Tamil Villages The Ancient Spiritual Heart of Tamil Nadu

000
INTRODUCTION
I am Richard Clarke. I am originally from the USA where I lived and worked in
Californias Silicon Valley. My wife and I retired to India seven years ago and came
to Tiruvannamalai because of our connection to Sri Ramana Maharshi and to the Holy
Hill, Arunachala.

When we arrived I started a blog, writing about our experiences of life in India. We
made friends with villagers nearby Tiruvannamalai, and because they knew we were
interested, they started inviting us to village ceremonies and functions. I have a life-
long interest in Anthropology, and I knew right away that I was seeing things about
village culture that were special. I took many photos to document what we were
seeing, and starting writing about it. As I wrote, I researched - as a writer, searching
the internet, not doing the groundbreaking original research being some by some of
you here today and discovered that some of what I was seeing was ancient, being
written of in Sangam literature more than 2000 years ago.

On further investigation I found that the roots of these village functions predated that
arrival of Vedic Hinduism to South India.

Today I will talk about what I have found, and show many photographs, most of
which my wife Carol and I have taken.

I will start with some background on the origins of Tamil Villages, and then discuss
some Tamil Gods and guardians, and Tamil village rites of passage.

Finally I will also discuss the need to study, document, publish and preserve the
special Tamil Village culture.

100 VILLAGE LIFE IS ANCIENT
1) Tamil Village life is ancient
a) South Indian life predates villages. The original population arrived from
Africa about 50,000 years ago. Some think the Dravidians arrived much later,
and brought advancements in agriculture with them. Then the Indo-Europeans,
often called Aryans, displaced the Dravidians to South India. These
Dravidians are the basis for present Tamil Village population.
i) Contemporary genetic anthropology is revealing much specific data about
human migrations. This powerful new tool helps understand human
migrations, prehistory and history.
110 MIGRATION SLIDE
ii) South India was initially populated by the radiation out of Africa, CA
50,000 BPE (before present era), in The Paleolithic Era, long before the
introduction of agriculture. These are the group now called by some
researchers, Austro-Asiatic.
(1) Extensive evidence comes from research using modern genetic
anthropology. An example of this is this chart, from National
Geographics worldwide Geographic project.
(2) This project is a multiyear effort to gather and analyze worldwide
genetic data in collaboration with indigenous and traditional peoples
around the world.
(3) As of 2013 some 600,000 people have contributed their DNA for
analysis.
iii) North India was population from a later radiation out of Africa, about
40,000 BPE, through the Khyber pass on the northwestern frontiers
of the subcontinent.
iv) The oldest genetic population today in South India are Tribals,
descendants of the original Austro-Asiatic population.
v) The Tamil village population is most closely related to the Dravidians,
who are thought to have occupied all of India prior to the arrival of the
Indo-European-speaking nomads, but retreated to southern India to avoid
dominance.
(1) The Dravidians are thought by some to have originated in the Middle
East, and to have brought with them wheat agriculture and cattle
husbandry.
(2) Perhaps millet came with them, too. Millet was grown in the Indus
Valley Civilization, and in ancient Tamil Nadu, (perhaps brought by
the Dravidians as they moved south after the Aryan occupation of
North India).
vi) These Indo-Europeans were probably the Sanskritic Vedic (and Hindu)
population, and perhaps the originators of the caste system.
(1) The genetic mix in India contains significant elements that are a mix of
four genetic types: Austro-Asiatic (AA), Dravidian (DR), and Tibeto-
Burman (TB), and Indo-European (IE).
(a) The Tibeto-Burman population is thought to have come from the
Northeast, and to have brought riced agriculture into India. The
dates are not clear, perhaps 4000-3500 years ago.
