Ecological interactions

History seeks to understand human beings as they have lived ,worked, and thought in

relation to rest of the world and nature through changes brought about by time. American

environmental historian William Cronon said history must make ecological

sense.(J.Donald Hughes .What is environmental history? Polity press .Cambridge UK and

Malden USA 2006)And Thycidus had opined that history is politics and could be studied

in the present ,not in the past.(The use and abuse of history .Finlay .M.I. Ed Pimlico

2000).Study of any discipline whether it be history,philosophy,numerical science, calculus

as differential equations or a language like Sanskrit needs effort and application in life. If

there is differential equations in a book ,a student who does not know calculus will not be

able to comprehend it. That is, study of a special discipline needs the prerequisite of study

of certain other things. If one has to understand the economical and ecological political

agrarian India of the present and lead it to a better future ,the prerequisite is an

understanding of its past .

The geneology is the most popular pursuit in the internet at present (the other two being

personal finance and pornography showing the interest of the majority in worldly pursuits

of wealth and sex or artha and kaama) and is better than the other two interests.(Who do

you think you are? The essential guide to tracing your family history. Dan

Waddell.2004)Meera Syal found that her family records were kept faithfully in a small

village temple in Lasara in Punjab ,N.W.India.This is a practice done in temples of holy

cities around India according to the author. In Haridwar on banks of Ganga the geneology

of Syal family is kept in a book called the Bahi by a priest and she got it from them and it

had a 250 year old family tree. The names to the tree are added when the members die by

the priest. Therefore the long lists of geneology kept by great Kula guru /priests like Vyasa
/Vasishta /Gargya and their Gurukula for ages ,of the Chandravansi/Sooryavansi/Yadava

kings is not myth but chronological history.

When we study history of a small village we have to understand the spatial and temporal

scales (modified from Dincauze 2000).

Spatial and temporal scales (Environmental archeology. Theoretical and practical

approaches. Nick Branch, Mathew Canti,Peter Calaer,Chris Turney .Publishers Hodden

Arnold 2005).

Here applying this to Punnayurkulam ,our study area we have :

SPATIAL Area(Km) Spatial unit
Mega 5.1 X 10 8th
<10 8th Earth
East hemisphere, Asian continent
Macro 10 4th -10 7th Region, major physiographic unit. India
Meso 10 2th -10 4th
1-10 2th Subregion .South India.
Locality Kerala
Micro ,<1 Activity area .Kolpuncha of Punnayurkulam
TEMPORAL DURATION(YRS) TEMPORAL UNIT
Mega <1 million Evolution of plants and animals
Macro 10000-1 million Glacial antiglacial biomic changes
Meso- 100-10000 Vegetation migration
Micro <1-100 Woodland clearence

Thus we are studying the spatiotemporal environmemt of Kol puncha of Punnayurkulam

which is a meso environment spatially and a meso to macro environment temporally from

available literature studies.

Evolutionary continuum of people plant interaction (Modified from Harris &

G.C.Hillman ed.Foraging and farming ,the evolution of plant domestication. 11-26

London.Unwin Hyman.):-

PLANT EXPLOITATION ACTIVITY ECOLOGICAL EFFECT FOODYIELDING SYSTEM
Burning vegetation 1Reduction of competition,
2Acclerated recycling of mineral nutrients
3 Stimulation of asexual reproduction
4 Selection for animal or ephemeral habit
5 Synchronization of footing Wild plant procuring (Foraging)
Gathering and collecting Casual dispersal of piropagules Same as above
Protective tending 1 Reduction of competition
2 Local soil disturbances Same as above
Replacement planting /sowing Maintainance of plant population in the wild Wild plant production with minimum tillage
Transplanting and sowing Dispersal of piropagules to new habitats Same as above
Weeding Reduction of competition
Soil modification Same as above
Harvesting Selection of dispersal mechanism (both +ve and –ve) Same as above
Storage Selection and redistribution of propagules Same as above
Drainage,irrigation Enhance productivity
Soil modification Same as above
Land clearence Transformation of vegetation,composition and structure Cultivation with systematic tillage
Systematic soil tillage Modify soil texture,structure and fertility Same as above
Domestication Propagation of genotypic and phenotypic variants Agriculture(farming)
Cultivars Cultivation of domesticated crops Evolutionary differentiation of agricultural system.


With these ,the socioeconomic trends happen in time as follows:

1.Increasing sedentary/settled life ,settlement size, density and duration of occupation

2.Increasing population density ,locally, regionally and continentally

3.Increasing social complexity like ranking and stratifications in society and formation of

state .

All these are stage by stage processes and all the tasks are conducted in all stages by

different people of the Indian population ,even today.

In sequence of stages reduction in wild food procurement ,and expansion of agricultural

activities happen. In South East Asia the wild food securement stage is from 12000-10000

yrs ago. Domestication of plants and animals 10000 yrs ago.

From the chronology Vyasa and Valmiki gives and the information obtained from the

Vedic literature we can say that Indians have been using agriculture,irrigation,ploughing

and domestication of crops, animals and their cross-breeding as well as selection of

women and men for better seeds and kshethra for better children (purity of race)at the

same time allowing cross breeding in all races to form mixture of races. And the time span

from chronology appears as equal to or even before that .Because the gene of the

endogamously breeding Perumal kallar of Tamil Naadu is 50000-70000 yrs according to

genetic studies and this is the tertiary epoch before Pleistocene .(before end of last glacial

stage in N Europe when Europe was only a sheet of ice.)

Epochs and geological periods :
Time (yrs BP) Epoch Geological period
0-3000 Modern historical
3000-10000 Holocene Quaternary
10000-14000 Pleistocene Quaternary
14000-1.7 million Tertiary Archeologically upper, middle and lower Paleolithic

Time yrs BP N America S America SEEuropeGreece SEurope,Italy,
France NEurope
Britain Env.Ch N.Europe
0 inca
1000 Maize Roman
2000 Classical pd Grece Rome Iron
3000 Sunflowe Late bronze Climatic deterioration
4000 Sunflowe
5000 Aegean,early bronze Cu age,mixed farming Early cultivers,mixed farming Lime decline

6000 Archaic Elms decline
7000 Maize Early neolithc farming
8000 Climatic optimum
9000 Early mechanized farming Early Neolithic foraging&mixed farming
10000 Mesolithic Mesolithic
11000
12000 End of last ice age
13000
40000
1.7million

In Sanskrit Okam means a household or a closed community or a private space.From this

is the Greek word Oikos meaning a household.And ecology is derived from this.

