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Folk ‘Tails’ from Kerala [by Ratheesh]

“Why do we need to line up Elephants? Why can’t we have cows instead?”. That was me, asking my grandfather a very simple question. Both of us were among the crowd at Panangattukara Pooram (Yes, not Thrissur Pooram; there are zillions of other Poorams in Kerala). As my Grandpa stood there pretending he did not hear me through the ‘Panchavadyam’ (Folk music performed during festivities), I continued; “They can always make smaller dresses for the cows right? Of course, no one can climb on top of it and stand… or can they…”. That little incident was forgotten really long ago. My grandpa never answered that question and eventually he passed away.

Today, the larger question persists. Why! Why are these mere mortals dressing up such beautiful wild animals in ridiculous attire and lining them up for visual pleasure. Were these creations of god destined to be treated like slaves? Don’t they deserve better?

“I have wandered into a lunatic asylum!”. Those were the words of Swami Vivekananda after he toured Kerala and saw the caste based atrocities there. That was over half a century ago. But if you wander through Kerala now, you will be surprised to know that the statement holds good even today. The only difference is that now I am talking about atrocities committed on animals; I will try to stick to Elephants though.

For many of us, Kerala stands for Thrissur Pooram, Elephants (with and without make-up), Beaches, Backwaters, Kathakali, Cultural Programs, Ayurveda and a lot of Coconuts. But it is time we looked beyond that. At times I am proud when I run into a complete stranger, like a Kannadiga, North Indian or even an American and they are so happy to tell me their experiences of Kerala. But my head hangs in shame the moment pictures of Elephants tortured and street dogs killed go through my head. That’s the Kerala I see. The one I wish I didn’t have to see.

As a young boy I have committed the sin of going to the ubiquitous Poorams, along with my immediate and other family members. I have touched the rough Elephant skin as they struggle to move past human ocean standing all around Banyan Trees. I have stood in my verandah at my ancestral home and watched them tied to our trees. I have fed them large rice balls out of my hand with the constant fear of being crushed or eaten up. Eventually, the same memories crush me today. I wonder why no one, not a single elder told me how these magnificent animals were captured, tortured and trained before they could play the fool for us.

These gentle giants are captured using large pits, into which they fall; sometimes fatally injuring themselves in the process. Then they are dragged out of these pits and kept continuously chained for days. Although any Elephant owner/handler would deny the use of weapons to train elephants, the truth is, they do. They continuously keep this wild animal in control by using tools such as the ‘Ankusha’, which is a sharp hook attached to a rod. I have personally seen Elephants with split ears due to continuous prodding by the Mahout (I did not know the reason then).

Although I have not personally seen torture scenes that happen behind the rosy picture that Kerala paints for us, the visuals from a typical Pooram itself is proof. For that you will have to look through the odd-number of bejeweled elephants and coloured umbrellas. Take a closer look; you will see the Elephants moving their head side to side restlessly; you will see them flapping their ears to beat the summer heat, yearning for a tree’s shade; you will see them shifting their weight from right leg to the left waiting to rest; you will see them searching for some dust to bathe themselves in since the owners scrubbed them clean; you will see an animal that is begging for some dignity.

What is interesting is, I can’t fool any Malayali with my sweet talk about Elephants. The Malayalis have already fooled themselves into believing they are ‘Elephant Lovers’. That is what I get to hear when I talk about this issue. Some of my closest people have accused me of being ‘Unpatriotic’ so to speak. Most of them tend to think that ‘Just because my fore-fathers loved elephants, I should’. Now ‘love’ elephants, I do too; but not in a way that I make a fool out of it. I hate the use elephants in Poorams for the same reason that I hate Zoos.

People like to believe that they and other fellow humans (all humans) have done our best for the Elephants by providing them with large temple fields and lots of palm leaves to eat. But the ethical question is, did the elephant come into your home asking to be taken care of? No! They did not. You took them away from their homes, tortured them till they were driven to desperation and loyalty, and now provided them with what you believe is the best they can get.

As a ten year old, I had again enquired why the Elephant was crying continuously. I do not recollect getting a satisfactory answer then, but later in my life learnt the physiological reasons behind it. But today, I would like to believe that the Elephant cries, so that we may go back home smiling. The only statement I can make is; If you really ‘love’ an Elephant, let it go; let it go into the last remaining forests in Kerala; let them roam the wild and be themselves; let them live a life that they deserve.

