THE ENLIGHTENED NICHE

Kung Fu and Kanchipuram -the secret connection

2011-10-23T03:04:00.014-04:00

Kanchipuram. A small old temple-town in South India that always bustles with Hindu pilgrimage tourists and that is known for its silk saris. Kung Fu. A Chinese martial art that is practiced for self-defense and mental strength, primarily by the Buddhist monks at the Shaolin monastery in China. What could be common to Kanchipuram and Kung Fu? Nothing at all?! You should think again, or should flip some historical accounts- well, not Indian, but Chinese or Japanese accounts! What could that secret connection be??

When you think of Buddhism, all that comes up in mind is the Buddha, in a meditative pose, sometimes with long earlobes and tiny, wide eyes. Oftentimes red-robed, head-shaven peaceful Chinese monks also cross the mind. Contrary to this, Buddha was actually an Indian Prince, and we know this fact. However, seldom would we dare to think that Buddhism had its flourishing times in Tamil Nadu! (“What?? Most of the Tamilians were Buddhists?!” Is this what you’re thinking right now?) In fact two out of the Five Great Epics in Tamil (Aymperumkaapiyangal) were on Buddhism (none of those were on Hinduism!). Between the 3^rd and 6^th centuries AD, Buddhism was at its height in Tamil Nadu, and thus it splashed some beautiful hues on the vast and elaborate canvas of Tamil and South India’s history. As centuries rolled on, people started embracing different religions and thus culture and literary works evolved along. Now there is literally no trace of Buddhism here. Well, now what would be even more surprising is to know that a Tamil Prince from Pallava dynasty in Kanchipuram was the 28^th father of the Buddha line, and also the Zen master, who taught Kung Fu (Shaolinquan) martial arts to China!

You might have known that the world-famous shore temple in Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu was built by the Pallava king Narasimhavarman. But we have forgotten another mighty one from the Pallava heir line- Bodhidharman. He was born in Kanchipuram as the third son to the Pallava King. After wearing the red robe and becoming a Buddhist monk, he travelled the seas for 3 years and reached China during the 4^th-5^th centuries AD. He was the 28^th patriarch of Buddhism, with the lineage tracing back to Gautama Buddha himself. In most of the art forms- be it Chinese, Japanese or Vietnamese- he is portrayed to be a profusely bearded and ill-tempered person always, as opposed to the tranquil-looking Gautama Buddha. After being in Liang dynasty in Southern China, he proceeded north, where he taught Shaolin Kung Fu martial art techniques to the monks in the Shaolin monastery. Staring at a wall, he continuously meditated for 9 years in a cave near Mt. Song (which is a famous holy pilgrimage spot in China today). After that he died at the banks of Luo River when he was around 150 years of age. Some claim the death was natural, some say his leg atrophied after the long meditation, and some say he was a victim of a mass execution!

One of the most intriguing incidents happened when an official in the kingdom spotted Bodhidharma walking on a mountain, three years after his death. When questioned, he claimed to be returning “home”, and also predicted the impending death of the Kingdom’s ruler. He also noticed him carrying one sandal in his hand. Bodhidharma’s prediction came true soon after that; and when his tomb was dug open, all that remained was the other sandal!

Bodhidharma was the first patriarch of Zen. According to Zen, you become a Buddha (you attain enlightenment) when you attain “self-realization”. It also emphasizes that Zen is a special transmission out of scriptures, and cannot be “taught” by anyone. All that someone could teach is just the method to achieve Zen.

Japanese Daruma doll & Tamil Chettiar dolls

While China, Japan, Vietnam and other countries revere and follow Bodhidharma, Japan has intertwined him with its culture and tradition. Daruma dolls are the famous hollow, round, red-colored Japanese dolls that depict Bodhidharma. These dolls are believed to bring luck, and have been in place since the 18^th century in Japan. The interesting thing is that the eyes of the doll are just blank when sold. After someone buys it, one eye is drawn in black, upon making a wish. Once the wish is fulfilled, the other eye is supposed to be drawn. Moreover, these dolls always return to an upright position when tilted, symbolizing persistence (oh yes, these are very similar to the good old “Chettiar dolls” and the bobblehead “Thalayaati bommai” of our tradition that you threw out, when you dusted your store-room last year!). It’s a pity, when it’s a big tradition in Japan to reminisce and celebrate a great man from our land while here we are crazy about buying those Chinese “Laughing Buddha” dolls for homes!

Had we remembered Bodhidharma’s work and recognized him to be from our land much earlier, it would be of no surprise if the Hollywood blockbuster animation movie Kung Fu Panda’s plot was set in Kanchipuram- as if Po, the panda amuses with its usual antics while roaming in the quaint streets of Kanchipuram, intermittently uttering Tamil words and fighting atop the grand golden gopurams of Kanchi Kamakshi temple! This could be difficult to imagine for a few, but such a thing would have been definitely adorable, in its very original form. Well, anyways, that’s a trivial offshoot of a much more humongous yearning.

Now what’s the “secret connection”? The Enlightened Niche blog takes pride to be the truth-revealing “Dragon Scroll” here. But there is no “secret” connection. This whole thing has been a well-known fact to the rest of the world. It’s just us, who forgot a great soul from our land, failed to recognize him, his life and his work, and let him out of our history. Know not who to complain. Sheer indifference perhaps.

The lost world of ‘Kumari Kandam’ –Revisited and relived.

2011-09-03T19:24:00.012-04:00

Year 2065. I suddenly wake up after a sound sleep. I rise from my comfy Nexcruzer bed that makes constant motions to guide a peaceful sleep. I see that it’s already 9 in the morning, and I didn't realize that it’s so late. My Adaptive Room-Ambience-Conditioner also had to be blamed since it had continuously adjusted the room temperature and lightings over the night, based on my tiredness- calculating that I needed a long sleep. It was definitely a tough and tiring Friday, yesterday. I quickly rise up and walk to my multi-utility LED TV/Computer panel and switch it off, to see through it and peek outside of my bedroom.

Sunlight is reflected by all the steel-clad skyscrapers around my apartment in the 148^th floor. Squinting my eyes, I see flocks of tourists and local people accompanied by their kids board into a Street-zoomer transit vehicle. The glass surface of all the sides of the street-zoomer displays a Flash-X video ad of something called “Trip to the legendary Kumari Kandam”. Within seconds, the whole ad is neatly repeated in Tamil. Apparently it’s a shuttle service to a lost continent called Kumari Kandam or Lemuria continent which submerged into the Indian Ocean over thousands of years ago. The whole world has been going gaga about this place since recently. Remembering that my Emerald Corporate universal benefits card already entitles me to take this trip, I get ready quickly and wait for the next street zoomer to arrive.

