties as family, community and friends to help each other out at all times, to always be there for anything, without having to ask please if you want something, say thank you when you have been helped, or say sorry if you have hurt.

kodava coorg traditional wedding jewelery men peeche odi kathi

This is quite deep if you think about it. Western education is steeped in the use of golden and kind words almost mechanically, sometimes without really meaning it. Making helping others a duty is really unique in our culture, and it really has to do with the unique clan setups we have in Coorg: Clans typically helped each other with everything from planting crops, defending them against wild animals, celebrations, festivals, weddings, wars, etc. Every traditional wedding begins with the close family members getting together to cook for the entire wedding. It is our duty to help.

See there is more to being Kodava than coffee, Greeks and our weddings!

A Summer morning in Kuwait, one of THE HOTTEST countries!! Part 2

There was a lady plucking the henna (mehandi) leaves… its leaves are supposed to cool the head in summer besides being strengthening the hair roots.. there are many bushes in the park & when it blooms spreading the pleasant fragrance nice to be near it. As I was thinking what she is going to do I caught hold the sight of this young boy perhaps around 8 years of age sitting & crying. He looked like from a decent family sitting on the low parapet wall facing the 5^th ring road in bright sun shine. It was only 6:10 am but it was bright.. I thought he must be lost & as a mother I could not resist myself & walked upto him & asked him if he is lost? He was a handsome little Arab kid neatly dressed in a white short & white & blue striped T-shirt. Shaking his head still tears rolling he pointed his finger to tell me he knows his house. I asked him if he needed anything.. he just shook his head.. when I finished the round about 10 minutes, I did not see the boy in its original place & I felt happy thinking he must have gone home… then I saw him moved to another part of the wall where there was shade from trees.. so he was clever enough to understand things… I did not want to ask him again but tried to take a picture from far without getting into his privacy. Even though I was not close when I clicked the mobile he turned immediately… so he was alert too… on the way home was wondering what must have made that young boy from a decent family to be in that spot so early in the morning… I was thinking of my own son in that age… somewhere somehow this stranger boy had touched my heart. My neighbor a doctor by profession forever punishes his eldest son (he has 3 kids – 2 boys & a girl) sometimes I hear him screaming late in the night & even 5 am…. the boy crying… there were occasion I felt like going & punishing the doctor myself. I myself was (is) a strict mother but when I punish my elder two children always smile at me or run around the coffee table me chasing them!! Is it because I am their mother & not father? do children punishment from parents differently? I still can’t understand..

Cats and sparrows in kuwait garden summer hot trash workers

The Park looked peaceful & safe. Last few years the Park has been the favourite joint for bunch of malicious youngsters from 3-4 different nationalities who snatched chains, mobiles & anything valuable. Thanks to the effort of the cops, eventually they were all arrested… not sure deported or rotting in the jail. How stupid of those young men who lost the privilege of living in Kuwait for temporary sensual gratification. They not only rocked their life but also their family… everything happens around us has a lesson to teach.. Once this park also hosted the one & only homeless Kuwaiti (but luckily it was self imposed – why I have no idea most likely he had mental issues as I had seen him passing vulgar/livid remarks on women passerby!) He used to wear clean clothes, had carpet with pillows to sit, cartons of mineral water, fan & visitors too… hum so much for homelessness!! Heard police had evacuated him & wonder where he is now?

There were couple of dog walkers around the park wall but unlike in USA they simply don’t clean up after the mess created by their dogs. May be they think they can create the top soil or manure for the trees from the biodegradable byproduct… just kidding.

It was time for me walk back home before the sun starts smiling at me… when I passed in front of an old Arabic school, scores of very large gunny bags were on the pavement for a second I thought wow such a large polypropylene (PP) cement bags… but when I neared the bags, it was cane sugar packed in Dubai… what a place to store… perhaps it was there for repacking… wondered if the heat will react with the gunny-bags & turn the to cause some disease but one thing was certain that the sugar was insect free!

I saw one of the watchman was wiping the cars with cloth… giving the final touch. I wondered how long the hose was spilling water wasting the resources of the Mother Nature & contributing to pollution. I wish I could tie up those people who waste & not give them water for a day so that they will realize the value of fresh water. One interesting factor I like to mention which I am not sure practiced elsewhere is that when we rent a house, the watchman has a condition (UWL – Unwritten Watchman Law) that at least one car (usually everyone has more than one – secondhand cars as well as fuel are cheap compared to rest of the world) should be washed by the watchman, usually they do a lousy job. The standard rate is KD5/= (roughly the rate is 1 dinar = 3.3 dollars) per car. So 10 kd per flat along with the rent, 5 car wash & 5 for garbage clearance. The best joke is that the watchmen does not really clean the car… in 90% of the cases they will hire a free lance cleaner generally a Bangladesh to do the job & share the total cost.

sprinkler water kuwait garden heat summer hottest

Cats and sparrows in kuwait garden summer hot trash workers kids playing football soccer

Finally I was home sweet home a place which makes me feel like a queen… when I walked in with sweat dripping all over, the cool air of central air conditioners & the sight of my indoor plants were more than welcoming but when I went to have bath I realized that my feeling of nice morning was almost a mirage… as the tap water was pretty warm… while having bath another surprising factor brought a smile to my lips… Sun.. Sun everywhere Sun but people still take Sunshine Vitamin “D” tablets!!