(2) Genetic evidence shows a mixing of North and South Indian genetic
types in the period 4000 years to 2000 years ago, and less in the last
2000 years. This supports the ideas of the Indo-Europeans displacing
the Dravidians ito North India to the south, about 3500 years ago.
vii) There is significant genetic variation between South Indian Tribals, and
the various Casted populations. Tribals have much higher proportions of
Austro-Asiatic genetic material. High castes have much more Indo-
European makeup. This Indo-European genetic material decreases in each
lower caste
b) India grew from its villages, which started as India developed and acquired
agriculture, starting about 9000 years ago.
c) Village life is part of everyones history and most family histories.
d) These ancient roots of South Indian Dravidian culture can be seen even now in
the villages.
e) Tamil Village life has remained much the same, even as different rulers came
and went.
f) In the BBC series, Tamil was called, The last remaining classical
civilization.
210 TITLE SLIDE
2) Tamil Nadu villages resist change.
a) Tamil culture has largely developed on its own from its ancient roots, with its
own language, culture and religion.
i) Rice cultivation arrived in South India about 3400 years ago.
ii) Village culture is little changed since the Iron Age, CA 2500 BPE.
(1) Village life took the present form when the Iron Age began in South
India.
(a) The current agricultural Village life had already taken form before
the Iron Age with the advent of rice farming, which was done as an
extended family activity.
(b) The effect of the Iron Age was that some clans and castes (i.e.
probably the Dravidian farmers) prospered and became dominate;
Their villages grew in size and become more numerous. The
original Austro-Asiatic hunter-gathers became marginalized, as
they still are today.
(c) Some scholars equate the beginning of the Iron Age with
the Sangam period, beginning in the 3rd century BC.
iii) Impact of Vedic religion, Buddhism and Jainism mainly felt in the cities,
not in villages. This may have come to South India from the North about
the same time as did iron.
(1) Genetic studies have shown that the Western European genetic content
depends on caste, where high caste Brahmans are much more closely
related to the Western Europeans than are lower castes. Villagers are
primarily lower caste so are less related. This shows the genetic and
cultural separation and relative isolation from the Vedic cultural
impact.
iv) Iron made a big difference
(1) The use of Aruval (sword or sickle) to clear farmland was critical to
the expansion of farmland. Otherwise it was very difficult to clear trees
and brush to make good farm land. It was also an important weapon.
210 ARUVAL FOR FARMING. 220 LONG ARUVAL, 221 ARUVAL IN HANDS
OF VILLAGE GUARDIGN
(a) The longer one was used to clear trees, vital for farming, and as a
weapon.
(2) The iron plough was also important
225 LONGHANDLED PLOUGH, 227 PLOUGH WITH NARROW IRON PIECE
(a) Note how only a small bit of iron was used for this plough.
239 TITLE
b) Tamil village spirituality predates the introduction of Vedic Hinduism to
South India.
i) These were non-agamic practices that do not use Brahmin priests,
scriptures or rituals, with local gods, priests and rituals. .
(1) The Agamas are traditional Hindu scriptures that define various forms
of worship of the gods. Their roots are North Indian (and probably
Aryan in origin).
(2) The traditions shown in this paper are the current versions ancient
South India ones,
ii) Each village had its own set of gods, protectors, celebrations and practices.
I think that in fact, each clan had its own gods, and built shrines to worship
those gods in the villages in which they live. The dominant clan probably
built the main village shrine
iii) Some Tamil Village spirituality has been adopted within Hinduism.
(1) A common practice was to place the ancient village god within the
existing set of Hindu gods, for example Murugan being identified with
Subramanian and as a son of Siva.
iv) Important village deities
240 MURUGAN:
(1) Murugan
(a) It is likely that Murugan was brought to South India by the
Dravidians.
(i) In 2006 a Neolithic hand-held stone axe was found with Indus
Valley script was discovered in Tamil Nadu, establishing a
clear link between the two civilizations. The stone was of local
origin, so the Indus script was inscribed locally in Tamil Nadu.
(ii) In this script, both north and south is a figure thought to
represent Murukan, then a powerful spirit warrior.
(iii)While the megalithic/Iron Age pottery in Tamil Nadu is datable
between 800B.C. and 3 A.D., the Indus script belongs to the
period 2600 B.C. to 1900 B.C. of the mature Harappan period.