As I board the 09:42 street-zoomer, I see that there are almost 400 people seated already, each of them seeming very excited about their trip to this lost land. Within seconds as I board the vehicle, my RFID zoomer-pass beeps automatically and I reach to a free seat nearby. Having no idea about what this place is, I join the bandwagon just to experience the fad with the rest of the crazy people in the world. Apparently it’s a two-hour journey, and it was just two minutes ago when I learnt that the street-zoomer would stop to a conduit which would lead to a Kumari Kandam Submarine. As I sit back with my fingers crossed about this trip, a 3D laser show (over dry ice) organized inside the street-zoomer starts up with a historical introduction of this lost continent:

“There had been many legendary cities that today’s world has lost in time. Some of those were the city of Atlantis, and the city of Dwaraka that is mentioned in Mahabharata. But out of all these, there existed one huge land mass to the south of today’s Indian peninsula extending from Kanyakumari in the north, and its sides touching as far to the west as Madagascar and as far to the east as Australia. This huge continent of the Tamil people was called Kumari Kandam or the Lemuria continent that was swallowed by the seas, and eventually lost forever.

Hundreds of thousand years ago, continents started drifting, and different continents were formed. And after a much long time, the earliest human beings were born on the earth about 400,000 years ago. During the end of the last Ice age, earth’s temperature started rising, large icy masses and glaciers started melting, and thus sea levels started rising. During this period, 12000 years ago, India's Dravidian peninsula was swallowed by the ever rising seas. Various oceanographic researches have shown that the sea level in the Indian peninsula has risen by 100 meters within the past 14,500 years. There had been three major episodes of sea level fluctuations resulting in the submergence of the Kumari continent which existed to the south of Kanya Kumari (About 14,500 years ago, Sri Lanka was connected with Peninsular India!)

The area had been ruled by the Pandya kings, and there are lots of scattered literary evidences to this lost land of the Tamils. As per Adiyarkunallar, a huge landmass extending from Kanyakumari to a distance of 700 kavatams (unknown, obsolete unit) got sunken in the sea. During this civilization, Kumari Kandam land was divided into 49 territories (nadu). It had mountain ranges, and also had two main rivers- Pahruli and Kumari. "

[The historical show continues]
"The earliest civilization that we know of today is the Sumerian civilization established in Mesopotamia (today’s Iraq) around 4000 BC. After this were the Egyptian civilization, and then the Indus valley civilization. But the Tamil civilization around Kumari Kandam had been much earlier than this, which would put it to the first in the time scale of civilization of mankind. What is even more interesting is that, many world-renowned researchers also claim to have deciphered the Indus script to be Tamil! 1 2

As per Nakkirar’s Iraiyanaar Akaporul the three Tamil Sangams (Academies of Tamil poets) functioned for 9990 odd years!

Click to enlarge

However, very sadly, all that is extant today is the Tamil literature works from the third Sangam. Everything else is lost in the sea, and in time; the people of the civilization were swallowed by the seas. It’s a tragedy of a huge magnitude. The quality of life of the ancient Tamils in Kumari Kandam should have been extraordinarily sublime". As I got myself submerged into the poignant historical introduction of the magnificent lost continent, the 3D show suddenly went off, and the street-zoomer stopped to a sudden halt. An announcement followed: “However, fortunately, some significant parts of the Kumari Kandam have been preserved and restored, thanks to technological advancements, and most importantly because of the vision, perseverance and passion of some individuals- a trip to the magnificent world of Kumari Kandam is possible today! Please follow the signs and walk towards the front.”

It’s been exactly two hours now, and along with the rest of the crowd, I walk into the conduit that leads to the Kumari Kandam submarine, with a melancholic mood and a heavy heart. Within seconds, the huge submarine with its fully transparent walls starts moving slowly inside Indian Ocean’s dark blue waters. With a deep sigh, I lean on the glass wall of the submarine with my hands pressed on it. As I unblinkingly stare through the glass wall, I start encountering places that I couldn’t have ever imagined in my life- height of magnificence- treasure haven – quaintly exotic palaces, temples, and squares. Some portions of the submarine’s glass walls are overlaid with Augmented Reality (AR), rendering how magnificent this place could have been, lively with ancient Tamilians, in the richest of ancient Tamil tradition! As I stare breathlessly, my jaws drop, and I’m inexplicably pulled into the world of first Tamil Sangam era on the Kumari Kandam…

THE Truth about Indians!

2010-11-18T11:08:00.002-05:00

Scene: 1
9000 miles away from the Himalayan country. Far to the west. Silicon valley. A refreshing evening at Microsoft office. An Indian software engineer enjoys his first team dinner with his American colleagues. Suddenly when a discussion on cultural identities strikes, the Indian strongly claims, “I’m PROUD to be an INDIAN!” A white guy sitting opposite, quickly asks, “I’ve heard that the Indus Valley Civilization had sophisticated cities 4,500 years ago! Do you know more about that? Can you share with us…?” Before he could complete, a British teammate interrupts, “I’ve heard from my father that the Chola Kings had such a vast empire that even includes today’s Indonesia and Malaysia! Can you tell us more about that please…?” The interested and earnest eyes stare at the Indian with so much expectation. But the “Proud” Indian software engineer has no clue what they are talking about. He blinks. He has no answer. He murmurs with embarrassment- “Sorry, I don’t know”.

Scene: 2
9000 miles away from the Pacific. Far to the east. Bay of Bengal coast. A humid and scorching mid-week afternoon at Chennai city. An uncontrollable crowd fills the neighborhood. Amidst this is a cinema theatre whose façade is totally covered with huge movie hoardings. Two young high school guys come out of the theater with so much pride, after watching ‘Endhiran, The Robot’ movie the third time. As soon as they get past the crowd, they rush to a nearby shop to watch a cricket match between India and Pakistan. It's nerve-racking, well enough to shoot up their blood pressure to its abnormal levels. Patriotism sees its height in the hearts of those young guys. It’s the final over and the match ends with a sensation - India wins. There is a mad rush of adrenaline. One of them leaps high in the air and shouts, “INDIA ..INDIA ..INDIA !!!” The other one says with exuding pride, “I’m PROUD to be an INDIAN!”. On the way back home, one of them says, “the afternoon was very nicely spent!” The other one quips, “Of course! Who would attend a long, dreary session on ‘Indian Freedom Struggle’?! What a bore!” Yes, their afternoon was earned by bunking off their history class at school. While they walked back home, they continued reviewing ‘Enthiran, The Robot’ movie.

What is the inference that stands out clear as a crystal here? We, today’s Indians, SPEAK-OUT-LOUD to be 'Indian', but don’t really know anything about its proud, long history. However, we love watching movies a lot, and we are patriotic at least when it comes to cricket! The bottom-line is that history, patriotism and knowledge can be fed to today’s Indians only in a “delicious version”- mixed with honey – set in the right tenor- and pampered with the most fashionable format of the day!

That happens to be one of the primary missions of the Enlightened Niche. As a first step, “Indian history in 5 minutes” video has been created. As a first step to be a “Proud” Indian, why don’t you know India’s history today?

