The Indian Spot billed Duck

 A rather common bird in the water bodies across the country, the male has a red spot on the base of the bill hence the name. 

Akka Mahadevi, an enigmatic woman

I have seen Akka Mahadevi’s pictures in small shops around Karnataka, a saintly naked woman covered in her own braids. I was quite intrigued but somehow didn’t pursue the matter. The other day I was at Haveri, a non-descript town, and was going through the sites and came across Akka Mahadevi. Her birth place happens to be about 70kms from Haveri which falls in Shimoga district (unlike what is mentioned in websites, you take a bus to Shiralkoppa and then to Udugani -it is mentioned as Uduthadi in websites, but you ask locals they haven’t heard!!). The roads are narrow so it will take about three hours and above in bus. So here I was at the birthplace of Akka Mahadevi and staring at her golden painted statue on a hillock.

Akka Mahadevi was a 12^th century bhakti movement saint and poet (essentially she wrote vachanas); you could see a comparison to Meera and Andal. Unfortunately though as is the case in India, the mediocre society has classified her into some narrow sects and has since appropriated her into a divine figure, intact with a temple. Veershaiva started with egalitarian intent is reduced to caste like sect called lingayats (hindu sect that bury their dead) and are a potent political force with superior intent in pecking order, just another instance of reducing everything to its mediocre base. 

Though I find these repulsive, the temple dedicated to her has uniqueness of being an all-woman affair. The deity, priest and managing committee are all woman!! Quite a respite from patriarchal expressions of religion, and the ensuing cringe. The story goes that the king of the region wanted to forcefully marry her, she in turn strips herself and walks off, never to wear cloths again!! If you can understand how primitive our society is, even now, in terms of traditions crushing individual freedom, then you will realise the significance of Akka Mahadevi. And that makes, arrogating her into divine fold, furthermore tragic. Shockingly the temple of Akka Mahadevi also doubles up as centre for blessing childless couple, with strategically placed cradle all decked up with baby toy. What can be more repulsive? A revolutionary woman like Akka Mahadevi reduced to conservative utilitarian conceptions of society that very carefully places itself in patriarchal norms. Final stroke of insult was that the deified Akka Mahadevi was in marble stone, as is the trend these days –gods as “pure white”, and decked in red saree.

I am without pride of caste
Without pride of resolute will am I.
I have cast away the arrogance of riches,
Of the pride of learning also I have none.
No manners of pride dare come near me,
For Thou hast blest me with Thy Grace.

 I bought a book from the counter Akka Mahadevi Life And Vachana’s by Leela Devi Prasad, a badly translated thin book that shouldn’t cost 60R, and came across these lines “…but in her appearance, she was like any other woman. The society at large could not see her as any different for any woman of good character and high dignity, the identification was linked to her family. For her righteousness, her character and her husband’s identification was considered important….but Akka Mahadevi explains her relationship in totally way. A woman’s spiritual attainment need to be linked with anything else excepting her own spiritual power…thus Akka was born a woman in some respects but she matched man in many ways”. I doubt whether Akka Mahadevi was trying to match men, as is being interpreted, because that will be accepting patriarchy as reference point. The pointers of packaging Akka to the modern world seems to be hinged on these lines, as I understand from my observations. I feel quite sorry for this misuse and lodge my strong protest. I also want to know during these period women of lower sections who may not be wearing proper cloths were “woman of good character and high dignity”? It seems the purity brigade has taken over the legacy of Akka Mahadevi. I am reminded of Bharatnatyam, essentially a devadasi dance form that is now completely appropriated by temple squatters and stultified as their divine niche.       

 Akka Mahadevi used her spiritual strength to revolt against social system, her presence steadfastly challenged the patriarchy and ordained place of woman in society. She rose above these; it is no coincidence that she sought blessings of saint Basava, a social reformer and not some temple squatter. She declared herself to be married to the god (in this case Mallikarjuna, a form of Shiva) thus challenging the whole conception of ritual religion. Her actions questioned woman as essential family embellishment and regressive values so derived. She walked naked to demolish the myth of woman as centre of societal pride and her body as arbitration of cultural references. 

To the shameless girl
Wearing the white Jasmine Lord’s
Light of morning,
You fool,
Where’s the need for cover and jewel?

 

She strode her own path and my hunch is that she put up the façade of ‘married to the god’ as a fence against the overwhelmingly conservative society; she used bhakti movement to assert herself. It is a denial rather than superior assertion. It also not a coincidence that among common people –though Akka is sanskritised and sought to be purified, is essentially a representation of female power.  

Oh hunger stay, stay

Oh hunger stay, stay

Oh desire stay, stay

Oh sleep stay, stay

Oh anger stay, stay

Oh attachment stay, stay

Oh greed stay, stay

Oh pride stay, stay

Oh jealous stay, stay

I am carrying a letter to the god.

   

Akka Mahadevi remains a definitive reference for female rebellion but also an important figure in the anti-Brahminical and anti-caste movement that thrived for just society about 800years back. She chose to wander naked, unmarried and unescorted by male. She remained independent from male domination. She did not rely on guidance from any male figures. Traditionally, it was believed that only ‘high caste’ men were able to become renouncers and Hindu society identified women with family and sexual pleasures, and thus were not seen to possess the ability to become ascetics. She rejected these traditional roles of men and women and strove to present the independent strength of the female saint.

As long as woman is woman, then

A man defiles her;

As long as man is man,

A woman defiles him.

When the mind’s taint is gone, is there room for the body’s taint?...

Sunlight made visible
(English version by A. K. Ramanujan)

Sunlight made visible
the whole length of sky,
movement of wind,
leaf, flower, all six colours
on tree, bush and creeper:
                        all this
is the day’s worship.

The light of moon, star and fire,
lightnings and all things
that go by the name of light
are the night’s worship.

                  Night and day
                  in your worship
                  I forget myself

O lord white as jasmine.

Monkey on monkeyman's stick

     Monkey on monkeyman's stick
     puppet at the end of a string

I've played as you've played
I've spoken as you've told me
I've been as you let me be

     O engineer of the world
     lord white as jasmine

     I've run
     till you cried halt.

People, male and female,

People,
male and female,
blush when a cloth covering their shame
comes loose
               When the lord of lives
lives drowned without a face
in the world, how can you be modest?

When all the world is the eye of the lord,
onlooking everywhere, what can you
cover and conceal?

The lure of miniature elephants: I am quite besotted to elephants wherever I travel I keep an eye open for miniature elephants. Over the years I have a fair collection, the picture herein is only a part. From Kashmiri paper mache to Pakistani onyx to Jabalpur marbles to Karnataka sandalwood to Bidari to Rajasthani….