1. These findings prove two things:
a. The Neolithic people of South India had interactions
with Indus Valley people
b. They either shared the same language or both the
languages were from the same language tree, Dravidian.
(b) Murugan is the archetypal Tamil male, attractive, masculine, a
great warrior; the ideal male.
(c) Murugans long history with the Tamils is recorded in the Sangam
writings, about 2100 years ago. It looks like it goes back much
longer, to the Dravidians in the Indus Valley. It is said that the
history of Murugan is the history of the Tamil people
(d) Prominent among the Tamils, he was incorporated into the Hindu
set of gods as Hinduism moved into south India. This process is
sometimes called, Sanskritization.
250
(2) Mariamman
(a) Mariamman was an ancient village goddess, and still is today.
(b) She is a main South Indian mother goddess, predominant in the
villages of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and
Maharashtra.
(c) Mri later became closely associated with the Hindu
goddesses Parvati and Durga during the Hindu expansion into
South India.
300 TITLE
3) These ancient traditions are still alive in Tamil villages today. I will show
some current examples of village spirituality, primarily from the
Tiruvannamalai area this will bedone with many photos. Most of these were
taken by my wife and I , some are downloaded from the internet. .
301 TITLE
a) Tamil Village Guardians, gods and goddesses
i) These guardian spirits are known as Kaval deivam in Tamil. These are
non-agamic gods where the worship is not found in Hindu texts.
(1) Terracotta (clay) figures are often used to represent these gods and
protectors.
(2) Peaceful gods, like Mariamman will be in the center of the village.
Warriors like Ayyannar or Karuppaswamy will be placed on the
outskirts (so as to better be able to be a protector from outside forces).
(3) Some of the guardians are gods; some are warriors elevated to hero
status and called upon to bring protection now, like Madurai Veeran.
Some are guardians {sages turned into warriors) for Siva or Parvati.
ii) Primary gods.
302 MARIAMMAN
(1) Mariamman.
(a) In Tamil, the word 'Maari' would mean rain and 'amman' would
literally mean mother but here it is more like "mother nature." She
was believed in and worshipped by the ancient Tamil people to
bring prosperity. This includes bringing rain and fertility, and
curing disease.
(b) The village belongs to the goddess.
(i) Theologically she was there before the village and in fact she
created it.
(ii) Sometimes she is represented only by a head on the soil,
indicating her body is the village and she is rooted in the soil of
the village.
(iii)The villagers live inside or upon the body of the goddess. The
goddess protects the village and is the guardian of the village
boundaries. Outside the village there is no protection from the
goddess.
(c) Blood offerings of animals are commonly sacrificed at festivals of
Mariamman. Whitehead wrote about this in his classic study, The
Village Gods of South India (1921).
(d) Nearly all members of a village participate in the goddess's festival,
even Brahmans and Muslims. The different castes can mix freely.
(e) Mariamman shrines are common in the center of villages.
(i) Mariamman shrines often have an anthill that could be the
resting place of a cobra. Milk and eggs are offered regularly to
propitiate the snake.
(f) Mariamman is a fertility goddess. Devotees pray to Mariamman for
things such as fertility, healthy progeny or a good spouse. The most
favored offering is "pongal."
(g) Mariamman is the family deity for many families in Tamil Nadu.
(i) It is usually a family custom to initially worship the family
deity for any family occasion such as wedding.
(ii) Many families even have a custom of inviting the family deity
first for all occasion in the family.
(iii)The family deity (Kula-theivam) worship is considered more
important in any Hindu festival. The family deity worship runs
through many generations of the family.
(h) March and April are said to be epidemic months of small pox,
chicken pox and measles. . Mariamman cures all so-called "heat-
based" diseases like pox and rashes.
(i) During the summer months in South India (March to June),
people walk miles carrying pots of water mixed
with turmeric and neem leaves to ward off illnesses like
the measles and chicken pox.
(i) Late summer festivals, during the Tamil month Aadi, to ask for
rain. Here are some photos from one of these:
302, 302 S03 TRANCE DANCING.