Share the history with the world!

Is your distant cousin in Indonesia, aunt in South Africa and grandfather in West Indies?

2010-10-30T22:54:00.002-04:00

My Canadian friend boasts of his ancestry to be a mix of Scottish and Norwegian. But I’m more than glad of what I am, and what my genes are composed of.

The first humans on earth are said to have originated in Africa/ India 70,000 years ago. This has been bolstered by the tests done on the tribes of a village in Tamil Nadu, India who all carry the M130 gene which is one of the oldest genes of the humans. Dravidian (people of South India, majorly) gene characteristics have been preserved relatively well, unmixed with other races for a very long time. But that doesn't infer that Indians, in general remained intact their places and did not migrate. The country has seen huge waves of migrations throughout its long history.

Madras in 1925

The capital of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu is Madras (Chennai). There is also a city called Madras in the Oregon state of the US. There is a Madras Street in Canterbury, New Zealand. There is a Madras Road in Cambridge, England and also in Glasgow, Scotland. There is a Madras Place in Islington, England and also in Glasgow, Scotland. There is a Madras Way in Southern River, Australia and a Madras Crescent in Port Kennedy, Australia and a Madras settlement road in Cunupia, Trinidad. How on earth did these places in different corners of the world get the name of an Indian city?? Was it because of contemporary immigrants, or because of a historical settlement of a much older time? We don't have an idea. Had family trees been piously created and preserved by our ancestors, we could have had an answer today.

Hungarian Gypsies

Since ancient times, migrations to different countries have been pretty common and significant in India. During the recent centuries, the British had been responsible for such migrations, and now IT MNCs like Infosys, TCS and Accenture are! One of the most significant migrations after 1100 CE was from the state of Rajasthan and the Sindh region towards the west into Europe. They are the 11 million of those people that are scattered around the world today, who are none other than the Romani people or the Gypsies. Between 11^th and 13^th centuries CE, when the Chola Kingdom was in its height of power, they sent their fleet to and captured the Malay Archipelago (Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia) and Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. A huge emigration to South East Asia and a cultural mix happened during this period. During the Battle of Manila in 1762, the British used massive troops from Madras and this caused subsequent migrations into Philippines. Finally, the Abolition of slavery act seemed to have written the destiny of the Indian diaspora across the whole world in the following decades.

Immigrant Indians in Guyana ca. 1850

Since the abolition of slavery act left a void of laborers in their colonies, starting from the 19^th century, the Britishers orchestrated the successive migrations, in the name of indentures. The first wave was in 1834 when Indentured workers from India (Bhojpuris) were sent to Mauritius to work in the sugarcane fields. (A century earlier, the Tamil construction workers had been sent here, by the French). Now these people form 70% of the country’s population. In 1838, another huge migration of indentured workers was initiated by the British. Starting with Guyana, there was an influx of over half a million to the Caribbean islands (Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica, etc.). Most of them were from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, while people from Tamil Nadu forming the majority in Guadeloupe and Martinique. 1860 saw the first substantial migration to South Africa, of which the majority were from Tamil Nadu, forming a population of 1 Million today. In the later years, the Sikhs from the Punjab region were recruited in the British Indian army and most of them were working in Shanghai and Hong Kong. During Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee celebrations in 1897, they got to visit Canada, and this attracted a huge migration into Canada and the US. After independence, many Punjabis migrated to the UK mainly in the 1950s. Today, over 4.5 million of Sikhs live outside India. All these Indian diaspora have been complemented by immigration of professionals since the 20^th century.

Indulge yourself in building your family tree and a little genealogy research. No wonder if you happen to find your distant cousin in Indonesia, aunt in South Africa and grandfather in West Indies today!

"Do you know the name of your great grandfather’s father?"

2010-10-30T19:55:00.000-04:00

A conversation with an average man:

"Do you know about the lives of the mighty Indian kings of the Chola kingdom and their history"?

"History about the kings?? Who cares about a king who ruled my country 1000 years ago? He is not related to me by any means. I’m an earnest family man. It’s a competitive world. I care only about my family. And I don't feel bad to be selfish."

"Agreed. So only your family is important for you. OK, so what is the name of your great grandfather's father?"

"Well.. Err….. ?!?!?!?????!!"

If indifference to history is reasoned to be because of selfishness, what could be one good reason behind not even knowing one’s own family’s history?

Genealogy is the study of family histories and tracing lineages. I’ve known 5 generations above my ancestral tier. It’s not just a hobby that is exciting and satisfying, but it also brings out a sense of responsibility to preserve the past for future generations. With the emergence of social media sites like Facebook, the concept of "building one's network" has become so popular. Many genealogy sites like ancestry.com have also sprouted. These sites help you build your own family tree where you can create a profile with all information for each of your family members and ancestors. Sparing a few moments of your Facebook time and building your family tree with a little research could yield wonders (you can brag about your ‘big network’ here as well!). In the course of time, you may even end up tracing back your ancestry to ancient kings and even to different countries! Hitherto unknown family connections (with other users' family trees) can be uncovered too. It would be extremely interesting and satisfying (unless it happens that you discover your girlfriend to be your distant cousin :P).

It is very common in many Asian cultures to celebrate death anniversaries in commemoration of deceased family members. During such anniversaries, it is typical to do rituals in front of old photos of the deceased ancestor with offerings of all the food dishes which were the ancestor's favorites during his/her life time. Sometimes, the rituals continue with a food offering to cows and crows too. And after the rituals, the “offered” food is devoured in its full amounts by all the relatives who attend the ceremony. Rather than just seeing this as a ceremony just for the heck of it and for eating a sumptuous line up of food varieties, it could be rationally used for discussing about the life of the ancestor and making the young generation draw inspiration out of it! Here, the long tradition of ancestor worship is not being condemned, but rather it is insisted that a death anniversary should not just stop with a customary ritual. Instead, it should be a starting point to a worthy learning of a lifetime to younger generations! With the ancestors being consciously remembered and learnt from, every year, can there be a better way to make their souls rest in peace?

Today there are over 25 million people of Indian origin, who live in different countries of the world. They have emigrated to the Malay archipelago, South Africa, Caribbean islands, Canada, US, UK, Australia and to many other countries. But most of these people have lost their Indian identity, ethnic authenticity and forgot their ancestral connections. Blame them not, when someone in your household doesn’t know the name of your great grandfather’s father.
Oh, is that YOU I’m referring to, here?!

My Naadi astrology experience- a truly bewitching one- Part II

2010-10-12T18:51:00.000-04:00

(continued from my previous post)

As I was totally immersed into reading the article on the wall, I didn’t notice a hand coming towards my shoulder. “Tap!”
Someone patted at my back. My contemplation was instantly disturbed. “Please stand in the queue!!”, a distant voice yelled. I joined the long queue stretching out to the street. Finally when it was my turn, I was taken to the ‘pooja’ (prayer) hall. As I entered, I was awestruck to see thousands of old palm leaves stocked inside a series of cupboards. A big picture of siddhar Agathiyar quickly caught my attention. Then my right thumb impression was taken on a small card and my initial and place of residence were also noted down on the card (my full name wasn’t asked). Then I was asked to wait in the lounge along with the rest of the crowd. Time rolled on, and lot of people in the lounge were called out at regular intervals, informing that their leaf had been identified. As for me, it had been two hours, and no news yet.