Your Choice [by Ratheesh]

Do we always have to choose among items/theories/ideologies as presented to us by presumably knowledgeable people? It is an interesting thought, because to be honest, we don’t have to choose. Just the fact that you are made to choose indicates that the person providing you with choices has narrowed down the answers to what ‘he’ or ‘she’ perceives as the only possibilities. This thought occurred to me when I read an article ‘Confronting Empire’ written by Arundhati Roy. Quoting from the article, George Bush provides you this choice ‘You are either with us or them’ (i.e with the U.S or the Terrorists). Arundhati’s question is, do we really have to choose between an imperialistic United States of America and some fanatic terrorists. The answer is; we don’t have to.

More often than not, you and me have been presented with choices to become a non-vegetarian, a vegetarian, a vegan or a fruitarian. But do we really need to make a decision just because someone has made the classifications? Many a times I have spoken to my friends about why I am a vegetarian. But not once I have asked anyone to become one. The reason again is the same. I hate to ask someone to choose a lifestyle which I believe is correct. What I do believe is in facts, and the kind of facts from which you make your own deductions. Your choice (categorically) does not matter; but what matters is whether you have understood the impact of your actions and whether you are true to your own self.

What prompted me to write this article is the documentary called ‘Earthlings’ which I recently watched (links provided at the end). This documentary according to me is one of the most meaningful, emotional and powerful ones I have watched till date. It is about the abuse of nature (specifically animals) to satiate the homo sapein’s greed. Incidentally ‘Homo Sapien’ means ‘Wise Man’; but its left for us to decide if we have been true to that nomenclature.

There is nothing shown in ‘Earthlings’ that I did not know. But at the same time, it is disturbing and makes me hang my head in shame. The documentary talks about the various reasons for which animals are abused and treated like inanimate objects. Specifically, the areas of abuse are for food, clothing, entertainment, sports and in the name of science.

Although almost always the arguments raised by individuals fighting for animal rights delve into the area of non-vegetarianism, many of them forget that eating animals is not something that can be entirely avoided or eradicated. So the issue that needs to be looked into first is not whether we all need to start eating veggies, but what are our sensibilities and knowledge regarding how the meat comes to your table. Most my non-vegetarian friends have never really put a thought into how the animal is killed; how much blood is shed; how much pain is undergone by the animal and how many times it must have silently pleaded to the butcher before it lost its life and satisfied their palate. Many of my friends have dismissed these thoughts are sheer panic and melodrama, but I wish they knew better.

It is not just food we must be worried about (although that is the larger worry), but it is the utter disregard by human beings for the welfare of other creations of god when it comes to satisfying many of his other needs (greeds?). Clothing for one. How many of us have really bothered how that leather wallet in our pocket was made; or how that expensive lacoste belt was manufactured. Did we bother to inquire? When such topics come up, the usual argument is that from ancient ages man has been using animal products and we continue to do so. But that is far from the truth. Man was only worried about his needs then. And more often than not, he took his bit from the forest; just what he needed, and left the rest as it is. But in the current world, animals are being bred, grown, tortured and killed just for providing us with that expensive bag or coat. Remember that these animals might not have even got their mothers milk and warmth; they would not have known what the plants, insects and the sun looks like. They just lived to die and satify our greed.

We are all currently part of a world that is slowly, but surely disintegrating (and in a way responding to our exploitation). It all started with a Tsunami a few years ago, and there has been no looking back. If you really look closely you will see the connection between our lack of respect for nature and all the issues that we face in this world today. Take a break from your daily race and put a few minutes of thought.

Hoping for a better world.

Links to Earthlings Documentary –

Direct Link (Good quality download):

http://dl.veg-tv.info/Earthlings.avi

(I have not verified if these are good or full):
Google Video version
video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1282796533661048967

Youtube versions (3 parts):
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=GhxKnys7Ryw
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=7sRiH_Owq9U

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=N8U9dw-9U4E

Things you can do to your hair

Faces

Faces

(Moo)ving account of an animal lover’s life [by Ratheesh]

Disclaimer:
(When you see a disclaimer on an article rest assured there is something fishy about it.)
Although with its polite manner and professional etiquette this article might impress you, please beware. This is a cheap marketing gimmick by an animal lover to bring you into his circle. (Sort of like Amway, but we don’t promise to make you rich).