For those years I stay behind in summer, I am always compensated in a different way… also it brings the nostalgic memories of my childhood.. I love fruits, growing up in the wilderness of Kodagu I enjoyed my summer plucking & indulging in wild fruits which is of course a luxury now with growing population, plantation, felling of trees & extinction of species. In general Kuwait is paradise for fruit lovers & come summer the varieties of fruits available even in the small fruit shop is mind blowing. To top it the prices are so very reasonable compared to most of the countries I have visited & even to India!! Guess it’s because there is no tax & the low fuel price. God bless my beloved Kuwait & its people, a country with which I have developed a deep attachment with beautiful memories. Kuwait is a well balanced country with the blend of old & new… with myriad of nationalities working.

Its 10 am & decided to pick up some water melon from the fruit shop across the street.. I was wrong about the temperature… oh boy its already 40 degrees seemed like its hot enough to cook an egg on the bonnet of the car!! Walking back I thought of the Iraqi occupation days… Thursday August 2^nd 1990, then we lived in another location called Shaab opposite to Arabian Sea. There were rumours that the Iraqi soldiers cooked their food just by burying the vessel on the sands… I couldn’t see from my balcony & not sure if it was true but surely it looked like my brain would get cooked if I stand for a while in the sun.

A Summer morning in Kuwait, one of THE HOTTEST countries!! – Part 1

July 19^th 2015….. When I told my husband I want to take some pictures one morning & write about a summer morning… he just gave his usual calm soothing smile with a warning don’t get arrested… you will not be able to tolerate the heat!!

I did not realize how lucky I was as I could not have chosen a better morning for the weather God was little gentle. When I left the house at 5.35 am, my mobile showed the temperature as sunny 34 degree Celsius. Only thing I missed was the scores of Doves flying around pecking on the grains/rice scattered by some bird lovers & bathing/drinking on the pockets of water collected from the car wash before it evaporated. Also did not realize how the material for the article would just roll in front of me…

Kuwait is one of THE hottest countries in the world & this year it is been bad, really bad. And it’s one of those years I did not miss the warmth of summer… last week it was worst & on Wednesday at 15:09 one of the temperature display towers showed 52 degrees & yet another tower showed 50 degrees at 15:14. No way in 5 minutes within 2 kilo meters radius the temperature would fluctuate so much unless it starts snowing….It’s hard to know the exact temperature recorded as mobile, car, towers, media, meteorology department, your body, everything tells different readings… however you would really know it’s bad when the pavement/road practically throws heat back at you or the tap water is almost boiling… make you jump out of commode!! Last week my body told me it touched 55 degree Celsius…

Most people have Eid holidays & the roads were practically deserted. I live in an area called Salmiya, a favorite place for Indians where about half a dozen schools are located dotted with n-number of restaurants & stores selling Indian vegetables, fruits & other stuff catering to everyone’s need. In case you did not know when Indians are out of India they are very patriotic & prefer Indian stuff!! The desi term NRI (Non Required Indian) makes them crave for their Motherland!! It’s a joke but has some truth in it too…

When I passed Amman Circle, scores of daily wagers were either standing/sitting on the pavement under the shadow from the buildings, some with their tools & most with a packet (may be water & sandwiches). I had no heart & also have no right to click their pictures & peek into their privacy. What was amazing is that one-side was occupied by Iranians (known for their physical strength – I have seen average built old men carrying large air-conditioner units on the back & climbing the stairs. I wonder what their secret is) near “la baguette” & the other side near the temporary mosque was lined with East Asians. Birds of same feather…. I was not sure if everyone was hired every day & the logic of why an Indian would come here to work as labourer braving the heat when he could almost make the same amount working as a labourer back home had no answer!!

As I crossed the street I saw this car parked arrogantly on the bend… & that brought the thought of arrogant drivers (attributed to practically all nationalities). With the ever increasing number of cars it is getting from bad to worst. As I passed on I came across the 2-watchmen washing the cars with hoses… an act which boils my blood. Wasting the resources as if there is no tomorrow, using-misusing-abusing the generosity of the country which supplies the desalinated water (Kuwait has no natural resources & also rain fall is negligible) at reasonable price. One consolation is that compared to yesteryears it’s reduced drastically as Municipalities has issued strict instructions against the wastage of water.

Cats and sparrows in kuwait garden summer hot

The other thing which makes me angry is the sight of garbage bins & its surrounding. Probably Kuwait has the highest per capita cleaners & domestic helps. Still I feel it’s very dirty thanks to the wasteful nature & ignorance of the general public. The amount of food of all kind wasted is unbelievable. In summer it crosses the limit because it tends to get spoil faster. The untied garbage bags are thrown outside the bin, anything & everything from cardboard boxes to wooden boxes to furniture to mattresses to construction material is discarded. When the fruit-vegetable shops throw the half spoiled stuff, someone who needs tries to pick out the usable ones & mess up too. How much a government can do… Cleanliness should come from within… a human should behave like human… one can exhibit only their true nature that’s what I can say.

As I walked further saw this gentleman walking his 3-dogs. Unlike the majority of Kodavas, I am not a dog person as I had bitter experience with them when I was young. {It’s a very funny & nasty experience; I will write about is some other time}. I am told that most countries in the Middle East do not encourage having dogs (pets) at home. I asked him can I take a picture & he agreed, I told him my daughter loves dogs… which is also true but I wanted it for my article!!

Aroma of deep fried falafel, hot fresh chapattis/paratas were teasing my nostrils. On the sandy ground men were playing football, construction workers were busy (they cannot work later as it gets too hot). It’s noteworthy that: Never ending construction… Ever increasing rents… an unusual phenomenon unique to Kuwait does not match the theory demand & supply. Every rule has an exception!!