I was pondering about how I would prove to my friend that this is fake and convince him tonight. Soon it was lunch time, and I went for a light meal, and returned to the place again. I had whiled away five hours in that strange place, and no news yet! I sighed, and almost confirmed that this whole thing was just a poor old trick. Suddenly, one of the employees appeared in the lounge and called out, “Sanatorium – H, your leaf has been found. You may proceed to the room downstairs!”. Sanatorium was the place where I lived, and H is my initial. Yes, it was me. My palm leaf had been found out.

The story grips. As I anxiously proceeded to the room, an astrologer who seemed religious with his simple outfits and a wide forehead fully covered with holy ash, beckoned me inside. He had a set of old, crippling palm leaves (written in vatteluthu Tamil script). He claimed one of those palm leaves to be mine (WHAT?!). He flipped through the hundreds of palm leaves in the set one by one, and read out some info. Every time before he moved on to the next leaf, he asked if any of the information was about me. After several such questions, he said he brought a wrong piece, and that he’d bring the right one. I could almost hear a loud cynical laugh from my deep insides.

He was back soon with a new set of palm leaves. He asked me so many yes-or-no questions and I almost lost interest in this game, and frantically shook my head for all his questions. As he flipped through the leaves, suddenly he uttered a name and questioned me if that was my dad’s name. I slowly raised my head, looked at him in astonishment and nodded. This was indeed the moment of truth. My dad has a very unique name that is often misspelled, but he uttered my dad’s name in its perfect spelling! I was totally flabbergasted how in the world my dad's name could have been written on that leaf!

Then he sat back, now seemed even more poised, and said that he had identified my own naadi leaf. He continued reading an ancient incomprehensible Tamil poem from the leaf and I was put to shock again- I heard him uttering my mom’s name. He read on, to say that I’ve sought Naadi at my age of 21. ("well, it's not rocket science to say what my age was, after looking at me. But how come my dad and mom’s names?!") He read out a hymn as Agathiyar praising Lord Shiva, and then came my name, what I was studying, how many siblings I have, what my dad and mom’s professions were, etc, etc, etc. I had an uneasy feeling that I was starting to lose the battle. He read out the exact date when I was born, and all the planetary positions during my birth. He also added that I was born on a Friday. But to my joy, this one wasn't true!

I quickly said to him that it was wrong and that I was almost sure that I was rather born on a Wednesday, and not a Friday. With a confident smile, he replied back that he was just reading what’s written on the leaf and asserted that the leaf says that I was born on a Friday and that couldn't be wrong. Then he continued reading. He started to read about my future- when I would start working, where and what will be my profession, whether and when I will fly to a foreign country, when would I get married, so on and so forth, up until the end of my life. I gasped at the moment he uttered my dad’s name, and I remember I breathed again only after he completed reading about my whole life.

Thousands of questions were spawning and proliferating in my mind, from several directions. Is this real, or am I still dreaming?? I could wake up right now, right at this moment and prove that this is all fake! But well, my excited heart rate asserts to me that I’m awake. This is happening for real. But how could it be possible? How could someone have written each and every detail about me, my family and my future, several thousand years ago? My senses were eating me for finding an answer, but in vain. After an hour’s time, I was given a notebook where the whole manuscript was copied on to.

This was truly a mind-boggling experience. All of these seemed to be unquestionably authentic and true, except for my day of birth. Interestingly, just this seemed to be wrong. I quickly sent a text message to my dad: “Dad, was I born on a Friday?!”. I was forced to think about all possible tricks that could have made this possible. I got reminded of a skill that a handful of people possess- ‘Mind-reading’. Some people are supposed to possess this extrasensory skill with which they could “pull out” words from one’s fresh memory. Before a mind-reader would tell what your name was, he would start with, “so, your name is...”. As your mind would be instantly waiting with your name to validate with his answer, a mind-reader can pull it out – as it is commonly believed. I was cross-checking my event with a suspicion of mind-reading. The naadi astrologer could’ve been a mind reader, and that’s how he was able to tell me my name and my parents' names. But there is no explanation for the future predictions. But wait- when I myself thought I was born on a Wednesday, why did he say that to be a Friday?! So, this cannot be mind-reading too. Sigh.. But why just my day of birth was wrong in the palm leaf? I left the place. Besides being thoroughly amazed, I was also confused.

During my journey back home, I was riding a local train that was too noisy and unusually crowded. But I was deaf to the external world. I didn’t hear a thing other than the millions of questions being asked within myself. I was deeply contemplating. “BEEP- BEEP!” My mobile phone’s SMS tone distorts my contemplation.

It’s from dad: “Yes, indeed”.

Now, only the amazement persists.

My Naadi astrology experience- a truly bewitching one!

2010-10-08T21:09:00.000-04:00

It was 6 years ago. I was living with my college friends in the city’s suburb. We never got the real seriousness until it’s the final exam time of the semester. It was such a joyful evening when my friend dropped by my place. Soon my roommates also joined for a chat with him. As we were discussing, rambling and laughing about college trivia, he suddenly started a new topic that jumped off the track of our conversation- it was about ghosts and spirits.

Though I never believed in any of these stories, I did not ever miss a discussion on ghosts. These discussions invariably start with 2 or 3 people and end with a big crowd of 10-12 people. Spooky stories are always enchanting and definitely a crowd puller. Back to the story- my friend said that he had been long suspecting that his house was haunted by a spirit. He also cited some creepy unexplainable incidents like “black images”, “hollow space” “shadows without an object” moving hither and thither at his place. This was happening for long. Only later did he learn from his landlord that the house had been vacant for years, before he moved in. It had been occupied by a family which moved out after a 9-year old girl in the household committed suicide. Though his narrative made us hold breath at irregular periods and left us open-mouthed, to me, it was just a nicely concocted story.

Then he added that the spirit of a killed or a prematurely dead human would lament, cry aloud and beg, on seeing its body being cremated in grave yard, longing to get back to its body. It sounded so irrational to my senses and I argued back. My roommates also started making fun of him for all that he had been saying hitherto. It definitely kindled his wrath and being unable to prove anything that he said, he quickly stood up, and snarled, “You guys may laugh at me now. But you will understand very soon!” He added, “I’m sure you guys won’t believe if I said, you can even know what your previous births were, and where your next birth will be! Naadi astrology tells you that. Go, see it for yourself!” He quickly disappeared from the spot. Even after a long time after he left, his last sentence was haunting me during the darkest times of that night. Rest is the main story.