Feeding habits of animals and feeds make them into definite classes (nontaxonomic

subdivision).

plant Animal
Autotrophic(photosynthesis) Heterotrophic feeds on plants and animals
Xerophytes Herbivore
Hydrophytes Carnivore
Mesophytes Omnivore
Saprophytes
Parasites

Major world Biomes(Simmons 1979) is modified here :-

Tropical rain forest High,and constant temp & humidity.high biodiversity.Low lands .South eastasia,S.America,Mesoamerica,parts of India (including Kerala)
Tropical seasonal forests Pronounced wet and dry seasons.
Productivity less than the rain forest.India,SEAsia,North Australia.
Tropical savanna One dry season .Grass land dominate.Africa,Australia,S America
Temperate sclerophyll woodland and scrub Warm dry summer,cool wet winter,trees ,shrubs dominate,SE &SW Australia ,Mediterranean basin ,California ,Chile.
Temperate greenland Low rainfall,NAmerica,Asian steppe,Africa,SAmerica
Deserts Low rainfall low biodiversity. high adaptation.Chile,California,SWAmerica African Sahara ,Middle east
Deciduous forests of temperate climate Pronounced hot and cold seasons. average rainfall.western,¢ral Europe,NEAmerica
Boreal forests Long cold winter. Evergreen forests N Eurasia,N America, Himalayas
Tundra Low temp & rainfall. dominated by low shrubs grasslands. Central Alaska ,Greenland
Mondane (mountains) Complex altitudinal and latitudinal variation in climate. highly adapted biological life
Islands
Seas and freshwater

A simplified model of ecosystem:-

ABIOTIC COMPONENT
Geology
Soil
Climate ABIOTIC FACTORS
Salinity
Precipitation
Temperature
Competition
Predation
Succession
Plants
Animals
Human beings
BIOTIC COMPONENT BIOTIC FACTORS

In Northern Mediterranean(Southern Europe which includes Rome,France,Spain)in 7000

BP farming was introduced and animal husbandry.Wheat,legumes .barley were

grown. Sheep and goat domesticated. And people were hunters. Who introduced farming

and animal husbandry? The four main models proposed are

1.Maritime colonists.

2.Colonists who introduced indigenous population to adopt farming

3.Exchange among indigenous foragers

4.Domestication by indigenous people.

At coastal cave of Italy (Arene Candida) C 800 years coniferous and deciduous trees for

animal fodder existed.Utilisation of cereal was human activity. And Rome was built in

2000 BP.

In Americas 10600-7700 BP agriculture existed .But Europe did not even have an idea of

such a place in that remote time. Who introduced agriculture there ?

In Thames river area 11500-6300BP wild plants, hazel nuts ,acorns and first sign of

human occupation.

8000-3000 BP farming communities

6300-4100 BP, Neolithic culture. domestication of plants, animals shifting cultivation

woodland clearance and cereal cultivation

5000-3500 BP woodlands decline.

Ancient Mesopotamia:-Between Euphrates and Tigris which originate in Taurus

mountains of Armenia ,flow southeast and at Basra join to form a waterway which

continue down to Persian gulf. Northern part is cliffs. Southern part broad alluvial plains
capable of food production. The Ubaid period was from 4500-3500BC ,Uruk period from

3500-2900,Early dynastic from 2900-2370.In 3000 BC urban centers of Uruk,Mari,etc

connected by river transport. The Sumerian grain traded for semiprecious stones of

Iran. Wheat ,barley in southern plains. Meat and fish staple diet.

Eridu(4000 BC) irrigated agriculture. Simple local systems of irrigation, canals

depressions,backslopes etc.Uruk period had canal bunds.The administration was

concerned with de-silting and reservoir construction. Since silt obstructed canals regular

cleaning of canals needed.

Early dynastic (presargonic)pd show a regulator with 648 000 brick and 265000 liters of

bitumen. In larsa royal inscription is seen that “I fashioned the canals”. The need for

irrigation and canal building was the reason for rise of the Sumerian state (Kramer

S.N.The Sumerians .Chicago uty press 963 pp 5).

When there is increase in scale of irrigation, the danger of increase in soil salinity

increases. To overcome this by drainage to the sea, or allowing periods fallow in which

wild plants growth and rain water leaching gradually reduce salt content of top soil

rendering it suitable for crops again. The fallowing system is widely understood and

insisted on by modern rural villagers also (Jacobson in Gibson .1974.Irrigation’s impact

on society.7-20 Tucson uty of Arizona press Gibson.M)A balance have to be achieved

between salinity of irrigation water ,the amount used ,and the depth of the water table.

In early dynastic times salinity problems in fields owned by the temple at Girsu

existed. Similar records through Akkadian and Ur 111 periods seen as curse against

trespassers on boundary stones. The divine intervention was considered a factor.

The field decreased its yields

Repulsed the grains

For being black, the tilth turned white

The broad plain gave birth to wet salt

The womb of earth revolted

No plants came up, the ewe conceived not
.
Salination affected Southern Iraq in three phases. The most serious was between BC

2700-1700.Which lead to shift of power from southern to central Iraq despite of

Euphrateswater between neighbouring cities of Girsu and Uruma.Entemenak,Girsu’s

ruler constructed a canal to get independent water from Tigris.The more irrigation to

west of Girsu and salination increased.Overall decline in productivity around

2400BC.Shift from wheat to saltresistant barley ,southern plain declined political

importance ,leadership passed on to rise of Babylon by 1800 BC .This is an example of

salinity affecting the political power.