As I entered the Rumaithiya Park about a kilometer plus I realized that I had seen so many things, then came the sight of the small group of Indians doing yoga… & laughing practice. As I walked further there were men playing football in the covered court, the cricket players (luckily with tennis balls) had not arrived yet guess mostly because their ground was wet. Then I saw my all-time favourite sight, the sprinklers & the birds & green grass. The sight of birds particularly sparrows brings me immense joy as it is almost extinct in Kodagu. The long stem of palm flowers swayed in the mild wind… spreading the mild smell of its flower (I don’t know if I imagined it) some still had its dry leaves & old dry black berry intact. The dry leaves provide shelter to birds & keep them away from dust storm. The cats were stretching on the grass & one cat had managed to catch a black dove & I was surprised the cats still hunt their prey. There are so many people bring & keep food for cats… so most of the time it seems like the cats does not have to work at all… like some spoiled kids!! Loads of black-yellow insects were around even after watching for a while I could not make out if it was honeybee or wasp…

Ear lobe (& nose) piercing

Nearly all the women on earth wear ear studs/rings….. Most often till they reach the grave. With a long history of wearing these in Indian culture, it also represents marital status of women & considered holy. Although considered as one of the beauty aiding accessories by fashion gurus, back home everyone insists that there is more to it & this normally smooth part is like microcosm of the entire body!! Traditionally or let us say up until recently everyone particularly in India wore gold. The main reason being gold is rust proof… & there are negligible percentage who is allergic to gold. Many men in India pierced too & now a days it is trendy with young men.

When a girl child is born it is taken for granted that her ear lobes will be pierced when she is young. When my granddaughter was born, my daughter asked me when to pierce her ears? I wanted to take it easy till she grows little big for the simple reason that my younger daughter’s ear lobe was almost torn fully when she was two years old. We were travelling from Hong Kong to Vancouver & almost all the time she cried with pain & we did not know why she was crying as there was no bleeding & I ended up crying with her without knowing what to do!! I know the same rule does not apply to everyone & my own mother would not agree with me. So I wanted to find out more about the formalities of ear piercing along with the right timing.

In Hindu tradition ear lobe piercing known as Karn-vedh Sanskar is considered an important ceremony. It should be done in the center of the lobe as it is believed that there is a connection at this point with our optic & brain nerves & the practice thought to have therapeutic values to eyes & mind. Piercing is never done on Navami (9^th lunar day) or Amavase (new moon) & ideally it is done on dasami (10^th lunar day) & poornami (full moon) depending of child’s birth star. An auspicious day & time is chosen, piercing is done under sunlight after special pujas/prayers are offered. It is said that according to Dharma Sindhu, it must be performed on the 10^th, 12^th or 16^th day after the birth. However, mostly no one adhere to it strictly & done before 5 months & but not later than 11 months, usually sixth or seventh month because in case the baby gets infection then it is easy to handle them. And by the time they are big they will get used the idea of something in the ear lobe & don’t bother pulling it. In case it is not done with the first year then it is done during the odd years, either third or fifth or seventh year considered ideal. After piercing the child is taken to temple for blessing & prokshana (sprinkling holy water) to ward off any fear from the pain. After wards sweets prepared at home to celebrate the piercing. Some communities do it on the 28^th day which is also the christening day of the baby.

Piercing was almost always done by goldsmith with a gold needle/fine rod but now the trend is changed & people go to doctor/pharmacist. For a girl child the first ear pierced is the left & for boy the right. For a male child it’s usually done either because of cultural practices or for the health reason. After few years the boys will stop wearing it (now you know why Indian girls are smarter than boys… hahahahaa). It is also believed that puncturing the earlobe was beneficial to increasing the acuity of eyesight & of hearing. Also if the piercing is done in the proper place & pierced precisely in the tender age, & a hanging is worn, ailments related to the throat, eyes & tongue can also be reduced. So now you know why Indians will go to the goldsmith & get the babies ear’s pierced & a little hanging either with a karimani (black bead) or coral is hanging. Also the karimani is supposed to ward off the evil eye!!

It is said that the little dangles in the ear lobe helps the development of the brain & calms the child… improves the mathematical skills. It is believed that ear piercing helps reducing ailments related to the throat, eyes & tongue, in maintaining the regularity in the menstrual cycle of a girl, getting rid of hysteria, etc. The earrings are believed to help in maintain the flow of electric current in a human body. Piercing the point just an inch above the earring said to be beneficial for acute back pain reduction. Also piercings on the ear lobes as well as the left side of the nose supposed to give us spiritual benefit. I am not sure of any benefits & in this age of logic seekers what the tradition says may not be agreeable but Yoga has taken over the world by storm. Maharishi Patanjali, complied the yoga sutras thousands of years ago by observing the nature & the life around him. That’s why each posture has animal/reptile names to go with it. So I guess there must be some reason for the whole saga of ear piercing besides looking pretty & easy identification of the sex of the baby if not dressed in blue or pink!!

However the Auricular acupuncture developed based on Dr. Nogier’s theory supports the Indian theory in a different way. It is said that the ear looks like an inverted foetus & the whole body can be treated by applying pressure to acupuncture points in the ear, the point of vision in acupuncture is situated in the center of the lobe. Acupuncture points in the ear said to be able to reduce pain throughout the body by a reticular formulation through the parasympathetic nervous system. Chinese acupuncture has long been used as the treatment for various conditions & diseases such as addiction, psychological disorders such as depression, pain control, obesity & a wide range of other chronic conditions. The ear lobe said to represents the brain of a baby & the meridians connecting the brain pass through this area. So piercing this area is said to help in the quick development of the brain!!