The word ‘Naadi’ kept resonating in my mind even the following day. I’ve heard about such an astrological practice many times during the previous years. But I was never so interested in seeking it, and even at times when I thought of giving it a try, I was indifferent or I had more important things to do. However, this time, this overwhelming force made me become all the more keen on seeking it. But only for one simple reason- to prove to my friend that all that was just a humbug. The next moment, I was standing in front of this place where Naadi astrology is sought. I couldn’t help myself.

It was just a big house, with a board ("Agathiya Naadi center") hanging in the front. I entered the building with some reluctance as I’ve never been to an astrology place before in life. The place was buzzing with activities and packed with people who I could easily identify to be of different cultures, and some were from different countries too. I noticed a picture of a king who I later understood to be the Maratha king Serfoji, who had preserved the naadi palm leaves. The wall opposite to it was almost left with no space as a lot of paper cuttings of magazine articles had been stuck. It was obvious that each of the paper cuttings was from magazines in different languages such as German, Japanese, Chinese, English, Tamil, etc. I was attracted to an article titled, “Is there a next birth?”. As I was totally immersed into reading the article, I didn’t notice a hand coming towards my shoulder. “Tap!”

To be continued in my next post…

Your life-long diary had been written 4000 years ago by someone else!

2010-09-29T05:19:00.001-04:00

Many of my friends have asked me to write more about Naadi astrology and my own experience with it. Right at the outset, I have to acknowledge that I’ve been an outright skeptic of all forms of astrology prevailing in the world. Almost all forms of astrology practised in the world (like Hindu astrology, Western astrology and Chinese astrology) are based on the relative positions of celestial bodies. But interestingly, Naadi astrology differs from this. It is more of an ‘occult prediction’ recorded on palm leaves supposedly 4000 years ago, for the future human generations on earth. But did Naadi change my perceptions on astrology? What did it do to me? Did it succeed, or fail to prove itself? We’ll see all that in my next post! Before that, let me unravel the mystic and the most interesting Naadi astrology..

Naadi astrology (Naadi jyothidam) has been practised in the state of Tamil Nadu, India, for thousands of years. These were written by ancient Tamil sages called ‘Siththars’. The most famous Siththar of all was Agathiyar. He had written Naadi predictions for almost all human beings in the world- for all generations, including our future generations! These had been taken copies of by several generations, and what we have today are palm leaf manuscripts in Tamil vatteluththu script (though a significant proportion has been lost in time). Anyone who seeks Naadi astrology is taken an impression of their thumb (left for females, right for males). Each unique thumbprint forms an index with which the corresponding set of palm leaves can be identified. These palm leaves can be read out by anyone who knows to read Tamil vatteluthu script (as opposed to only astrologers rendering predictions with the other forms). Nothing other than a thumbprint is required.

The palm leaf manuscript starts with a hymn that praises Lord Shiva, and goes on to say what your name is, what your father’s and mother's names are, when you were born, how many siblings you have, what is your current profession, and goes until it reveals your future life up until death. (Ashtonishing, isn’t it? But how valid is this? We'll see this in my next post!) Well, this is just the basic chapter, which tells an overview of one’s life. There are 11 more chapters which go into detailed predictions about one’s mother, father, siblings, marriage, future spouse (s) and children, relationships, health, diseases, wealth, accidents, rituals that can dilute past bad deeds, business, longevity, etc. Phew.. And not just that- there are also two chapters that talk about your previous birth and where you will be born in your next birth on earth! Creepy enough.

Well, Agathiyar did not write only Naadi astrology, and he is not the only siththar. There were 18 siththars who are considered to be the primary ones. Some of them are Agathiyar, Thirumoolar, Korakkar and Bogar. Each siththar had 8 great powers (siththis) such as Anima (to become as tiny as an atom), Mahima (to become big in unshakeable proportions), Laghima (to become as light as vapour in levitation, Prapti (to enter into other bodies in transmigration). Agathiyar is also said to have lived for 1000 years (Can't take it? Well, the biblical Noah lived for 950 years according to the Old Testament of Bible. Very ancient history is beyond proofs. We’d rather not waste time in pondering if it’s pseudoscience or not). Besides naadi astrology, the other contributions of these ancient Tamil siththars were writings on: Alchemy, Siddha medicine (using herbs), Tamil grammar and Tantra which were in humongous volumes each (here, it’s superfluous to mention about the ancient Tamil literature’s vastness).

Agathiyar Siththar

And finally, why is it called Naadi?! Naadi means ‘to seek’ in Tamil. It essentially means that you will seek Naadi astrology only when you are destined to do so- on the destined date - which would be mentioned in the first few lines of one's Naadi palm leaf!

I mentioned in one of my previous posts encouraging everyone to write and record their life in their diary. Well, perhaps I should take my word back. Why write one if a Siththar had written yours already 4000 years ago?!

Are you proud of what you are?

2010-09-19T19:16:00.004-04:00

During my visit to the Dutch National Archives, I got to read a Dutch East India Company travel journal.

The book was fully in Dutch, and when I was flipping through the musty old pages of the huge book, I saw an introduction to the Tamil language, with the alphabet and basic grammar, running for 10 long pages! My head started spinning instantaneously. I couldn’t digest the fact that the Dutch had meticulously recorded the Tamil alphabet and grammar with substantial detail, in their book in 1672! There is also an illustration showing Tamil people practising to write, on sand. I was totally awestruck, and had to rest for a few moments before I could get back to normal. I assume, had the Dutch people’s language been Tamil, they would have even made all their children learn Tamil Vatteluththu script and Tamil Brahmi script along with the contemporary Tamil, at school!! Well, now, what is the current situation in metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu? -Most school students are learning English as first language and French as second language. Fantastic.

Ancient Tamilians learning to write on sand

This is the world’s last classical language that is still in usage today. We don’t have the other classical languages such as Latin, Attic Greek, Sanskrit, and Classical Chinese in day-to-day usage. All we have today is the ancient language that originated as early as 1500 BCE - endured the tests of time - grew in all wealth of literature, art and science, without any boundaries to prosperity- Tamil. Excavations(a b) in Southern Tamil Nadu unleashed the world's largest three-tier pre-historic cemetery dating back to 1500 BCE- 500 BCE, with rudimentary Tamil Brahmi engravings on burial urns (the spoken-language's origin should be of a much earlier period). Moreover, artifacts dating circa 100 BCE with Tamil Brahmi engravings have been found in large amounts in Egypt(c), Srilanka, Thailand, etc. This is indeed the language of the Cholas who ruled the Indian peninsula, up to the Kalinga (Orissa) and rising high up to Bengal, and also comprising what are today’s Srilanka, Bangladesh, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore and Maldives together!

