Musings from Antique Origins

Afghanistan I was amused to see a news item in an English daily about Indians now joining the British Army to fight the Taliban in Afghanistan. They are entitled to sign up as Commonwealth nationals. It is further informed that there were more than 80 Indians in the British army as of March 2009 which obviously may have increased considerably by now. The report says that Sharat S. Mulchandi, 18, from Karnataka, is undergoing army cadet training at home and plans to join a British infantry regiment when he flies into the UK. 'Pakistan is a breeding ground for terrorists, it's dangerous for India. We will never forget what the fanatics did last year in Mumbai,' The Sunday Express quoted, him, as saying. Afghanistan and adjoining areas had always been a constant problem for the British Empire over centuries. By 1877, the British in their quest for expanding the empire had grown very suspicious of Russia, which encroached on to its north-west Indian border. The British preferr...

Elephants in procession in Palakkad Traditional functions on the eve of niece's marriage at Thiruvizha Niece as part of traditional functions on the eve of marriage Traditional functions on the eve of niece's marriage Niece's marriage , 30th August 2009 Maveli visited us with drummers in modern costumes( 2nd Sept 09) Onappoo at home in Cherthala, 2nd Sept 2009 Traditional Sadya on Dad's navathy 3rd Sept 2009 Kerala, 6th September 2009.

2004 in Malawi W hile I was working in Malawi, Southern Africa, I got introduced to the game of golf. By the time I started understanding the game, it was time for me to pack off. I used to go to the Limbe club, started by the English, where I was a member. Accompanied by my son I had practice sessions on Sunday mornings and the early morning wanderings in the golf course were quite refreshing. On other evenings, with friends we used to have a round of beer after a match at Blantyre club. Unlike Africa, other countries are far too expensive for someone wanting to take up golf as a past time for fun and exercise. Many countries in Africa with bountiful land, beautiful landscapes, good climate and the English legacy are ideally suited for the game. In India, the game used to be reserved for a few of the rich people and to the bureaucrats who always had much leisure. What prompted me to think of golf was the news of a rather unknown South Korean golfer by name Y.E.Yang overthrowing the gr...

S ankaranatha Jyotsar ,also known as Sankaranathan Unithiri or Shankar Nath Joshi) was a proud son of Kerala who was the chief astrologer and spiritual advisor to Maharajah Ranjit Singh, the lion of Punjab who single handedly built the great Sikh empire and whose right arm adorned the fabled Koh-i-Nur diamond. There are scant references in our history or other books about this remarkable man who was a courtier in one of the most dazzling royal courts in history. The only credible and authoritative source about Sankaranatha Jyotsar, I could find from sources outside Kerala, was from the link http://www.esikhs.com/articles/a_retrospect.htm under the chapter “The Sikhs - Images of a Heritage” written by T.S.Randhawa. “The other dramatis personae in the court of Maharaja Ranjit Singh were the Fakir Aziz-ud-din, his Foreign Affairs Minister---- Shankar Nath Joshi, the chief astrologer to Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who was from Travancore and returned there when the bloodbaths started at Lahor...

T his vacation for me in Kerala was very subdued with many personal issues warranting my attention. Heavy rains were lashing across Kerala as I had seen only in my younger years. At Palakkad it rained incessantly during July and I was confined to reading in the comforts of our house. This time the books I read were mainly in Malayalam and were biographies or autobiographies some of which I enjoyed considerably. Among the scores of books I read, some were most enjoyable because of the astounding personalities those covered. Integrity, commitment and simplicity were common traits found in great people and even in ordinary people who did great feats. Some of the books I read included the following: Manasaasmarami by S.Guptan Nair, renowned writer, critic and teacher. Katha Ithu Vare by D.Babu Paul, well known civil servant. Ente Kazhinjakaala Smaranakal by Kumbalathu Sankupillai, politician and social reformer. Smrithi Darpanam by Prof.Manmadhan, renowned Gandhian. Sneha theeram Th e...

Lt.Colonel Mohanlal receiving a memento from Uthradom Tirunal Marthanda Varma T he latest news on the renowned Malayalam actor Mohanlal commissioned to the Madras Regiment of the Territorial Army as Lt.Colonel and his visit to the Kowdiar Palace to pay tributes to the erstwhile ruling family of Travancore has evoked considerable interest about the military past of this state. Travancore and Cochin were larger princely states in the south, besides Mysore which maintained independent armed forces. Two Travancore infantry battalions were integrated into Madras regiment after the states merged with the Indian union and were called 9th (Travancore) and 16th (Travancore) battalions of the Madras regiment. Likewise the Cochin battalion became the 17th (Cochin) under MR. Major-General Sri Chithira Tirunal H.H. Maharaja Bala Rama Varma of Travancore, GCSI, GCIE was the Col-in-Chief of Travancore State forces from 1924-1949 and of the Travancore-Cochin State Forces for the period 1949-1954. The...

O f late, many incidences reported through the media stress the importance to assert our identity as proud Indians. The media are languishing on the news about the attacks on Indian students in Australia apparently on racial grounds. Then there was the news item on the US Embassy in India warning the US citizens visiting India that all the country is susceptible for terrorist strikes and as such there is great risk on their lives. I could also see a report mentioning that Indian bureaucracy is the most corrupt among twelve north and south Asian nations in a study by a Hong Kong-based Consultancy. All these disturbing and disparaging news call for better vigil and governance by the law makers of the country to develop a young generation of citizens who could excel themselves and who could be role models to the rest of the world. While those of the rich could go to foreign universities for prestige and sometimes for pursuing higher studies in institutes with better facilities, the India...