There is a community back home for whom it is customary (definitely not fashion) to pierce not just the lobe but all around the ear. Next holiday I will try to get a picture & also will find out if they have less female aliments compared to general public. There is also another community in India where the earlobe holes are encouraged to stretch & widen, & they wear rolled, coloured read, which keeps trying to expand… by the time they are old, the hole is big enough to pass a finger (or two)!! I am not kidding I have seen it couple of times & long back out of curiosity I asked an old lady does not it hurt & why she wants it so big when she is not even wearing studs or hangings? She said it does not hurt & it is done for health reason. Since my Tamil is restricted to bare minimum I could not converse with her much. I have not seen one in a long time. Hopefully next time I have to take my husband to talk to both category people as one speaks in Malayalam & the other in Tamil.

FACE to FACE with the largest bunch of flower I have ever seen….

It was few years ago that I first I heard about the Jade Vine, from the legume/bean family & its multinational cousins. I learnt this from my plant guru, the late Dr Achaiah, a walking encyclopedia. I was tagging along with him once so that I could fetch some wild mushrooms. Looking at the bunches of maroon outer & little red flowers hanging around the mango tree, I said these are lovely & looks like the ornamental pieces of a chandeliers. I came up with a suggestion… may be you should make a structure in different sized circles to support the vines to create a natural chandelier & we all can sit under it & drink coffee… he said your wish is not my command you don’t eat my head run along now!!

We both always agreed to disagree on everything yet I followed him ignorant, enthusiastic & eager to learn & he was glad someone was willing to learn… so he explained to me about the four different vines among the many around their mansion.

The second one he told me about also with maroon outer & yellow flowers but with a different look altogether. It had no flower but I knew what he was talking as many of my relatives had it in their homes. Both had their own beauty & the first one is pretty simple like a homeless person goes unnoticed most of the time (figure 1). The second one little more attractive & makes its presence felt once a while (will post the picture when available). I was trying to impress with him with my knowledge of flowers quoting the silver oaks & the orange bunch flower we see at Mysore university campus & then told about the burgundy sausage tree flower. He said that’s all on trees & I am talking about the vine.

Finally when I saw the other two little vines supposed to be floriferous from pea family. They were growing on a pillar, and were actually imported costing a small fortune…. A flower which is going to look like the flower of pea.. & wondered if it is really worth it? They were the Jade vine & Red Jade vine (aka scarlet jade vine & New Guinea creeper) scientifically known as Strongylodon macrobotrys & Mucuna bennettii respectively. Then I mentioned the purple Wisteria flower hanging like grape bunches, also from pea family, which I saw in Niagara Falls the sight of which is enchanting in some Hollywood movies & serials. All the vines are evergreen.

After that first time I saw these flowes, on every subsequent visit to Ashok’s place, I searched for the flowers in vain & finally when I came across the pitcher flower in the nearby pot, wondered what the jade vine would really show case? Finally August… 2014 I got lucky, after a long wait met the fully bloomed Red Jade flowers & the buds of Jade vine.

The RED JADE, she was a beauty in her own rights….. she mesmerized & practically forced me to stand motionless & admire her. Even the pouring rain & cloudy weather could not dampen her spirit & beauty. She was already a month old & in full bloom, a cascading cluster of brilliant red-orange pendulous flowers which looked as if someone had meticulously chained them together to form a raceme…. I have never seen such perfect wholesale orange colour in my life other than the saris… Individual translucent flowers are clawed & the formation looks somewhere between flame of the forest & its cousins coral tree & panivala flower. Her perfect texture with absolutely no blemish on her celluloid boat shaped body which almost gives the feeling it’s not natural & plastic(ky). My husband said it reminded him of the cock’s head & its beak & for me it reminded the beak of a parrot.

It is said to be from New Guinea, I nick named her the middle class beautify, who is here to showcase her beauty & strength… the influence she can have on society!! The striking bright red-orange flower in full bloom could stay around two months (or more). So when the bunch starts blooming from one end to the other, it blooms till the entire bunch is bloomed then is still fresh.. so I guess it’s there for quite a while.

And then I saw the Miss Universe…THE JADE VINE, one of her kind challenging everyone one nearby… the colour of the bud blue/green or turquois or jade or copper oxide or somewhere near aqua… something so uncommon… sorry I am lost & have absolutely no idea! I have seen NATURAL green roses & orchids but absolutely no memory of jade coloured flower. One has to see it to believe its magnanimous size, unusual colour & smooth surface like a baby’s butt… I had to catch hold of my best friend’s handy man Kutty who is 5.1 feet to pose with the bunch so that I can remember the size. It’s almost 5 feet along with the top of the stem as the buds starts from few inches in a bunch. It is still growing like Lord Hanumanji’s tail in Sundarkand of Ramayana, as if to challenge me for questioning her worthyness!! Sadly it seems like the life span of jade flower is shorter than that of the orange & it started falling early… may be the mother is tired of over demanding child!!