The Chola Empire during 900-1300 CE

Vatteleththu Tamil script on a Tanjavur temple's walls

The unfounded passion towards the English language could have originated since the colonial period when there was a high demand for English-speaking Indians for jobs. The Germans, Japanese and French are never lured by foreign languages, and this speaks volumes as to why these countries flourish and also why some foreign countries study their languages! Well, not just with Tamil, it's high time all other Indian languages also saw an elevation in people’s own attitudes towards their languages. One who speaks low of his own land, culture and language can only be someone who feels low of himself (lacking self-esteem). Such a person would certainly feel everything external to him and distant to him to be much worthier. But why would we choose to be such a person, we can rather be dignified of ourselves to be the descendents of a long and rich cultural heritage- by all means!

Bringing huge hopes, this decade sees the youth deeply comprehending the worth of Tamil, showing rays of prosperity after long! History is a cycle; the prosperity in all its grandeur is to be repeated again! The next Golden age of Tamil literature and culture is in the near horizon. It is soon to rise up again, with all its magnificence and power!

Can you face your great grandson’s grandson?

2010-09-09T19:11:00.000-04:00

Since its beginning circa 3300 BCE, the Indus valley civilization flourished with sophisticated urban planning, sanitation systems and writing system until its doom in 1300 BCE. What happened after that? What made people leave their celebrated cities and migrate towards the east, to the Indo-gangetic plain? There is a big gap in history between the Indus valley civilization and the migration into the gangetic plain. There are no historical records on this. Likewise, the golden age of the Tamil civilization, the Sangam age lasted thousands of years until 300 AD when legendary Tamil literatures like Thirukkural were produced and the mighty Chola, Pandya and Cheras ruled the peninsula. But what happened just after that? 300 to 600 AD is said to be the dark ages of the 'Kalabrahs' rule, of which there are no historical documents. Who were they? Why did no one write about them? These are forgotten history, lost in time, and non-revivable.

This has been the fate of the Indians, for thousands and thousands of years.
A glance through the long timeline of Indian history, shows that no one has been evidently interested in history, and in recording history. This attitude runs until today- with today’s Indians. Though we have had the best of the literature, philosophy, architecture in their colossal amounts, we find no 'historical records' as such. There is no mention of the word ‘history’ in our epics. All we have are inscriptions and foreigners’ accounts of India that lead to some historical knowledge.

Palm-leaf manuscripts

Most of the ancient literatures were palm-leaf manuscripts. Throwing them into the Kaveri river during the Tamil festival of 'Adi Perukku' had been a tradition! Some of the valuable works have been passed down over the years by word of mouth, within a close line of heirs and finally lost in time. We are indebted for the ancient Indian history that we know of today, to the European colonialists and many other foreign archaeologists. The culture hasn’t changed yet. Historians and archaeologists aren’t of great professions; engineers and doctors seem to be the only respectable professions of today’s India. Neither are we interested in knowing about and preserving our own family history! Only a handful of people like the Maratha ruler Serfoji II of Thanjavur had been intrigued by history and made great attempts to preserve history. The memory of mankind is at stake. We are obligated to record the heritage of humanity for posterity, before its forgotten forever.

I’ve been writing diary since my 5th standard. I would vouch that the most interesting book of all, in one’s lifetime can only be his own diary. Simply because it’s a trip to his own past. By writing your journal you create your own time machine! Because you can relive your magical past, ever as you wish!

Well, I’m writing my diaries and I’m also trying to record and preserve some of my ancestors’ history. I would leave a legacy of privilege to the successors to revisit an enchanting past. In 2170 AD, my great grandson’s grandson would question me about what history I have preserved for him. I will have an answer and I will be spared. Will you be?

"He’s so HHHOT..!!"

2010-08-31T20:47:00.000-04:00

This whole thing is turning into a mission now. My second visit to the Dutch national archives happened today. I got to meet an in-house VOC researcher at the archives who is an indologist. It was so exciting to discuss about Dutch East India company history and Tuticorin history with him. (Wait! this doesn't have anything to do with the title)

I had requested for some more maps, and was puzzled to see thin but super-long cartons being brought to me later. Each of these maps were vast, being almost 4x3 feet in size! What an experience it was, to feel the antique maps in their original form and texture! I also saw one of those maps in microfiche (micro-reproduction technique of preservation). Just to keep you all intrigued, here’s a section of a map showing Rama's bridge connecting India and Srilanka.

My passion for the old, started with an interesting incident in childhood. One of my earliest hobbies was coin-collection. I had always been collecting new coins which got released in the year. I was the first one to hold such coins amongst all in my circle. But only later did I realize that my new coin loses its charm the next year, when it’s nothing but a lame coin. It struck to me that the charm and the value of an ancient coin goes higher and higher every day, every year, unlike my today's new coin!

I’ve had several such fads before. Some recent ones were Sithar, Naadi astrology, and Dracula. But these fads never missed to leave a big deal of knowledge-legacy to me. (I’m yet to write about some of these, which I will, soon).

Well, what’s with the title of this post?! Yesterday, I was talking about all this stuff to one of my friends. At one point, I understood that he came to a conclusion that I was a nerd! But he’s mistaken. You know what, the world’s changing. The cute girls of the generation Z would look at such a person and mumble, “Woowww, he’s so HHHOT..!!”.

I learnt Indian history from the Dutch today!

2010-08-29T17:39:00.000-04:00

Dutch East India Company. As this bug bites me more and more every day, I finally ended up travelling to The Hague where the Dutch National Archives is located, which is the treasure house of all the antique VOC records!

As I entered the building, I felt like setting foot on a venture of a lifetime (like boarding the Titanic! :). I got the 3 historical documents that I had requested for. These were HUGE books, with sizes of around 1 feet x 1.5 feet,and weighing almost 4 KGs each! These were the travel journals prepared by Dutch east India company in circa 1672 (yes, almost 340 year-old books!!). Such a journal was published almost each time when a VOC ship sailed back to Holland. The books I read, had precise details on Dutch occupation in India, with detailed maps of the cities and towns, the culture of the inhabitants, their food habits, the vegetation, etc. etc. It was just mind blowing to see several maps of my birthplace, the port town of Tuticorin (had been spelt as Tute Coryn). [image credits: Nationaal Archief] One of the maps shows intricate details of pearl fishermen (Paravas community) displaying oysters in the market, fished from the sea, while some Dutch men stand by. It also shows a VOC ship supervising the fishing activities. Sea farers diving into the sea for pearl fishing can also be seen- and much more intricate details that today’s Tuticoriners would not even know that these existed here!

Well, Tuticorin is just one place where the VOC had a trading post. I also saw several maps, and records of Masulipatnam (Machilipatnam), Pulicat (Pazhaverkadu), Negapatnam (Nagapattinam), Cotchin (Cochin), Covelang (Kovalam), and many more places. And remember, today’s India was not the only country under the VOC. Cities like New Amsterdam (New York city), Cape of Good Hope (Cape Town), Batavia (Jakarta, Indonesia) were too!