“You both are mad, MAD”, aunty said, stressing on the second “MAD” to make sure we heard it clear. The aunty in question is my wife’s mom, an old lady with chubby cheeks, dimpled chin and a lot of good old features you would love to see in your mom. She loves us a lot, a LOT (this time I am stressing), as any mom would.

So why would she get so articulate about our perceived mental problem today? Truth is, she was not alone. There are many people around us who think we are mad, out of our mind. Reasons? You ask. We are ardent animal lovers. (Ooooooh, I see some of you throwing this article away).

Animal lover, Animal activist; call us anything. We are a special breed. All ten of us in Bangalore (just kidding); there are about 100 of us the last time I counted (Ha Ha). We were born-guilty; guilty for whatever our pathetic forefathers have done to this planet. We constantly try to make corrections. We demand justice (we receive none, but who cares; it is easy to get permission to sit in front of Gandhi’s statue on M.G Road). We spend our money on Animal NGOs who in turn spend it spaying and neutering dogs on the streets so that they don’t bite “your” sorry arses. (“Your” as in someone who is not an animal lover. An animal lover feeds the dogs on his street, so it does not feed on “your” sorry arses).

It is not an awfully big list, but we do try to do our bit to save endangered species from extinction.(Yes! the dodo is extinct, but that is not the only one that has become extinct, you non animal lover! From this point onwards, I choose to call you Non-Animal-Lover. Now, don’t try to get all ‘politically correct’ with man-is-an-animal theory. You should’ve thought of that when you were killing so many animals just for pleasure and for food, you non-animal-lover-cum-non-vegetarian!)

Recently someone asked us what we do on weekends. “We teach English at a school and we work for animals the rest of the time”. The “teach English at school” part evoked lot of interest and appreciation. “Working for animals” evoked reactions similar to the expressions you’d have when you heard Narendra Modi won the Gujarat election a second term (something like “How??”). Animals are after all some sort of side-effect in God’s creation plan.

This is true, but people actually think we animal lovers are wasting our time; some of them think we are not really enthusiastic about it, but do it because somebody asked us to. Some others sympathize with us. (You should see the looks we get when we sit on M.G Road footpath, beside paan stains and dog poop). To summarize, they (you non-animal-lovers) think we are fighting a lost cause. (With so many animals on the brink of extinction, I am tempted to agree). But we will not give up.

“So you guys work for PETA?” our colleague at office asked us. (The kind of guy who does not know nothing about animals). “No”. We do not work for PETA, or any other organization for that matter. But thanks to their great work, PETA seems to have become synonymous with animal activism. No complaints. “Do you love children?” it was our chance to ask. “Yes”, he said. “Do you work for CRY?” We have not spoken to this guy since.

Being an animal lover is a tough job (I should be careful what I call it, some of you cunning fellows might be waiting to prove that we are being paid by Maneka Gandhi). As I said, it is not easy; first we need to convince our family that we are not mentally retarded, then we need to convince the auto driver that we are not criminals (because we are mostly loading his auto with animals, birds or snakes depending on what we do). Then there are various men and women who work at NGOs (for some folks animal loving is a job) who look at us and wonder why we turn up on weekends, all smiling and happy and ready to help them with menial jobs.

Most of us love all animals alike. We all picture ourselves hugging a grizzly bear in a perfect world (a perfect world is one where all non-animal-lover-cum-non-vegetarians have learnt their lessons). But some of us like my wife shriek at the sight of cockroaches (I am guessing many of the fairer sex animal lovers do). Then again, I do not picture myself hugging a cockroach too.

“So you say you are an animal lover?” this guy asked me once. He had the look on his face that reminded me of some lawyer in an movie. “How can you be sure that you do not hurt small insects, like you might crush ants and cockroaches while driving?” he continued. I do not remember my response (I must have smiled or something), but I do remember visualizing crushing him under my tyres some day. If all you losers out there did not (and do not) work towards a perfect world, where all loopholes are closed and all clauses are satisfied, then how can you ask us to strive for that (let me make this clear; we would like to, if you co-operate). Think about it, atleast we try. Not sit in front of the TV and watch some sixteen year olds play cricket or sixty year olds build six packs.