Governance became more centralized and large schemes on irrigation works

followed. Taxation increased. Small scale local producers replaced by larger landholders

often absentees. This process affected the salination by reducing implementation of vital

fallow period in which saline soils could recover from high water table induced by

irrigation and salts could be leached out.Salinisation is a local phenomenon. It changed

the wheat-goat economy to barley-sheep type as irrigation progressed and with rise in

population. The well drained areas became complex societies .More marginal soils

became zones of shifting cultivation barely keeping ahead of the environmental

destruction. Overuse or misuse of natural resources thus brought about the destruction of a

civilization by itself. In the case of Australia and North America, in New Zealand by arrival

of Europeans and in Galapagos by arrival of Darwin there was destruction of fauna and

flora and it was manmade.

Herodotus had spoken about Turkey .Herodotus was a Greek and a carian.Who is a

carian?The most famous of all nations due to their military service to the semi mythical

demigod Minos of Crete whose conquests spanned the Aegean. But he didn’t know much

about the legislative measures of Minoas to control population. But Aristotle knew

it. Herodotus said Cariaans were islanders driven out by Dorians and Ionians and forced to

resettle. He mentioned the expatriate Carians of Egypt cutting their foreheads during

festival of Isis showing that they were foreigners and not Egyptians. They served in

various armies and revolted against Darius.In 7thcentury BC they were given lands in

Egypt by pharaoh .

In 1983 a shipwreck from 130 mile south of Bodrum showed that it was from 1310 BC

which was 1000 yrs before Herodotus. It contained the treasures from

Mycenian,Cananite,Cypriot,Egyptian,Kassites,Nubian,and Assyrian civilization nothing

to say about Indian.354 ingots of 10 tons of copper ,one ton tin ingot, which could make

bronze for an entire army, one ton yellow resin,to burn as incense stored in 150 Canaanite

amphoreae,175 ingots of glass ,cobalt,turquoise,lavender,logs of Egyptian ebony, ostrich

shells, elephant tusks, hippopotamus teeth, musical instruments of tortoise shells, Cypriot

ceramics, stylized drinking cups in shape of Ram’s heads,cu caldrons,bowls,womens

jewellery of gold pendents,medallions,bearing images of falcon, hooded cobra, fertility

figures, silver bangles, rings of shells inlaid with glass,signet rings of electrum, agate

beads,carnelian,quartz,faience,ostrich eggshells, gold ring with scarab setting,tiffay

diamond necklace, fabulous gold scarab exactly like the one seen on Nefertiti,the

beautiful wife of 18th dynasty Pharaoh Akhnathen.,tin and bronze figurines, a golden

chalice,duckshaped ivory cosmetic containers, bronze awls,drills,chisels,axes,saws,and

the crew (the bronze age Phoenicians) fished from boat using nets and needles to repair

nets and even a bronze trident was seen in the shipwreck. Bronze

spearheads,arrowheads,swords and daggers were n plenty. This was the nature of the

bronze age international trade. On anticlockwise circular trade route ,sailing northwest

from Canannite Syria, and Palestine to Cyprus ,then to Aegean, and back sometimes far

west Italy and Sardinia via North Africa and Egypt. There were fragments of

three wooden folding writing boards .(diptychs)with a layer of beeswax to scribble on

with stylus. It had corner ivory hinges. It was what probably Homer wrote about:-He sent

to him to Lycia and gave him baneful signs on a wooden writing tablet.(Illiad.book

6).Another pheonician shipwrechk of 1200 BC was then discovered under 90 feet of

water.Followed by 10-20 late bronze age wrecks every year .Homer had mentioned

Phoenician sailors as metalsmiths and its antiquity was thought to be that of 800 BC

before the discovery.That trend changed and the thought thattrade was a Mycennian

monopoly also changed.Mycennians never went around Aegean.They did not have

international trade.The twoway trade was suggested by the manufactured goods of

copper,gold,tin and ivory from near east to the west.And the writing table of wood

existed in 1300-1400 BC and peaceful relations through trade and not through power

politics existed in a well organized manner .Halicarnassus was the Greek city of Persian

empire in a distant corner .And bodrum was a fishing village of 5000 population and

everyne knew the others.Sumer had 10000 population most of the floating population as

tourists/traders.In 4th century BC roman architect Vitruvius saw Halicarnassus as a

naturally fortified place favourable for trade and with a harbour ,and made it his royal

residence.

55 miles south of Baghdad was Babylon,the city of Nebuchadnezzar.King Hezekiah tells

to prophet Isaiah “They are come from a far country.Even far from

Babylon”(2.Kings.20.14).This sentence shows that they considered Babylon as the most

distant place they know of ,and the word even far from means they were aware of the

places beyond Babylon exist but they haven’t known.In 1792 Babylon came into being

which marked the reign of Hammurabi.That was 1300 yrs before Herodotus.Law was

written in stone 8ft of carved black diorite stone.In 604 BC only Nebuchadnazzar 11

came to its throne.He is the antihero of old testament .(Biblical reference in

Kings,chronicles,Ezra,Jeremiah,Daniel,Nehemiah and Esther).In BC 539 Cyrus took

Babylon by sword.To the south of Biblical land of Shinar where the first humans of

Bibles settled and learned to build baked mud bricks (genesis 11.2.3).Herodotus says

Babylon did not have access to medical practice during his times.The sick person was put

in the streets.Everyone should ask what is his/her problem.And give advice on what

remedy is known to them from experience or heresay.

But they had some curious customs like burying the dead in honey.Funeral rites were

same as in Egypt.After intercourse ma and woman should sit over incense and fumigate

their private parts with incense.Without a bath they will not touch utensils in home after a

intercourse.And every native woman had to go to temple of Aphrodite once in her

lifetime and give herself to a strange man who offers a silver coin in the name of

Mylitta(Assyian name of Aphrodite).The Coin go to temple .The woman’s service to

temple is over with that intercourse.

Herodotus called Babylon as Assyria ,He speaks of Cyrus who conquered two

rivers(Gynges and Euphrates)and one city(Sumer).The 180 channels made on Gynges on

either side(360)dried up it and he said I have punished her.He draned Euphrates so that

his army could cross it ,and converted it to alake.That was manmade political destruction

of rivers.In 539 BC Cyrus had damaged the tower of Babylon.In 331 BC when

Alexander came it was already in pieces.