Also known as emerald vine & turquoise jade vice, said to be native to forest of Mount Makiling on Luzon, the largest & most northern island in the Philippines (Tayabak), is also found in Hawaii, Jamaica, some warm humid strips of South Africa, etc. It’s hard to say where ANY PLANT species originated as no one has ever explored the entire Universe. Just because someone comes across a particular plant at a particular location at a particular time, they say it’s originated there. It’s like Christopher Columbus calling new world as India & calling the natives Indians!! Moreover they end up putting such difficult scientific name or sadly change the name after the person supposed to have dis-covered… oh boy!

Guess she is not that hard to grown but one has to be patient enough to wait for at least 2 years. Even though the growth seems to be little slow in the beginning, as the vine gets strong foot hold, under healthy conditions the large woody climber creeps generously & if not trained it would climb at its own whims & fancy. Sky is the limit seems to be the mantra for the growth of all the vines. Tender leaves are fragile & it looks glassy & dark somewhere between purplelish (reddish-brown/black) & then it turns to green. The stem is dark brown with finely peeling bark.

Fortunately I got the chance to see both of them this year. This is the second bloom of the vine & absolutely no idea if it is going to have any pods or the seeds this year too. Last years the vine bore few small bunches & no seeds. Ironically even though the tiny little black-ants were milling in & out, I could not see any sign of sweet attraction of the bees or other insects including wasps & not sure if it attracts any birds with long beak like humming bird or nocturnal pollinators like the bats. Since it is not native to South India & with ever dwindling bugs & little birds, whether it calls for hand pollination like the vanilla (see my earlier article) or will it be able to produce pods & seeds has to be seen in time. It is advised to plant male & female vines side by side… well I really can’t identify them!! Sorry folks we cannot give you a plant as this cannot be propagated by cuttings it seems.

Even though I wanted to spend more time with the flowers, I had to bid good bye soon but I am definitely planning to monitor the flower in 2015 from beginning to end, record it & also will write about it along with the pictures in different stages to those who are interested. But if Mother Nature will favor me with a bloom that size in 2015 is a big question mark!! It is said that coffee grounds (used coffee powder) increase the number of bunches… How proud my plant Guru would have been to see the flower if it had bloomed an year earlier…

Note: Unfortunately rather sadly the jade bunch was cut by a naughty child who was visiting just before it bloomed. Hope the vine will be kind enough to grace one more large bunch in the near future.

The day I ran away from my Mother

It happened a long time ago, I was in 4^th standard, barely 9 years old. Today my dear mother is no more & I am myself a mother & grandmother! Now when I look back it sounds ridiculous to me but this is my story of how I ran away!

My father was a school Head Master & was always getting transferred to many towns, & up until I was in 5^th standard we always went along with him. However, after that, we ended up staying in one place to take care of our education as well as our coffee estates & my father only came home during weekends & holidays. One of the places we moved to was Kodlipet, a small town in Somwarpet taluk of Kodagu district in Karnataka. We lived in a nice comfortable rented house with very large compound, almost half an acre with lots of fruit tress like jackfruit, guava, etc., a large garden & farm animals like cows & chickens. Next to our compound was the local Civil Hospital which had a larger compound with lots of fruit trees.

Behind our house& hospital compound there was a vacant bit of land, another half an acre or so with thicket, then there was a pliable mud road with jelly stones leading to another place called Kyathe. Beyond that road there was a large Lake partially covered by forest with numerous fruit & flower trees including Seethe poo (wild fragrant orchid). We were well aware of the surroundings as weekends & holidays we roamed freely everywhere searching for fruits, berries, tamarind, mushrooms & butterflies, etc. There were a small variety of edible orange colored palm fruit which I have not seen anywhere else. Among everything there was a tree, my favourite tree, with tiny flowers called Suragi, one of the most amazing white & yellow flowers with round reddish buds which bloomed almost all over the stem, which was a rare sight. Add to it even when dry it had that amazing heavenly fragrance.

I was a very healthy child but one day I became very, very ill & my temperature started going up, practical burning with fever my whole body had turned red. Usually when we were sick, mother always tried some home remedy first & if we don’t get better then a trip to hospital next door. Since I was very bad with sudden rise in temperature & home remedy had no effect, my mother forcibly took me to the hospital. I was sobbing & throwing tantrum & blabbering without making any sense it seems. When doctor saw us, we got priority & he made me sleep on the medical table & checked. After the initial checking & looking at me he said don’t worry child, you will be fine by tomorrow I will write medicines for you. I was still on the table as he walked out gesturing mum to follow him & was telling her in hushed tone she is in very bad shape. “Why didn’t you bring her earlier… guess you have to admit her immediately & before that I will give an injection.” He called out the nurse saying I have done with the patient here prepare the injection for the next patient outside.

I had terrible phobia of injections & I summarized the whole thing in my mind & concluded that the injection was meant for me. Even though I could not sit or stand, just managed to get up from the bed & managed to slip out. Perhaps no one was expecting me to do that in that condition either. With the fear & fit of rage, managed to walk home, then realizing they would be looking for me, I decided to hide.

Where would I hide? I choose to walk towards the vacant land behind our house, then aimlessly walked further as if possessed crossing the road towards the little forest on the lake bank. By then my fear & rage subsided & the high fever putting pressure on me I started crying for my mother. When I left the hospital I had only one problem: fear of needle. But now the whole scenario had changed & I had one too many problems in hand.. I wanted to sleep on my mother’s lap, was thirsty, was scared, was exhausted, feeling giddy & could not see properly & on top of it wondering if my mother would punish me for bad behavior, etc., etc. Somehow, staggering I landed near my favourite tree perhaps that was the closest to my mother in my mind & collapsed rather passed out under the tree. The whole saga from home to hospital to home & to the forest was a haze… all jumbled up.

