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Showing posts from 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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CMM & Character Assassination

I was dragged into controversy twice this year. The first one happened in August when someone created a fake ID under my profile name. They then spread false news that I was the admin of the infamous Facebook page The Comedy Machas & Machis a.k.a CMM. This issue was then settled when I reported it to FB support. They removed the fake profile. But I don't know what they did with this fake Sharmalan Thevar. God knows who commented what with it. I am not sure why I was framed as the admin of CMM. My blog was also highlighted. It was a time when the original CMM page was about to be closed down. Perhaps someone felt that it was better to put me in trouble and divert the attention of the public. A relative of mine even called up to inform that people were looking for me as they want to take revenge on CMM admins. They then found out that it was a hoax and I am not involved with CMM. So I escaped without harm. Vasuge was pregnant at that time. Imagine the f...
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Intercaste Marriage?

My blog attracted quite a number of people from outside Malaysia. Most of them are Tamils from India. I made a few good friends this way.  An Indian friend of mine recently started a topic on inter caste marriage. Well we exchanged our views and he felt that although one of my idea was good, he doubt it can ever happen in the present era.  A radical one which will surely be rejected by the Tamils in Tamil Nadu. Perhaps we can try it in the diaspora. The usual war cry echoed by most Tamil political party (without sincerity!) is eradication of caste. But not many responded to it in the way they wanted.  Their only victory was eradication of caste surname but people still marry among their own caste. Only 1.3% of weddings in 2011 (Tamil Nadu) were inter caste weddings. The caste sentiment is still strong there. Of course it has many ups and downs.  I am of the opinion that inter caste marriage is not wrong but it should not be at the expense of your own roo...
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The Other Side of Caste Issue

We often hear or read about caste related issues especially the practice of untouchability. Although this is not common in Malaysia, it is still practiced in certain parts of India. Although I am proud of my own clan roots, I am against the practice of untouchability. On other words, I am against hereditary Varna (class), not Jati (clan). People of the same clan are often related to each other. I am still able to some how trace my blood ties with my own clansmen.  Like in the case of a Kandiyar friend who is related to me on my maternal side, we managed to trace our roots going up to several generations.  His great grandmother was in fact born in my maternal grandfather's house back in India. The maternal family of my mother share the same Indian ancestral village as his paternal family. So it is not easy to just throw away these ties. It will be a lie if someone especially in Malaysia tells us that they do not believe in caste. Actually, it is not a matter of bel...
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God & The Messenger

I have always believed that religion and the existence of God should be questioned. However, questioning does not mean one has to loose faith in these two.  People interpret the concept of God differently. Some choose to believe in God due to their own personal experience. Others believe in God because they are told to. It was never a problem to believe or even to disbelieve in God. The crux of the matter has always been how you compare your way of believing with the believes of others.  What causes problem between the different set of people is their view on others who have a different view from them. The very egoistic concept of 'Only we worship the real God' is the root cause of all religious wars.  This egoistic concept is then emphasized by the need to be in certain religion in order to be accepted as true believers of the actual God. The actual God who nobody has seen or interacted with. But again, the problem here is neither the existence nor the non-exist...
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Bujang Valley & Malaysian Indians

Bujang Valley is an ancient archeological site in the northern Malaysian state of Kedah. It contains archeological evidence and structures that shows the ancient Hindu-Buddhist heritage of the state. The temples are known as chandi.  Recently, a not so smart developer demolished a particular chandi believed to be 1200-1300 years old (8th century AD). Suddenly many self proclaimed Indian champions of Bujang Valley became very agitated. MIC and Hindu Sangam became very upset. Indians of Facebook were busy condemning the government for their inaction. All because some Indians claimed that INDIAN HERITAGE was destroyed. Because these champions thought their grandfathers and great grandfathers built it. The chandis were built even before the time of Rajaraja Chola or his son Rajendra Chola. Rajendra Chola attacked ancient Kedah in 11th century AD. That is a few hundred years after the chandis were built. Furthermore, he sent a military expedition but neither he nor his fath...
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The Paraiyars