The garden of Babylon is described by Diodorus Sicculus(1st century BC) as 400 ft

square born out of love of one man for one woman.Cyrus for his Persian courtesan ,a

homesick consort,and Nebuchandnazzer for his wife Amyitis ,daughter of king Medes.

Strabo describes it as square with each side 4 plethora.people raised water to the garden

terraces continuously from the Euphrates and dried it up.Herodotus does not mention the

garden.But he mentions that the sundials and gnomons came to Greece from Babylon.The

main crops grown were wheat,barley,millet,sesame,dates.Use of palm tree for food,wine

and honey is mentioned.The local custom of bringing all girls to a market and offering

them for sale as a bride is described.Marriage was for them a object of transaction just

like cattle.Poor girls were allowed to do prostitution and in 1000 BC king of Israel David

predicted destruction of Babylon due to such bad practices (psalm 137)and this happened

with Cyrus.Herodotus says the Greeks and Persians were fighting continuously for

supremacy of having the oldest race in the world.Cambyses,son of Cyrus decided that it

was the Pterygians who settled in 1200BC inAsia Minor who are the oldest race.(At that

time it was 19th dynasty in Egypt).

Amenhotep 11 (late 1500BC) was the overseer of granaries and thefields ,gardens and

cattle of Amun ,the God .The high priest was the great confident of the Lord of the two

lands.

Three embalming models of Herodotus time gives us medical knowledge of anatomy as

well as the use of herbs .

1.Most expensive and perfect.With iron hook extract brain through nostrils .What the

hook cant reach,rinse out with drugs.Flank laidopen with flint knife.Contents of abdomen

removed.Cavity cleansed ,washed out,with palmwine and infusion of ground spices
.
Then filled with pure myrrh,cassia,aromatic substance with exception of

frankincense,sewn up.Then placed innatron entirely covered with it for 70 days never

longer.Washed,wrapped from head to foot in linen cut to strips,and smeared on the

underside with gum which is used by Egyptians instead of glue.

2.Organs not removed.Oil of cedar injected through anus by syringe.Anus stopped up to

prevent liquid from escaping.After a session of natron pickling ,anus uncorked ,oil

drained off.Stomach and intestines rush out in liquid form .Done for animals only.

3.Clear out intestines by a purge .Keep body in natron for 70 days.

Natron is naturally occurring deposit of sod.carbonate ,and bicarbonate ,sod chloride and

sulphate in salty lake beds,and Wadi natrun is anEgyptiantown where it is harvested.The

water absorbing quality is used in mummification.For mummification 375 pieces of linen

were needed total length of 138 meter and amulets were inserted between pieces.If a

beautiful woman of a distinguished family died the body was released only after three

days of death,because some of the bodies were violated (by necrophiliacs) and the law to

prevent it existed.

The Nile :-

The annual floods insummer solstice lasted for 100 days.Low in winter.Why?Herodotus

did not get information even from learned priests .They did not know that the monsoon

rains falling on the Etheopean plateau was flowing to the Nile and the Atbara rivers and

causing floods and they didn’t know where the Nile originated showing the knowledge of

Geography was very poor .(compare with Indian scriptures).Herodotus mentions three

theories the Greeks thought of.

1.North wind of Sumer blocks the water into Mediterranean(Thales 6th century )

2.Niles flow from ocean that encircle the earth(Hecateus)

3.Melting snow empty into source of Nile(Anaxagorus,Aeschylus,Aeuripedes)

4.During winter sun driven out of his course by storms to upper part of Libya.

Jeremiah 46.8 says:-Egypt rises up like a flood its waters more like the rivers and he says

I will go and cover the earth ,I will destroy the city and its inhabitants.

Herodotus wrote ,”when Nile overflows whole country is converted to sea ,towns alone

remain above water ,and looks like islands on the Aegean.Water transport is used all over

the country at such times.

Nile gave water to Sudan,Ethiopia,Tanzania,Kenya,Burundi ,Rwanda,Uganda .Then why

Egypt alone is the gift of the Nile?The others have rains.Egypt has no rain.It depend

entirely on Nile .Nile is lifeblood of Egypt its rural economy and agriculture.Herodotus

says harvests were with less labour and no plough or hoe needed.They just wait for the

annual floods of the river.When it receds sow the plot and harvest.Bible speaks of 7 fat

cows and 7 thin cows the feast and famine due to this .

Worship of Crocodile,and women wearing the symbol of phallus(linga)tied to

neck,custom of showing a dead body(puppet)after every feast to remind that the body is

temporary,horoscope,a deity for each month and day,foretelling date of birth,character

and fortunes ,day of death etc,growing crocodile in a lake with gold ring in ear and

bracelet on front foot,and feeding with respect ,a collection of surgical instruments,and

musical instruments including a tuning fork for acoustic testing are seen in Egypt most of

which are common to Indian culture.In his 24th year,Alexander came to fountain of Siwa

to ask the oracle there whether he was the son of God.

Greece absorbed Egyptian mathematics and not were inventors of it since in 1890-1650

BC ,several years before Euclid mathematical texts existed in Egypt and 700000 scrolls

of them were lost in fire of Alexandria.The knowledge of Greece came from Babylon and

Egypt and from where did it come to Babylon and Egypt?

The Persians did not have the naval powers which gives knowledge of winds,globe and

stars and astronomy and geography.How do We know that?

Artemesia ,Xerxes’ only female commander during battle of Salamais says:-Spare your

ships.Do not fight at sea.Greeks are superior to your men in naval matters ,as men are to

women.”He didn’t listen and his fleet was routed.

But though the greeks are said to be good at naval war they didn’t know the sea route and

Alexander had to use the land route to India.That means someone else was helping

them.The Greek men navigated only in sight of land .They could travel only in the calm

waters around their region and their ships were sunk if more than 300 people were on

board.They were not good for long sea trade.

Artabhanus ,uncle of Xerxes says sea is his enemy and they too were not good sailors and

did not have expertise to circumnavigate the world and to get first hand knowledge of

winds and stars by constant observation .Xerxes knew that Asia is the source of wealth

and trade and knowledge and he made a bridge across the Hellspond to link Asia and

Europe and had to see a violent storm smashing it up to pieces.