In the meantime big commotion at the hospital as to how such a sick patient disappeared mysteriously? My mother frantically searching & crying for me, word was sent to my father at school about me missing. No one knew what really happened to me… no those days they did not fear about the kidnapping… hahahaha. A voluntary search team was formed & my mother was nonstop crying bitterly… guess she must have thought I fell & died somewhere. For many hours they searched without any trace of me. Finally someone returning from his farm happened to see the commotion & when he learnt of Head Master’s missing daughter, he told them that: on my way to farm I saw her near the lake & I was wondering what she is doing alone on a school day. Guess she was headed towards the forest. I did not talk to her because I was in a hurry. So now that the search area is narrowed, they managed to find me under the tree passed out (or sleeping) I have no idea.

When I woke up my mother was holding me & crying, & my father sitting holding his head in despair. Don’t know if I was dead or only slumber or unconscious, I was not aware of how I landed back in the hospital. Doctors could not believe that I managed to survive the ordeal. I spent 6 days in the hospital & another one month at home resting. It’s a miracle I survived… seems like there was some kind of divine intervention or perhaps a fairy was sitting among those pretty Suragi flowers watching out for me or if the tree/flower had healing powers. I lived through it to tell the tales… if I was not found so soon, if not from my sickness perhaps I would have died of my other three phobias!! All for a mere injection… so phobia’s can have unimaginable effect on us… only good thing came of it was that I am not afraid of needles anymore!!

Note: I did go to Kodlipet few years back to get my school certificate as proof to say I am from Karnataka for my son’s engineering admission but could not go anywhere as we had to get back immediately. After we left Kodlipet I never saw those wild flowers but I can still feel the fragrance & see the prettiest flowers in front of my eyes. No wonder this ancient tree is called Punnaga (best among the trees). My mother loved them too. We made garlands & wore around our neck, on our braided hair, offered to God, kept under the pillow, between our books, as potpourri, made tea, etc. During the rainy season when the fresh water flowed to the lake on grass, the fish moved upwards from lake towards the fresh warm water & we used to go & pick them up even with bare hands too. Those were the times of plenty. The fun/beautiful moments, we had was once in life time experience & believe me way cooooolll than sitting in front of the note book-ipad-mobile!! If any of you readers have seen a wild tree (not hybrid) of Suragi please let me know!

Sheer Magic of creation….

Witnessing both the side of the process of creation with naked eye….

We called it the Midnight flower, and I saw the flower for the first time when I was in middle school. The fine silky texture of the spotless white petals almost gave an illusion of transparency. We had a vine in the pot for quite some time which grew from a small shoot to a tall lanky-gangly stemmed plant & one fine day it had many light carmine red buds formed along the edge of the leaf-like stem . The plant usually begins to set flower buds in July through September & it can be just a single one or as much as the leaf can accommodate. My mother, an avid gardener had managed to get a small cutting from somewhere. Since we saw it for the first time, as kids we used to wonder what is going to pop out of it. We watched it daily to gauge when it will bloom. Then the small little buds became bigger, swelling up dramatically in its shiny reddish shade.. so we still waited wondering if it was red flower or what… then Mum, in her colourful enthusiastic way, explained to us that it was going to be a beautiful, out of ordinary white flower with carmine red coloured outer petals the size of a dinner plate but only one problem we have to wait for it to bloom at night… as it is a midnight bloomer & the full flower will open only at midnight. by morning it will die… we could not understand the logic.

The nocturnal bloom concept was new to us. We knew of the fragrant parijatha (Nycanthes arbortrisis with small flower with snow-white petals & a orange-red pipe stalk) which opened in the evening.. with the full bloom at night & fall down in the morning, but it still would be opened & the scent would be still there for us to see and smell. Moreover in the evening its half opened too. So what is so different about this flower? This easy to grow, fast growing tropical plantdid not appeared capable of producing such stunning breath takingly beautiful blossom!! Even by appearance the stem does not look having the capacity to hold a single flower of such large dimension let alone FIVE or more at one go.

Finally the day came & we got the pot inside the living room so we can enjoy it as long as we wanted… my mother’s enthusiasm was contagious & even my dad was a willing partner in the whole drama. Even some of our neighbours were there! Telephones were not common & we were the ever ready message carriers about the imminent D-Day blossom!

It started opening up filling the room with fragrance. The buds began to open around 8 or 9 pm… (And be wide open by midnight). What a sight…. Luckily not one or two but five bloomed that day… When they are ready to open, they do so in dramatic fashion, literally before your eyes – you can practically see the movement of the flower. As if the whole process of birth & death is enacted right before your own naked eye in just one-third of a day!! A divine spiritual experience, believe me it’s worth witnessing the large (about 11 inches long & 5 inches wide), funnel-shaped, white flowers at least once in your life & it is worth losing a little sleep.. Perhaps that’s why people call it Brahma Kamala named after the creator. Everyone was spellbound & calling everyone around sharing the joy – come & see or did you see this & that. It was as if a new baby had arrived at home… & we all even took torch & try to look inside…. And I refused to go to bed without seeing the full bloom only to fall asleep on sofa… morning when I woke up the flower had already closed… making me so very sad… Mum said she tried several times to wake me but I would not budge… it was an electrifying moment.. as if the time stood still & seemed like the full moon had appeared in our living room… I cried my heart out.