“So when will you be back? Will you come home for lunch?” aunty was at it again. She realized that her taunts were not going to make us give up a juicy protest march (This time some Swamiji was also supporting it for his own publicity). “We heard they are giving us biscuits (Parle-G to be precise, which both dogs and animal lovers love alike)” I replied, as we rode away on our bike, leaving aunty fuming at the gate.

Brother (or Sister) (or Others), we animal lovers are not your enemies, nor are we in need of your sympathy. We represent that part of your soul that is still humane. Accept us and be with us. Let us make this world a wonderful place to live in … for animals.

Give me blood, and I will give you the World Cup [by Sharada]

Recently I came across this ad, which offers, as one of the various attractive prizes, a chance to live your favourite celebrity’s life just for a day.
Just picture this – waking up in a soft bed, with bed coffee being served, having the choicest of gourmet food at your disposal at the snap of a finger, traveling in a luxurious, chauffer driven limousine, with fans trailing behind just to catch a glimpse, socializing with the who’s-who of the film industry, going on a dinner date with an attractive actor… Sounds extremely tempting, isn’t it? You bet.

Well, on second thoughts, I beg to disagree; especially if the celebrity happens to be Mahendra Singh Dhoni, our beloved Indian Cricket Team captain. At this point, some of you might be puzzled; some others might dismiss me as insane. I mean, why on earth would someone not like to be M.S Dhoni? Just look at him, all of 26, commanding an envious paycheck, extremely popular, leading a world champion team successfully, in short, leading a dream-life. Well, almost.

If you are curious to know why, well, for one, I wouldn’t ever take the life of a poor innocent baby goat for my success. Not for my team’s success, not for anything in the world. No, Thank You.
Why would I choose to be a cruel-hearted person, even for a day, when I am not? Why would I choose to keep aside my culture, my values and go back to being an uncultured, barbaric person? Why would I choose to be a hypocrite, hugging my pug on one day and sacrificing an innocent baby goat on another? Why would I tarnish my image and be called a superstitious, pseudo-religious, uneducated fool?
After reading about our cricket captain’s Goat-Sacrifice-for-WorldCup-Success incident (read about it here), I’m not sure how many of you might still go ahead with the idea of swapping your life with the one and only M.S Dhoni, even for a day. I surely wouldn’t. I would personally consider it shameful and demeaning to my personality. Why fancy tainted success that comes at the cost of an innocent life?

Now, some of you might think – what is the big deal? A lot of people engage in such inhumane practices. Why pick on our poor captain alone?
I can think of two reasons why; one, the fact that he is the captain of a world-class cricket team, which goes without saying that he holds a very responsible job. He not only serves as a guide to his team members, but also as a role model to millions of fans all around the world. When you are such a celebrity, your life will be closely watched, and in certain cases, emulated. So you need to take extra caution to do the right thing and ensure your actions do not hurt anybody.
Secondly, being an educated youth of India, he should understand that such superstitions and blind beliefs are to be discouraged and snubbed. It is quite unbelievable to note that in this highly advanced age, educated, well-informed people can fall prey to such blind beliefs.

Now that the damage has already been done, all I can do is hope this incident does not spark off a nation-wide mass murder of innocent animals for the sake of cricket matches. I can only hope that the youth are more rational and not emulate this brutal act blindly. It is our moral responsibility, as citizens of a non-violent country to spread the word and stop such senseless practices in the name of religion. As I continue to live in hope, I recollect Gandhiji’s famous words “The greatness of a nation and it’s moral progress can be judged by the way it’s animals are treated”.

- by Sharada

New One-liner

Today we just created a new one-liner.

“Going on-site for work is like prostitution; you may not like what you are doing, but you still do it for the money”

Feedback on English Classes at Govt. School

Please comment on this post to provide your feedback on
English Classes at Govt. School

Ban the Bulb Campaign by Greenpeace volunteers

Ban the Bulb

We are participating in the Greenpeace campaign for Energy Revolution. This is mainly to Ban the incandescent bulb, which is causing serious damage to the environment.