Herodotus reached Samos by traveling along the coastline always in sight of shores15

miles north of Samos is Turkey.Samian olive oil is the whitest .Apuleuis says the soil is

not good for corn,nor for ploughing ,and is fertile for olive groves alone.Used neither by

wine dresser nor by kitchen gardeners .Aesthelius of Samos says twice yearly crops of

figs,grapes and apples ,pears and roses were grown.English poet George sandys

writes”fruitful in all but vines”.Till AD 1610 grapes were not grown in Samos.They had

excellent honey.Samians took vine from Muscat grapes according to Byron.Samos is a

Phoenician word meaning “High”.Monut Kerkis 4700 ft and Karvounis 3780 ft ascend

for more than ½ of the islands surface .On coast are mountain jungles and its most

famous son is 6th century BC Pythagorus.Samos sent slaves to Egypt both women as

wives/prostitutes and men and that was their trade relation to Egypt.They were not at all

partners in long distance sea trade of Phoenicians and were just intermediaries taking

benefits out of it .

During Solomon’s time ,in BC 1000 a Phoenician naaaga fleet of him took gold,timber

and precious stones from Ophir and in Tharshish his ships were stationed for 3 yrs to load

with gold,silver,ivory ,apes and peacocks.Ophir is a Greek word for serpent

)Ophis).Hebrew also use the same word for serpent.So the Hebrews called the Phoenician

city a scountry of Naaga ,not the Greeks.And Oviar is a naagagana according to

Chirupaanaatupadai. Oviar are the panchajana or the silpi class of India and are

naagagana and brothers of the winds( Maruths ).

See the comparison of words used in Hebrew and Greek for tamil and Sanskrit

Ibha (Elephant) for Ivory in Hebrew.

Kapi for monkey /apes

Akil is Ahalim in Hebrew

Thukkeeyim is peacock from thokai in Tamil adapted in Hebrew.

The Greek words adapted;-

Rice/Oryza is Arisi of tamil

Ginger/Gingiber is Inchiveru of Tamil

Cinnamon /Karpion or Karuvaapatta .All these were from Malabar /south India where

sepents are paradevatha in each home.

Sanchonni Athen the Phoenician historian has a suffix of Athen which is common for

kerala kings and he writes that Lnka is under the protection of 4 kings and they are

subordinate to a paramount sovereign.To him they pay tribute of cassia,ivory,gems and

pearls.The king has gold in abundance.The three kings are the Chera,chola,Pandya in

south India and the 4th is in the North of Lanaka in charge of the city where pearlfarming

is done.They were to control the illicit traffic to and fro of ships between India and lanka

and were the chief of the Ramnaadu.Upto 5th century AD this was the condition.In 50 AD

the ship sent to Arabia to collect revenue (of Annius Plocanus)lost its way in the

monsoon winds called Hippuros(The horse/Aswins)and approached the area ruled by

king of Kuthiramala (The mountain of the horses.Kuthiraan in Malabar).This area was

the landmark for those ships which travel in Arabian ocean.The king of the region

decided to have direct contact with the Romans and sent his people under the guidance of

Rachiya (a prince) so that they are safely sent back to their country.They knew how to

come back by the red sea path .that means the sea route was familiar to people of

Malabar.That is how the Hippalaus was discovered or known to the west.It was not a

scientific discovery but an accident only.From them Pliny understood that 500 towns are

there in their country,and Palaisaamunda is an important site and around it is sea with

pearls etc are collected.It had a population of 200000 people at that time .And from a

lake one branch flows down to this place and another to northern direction is also told to

him.The corals of gulf of Mannar is thus described in detail from heresay .150 AD saw

Ptolemy’s work.Ptolemy knows little about Ceylon but more about Malabar and South

India.

Ptolemy wrote:-

Opposite to cape Cory( Kumari)is the island of Taprobane a projecting pout.It was called

in the past as Seemoundou (The seema or end of Indou or Sindhu).Now it is called

Saalike.And the inhabitants are called Saalai .(Chaaleeyar/saalai is a community dwelling

/like Yagnasaala,agrasaala etc or a group of weavers )The hair is long like women.They

have rice,honey,gingiber,beryl,hyacinths,mines of every sort,gold,silver,elephants and

tigers.

The opposite point to Cory is called The North cape.Boreion Akron at longitude 126

degree and latitude 12 degree 30 “.(The 12 degree North latitude being Honaver,Kunta in

Karnataka area,during Ptolemy’s time from Kanyakumari to northern part of Karnataka

was under the one administration and it was the Chera king as we see in Mooshakavansa

also ).He gives some other names with latitude/longitude.

Where Korkai bay ends is the cape Cory and it is there where the Arkaaric gulf starts.

From there to the Koroula nagara (NE of cory) distance is 3400 stadia for right

across.Since navigation is in the curvature of gulf,reduce 1/3rd and then it is 2030 stadia

only.Anothr 1/3rd reduction if continuous sail and the distance is only 350 stadia.The cape

Cory,Town of Argerou,and a mart of salour(salayur),Bathoi,kouroula are in Pandya

territory.

If Kodikkara/Dhanushkodi is Ptolemy’s Kory his Boreon kron becomes Yazhpanam of

Srilanka .But it is not at 12 degree north but well below 10 degree north in latitude.His

Palai Saamundaomana is the old border of India or Sindhudesa.And it is marked in his

map as the sea between India and Lanka.Lanka is Srihela dweepa in medieval writings

and Heladweepa became the Eladweepa.Elam is a special spice .

Before Ptolemy ,400 yrs ago,Onesicratus mentions Taprobane.It is seen in Asoka

edicts.Thamraparni in Paali is Thambapanni and it flows through Thirunelveli.And

Arthasathra mentions two types of pears from Pandya kingdom,The Pandyakavatakam

and the Thamravarnikam.Megasthenese calls Palaigonoi.(The old naaga ) The younger

race/branch as Ilanaaga .The gulf north of Rameswara is called as Orgalic gulf by

Ptolemy from Tamil word Arkkali (resounding sea).Arkkali is also a shallow sea.