(i) Trance dancing, celebrations - Sami Aduthal or arulvakku, is
often part of the celebrations
1. This ancient form of dancing was documented in Sangam
writings over 2000 years old.
304, 305 KARRIGAMS
(ii) House to house procession karigams
306 BODY PIERCING
(j) Body piercing is also done at these festivals.
(2) Murugan
421, 422, 423
(a) Murugan was an ancient Tamil protector of villages. According to
the Tamil devotional work, Thiruppugazh, "Murugan never
hesitates to come to the aid of a devotee when called upon in piety
or distress".
(b) It is possible that the agriculture attributes which was associated
with Murugan might have origins in Middle East. There are some
striking common features between the Murugan and Dionysian cult
of Middle East. Both were gods of hills, both are worshiped with
frenzied dance by women .
(c) Murugan was originally a god of the hills, and the formless god
and worshiped as a spirit initially and later in the form of tree and
stone.
(d) As settlements formed and states formed, Murugan also became a
Model War Lord-King. So whenever a King won a battle he was
compared to their god Murugan who was considered to be a model
war lord. Gradually Murugan gained human attributes and
accumulated more myths.
(e) By the late Sangam period the myth of Murgan the war lord and
Lover was popular all over Tamil Nadu.
428 TITLE
iii) Other Guardians
(1) In addition to the main village god in the center of the village, there are
a number of different guardian gods, usually placed on the village
outskirts.
(a) . Most are male, some female. I will give the most details on a male
guardian, Karuppaswamy, to give you an idea of all of what is
involved with these guardians, other than this, most descriptions
will be brief.
(b) In addition to these Tamil gods and goddesses, there is a class of
male warrior figures, munis, that are always associated with Siva or
Paravati.
(2) First the gods. There are a number of folk deities who perform Tamil
village protective roles, of whom Karuppaswamy and Ayyannar are
archetypes.
429, 429
(a) Karuppaswamy is the God of Justice, and has no tolerance of evil.
(i) Depiction and shrines:
1. Karuppu means black in Tamil and is associated with
dark, night, etc. This refers to the legends of the origins of
Karuppaswamy, as (almost) a son of Rama, black due to the
test Rama gave him to verify his paternity.
2. He is both a protective warrior, and one who can grant the
requests of the village people.
3. Karuppaswamy Shrines
a. The Karuppanar Kovil (or shrine) is always found in the
outskirts of the Village. The maintenance of
the temple is taken care of by the whole of the village.
b. His shrine is usually in the open space and will not have
traditional Gopurams like Hindu temples.
c. There will be big statues with weapons.
d. Karuppaswamy is usually depicted as black, wearing a
Turban and a Dhoti with flowers and garlands. He
wields an "Aruval" - a long machete resembling
a scimitar, sometimes a lance, a trident and a
smaller knife.
i. The Aruval is a very significant weapon in Tamil
Nadu and is considered a symbol of Karuppaswamy.
ii. . Some Aruvals may reach the height of 5 feet.
e. There may also be statues of other Goddesses (7
Kannimaar or the 7 Virgins), called Saptha Kannimar,
in his shrines.
f. Animals - a hunting dog (Vettai Naai ), or a lion and
His mount - a white Horse - are usually also found at
the shrine.
4. Karuppaswamy Worship.
a. Often, as part of his worship, a cigar will be lit and
placed in the Deity's mouth. He is also offered Naravam
(toddy, a locally distilled alcohol) or some form of
modern alcohol.
b. The local village priest might offer flowers or Vibhuti
(holy ash) to the god or flowers to the worshippers and
may play the role of an oracle.
c. Various persons within the family or clan are identified
to play to the role of oracle on an annual turn basis.
d. They undertake vradham (a vow, to produce a spiritual
benefit, needed for the function) and maintain chastity
and purity during the period of vradham, before
Karuppaswamy festivals. .
e. During the festivals, oracles get into trance state (Saami
aadudhal) and deliver counseling messages to the group
assembled there without bias.
f. The normal problems addressed are family troubles,
financial issues and local community and social issues.
These get resolved within the community with the
agreement of local ancestral god through an oracle.
g. Whenever the wishes of the people are granted, they
give their offerings to Him based on what they vowed to
offer.