Here’s a VOC map of port town Tutecoryn (1672) and a Google map of today’s Tuticorin city (2010). I still like the VOC map of Tutecoryn much more, with its beautifully illustrative and intricate details!

View Larger Map

Well, we must not forget the most important thing here- 400 years ago, our place’s map had been drawn by a European company, and today, our place’s map is being created by an American company.
What are WE doing????? It’s heart-breaking indeed.

Dead Dutch men and My VOC coins?

2010-08-26T18:41:00.000-04:00

As I just wake up from a long slumber of 3 years, there are many intriguing events happening in my life these days, motivating me to write more. During the day when I purchased VOC coins from the old coins shop, I wondered about the source of those coins. When I asked the staff, he said, those coins were from Indonesia (former Dutch East Indies). He added, “These coins had been kept on the eyes of the dead Dutchmen when they were buried in the graveyard. Now that renovations are happening in modern day Indonesia, these graveyards are being dug out and demolished, and that's how we get these coins”. This was certainly exciting to listen, but was a little creepy too..

More research on this makes things even more interesting. In pre-Christian times, coins were used to be placed with the dead, as payment for Charon, the boatman of the Underworld, who ferried souls across the river Styx to the land of the dead. And those who could not pay the fee had to wander the shores for a hundred years. So, this should have been practiced by the Dutch too. But, wait, why do Indians follow this tradition?! (I refrain myself from posting an Indian corpse with a coin on the forehead for obvious reasons. It’s very creepy already!) Did European colonialists bring this tradition to India? Or do Greek and Indian mythologies share ideas?

Well, other things apart, the most touching event is that after telling all this story to my dad, he was concerned about the origin of the coin, and advised me to smear some holy ash on it (to ward off any evil!). A doctor of his calibre cannot be superstitious. But his advice was on concern and care for his beloved son!

1730 AD Dutch East India coins in Netherlands!

2010-08-24T15:13:00.000-04:00

It feels as if it’s been a million years since I blogged. What’s the reason for me to blog again, after 3 long years? Because this day seemed to be a revamp of my coin-collection hobby as a kid!

Though my plan was to buy something else in the market, I inadvertently ran into an old coins shop at Rotterdam (Netherlands). I’ve always loved unearthing an old artifact - painting it in color - trying to bring it into real - and running it vividly in my multi-dimensional exotic mind of imaginative, simulated environment (yeah, it’s a sentence full of metaphors). As I was peeking at the window of this shop- the antique coins yanked me into the shop. I knew definitely that nothing would be affordable inside, but still the pull force was heavy and I yielded to it. I enquired if they have any Dutch East India Company (VOC) coins. (For people for whom Dutch East Indies doesn’t paint a colorful picture on your mind once you hear it, and for the people who think- WTH is that, click over the link). I was brought 5 beautiful teeny VOC coins each minted in circa 1730. I was beaming (automatically). I enquired the price (just for formality, and to cover up the blatant fact that I was just window-shopping). He said it was €350 each. It was expected. But I just enquired if there was any VOC artifact that is of a later period, with a lesser price tag. But there was nothing. I just tried confirming the price again- then I got to understand that it was actually €3 and 50 cents each!!! I was filled with shock and ecstasy. It’s the feeling one may get when he sees his love-proposal get a positive nod, back from his girl! Filled with joy, I picked ‘em all with my two hands and said “You are mine!”. Bought them, and came back home.

Well, how did I happen to get them for so less, though being real ones? Is it because I bought them in Netherlands? Or is that because MY OWN legacy is coming back to me?! (Well, enough of imagination, Mr. Hemanth van Tutecorijn!) But of course, this is an awesome start to my research on Dutch East Indies’ occupation in Tuticorin (my birth place) from 1658 to 1825!

Great Mysteries of the world!

2007-08-07T16:21:00.001-04:00

[this is a very old post with data collected over the internet. Please read my recent post on this, for much more interesting and concise information]

It's so beautiful to ponder about and explore the mysteries of the world! One such Great mystery that still remains subtle and not-so-obvious to the world is- Naadi Astrology, a form of astrology practised in Tamil Nadu, India. These astrological manuscripts of the Tamil Sages (Sithars) who lived 3,000 years ago, made a sheer Naadi-skeptic like me, to start believe in it! My true experience was mind-blowing!! Read on to explore more!

Hemanth Thiru.