Aarkkali muzhuvinathikar koman is the King of Chera country.(Ouvayar Puram V

91).The big drom of Cheran is the ocean here.The Bathoi in Greek is the veda.The veda

lands of Chola country are in Damurike(Dravidian)coast of India at the mouth of Kaberoi

or Kaveri.Beyond Korkai is Argaru with muslin and pearl,the Uraiyur but in Ptolemy’s

time Kaviripoompattana was the chola capital.Sindhones margaritidae meant muslins of

Sindhu sprinkled with pearls

The Naga and the Kadamba lived in South India upto Ceylon,and kadamba or kaadava

vansa were rulers of Kerala.According to puranaanooru(335):-

Thudiyan,paanan,paraiyan,kadamban entril naankallathu kudiyum illai.

Except these four groups no one lived in Tamil country.The Thudiyan is the one who

plays on thudi a musical instrument which was played by Shiva,Paanan is the singing

minstrel and vaidya,and manthravaadi,and paraiya is the one who beats the drum or para

another musical accompaniment and timekeeper,and kadamba is the dwellers of forests

and mountains and the wedda kings or kaadva kings who were powerful in kerala.The

foreigners were afraid of Naaga and Kadamba because of their fierce nature,courage and

prowess in warfare and gueirilla methods.Chenguttuva and his father destroyed the

kadamba but they came up again as the strong kings of mountainous dwellers .The kings

of Thalappally/Mooshakavansa at Punnnayurkulam and upto Kuthiraimala belong to this

vansa of Kaari/Kaareesa in St Thomas stories.

Where the Sreelankans great navigators?No .Because the 1st Ceylon embassy to China

took 10 years and it was landroute they took (in 405 AD)since they didn’t know how to

cross sea to China.Sea route established only after 5th century when the Tamils came to

Jaffna and made it a popular port.

The name Marakkalayar was common to Naaga,tamil as well as Arab shippers since it

just means one who travels in a ship of wood.It is not a caste name.the same is true of

Markkara.Mara is Kattumara and ship of wood.Marakkar is one who has such a ship and

navigates it.It is a Tamil word.

It is said that in the 6th century BC Srilanka Yaksha lived in the center and naaga lived in

the north and west coasts and therefore ,it had been called Naagadweepa .Yaksha were

identified as Yuh chi,a yellow race in North East Himalaya,and Bengal with Mongoloid

features. And the Veddas of Ceylon as survivors of this race by Mr Parker(Ancient

Jaffna from very early times to the Portugal period .Mudaliar C Rasanaayagam .Asian

educational series 1984 New Delhi First published in 1926.)But anthropologically both

Sinhalese and Vedda are not mongoloid but a dolichocephalous race and resemble the

preDravidian race in India.In the pre-epic period , sage Pulastya’s son Vishravas in

Idavida,(From Nepal,part of erstwhile Mithila) had a son Vaishravana appointed as ruler

of his kingdom in Lanka and his subjects were called Yakka/yaksha .The name is

equated with Dekkan,Dekkini,Thekkan,Thekkini,yakka,yakkini,daksha/dakshini

Dakshinapatha and Yakka is a short race and Daksha or expert in architecture and called

Oviyar .The subjects of Vaishravana were great architects from the Deccan peninsula and

even after Ravana ,his stepbrother took over ,they continued be so.Chief of the artisans

Viswakarma ,belongs to the naaga tribe of Oviyar and the five naaga tribes were born

from the five faces of viswakarma .

They are according to Tamil traditions

1.Manu or kollar (Blacksmiths and kings who kill)

2.Maya( Thachan/Dakshan the carpenter /Magicians)

3.Twashtrakannar (kannaar or kannavar) The brass finders The Kanwar

4.Silpi/sirpi .The masons,stonecutters,sculptors,architects,image/idol makers,painters.

5.Viswannaa or Thattaar Goldsmiths.

These 5 groups of artisans were Oviyars of the Naaga class of India and Ceylon from

time immemorial and called the panchajana /panchayaths of the village along with pure

agriculturalists.They were parttime agriculturists and parttime oviyar ,later specialized

only for their respective handiwork . In Ramayana Rama asks Hanuman who goes to the

south to search Sita,tell him to search in the capital of the Naga .Mahabharatha speaks of

the Naaga as A highly civilized people of Southern states having a wellestablished law

and order and administration and under their own kings.Thus Dakshinapatha is the

kingdom of the Naaaga tribes.Budhist records say in Kampilliam Naga kings

rule.Naagapura,Nagarjunakonda,Naagapatina,Naagarkoil in south and east and Nagarkot

in northern Nepal show that Nagaas or oviar had been a very strong race in India both

north and south.In Samudraguptha’s Allahabad victory pillar we find two kings

Naagadatha and Naagasena(Dutha is a vaisya name and Sena is a Kshathriya name

belonging to Bengal).The nephew of Pulakesi 11 was Nagavardhanan (Vardhanan also is

a Vaisya name).In 800 AD the Gurjara king was a Naagabhatta.In 2nd century AD

powerful Naga kings ruled in Nagpur.They had Tiger and snake in their flags as symbols

of their race(Chola also has tiger).In 11th century central provinces ,Bastur

state,Bhogavathy and Chakrakoota was under Naagas.And in all ancient Indian scriptures

Bhogavathy is the capital of Naga of Paathaala.In Maghada the Sisunaaga vansa is called

the kshathriyabandhava and the kshathriyaadhama (relatives and the low castes among

kshathriya).According to Mahavansa their powerful centers exisyed in 6th century BC in

the northern Nagadweepa and the western Kalyani .The uncle rule at Nagadweepa and

nephew at Gandhamadhana in Rameswara.The uncle is a Maniyaksha and has capital in

western Kalyani on the coast of Arabian sea .A descendent of the king of the Kalyan

(Thissa of Kelaneeya)is ruling in 3rd century BC in Lanka and his capital also is called

kalyani.These two Kalyans are still recognizable in India and Lanka.The wife of this

Lankan king had an affair with a Budhist monk and the king punished the bhikshu by

roasting him in a brass pot.The ocean was angry and rose up to devour Lnaka and the

southern states of India which were under him.The only big city which escaped was the

Rameswara of Sethupathi in that floods.