5. Here are a number of variants . The typical Karuppaswamy
variants are: Karuppu:Karuppu, Sanglilikarupan, Aagaya
Karuppu (Thanjavur, Amaravathy), Maarnatu karuppu,
Manda Karuppu, Munnadi Karuppu, Samaya Karuppu,
Sinna Karuppu, Peria Karuppu,Santhana Karuppu,Thundi,
Karuppu,Malayala Karuppu, Sappani Karuppu,
Sonehkarupu.
430, 430, 431, 432
(b) Ayyannar is a guardian deity who protects the village. Just about
every village in Tamil Nadu has an Ayyanar shrine.
(i) Terracotta horses are usually found outside the temple. These
are given to the god as steeds for his night time patrols. He will
patrol the outskirts of the village at night to keep it safe from
harm.
440
(c) Madurai Veeran, a legendary hero and warrior, often protecting
Mariamman shrines.
450
(d) Muniyappan -Protector of the innocent and the valiant.
470
(e) Maadan, or Sudalai Maadan swamy (Sudalai means burial
ground/ pyre and Sudalai maadan means guardian of burial
ground).
(i) He is considered to be the son of Shiva and Parvati.
(ii) He seems to have originated as an ancestral guardian spirit of
villages.
(iii)He is the God of the dispossessed.
(3) Godesses, (most names as a form of Amman -
480
(a) Kateri Amman (Kateri means vampire).
(i) Worshiped also as a "Kaval Deivam" guardian spirit
(ii) She accepts all alcoholic beverages, now mostly with White
and Brown Rum. Followed with Cigars or Cigarettes
1. Kateri Amma uses the White rum for healing. She would
ask for a Female to offer her white rum, White meaning
pure so when it flows through the body of the Female it can
cure and cleanse the inside.
2. The white rum will stream through the body and burn out
the problems. One doesnt drink the Alcohol, but only offer
it to Kateri amman, Her power and Shakti can cure you by
drinking the Alcohol.
3. The main issue that Kateri Amman takes care of is Belly
Problems and women with menstrual cycle problems,
490 ANGALA PARMESHWA
(b) Ankalamma is a name given to the Tamil village deity, Angala
Parameshwa
(i) Ankalamma is a non-Vedic deity.
(ii) She originated as a fierce guardian figure.
1. In the rituals dedicated to her, she is appeased with blood.
(iii)Ankalamma's shrines are usually located outside of the village
in groves of trees.
1. They are usually not proper temples, but very simple stone
structures.
(iv) She is considered one of the fiercest forms of the mother
Goddess Amman
491 MAN DRESSES AS THE GODDESS, 492 LEMON
SHIRT, 493 LEMONS SEWN ONTO SKIN.
(v) Mayana Kollai celebrated for her the day after Maha Sivaratri.
Men and boys will dress us as the goddess, and feature body
piercing, and wearing shiirts made with lemons on strings,
sewn through the skin.
494 KALI
(c) Kali or Kali Amman was considered as the cause for cholera
495 PERIYACHI
(d) Periyachi Amman. The fierce Guardian of children and mothers
496 MUNIS AT PACHIAIMANN KOIL, TIRUVANNAMALAI
(4) Finally the Muniandis
(a) Muniandi refers to the Munis worshipped by the Tamils.
(i) The Munis are a class of male guardians which are classified as
Siva Gana, attendants of Siva (and Parvati). They are servants
of the Supreme God Siva and his consort, Parvatii.
(ii) The Munis could refer to former warriors, kings or sages who
achieved the status of a Muni after their human death.
500, 501, GROVE SOUTH OF TIRUVANNAMALAI
503 GUARDIANS AT ITS ENTRANCE, HORSES AND DOGS,
MURUGANS SPEAR,
505 OLF TERRA COTTSA HORSES,
509 ALTAR WITH STONE GODS AND TRIDENTS
511 SWING FOR THE GODS
513 CRUDE TERRA COTTA FIGURES,
515 STONE GODS,
517 TERRA COTTA GODS,
519 DISCARDED GODS
b) Sacred Groves - Kovil Kadu, or Swami shola
i) These is an ancient tradition, probably reaching back prior to the Iron Age,
and are non-agamic practices.