NAADI ASTROLOGY
Nadi astrology (naadi jothidam) is a form of astrology practised in Tamil Nadu, India. It is based on the belief that the past, present and the future lives of all humans were foreseen by Hindu sages (Sithars) in ancient times on Palm leaves.
THE HISTORY:
According to Hindu faith, thousands of years ago sages who had the power to look in the past and future of the entire universe recorded the future of people who were living and who are going to live, in the form of Tamil verses, as Palm Leaf Manuscripts. The text is written in Vatteluttu, which is an ancient Tamil script. There are different schools of thought as to the author of these leaves. They were said to be written down by different Hindu sages, who had divine revelations. Some of the sages include Agasthiya, Brighu, Kaushika, Vyasa, Valmiki and Vasishtha. This doctrine of astrology was made famous by astrologers around the Vaitheeswaran Temple in the state of Tamil Nadu and is still practiced around the temple by their descendents.
The source point of Nadi Astrology leaves can be traced back to approximately more than 2000 years. These Nadi leaves were initially stored in the premises of Tanjore Saraswati Mahal Library of Tamilnadu. The British rulers later showed interest in the Nadi leaves concerned with herbs and medicine, future prediction etc; but ironically left most of the Nadi prediction leaves to their loyal people. Some leaves got destroyed and the remaining were auctioned during the British rule. These Nadi leaves were obtained and possessed by the families of astrologers in Vaitheeswaran Temple. This is an art passed down the years from one generation to the other. [1]
The notion that astrologers claim these predictions were made for all human beings who have lived or will ever live is not completely true. Nadi astrologers say only a certain number of souls' future predictions are there in the leaves. They are reported cases of exact match in the past details and future predictions. Since the prophecy is written in the form of Tamil verses, their interpretation is subject to the nadi astrologer's way of understanding and interpreting them. But those who can understand poetic Tamil (professors, etc.) can understand the verses without the help of an astrologer.
THE PROCEDURE:
Usually, the astrologer asks for the thumb impression (right hand for males and left hand for females). The astrologer then searches his repository of leaves for the seeker's classification of thumb print. Finally, the minimum possible set of matching leaves is brought. Every leaf corresponds to some individual and hence will bear the birth and kinship details of its seeker. So the seeker is asked a series of questions, based on the verses, so as to find the exact match. These questions are to be answered a yes or no. The exact leaf of seeker is said to get only 'yes' responses from the seeker. Once the exact leaf is found, the astrology tells the seeker's name, parents name, spouse name and many other details about his future, since they are all written in the leaf. The first chapter (kaandam) in the leaf has the general overview of its seeker's life. Then the kandams that follow this are specific ones like Marriage, Profession, etc. The list of chapters and details are as follows: [2]
1. It contains a gist of future predictions corresponding to the 12 houses of the horoscope, a general overview of the seeker's life with age. Is also a general summary of the 11 kandams that follows it:
2. This Kandam is about Family, Education, Eyes, Money and Intuition.
3. This Kandam is about Brothers & Sisters, Relationships between them and self.
4. This Kandam is about Mother and Comforts through House, Land and Vehicles.
5. This Kandam is about Children and births, reason for not having any, future lifestyle of children.
6. This Kandam is about troubles and hardships due to Disease, Debts Enemies, Litigations or Cases.
7. This Kandam is about first Union or Marriage and Status of married life. Also contains hints of valuable information about the name of the future spouse, horoscope, age of marriage, and some characteristic features of the spouse etc.
8. This Kandam is about lifespan and Longetivity, Accidents and dangers with indication of time and age during one's lifetime.
9. This Kandam is about Father, Wealth, Visits to holy places, Fortune; Benefit from the preaching's of Guru and holy people, charitable deeds and social life.
10. This Kandam is about Career, Job, Profession and Business, Good and Bad times in career. Future predictions about growth, prosperity and losses in one's job or business.
11. This Kandam is about Second or further marriages, Profits in business etc.
12. This Kandam is about Expenditures, Foreign Visits, Next birth and Salvation.
Separate Kandams:
13. Shanti Pariharam: This Kandam is about past life or birth, bad and good deeds and a series of rituals that can dilute the effect of past bad deeds.
14. Deeksha Kandam: This Kandam is about the methods of preparing the Mantra Raksha, that has the power to shield the self from evil forces of jealous and envy. Raksha ensures relatively better rewards for one's efforts and success in deeds.
15. Avushada Kandam: This Kandam is about medicines, prescription suggested to those suffering from chronic diseases.
Initially, only the first chapter is read to the seeker. If the seeker needs further details on some particular chapter (like Business, Health, Marriage etc), then the corresponding chapter's verses are read to him/her. The seeker is also advised rituals which can correct the future mishappenings, there by leading to a choice.
THE POWER:
It is very powerful and accurate. There is no prediction involved - only translation/interpretaion of what is written on the leaf. Hence it does not require the huge competence levels required for good accuracy that other forms of astrologies demand from the astrologer (in this case, only a nadi reader). In most cases, only people facing (or going to face) problems in life, get attracted to this astrology. Hence there is typically a remedy like Deeksha parihar (Pooja) and Shanthi parihar which involves dakshina (donation), which makes many people skeptical of the reader. The truth is, some bad karma in some previous life is responsible for the problems and some other good karma is responsible for the remedy (Pooja) that is indicated in the leaf. Sometimes, the motive of the astrology can be to drive people into spiritual path more steadily by demonstrating a power that cannot be explained with any known material science. Many people are stunned by the accuracy and, for the first time in their lives, believe in the concepts of soul and reincarnation in action. Many times, a sound advice or a wise warning is given, being completely knowledgeable of the limitations of the current life and the planetary positions, on matters like health (both physical and mental), career, relationships and spiritual progress. Sometimes, instead of a giving a single path to your future, it can give multiple paths conditional to certain future action that you take, which is in your own hands. Some people who have got the nadi astrology done multiple times in their lives after some gap have found extra information that is more relevant for the latter stage and more clarity in certain aspects that the former covered. That could be the concepts like, "limited free will" and "divine grace" in action.
Typically, the proof that your leaf is selected properly from the bundle of leaves, is the information of your personal details given in the leaf, like, the name, age, date of birth, parents names', siblings' information, education, current problems. Typically, they record the translation on a cassette and give it to you. They make the planetary chart (horoscope or kundali) based on the information of time of birth given in the leaf. They also copy whatever is written on the leaf to a notebook which they will give you. They tell you to come with this book, in case you you need any clarifications in the future.
And, my own experience...... to be posted soon!

the great tamil continent- the sunken- the extinct

2007-03-17T07:32:00.002-04:00

(Below is an old article. For a more interesting and detailed information, please read the latest article here:
The Lost World of Kumari Kandam)

Hi folks!
'Known is a drop; Unknown is an ocean'. I'm an out-right archaeology-buff.
What's there in the wreck of the Titanic ship and exploring the remnants?! Are you aware that a whole continent of ancient Tamils submerged??
Out of the 7 collossal temples of Mahapalipuram, 6 submerged?
A wealthy commercial port city, the capital of Chola Kingdom- Poompuhar is totally sunken?
Are U Interested in Archaelogy and Ancient History?....
Aware of 'The Great ancient Tamil Continent- Kumari Kandam' ?......No?
This is for you.
Happy (Sad, really) Reading!

Kumari Kandam- The Great Tamil Continent (the submerged, the extinct)
"To the ancient Tamil world natural calamities like the tsunami that hit the east coast on 26 December 2004 is not unknown," says professor A.Shanmugathas, head of the department of Tamil, Jaffna University. The continent of Lemuria is referred as "Kumari Kandam" in ancient Tamil literature. Tamil is one of the world's classical languages. Tamil has continuous historical records for more than 4000 years and Tamil language was recognized as a classical language in India (beside the other being Sanscrit). Tamil does not belong to the Indo-European language family.
"One can imagine the strength and magnitude of the Tidal wave required devouring a mountainous area that had existed in the ancient coastal belt of the Tamil world," says professor Shanmugathas.

He also refers to records in Mahavansa, the Buddhist chronicle of Sri Lanka.

The Sangam Literature, which is more than 2000 years old, makes reference to similar natural catastrophes (perooly) that have affected the Tamil speaking world - spreading from Cape Comarin in the South to the Vindian ranges in the North. "The history records it that tidal destruction (Kadatkol) has occurred from time to time and these facts are established by the archeological excavations. They are not imaginary accounts," he adds. This is supported by modern scientific theories.

Professor Karsten M. Storetvedt, the chair in geomagnetism at the University of Bergen, Norway, and an author of the Global Wrench Theory (GWT), says that the equator regions have always been most prone to natural catastrophes like earthquakes and volcano eruptions. A part of explanation is that planet rotation and especially the difference in rotation speed between poles and equator force earth mantel to strain and to break more easily where the strain is strongest, that is at the equator regions. These tectonic processes played important role in the disappearance of the ancient continent known as Lemuria (Kumari Kandam) to western scholars. Sri Lanka together with India, Indonesia and Malaysia were a part of this continent. Many islands in the Pacific and Indian oceans are remnants of this continent that in ancient time covered the whole area of today's ocean. Storetvedt, who seems to reject the theory of continental drift and plate tectonics, says that descriptions of cataclysms in early literature when land suddenly went underwater are logical. But they should be proven to be scientific facts. This can be done with the help of sea-floor analysis that is possible to carry out. Modern theories find supportive evidences both in ancient literature and language history.