Vadivel erinthavan pakai poraathu

Pattuli.Aattudan panmalai adukkathu

Kumarikkodum kodum kadal kolla(Chilapp.Canto X1.11:18-20)

Mentions this floods.When 49 great cities were lost ,Pandhya had to move his capital to

Madura.He lost between the rivers of Pattuli and Kumari ,700 kaatham of 7

thenkainaadu(coconut groves)7 madurai naadu(of sugarcane)7 munpaalai nadu and seen

pinpaali nadu(Paalai,a tree ),7 kuntranadu(hilly areas),7 kunakarainadu(east coastal)7

kurumpanainadu(small palmyra ),forests ,rivers,plains (thadam) upto Kumari hills in the

north .This happened in 250BC when Kavadapuram,49 grama,and the west part of

Nagadweepa were lost to the raging sea by Pandya and the Thissa king of Ceylon.After

that started the third sangam period at Madhura ,the new capital.

About the brass makers or Thwashtrakannar,the Srilankan records in Tamil say,

Manthai nagar uraivor ullokathil vaanipame purivor

Kanthamalaikkuriyor Panchaalaril Kannuvar thontrinaare.

The Kannar were born among the Paanchaala (the five )who ruled the Kaanthamalai or

magnetic mountains,who live in Manthai (the centers of seashore )and do trade and

commerce inside the cities,and they married from the women of their Yaksha kings.They

were great visionaries and hence called Kanuvar.(ssers,paarpanar)

The asura king Soorapadman had a wife from a devakarmi daughter (Padmakomala)and

is famous because he was killed in war by Kanthan Kumaran.Manthodari was daughter

of a maya (carpenter)and married Ravana.The descendent of a Yaksha king and a naaga

princess was the next king .This is so not only in Ceylon but all over India.The sea pirates

of Manthai were Naaga in period of Asoka.The mountain of the Naaga was called

Kanthamalai because it attracted travelers by its wealth and beautiful women .In 1st

century AD there was a brass fort in Dwaraka in Gujrat made by the

Kannar/brassfinder.The name kannar is also attached to Krishna,the hero of 3000 BC

India and his brother Balarama the powerful Naaga.,the builders of cities and forts and

great agriculturists wielding a plough..

Chembu punainthiyattiya chenedum purisai

Uvaraaveenku Thuvarai (Puram V 201)

Both Vijaya from kalinga(Huen tsang)and Karikalachola(Purananooru V 39) had

destroyed their forts and cities and made them captives to work in Ceylon and in Kavery

delta.(1st century AD)

The Chola is called Chembiyan or brass worker’s leader.Chembeeyam is actually two

metals combined Chembu and eeyam and Karikala who won over Thamraparni is given

that title. Manthai is a market place or town/urban center /Port where artisans live and

Mandapa/Mandu/Kathmandu etc names like Mandavi/Mandodari as the name of

princesses show how the artisan Naagaas were respected.The Paanchaala king Drupada

was the father of Paanchaali the consort of the five brothers of Pandava and this custom is

still followed in many artisan groups.

Kurumthokai(V 34) speaks of the Manthai of Kuttuva(Chera king )where the elephants

run away hearing the sound of farmers working in the big garden forest(Perumthotta).The

base of sea pirates of the west coasts was manthai. Such manthai existed along the coastal

regions as wellas (Vella ,Vellala ,Valluva)along the land routes ,in rajasthan,Nepal etc

showing the wide network of the panchajana in agricultural and trade commerce

economical networks.In 200 AD ilankaikizhavan Villi Athan is a Chera king and had

broad fields of rice ,and sea coasts where beautiful women found roots of freshwater

lotus and eggs of tortoise as a delicate food.In Kuthiraimala on the west Naaga rule and it

is called Acha (acha,kocha of jains)nagara by some.The kuthiramalai and its

surroundings are ruled by Kari.The acha or Aswa. This is somewhere in the western ghats

according to Mudaliar Rasanayagam(pp 26).This part is Kuthiran hills the area under

Thalappilli kovilakam (my mother’s father belonged to it) and ascending Kuthiran we

reach Palghat and Kollangode(The Kadamba ruled area) the old transport to inlands

leading through Palghat pass to the Karoura /Karoor of old Chera or konguchera and

Pandya countries and beyond to the Chola area.

They were called the Aswins,or the Hippuros by Greek because of their prowess in naval

expeditions and as Phoenicians(Phaneesa with hood/serpents)by old world civilizations.

Kuthirai koorver(Puram V 158,11 8-9)Uraakkuthiraikizhava(Puram V 168),Kaivalleekkai

kkadumaan kotta(11 14-16)one with a fleet of horse and a raised hand which give

instruction as shown in many Veerakkal /hero /sathi stones) and a raised hand is the

symbol of Emur Hemambika of Kollanghot/Palghat Kadava/Kadamba ksathriya of the

vedda lineage .Thalappally also belongs to vedda lineage.

According to Tanjore gazetter in 105 AD killivalava ascended throne and till 150AD his

brother ruled(Perunarkkilli) after his death.The son of Kokkilli in a naaga princess was

Thondaimaan Ilanthirayan and he got entire Thondaimandalam .This child is once lost in

a shipwreck but miraculously escaped and was taken ashore by the waves without any

harm.The Ilam(Young)Thirayan(who was brought back by the waves)was due to this

event.He was given a part of Thondaimandalam with Kanchi as its capital and was the

first king of that district.(Thondi was also the Kadalundi during GreekoRoman trade

imes)He later changed his capital to Uraiyur,the land of the naaga.He was present for the

great event of Kannaki temple installation of Chenguttuva to which Gajabahu of Ceylon

also came(AD 113-135 is Period of Gajabahu).Pukar was lost before that date to

floods.According to Ptolemy the transfer of capital to Uraiyur happened in AD

150.Orthora is his Uraiyur.Before that Ilamkilli was theviceroy in knchi to show his

prowess in administration before he was made king.from AD 150-175 Period the

Thondaimandalam of Thondaiman Ilanthirayan came to power.He is considered as the 1st

of the great Pallava dynasty.And was a great Vaishnava king.He was the combination of

a naaga lineage of Manipallava dweepa (Jawa)and Ikshwaku/Suryavansi Chola and a

young sprout and a new bough (Pallava )of that great lineages of ancient fame.According

to the Rayakkotta plates the Pallava Vishnugopa had ancestors as contemporaries of

Samudragupta and he belongs to bharadwajavansa ,a brahmakshathra ,through a naaga

princess.When central India was having a strong naagavansa rule we find strong

naagavansa in Ceylon also showing a unified sysem all over the south and central

India.During Sathavahana times the Chuthunaaga line became strong.The elder pallava

kings were contemporaries of them.Intermarriage of the naaga and the sathavahana rulers

created the chuthunaaga race.From 6th century BC to 3rd century AD the naaga empire

existed.And their capital was Kantharode(Kanthaloor)in Kuthiraimala with its

Maathothai (Manthai).

