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Showing posts from January, 2013

Manabharana Is Not Malay (Manabharana Bukan Melayu)

In recent times, an alarming narrative has emerged within the Malaysian blogosphere, suggesting a historical event that appears to be a misinterpretation or perhaps a deliberate misinformation campaign. The claim revolves around a so called Malay prince named Manabharana from Srivijaya, purportedly attacking and conquering the Chola kingdom. This misleading story has gained traction and is spreading like wildfire across various social media platforms. The need to address and rectify such inaccuracies is crucial not only for the sake of historical accuracy but also for fostering a responsible and informed online community. To delve into the matter, it is essential to clarify that historical records reveal the existence of multiple individuals named Manabharana throughout history. However, a nuanced understanding reveals that all these figures were Tamils (Damila) hailing from the Pandya kingdom, with references to their exploits documented in Tamil inscriptions and Sri Lankan chronicles
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Read in Tamil - The Easier Way?

Scripts are basically symbols or characters used to convey a message in written format. What you are reading now is in the English language. But it is written using the Roman Script. The Roman Script is also known as the Latin Script. A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z The Tamil language is not written in the Roman Script. It is written in the Vatteluttu Script. The letters are rounded. Vatteluttu Script contains syllabic letters unlike the alphabetic letters of the Roman Script. The Roman Script contains only 26 letters. 5 vowels and 21 consonants. It is alphabetic, so there is no separate letters for syllables. Vatteluttu Script used for Tamil contains 12 vowels and 18 consonants. Since it is a syllabic script, each syllable will have a letter to represent it. Which means, it has 12 + 18 + (12 X 18) = 246 letters plus a special letter called Aytam, a total of 247 letters. This does not include the 5 loan Sanskrit consonants. If those were to be included.
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The Vellalar Community

The 150 clans which makes the present Vellalar community. The Tamils are a collection of many communities. Each of this community is made of several clans. You can even call it tribes. Among the many prominent Tamil communities, the Vellalar community is perhaps the largest. It is also the most diverse. The Vellalar community is made of 150 endogamous clans. Endogamous clans do not marry outside their clan. However, modernization and migrations to foreign countries is changing this. Many modern day Vellalars marry Vellalars of other clans and sometimes, even non-Vellalars. There are many theories on the origins of the Vellalars. One of it is that they are the descendants of ancient Velir rulers. The Velirs were chieftains of the sangam age. According to legend, Velirs were brought from the north by Sage Agastya when the city Dwarka went under the sea. The Velirs chieftains had their own domains. Although they were vassals to the superior Pandya, Chola and Chera kings, some o
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Bali Trip 2011 - Part 3

OKA Agriculture Bali Bali is also famous for its coffee. Besides the ordinary coffee, there is a special coffee known as the Luwak coffee. The Balinese feed the civet cats a.k.a musang with coffee beans. These cats eat the bean and excrete it. On other words, they shit the beans out. It is then collected, cleaned and dried. The dried beans are then made into Luwak coffee drink. The OKA Agriculture Bali also produce cocoas and other products. Take a look at the pictures. Vasuge at the entrance Wayan checking the coffee beans Cocoa Luwak coffee beans Coffee beans Coffee beans Cocoa beans Cinnamon, Vannila and Ginger Roasting the coffee beans Luwak coffee beans A note on Luwak coffee A worker preparing the drinks for us to taste Different types of drinks. Bali coffee, Luwak, Cocoa, Ginger Tea, Lemon Grass Tea Products for sale Lemon Grass Ginseng Plant Soaps Bali Coffee Bali Cigars mad
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Popular posts from this blog

The Indian confusion - Race, Caste, Clan & Surnames

Before you read, keep in mind that this was not written with the intention to divide the people. It was written with the intention to explain the meaning of each group. The write up on my journey in Bali is still in progress. I have to transfer some image files in order to upload them. So I thought of writing about the biggest confusion in the Indian Malaysian community. It is a sensitive one too. But clarification should be given. Else, when are we going to understand it? To my friends of other races who happened to read my blog, this will probably be enlightening as many may not be aware of our demographics. First of all, there are two main classification for us in Malaysia. Indian & Ceylonese. Many assume it to be a homogenous race like Chinese, but it isn't. The Chinese have many languages but they have a common language called Mandarin. They also have one writing script. This is what makes the over 1 billion Chinese worldwide as a homogenous race. Ancient Chinese
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Dogs of Tamil Nadu

Pictures taken from Google. Credit goes to the various people who uploaded them. I apologise for not being able to identify the original owner of the pics. Whenever we speak of dogs, we tend to focus on the European breeds.  This is due to their popularity and demand. Unknown to many, India has about 88 native dog breeds. Six of these breeds are from the southern state of Tamil Nadu. Most of these dogs from Tamil Nadu evolved naturally. That makes them more suitable to the hot climate in the south. Furthermore, these dogs require less medical attention as their immune system is stronger, making them less prone to disease which are common among the European breeds. In Tamil Nadu, we can find breeds like the famous Rajapalayam, Kombai, Alangu Mastiff, Chippiparai, Kanni and Malayeri. Both the Alangu Mastiff and Malayeri are now extinct. Malayeri The Malayeri (hill climber) was a shepherd dog used by the tribals to herd sheeps. It was commonly found in the hills of Tamil Nadu-K
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How To Find Your Kula Deivam?

*DISCLAIMER-Article written from a believer's perspective.  One of the most common questions I get from my readers is  "How do I find my Kula Deivam?" Kula Deivam is the patron deity of your lineage. Some families have more than 1 deity.  The easiest way to know your Kula Deivam is of course by knowing the ancestral village of your patrilineal lineage (father's side).  Usually the Kula Deivam shrines will be in the ancestral village. If the family has migrated to several villages, then the shrine will usually be in the main village where the family originated from. Knowing your caste or clan background is also helpful in finding out more about your Kula Deivam. For females, they have an advantage. They also inherit the Kula Deivam from their matrilineal lineage (mother's side). So if you are a woman, your mother's Kula Deivam (from her mother) will continue to be present throughout your life. If you are married, your husband's Kula Deivam (from
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