(1) They are written of in ancient Sangam literature, more than 2000 years
old.
(2) The grove will be consecrated to the local village god.
(3) The village sacred groves are generally dedicated to Amman, the
goddess of fertility and good health or Ayyanar, village god associated
with the bounty of the earth. His worship is concentrated in rural areas
just about every village in Tamil Nadu - and is worshipped daily and
offered special prayers on full moon and new moon days.
(4) Snake gods are common. Nagas.
ii) Per M. Amirthalingam, there are 503 Sacred Groves remaining in Tamil
Nadu. This is reduced from about 750 groves 50 years ago.
iii) Sacred Groves are taken care of either by the nearby community, or
specific families within the community. They are cared for because of the
village religious beliefs and traditional rituals that have extended through
several generations. Sometimes the potter who makes the terracotta statues
acts as the priest.
iv) Plants and trees within the groves usually cannot be removed, so plant
species are preserved in these groves.
(1) They are an important source of traditional Ayurvedic medicinal plants
and function as genetic reservoirs of wild species.
v) Many threats exist today.
(1) Urbanization.
(2) Today the traditional belief systems which were fundamental to the
concept of sacred grove conservation are considered mere
superstitions. The rituals are now known to very few people, mostly
belonging to the older generation.
(3) Many groves are suffering due to Sanskritisation or the
transformation of the primitive forms of nature worship into formal
temple worship.
(4) Invasion of weeds such as Eupatorium odoratum, Lantana
camara, Prosopis juliflora and Hyptis suaveolens.
(5) Human activities that were previously taboo, such as dead wood
collection, biomass gathering, lopping of tender branches and green
leaves for goats, creation of footpaths, cattle grazing, mining of sand
and clay, brick-making and collection of wild fruits, vegetables,
medicinal plants, fruit-eating bats and fireflies, are affecting the
ecology of the sacred groves.
520 TITLE
c) The Tamil Family
i) The Tamil family is integral to these villages. The basis of the village is
the small family farm, limited by the number of family members to work
it. The main crop is rice, and at times like planting requires many workers,
usually provided by the women of the family
ii) A person is born into a family and into a village. Sometimes the family is
the village: everyone in the village is related.
(1) The rites of the family reinforce the identity within the family. Rites of
the village support identity with the village.
(2) A child growing up in this system knows well his or her place in
society. On one hand this brings a deep security. On the other it can
bring resistance to new experiences and ideas..
iii) Family = clan = caste. Clans, which are ancient social organizations,
certainly came earlier than caste.
iv) Family temples and functions.
551, 552
(1) Each family has a temple and performs ties to it and at it. One example
is an annual pooja to it.
(2) IN this village, this is a Marianne function, with a blood offering to the
goddess. Animal sacrifice as a part of this is common, like a goat. .
553, 554, 555, 556, 557, 558
(3) After the sacrifice there will be a shared meal, like mutton biryani.
These villagers would not throw away good food. Shared meals are a
common part of all family functions.
559, 560, 561, 562, 563, 564
v) Rites of passage ceremonies of family
569
vi) These Tamil rites of passage are unique, different from that standard set of
similar rites done in North India. This is another case where elements of
the ancient culture is still in place.
(1) In these rites there are roles for people of both the mothers and
fathers family. They serve to keep the extended family of the child
intact and functional. As an example, in the first haircut and the ear-
piercing ceremonies, the child is to be held by a brother of the mother,
a maternal uncle.
vii) Some Tamil rites of passage.
570
(1) Bangle Ceremony.
571, 572, 573, 574, 575, 576, 577, 578, 579
580
(2) Baby naming ceremony.
581, 581
590
(3) First Haircut.
591, 591, 592, 593, 594, 595, 596, 597, 599, 600, 602, 603
609
(4) Coming of age for a woman.
