Dr.Jayanthasri Balakrishnan was at her best while speaking about water and conservation during the just concluded Coimbatore Vizha address by her. All the water conservation organisations of this region had decided to thank Mother Nature on the 11 th of January 2020. Coimbatore district had witnessed good rainfall and all the restored water bodies got filled up due to the same.
Dr.Jayanthasri Balakrishnan was at her best while speaking about water and conservation during the just concluded Coimbatore Vizha address by her. All the water conservation organisations of this region had decided to thank Mother Nature on the 11 th of January 2020. Coimbatore district had witnessed good rainfall and all the restored water bodies got filled up due to the same.
It was a moment to celebrate, thank and also move forward. Fortunately we are not suffering from the woes of plenty. The oppourtunity was used by Siruthuli to get everyone under one umbrella and remind the region about our methods which have made Coimbatore the ecological capital of Tamilnadu. Kudos to Saravanan Chandrasekaran of Kumaraguru Institutions for standing in tirelessly. The song ' Mamazhai Pottrudum ' composed by P.P.Subramaniam and rendered by Srividya Narayanan set the tone for the evening. Hon.Minister S.P.Velumani, Collector K.Rajamani I.A.S., Vanitha Mohan of Siruthuli, P.K.Selvaraj of the Athikadavu Kausika Nadhi Mempaatu Sangam graced the occasion and it was presented by Subramaniam of the Nanneri Kazhagam. the public were present in good number. The moment was fabulous for it was a congregation of all the eco warriors of the region.
The speech of Dr.Jayanthasri was evocative and it drove home the message. She was the last speaker for the evening and yet the people held on to their seats. The event Mamazhai Pottrudhum was a grand success.
The scholarly speaker spoke about the water legacy of our region. "The prayers offered in Varanasi contains apologies for having spoilt the waters of the land. Water has been held sacred nationally in our culture and this was done in order to ensure that our people revere the elixir of life. We have a lot of references to water in our own Sangam literature. Different terms are used to describe water bodies and the purposes behind each classification. Kulam, kuttai etc., are the terms among many and they describe the usage literally. All our houses used to have a big vessel and little water within it at every house. We had to use very little of it and pour the used water to a neem tree that was being nurtured nearby. The neem tree used to grow with the water that had been used already. It was really wealth out of waste. Our elders likened water to Lakshmi, the Goddess of wealth and would ask people to handle it well. If someone stated that they spent money like water in the Kongu region it could also mean that they were not wasting it ! One was told not to draw water from the well after sunset for the well had to be given time to set things right within itself. It is high time that we recall these good old traditional practices which sometimes get to be termed as superstition," stated the English Professor who is a also a well known Tamil scholar.
Young couples were kept away from each other in the Tamil month of Adi (mid july to mid august) simply because the child born would be born in the hot summer was a general belief. However our country is known to be hot all through the year. On seeing reason one could understand that Adi was a time when people had to attend to crop work and preservation of water bodies. The youth had to be available in case of a calamity. Therefore this system was used as a solution. The story, Pitukku Mann Sumandha Kadhai in Thiruvilayadal Puranam tells us about the role of the youth with regard to securing the bunds of water bodies.
Dr.Jayanthasri spoke about the lovely Valankulam of the past, "We used to wait in the bus stop near the kulam in order to enjoy the cool breeze. Trichy road was really blessed for it had the kulam on its back yard. We could see it brimming it with water while passing by in a bus. The tiny lanes in between houses would lead to the water body and it was thanks to these lanes that we could see the waters which added to the wealth of our city. The Cheran Transport came in and closed a part of the kulam. I remember Advocate Pa. Kuppuswamy sir beginning a movement for saving Valankulam those days. This happened about 40 years ago. Those were wonderful times. The Kongu bride used to be evaluated on the basis of her ability to deal with water. She used to be given a small sembu (a small water container with a neck) with water. If she used just a little of it and returned with the rest it was considered to be apt. Conservation was important in our society. People took to swimming in the water bodies and not in swimming pools. Everyone understood the importance of trees and they were held sacred."
The story of the well digger was also shared. it was really touching to see how the digger wanted to taste the water even during his time of physical duress. He requests the person getting him water to ensure that the proposed wealthy donor who had offered to sponsor the wall around the well is reminded. Marvellous insight in this story. Dr.Jayanthasri spoke about people labelling kids as hyper or as slow bloomers, "We have imported all these terms from other countries. Was it not Lord Krishna the so called hyper kid who did much for the people. Again was it not the Tamil God Muruga who went around the world on his peacock. We have to recall these stories before becoming judgemental on the kids."
The speech of Dr.Jayanthasri was a message to everyone present. Now it the duty of each one of us to remember our water traditions. "We have been using the word ' superstition ' while being reminded of our ancient traditions. Somehow our quest for the latest has diminished our ability to see the sound reason behind our traditions," stated the dynamic and reason oriented scholar Dr.Jayanthasri Balakrishnan.
India has been a fountainhead in the realm called ' conservation ' and the city of Coimbatore is showing the way forward.