Each bloom lasts only for one night & by sunrise the flower is spent. So I had no choice but to wait for the next one. Back in those days, we all were very active children & there was no TV & the longer we were awake mother would make us study more. So we all learnt from small age to sleep early… hence I could not keep my eyes opened!! . We did see it again, but the enthusiasm & the magic was not the same as the first time…. Something like the first kiss! We children were the happiest because we would also get sweets/chaklis or something to eat too. The blooms appear intermittently during the summer months. Some plants bloom every year, while others have an alternate blooming cycle.. However, for years we continued the practice of waiting for it to bloom with the torch & sharing the joy! Eventually grew out of it like a child out of toy, becoming midnight flower Sanyasin!

A colleague of mine from Rathnagiri (Alphonso land) told me when they were little boys they knew the unique qualities of the flower & would say, if anyone can manage to put a flower in a case with a currency note or gold or diamond, the box would be filled with multiple of the same on its own… in other words sheer magical. I am sure there on too many different experiences around.

Years later in July 2013, the same drama was enacted far away from India at my neighbor Shruthi Cariappa’s house. Unfortunately I could not re-live the nostalgic memory as I was on vacation. Many of their friends were invited & there was dinner later it seems… a photo was posted on the facebook too. Many of the pictures posted here are from them. The timing is shown earlier my guess is that perhaps the plant brought from India has its biological clock set to Indian timing!!

There is also supposed to be another similar flower (selenicereus) in pulish-pinkish magenta. I never had the previlage of meeting…the pretty lady.

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Details on the flower, the plant, and growing it: Epiphyllum oxypetalum (DC.) Haw. Commonly known as midnight flower, Dutchman’s-Pipe Cactus, Queen of the Night, Orchid Cactus, Jungle Cactus, Night Blooming Cactus, Night Blooming Cereus. In Kerala it is called Ananthasayanam or Nishagandhi flower. Ananthasayanam – infinite bed/seat – where Vishnu is sleeping on the Aadishesha, the thousand headed snake floating in the ocean of milk & the hood of Adishesha shielding the Lord. I was told by colleague that in Kerala this flower is considered sacred & this rare bloomer is usually welcomed by lighting a lamp. As it blooms in the evening, people consider it as a divine visit.. As the divine personality of God would visit us by a whisper of air or a butterfly touch, this flower blooms with an unusual divine fragrance around midnight& shuts off by morning. The inner core of the bud has the shape of a sleeping Sree Ananthapadmanabha (Maha Vishnu). Traditionally it is believed that menstruating ladies & non-veg eaters are not supposed to touch the plant. And it is said to bring good luck & wealth (lucky bamboo & money plant has a competitor!!)

It is supposed to be a tropical orchid cactus native to Central & Northern South America but it has been cultivated all over the world perhaps because it is unique. It’s an erect/semi-erect, branching cactus, can grow up to 20 feet tall with cylindrical stems bearing elliptic, leaf-like, scalloped, dark green stem/branches. These plants are very easy to grow even as a houseplant. Simply place each leaf cutting (roughly two to four inches in length) – cut end down (can root either way) vertically into some well-draining sandy potting soil. Pack the soil tightly around the leaf to remove any air pockets & make sure the whole bottom of the leaf has good contact with the soil. It should be rooted with three to six weeks. Root-bound plants tend to bloom better, so don’t repot your plant very often. Since it is a cactus water sparingly but regularly & make sure not to allow water to stand as it will rot. The soil should be allowed to dry between watering. Like vanilla if you stress the plant a bit, the flowers are better & bigger in size but quantity will be less. (But you should know what exactly you are doing). It will usually take two to three years before you have a plant that begins blooming. The plants are supposed to bear small, 4 inches long, oblong, purplish-red, angled edible fruits very similar to the pitaya or dragon fruit. But I never saw any in our plants at home or at our neighbours may be because the cooler weather condition or a particular species of pollinator required like vanilla which was absent or there was no chance of pollination as we always took the plant inside the house.

Marriage between Wild honey & Burga (Kopak or silk cotton) tree

The Mysore – Mangalore road is a route I have traveled during every other major holiday since my college days. Today things are different, traffic has increased a hundred fold & also I hardly travel by bus. Traveling by bus has its own charm: You see the world around you from a heightened perspective, & enjoy more than in a car. Mountains look closer, valleys looks deeper, shrubs looks smaller & trees seems to run faster too! 😀

My husband is my official driver who just loves to drive, or rather, does not trust anyone else’s driving!! I love to watch Mother Nature & for the last several years I have been noticing many tall Buruga trees, especially on the Hunsur-Kushalnagar stretch. Depending upon the season, it either has flowers, young leaves, or just barren. One particular tree close to Koppa, always catches my attention because of the number of wild honey combs hanging on it. One time, we even stopped the car to count about 220 or more: some full of honey, some abandoned combs & some fresh – half done & some are almost falling apart! A real sight to behold! Every time we are about to approach the area, my husband, starts: “your tree… your tree….. “ & we count until it becomes a dot in the rear view mirror! (How lucky I am to have my own tree in words…. Hahahaha). So unless & until it is really late & dark outside when we cannot see the hives, we never miss the tree – we will say “the treeeee”

My curiosity & obsession with Mother Nature also helped me to realize that the wild honey bees are comfortable building their honey comb on only a chosen few buruga trees. A couple of kilometers before we approach ‘the treeee”, there are two Burga trees about a kilometer apart: one with three honey combs & one with just one. The bees must be getting comfortable with those trees too. Hum. I wish I could talk to the bees & ask them why are they so comfortable with this particular species of tree, & why only some of them! Why the marriage with the spiky burga tree? Is it because it is too tall or too spiky for the predators or deciduous or simply because of the copious supply of nectar from its flowers when they bloom?