610, 611, 612, 613, 615, 616, 617, 168, 619, 621, 622, 623, 624, 625,
626, 627, 628, 629
(5) Marriage.
649
(6) Death, cremation, and afterward.
650, 651, 652, 653, 654, 655, 655, 655, 655,
660, 660, 661, 661,, 662, 662, 662, 662, 662, 662. 662.
663, 665, 665, 666, 667
d) To see these you need to have relationships with villagers. Usually these must
be developed over some time. Then you may be invited into the family to
observe and document the ceremony.
670
4) Change is happening now in Tamil Villages.
a) Public school.
b) Family Planning with reduced number of children
c) Green Revolution agriculture, with purchased seeds and chemicals.
d) Electricity and TV
e) Mobile Phones
f) Movement into cities for economic reasons.
g) Abandoned elders, due to children moving to cities and family problems.
h) Two new challenges will add further risks
i) Smart Phones
ii) Global Warming
i) Villages today
701
5) Can this heritage be protected?
702, 705, 706
a) Now it is needed to study, document, publish and protect the ancient culture of
the Tamil Villages.
709, 710
b) In the USA the farm houses and villages from my own childhood have
vanished. This can happen here! Where are the families now?
c) It is important now to record and catalogue Tamil village traditions. This is
best done by Tamil researchers, since they have a closer ability to understand
the language and traditions of the villagers. A central site updated with this
research,, maybe something like www.en..tamilwiki.org, could provide access
to the English speaking world.
d) What can be done to nourish and preserve todays villages?
i) Agricultural revolution
(1) Organic, improve the soil to improve the crops, use compost not
purchased chemicals. .
(2) Use your own seeds dont need to buy.
800
(3) One of the best examples is SRI System of Rice Intensification - is a
well-developed system proven to improve yields and profitability in
Tamil farms.
(a) It was developed in 1983 by the French Jesuit Father Henri de
Laulani in Madagascar
(b) SRI is an agro-ecological methodology for increasing the
productivity of irrigated rice by changing the management of
plants, soil, water and nutrients
(c) Uses less water, about half. Less seed. Again about half, improved
harvests and yield by 10 100%. Uses less chemical fertilizer and
weed control chemicals. Lower cash investment for the farmer.
(4) Lower cash investment and improved yields mean improved
profitability for the farmer.
ii) Help marketing of crops
(1) Village farmers co-ops.
(2) Better roads to get fresh crops to market.
iii) Strengthen laws and enforcement of laws to protect farmland from
developers and to encourage family farms in the villages.
e) Improved farms means more children will stay in the village as adults.
f) What else can be done?
g) Who is working on these issues?
h) What can you do?


Sources
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Village_deities_of_Tamil_Nadu
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariamman
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aiyanar
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madurai_Veeran
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Periyachi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudalai_Maadan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muniandi
http://www.karuppar.com/blog/arul-vaaku-secrets-is-trance-real/
http://www.astroved.com/karuppasamy_rituals.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karuppu_Sami
http://www.shaktikali.net/kateriamma.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_groves_of_India
http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/y9882e/y9882e14.htm
http://www.ecoheritage.cpreec.org/innerpageof.php?$mFJyBfKPkE6
http://genome.cshlp.org/content/13/10/2277.full
https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/human-journey/
http://ces.iisc.ernet.in/hpg/cesmg/peopling.html
http://sri.ciifad.cornell.edu/index.html
http://www.philtar.ac.uk/encyclopedia/hindu/ascetic/mariam.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genographic_Project
http://genome.cshlp.org/content/13/10/2277.full
http://www.rkmp.co.in/general-domain/history-and-evolution/history-of-rice-
cultivation-in-india
http://karkanirka.org/2008/05/11/murugan4/
http://murugan.org/research/zvelebil-tamil_traditions-intro.htm
http://hindu.com/thehindu/thscrip/print.pl?file=2008050353942200.htm&date=2008/0
5/03/&prd=th&
M. Amirthalingam, Sacred Groves of Tamil Nadu A Survey, CPR Environmental
Education Centre, Chennai, India, p. 191, 1998