Thirumavalavan, Dalit activist and president of Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) The Paraiyars are among the most ancient Tamil clans which has stood the test of time. They were also mentioned in the ancient Sangam literature, the Purananooru. The name of this clan comes from the percussion instrument known as Parai. The actual meaning of the Tamil word Parai is 'to speak' or 'to convey'. Malayalam language being a descendent of Tamil managed to retain the use of this word.  Some of you who happened to hear spoken Malayalam would have come across the following: English Can you suggest another hotel?  Malayalam Vere oru hotel parayamo? The Parai drum was used for religious occasions. The art performance which uses the Parai drum is known as Parai Aattam. It is also called as Thappu Aattam by the Telugu speaking Sakkiliyars. After the social change that happened in ancient times, it lost its importance and became associated with funeral rites.  ...
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My Thoughts on Numerology

Today's world is obsessed with many occult practices. Among the many occult practices that became an obsession is Numerology. I have nothing against occult practices. Some of the practices like Palmistry and Indian Astrology have always kindled the interest in me. According to Palmistry and Indian Astrology, no two human being will have the same reading. The lines in our palms are unique. Furthermore, Indian Astrology is calculated based on time of birth, place of birth, latitude and longitude. There are also rules to follow if twins were born, making this branch of occult science a very special one. However, Numerology as what we see today has many flaws. The flaw is not with the numbers, but the system itself. Numerology is based mainly on ones date of birth. Numbers are taken, added and a reading is done. Alphabets are assigned numerical values and names derived from the combination of alphabets are said to have special values. This is believed to have the power to decide on fa...
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Chindians of Nilgiris

An offspring born as a result of marriage between an Indian and Chinese is known as Chindian. This term is very common in Malaysia as there are quite a number of Chindians in my country. Nilgiris Back in the 19th century, there were a lot of Chinese convicts in British Malaya. The prison was not enough to accommodate them so these convicts were sent to a prison in Nilgiris. Nilgiris is a hilly region located in the west of Tamil Nadu. It is known for its natural beauty and tea plantations. During a stormy night in 1868, 12 of these Chinese convicts escaped from the prison. They were arrested 2 weeks later in Malabar (prese nt day Kerala). Some of the Chinese remained in Nilgiris. They married the local Paraiyar tribe women and settled down on the hill slopes between Naduvattam and Gudalur. Their descendants with typical Chinese slant eyes developed into a colony over there. This is one of the earliest records of Chindian families in modern history outside Mal...
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Birds of A Feather Flock Together

The population of our species is currently 7.1 billion. We are in every part inhabitable in this planet. Although we are the same species, breathe the same air, and share the same blood color, we have differentiated ourselves in many ways.  Our ancestors are probably the same but thousands of years of social evolution has divided mankind along many lines. We took different paths, settled in different lands, created different cultures, believe in different Gods, speak different languages but we remain the same when it comes to our strong sense of belonging.  That sense of belonging can be called as tribalism. Tribalism is alive in each one of us. Although the core feeling is the same, the application is different. Take football fans for an example. No matter how good or bad the performance is, a diehard Man Utd fan and a Liverpool fan will never come to a common agreement. Their loyalty to their club is displayed by not just supporting the club of their choice but also b...
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Lord Rama - A vegetarian? Guess not.

Hindus often have a misconception about Hinduism. We often tag it as a vegetarian religion. Hinduism as we know today is actually a collection of various religions native to the Indian subcontinent. Unlike the Abrahamic religions, it is not a one book religion.  Therefore, there are many scriptures and paths within Hinduism. Each may contradict with one another. Each path has its own rules and way of doing things. What is correct for you may not necessarily be correct for me. The Gaudinya Vaishnavites believe that Krishna is the Supreme God. The other Vaishnavites disagree by stating that Vishnu Narayana is the Supreme God and Krishna is just an avatar. Get my point? Many Hindus failed to realize the vast differences within Hinduism itself.  Vegetarianism become popular in India not because of Hinduism but because of Jainism and Buddhism. These were the real promoters of vegetarianism. Only after the arrival of Buddhism and Jainism did vegetarian practice became so ...
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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 Na...
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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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