When I was talking to my brother, Japs, I was told that in the coffee estates, most of the wild honey combs are built on burga trees or wild jackfruit trees. And olden days the natives would tie a thin rope to the end of an arrow, & shoot the arrow to the honeycomb. The honey will dip through the thread to a pot kept under the tree! (What an ingenious & harmonious dealing.) I never had the privilege of witnessing it though!!

My love for the Burga tree could also be subconsciously linked to a feeling of nostalgia that takes me back to my childhood days. Growing up most of the mattress at home was made from Kapok fiber (cotton) which is from the fruit of the Burga tree. Unlike the hybrid tree cottons grown today, Kapok lasts for years & years without causing allergy or becoming powdery! The hybrid cotton becomes powdery within couple of years. So much for man’s intervention in Mother Nature’s creations! My mother, the late Patsy, like most Coorg ladies of the time, was a fanatic of Kopak Mattress. Back home in the Western Ghats after the rainy season, i.e. at the beginning of the summer as well as at the end of the summer, all mattresses are put in the sun religiously & it was really a fun time for us kids. Jumping on the mattress & pillow fights outdoor was extremely entertaining which usually ended only when mother was around shouting at us. Our giggling & fighting (what a combination) would never end & even would try to make small holes in the pillow so that the cotton escapes flies around us!!

Best was the time when it is put back on the cot… oh boy… the mattress used to be so soft & puffy… more jumping… the sun dried warm crispy smell as opposed to the monsoon mugginess before they were sun dried We always piled more than one mattress on the cot, & it used to feel like royal bed… a princess on seven layers of bliss! (We had multiple mattresses to support the 10’s of guests who come in during weddings & other social functions)

When the fruit of the Burga that contains the cotton is ripe & almost dry, it falls on ground after splitting, scattering the cotton all around forming vivid shapes & sizes. Eventually it would be carried away by wind forming more shapes & sizes. We would catch them & search for shapes like birds (I remember almost always finding a dove heads/necks!!), or collect few & stick it on others hair to make them look old, etc. Looking back I myself cannot believe that we used to have so much fun with simple things like cotton or jumping on the hay stack those days!! (Other fun activities were climbing the trees, hunting for exotic summer fruits & playing in the river. Wish I could relive them again on the green & pleasant land..) Those were the simple days when we were not chased by the gadget bhoooot (ghost)!

More information on the Buruga tree:

Stately Buruga (Genus: Ceiba & Species: pentandra) tree appears on the flag of Equatorial Guinea. It is said that the tree was sacred to Mayan people who believed that the souls of the dead climbed the mythical kapok whose branches reached into heaven. It is a colossal tropical tree (a very fast growing tree which can be taller than 200 feet) with palmate & compound leaves (5 to 9 leaf lets), deep ridges on its massive trunk, spiny, drought deciduous (shed leaves in dry season). The crown has an open umbrella shape. The tree is also called Java cotton or silk cotton which is famous for its wide buttresses. But the ones I have seen does not have enough buttresses…… guess the soil does not have enough butter (just kidding). Back home it grows wild in the forest & in the estates. The tree sheds it’s foliage in the beginning of winter & by beginning of January the top crown of the tree is covered by numerous marble sized green buds with plum colour sheen on them. By February, 5 to 10 cm long vibrant chalice shaped, flaming red flowers with 5 thick velvety petals curling backwards starts to bloom. Between February & March it paints the whole landscape in an enchanting red hue with striking blaze of crimson.

The kapok tree occupies an important niche in the ecosystem of a rainforest. With the flowers comes the flock of colorful birds, wonder how they get hold of the scent of the blooming flower – its amazing? The sight & sound of the birds is a feast to the eyes & ears which has to be experienced!! The flowers grow in a circle of five unequal bunches with a bunch in the center. Yellow at the base, their red tips merge into the flower. The rich nectar in the flower attracts bees, birds & other insects which also act as pollinating agents. It has an unpleasant odour perhaps to attract the bats too. By March – April, it bears green pods which hang from the branches. The pods are woody, smooth & pendulous. As they mature, it will burst open while still on the tree after the leaves have fallen, from which the fluffy soft cotton escapes with the slightest breeze floating like fallen white clouds. Finally it splits completely & falls to ground. Just before it cracks, the pod is plucked & silk-like cotton kapok is collected. It also contains plenty of black seed that is covered by the cotton. The process of harvesting & separating the cotton from seed is manual & labour-intensive. The cotton is light, silky soft, elastic, strong & buoyant. If wet, just drying in the sun would bring it back to its original form!! The cotton is also used in stuffing cushions & pillows, upholstery, wadded cloth quilts, insulation, stuffed toys & tinder. During the Second World War these were popularly used in life jackets which known as Mae Wests. However, the fiber is not used for clothing because it is short & breaks easily so it cannot be easily made into thread like cotton. Now a day’s Kopak cotton is practically taken over by synthetic substitutes & it is hard to find decent kapok mattresses. Almost all the parts of burga tree have high medicinal value & is one of the special tress considered as a panacea.

(Part 1 of 2) – Read part two for the sad details of the death of a tribal woman….

coorgstories

Stories, thoughts and my perspectives on the world around me. I'm from Coorg, in South India. Please share your thoughts, suggestions, comments and any feedback you have!

Tag Archives: childhood