Blame Them Hang Them [ by Sharada ]

There have been so many cases of dogs killing children in recent times. I have my deepest sympathy for the parents who lost their young kids. It is definitely heartening to understand what they are going through. There is absolutely no doubt that it has been a very shocking incident.

The sad part is the people who are demanding all dogs be killed are neither concerned about the children who died or the dogs. They are selfish souls who only think about their own safety. What surprised me was, in this whole incident, the general emotion was that of anger, not sorrow. This is a very important observation since it reflects the mentality of the people. People have becoming less tolerant, more violent, extremely restless and insensitive.

What we are failing to understand is, animals are a part of nature. They have their own way of living. It is best we leave them to live that way, and not interfere. But humans have exploited them so much that the animals feel insecure. If we observe the behavioral pattern of dogs and humans, we find that in lesser-populated areas, they live in complete harmony. Dog bites, if any are treated as natural disasters and left to nature to take its course.

But as the population increases, the urbanization increased. The struggle for food and space also increased. We have added problems of overcrowded roads, unmanageable traffic, polluted environment and unclean surroundings. With respect to behavior, we have become more aggressive, less tolerant, less loving; and all these have influenced the human-animal relationship too.

People have become less tolerant towards animals and less loving towards their one-time-best-friend, the dogs. This has a direct influence on the animal behavior. Animals, sensitive as they are also start developing similar qualities towards human beings. Added to this, the food and space constraint have forced the dogs to encroach each other’s territories, often leading to bitter fights among themselves.

People are only noticing the direct results of these changes. They fail to see the root cause of the problem and hence the complete picture. On further analysis we find that it is not just the dogs that have turned aggressive, it is humans too. This is clearly seen in road rages, frequent scuffles, and insensitiveness towards others. So, these dog bites are only a small portion of a much larger, more complex problem

Assume for a minute that all dogs are successfully caught and killed. Would that solve all our problems? Would that result in a clean Bangalore with no threat to kids? I feel, infact this would worsen the problem. It would make the kids grow up lesser loving, lesser sensitive. It will increase crime, it will increase people’s temper; make them more aggressive. People who are protesting and demanding the killing of dogs are only thinking short-term. They are only looking at the tiny ripple when an entire Tsunami is out there waiting to happen.

That comes to the question, what is it that can solve this problem now? Of course it is wishful to think. We snap our fingers and all problems get solved. And the easiest way is to get into the blame game. Blame the Govt, blame the authorities, but we are sure that this will not lead us anywhere. We need a full-fledged combined effort from the Govt and the people to find a solution. Let me put down a few points for each category.

Govt:
- Assure the people that it is in complete control.
- Educate people on the rights and wrongs and the probably solutions.
- Use the media to reach out to the masses and educate them about various policies.
- Have a group of knowledgeable people to study the problem in depth without any bias
- Make a plan to dispose garbage effectively and avoid illegal dumping of garbage. This has to be monitored and have strict laws and punishment on violation
- Close down illegal meat shops in residential areas. Provide a proper, regulated monitoring system for this.
- Intensify vaccination of dogs.
- Encourage people to adopt dogs, own them and provide incentives and maybe tax benefits to people who adopt dogs.
- Study the ABC program, its pros and cons. Sterilization is not the ultimate solution for stray dog problem.
- Have a definite plan, and achieve it. Adopt a more proactive approach.

People:
- Stop blaming the Govt for each and every issue
- Understand our responsibilities towards society and follow rules laid down by the Govt.
- Keep surroundings clean, stop throwing waste on the road, open areas; use the waste disposal vans Govt. provides.
- Develop compassion towards animals. Respect live. Be sensitive to animals and educate children.
- Come forward and extend your love towards animals. Adopt a few stray dogs in your area. There will be only plus points in doing so.
- Understand the problem, learn to think logically and work with the authorities to solve it together.
- Spread awareness and take responsibility of things
- Be humane towards all creatures. This is the most important of all. Develop compassion and love.
- Slow down your life.

Stop to smile at a dog on the street. It will smile back. Show them your love and they will give it back to you.