Arjuna married Chithrangada a naaga princess from Manipura and after 3 yrs he came

back visiting the seacoastal sacred cities .He goes from Manipura to Gokarna visiting

temples on sea coast and also married Allirani of Pandya lineage on his travel along the

coast.The progeny of Pandava /paanchaala are the southern chandravansi kings .In 132 a

Fransciscan Frier ,Odorie wrote that ,there are only three kingdoms in south India.One is

Malabar,the second is Minibar,and the third is the Mobar to where 10 days journey from

Minibar is needed and where apostle thaomas body is buried.

That means Malabar /Kerala, Manipura /Lanka/Yazhpaana and Maayilapura or Mylapur

were the three places he knew.

The contemporary of Arjuna was CheramanPerumchottu Udiyan Cheral Athan ,who gave

free food to both sides of the army during Mahabharatha war.Chilappathikaram calls him

Cheral Poraiyan malaiyan as king of the Malaya mountain.According to Rajavali in 2347

BC the old kingdom of Ravan in Lanka was taken by the rising sea.At that time the

capital of the naaga king of Manipura is in Kavatapura and not in Madhura.And Alli is

the same as Chithrangada.Mahabharatham does not call Chitravahana as pandya but as

the naaga king.In the aswamedha of Pandava the horse reached Manipura ,in the

Kavata(door/dwaraka)city of Vavravaahana(Babrvahan)son of Arjun.Uloopi another

naaga wife of Arjuna protected his life.She was cousin of Chitrangada,(Aswamedhaparva

1XX1X P 192-200).The mace of babruvahana had a golden lion on it.And on his flag was

a golden palm tree.Both are the signs of Pallava kings .And flag of palmtree shows his

Chera lineage also.The symbol of lion of pallava and of simhala raajavansa is

noteworthy.In 1815 the British took it as their flagsign from India/Ceylon.The entire

India from Assam /Bengal/Bihar/Nepal to southernmost tip and Srilanka show the

relation with Naaga /Phoenician/kingdoms and the artisan/oviyan/Panchayathana culture
.
Mahavansa say that the grandmother of King Vijaya was a daughter of King of

Bengal(vanga)in a kalinga princess and she eloped with Simha of Latadesa(Gujrath).She

had two children in him.But she could not adjust with the robbers of the latadesha and

went back to vanga with her children.Therefore Simha came 700 miles to the east and

started to destroy Vanga desa.After conquest he gave back the land toVijaya’s stepfather

Simgabahu and went back to Latdesha and built a city of Simhapura. This city is not in

Gujrat but in kalinga ,which means he built a new city there ,not in Latadesah. Vijayan

came to Lanka touching Supara and Barukatcha which means he has traveled not from

kalinga but from west coast and the writer of Mahavansa does not know the geography of

west coast and its relation to east coast.According to Vishnupurana kalinga was founded

by Kalingan son of Bali on the upper Indus (Upper part of India or sindhudesa) and is

very ancient and it consists of Orissa and parts of Bengal.Anga,Vanga,Kalinga and

mlecha(Meluhha)kingdoms of Dravida in the Deccan are always mentioned as a group

together in Mahabharata.Two sons of kalinga king Sruthayu is killed by Bheema

in Kurukshethra war.Srikakola was its capital(now srikakulam).The Malay people call all

Indians as Klings(Kalingas).In the Srikakulam district Ganjam jilla of Orissa is the old cite

of Simhapura ,of Simhabahu 115 miles west of Ganjam.This city is mentioned in

Chilappathikaara also.

Vijaya first stayed in Kuthiraimala and married a princess of yaksha called

Kaveni(Kabani river area) and repaired many temples and only after 200 years after his

death the southern kingdom became under Devanampiya Thissa’s brother Mahanaga

Kuthiramalai is Kathiragoda in Telugu and simhala(goda= mountain or Mala)and

Portuguese call it Kandarcudhe (Kanthar /kanthan is name of Muruka and is the surname

of old Thalappalli kings).In Paali it is Kajragrama or grama of Karthikeya.Kathir is light

and kaama is love and it represents the enlightened land of love.Vijaya was the one who

called his new city as kadiramalai in Lanka and started the festival of Kadirai Andavan

there just as in tamil countries of Chera,chola,Pandya of south.And he called as the

greatest Naaga king of Ceylon at kathiraimalai.He lived as guest of kathiraimalai in

Tamil country where the naaga and the kadamba rulers were established and then built a

city of its model in Lanka ,Since he had lineages from Kalinga from her

grandmother,vanga from his grandfather and lata desha from his father and had married a

yaksha princess belonging to naaga tribes of oviyar at kuthiramalai he was a blend of

entire southern,western and eastern India and he had a cosmopolitan style of all of them

and his progeny from naaga /yakka lineage was the beginning of Mahavansa in Ceylon.

During Vijaya’s reign the ancient Indian system of agriculture ,trade and commerce grew

under his patronage.

The great paddy fields of Vijaya spread for acres.His own daughter Suvarnapathi takes

food for him and his reapers ,like what is done in old Tamil speaking areas still today

without difference between class or creed.Rice was staple diet of king and peasant

alike.Both worked in fields .Revenue of state from rice made it a important

industry.Immense tanks ,wells ,canals of irrigation were constructed.Even after 2000 yrs

the same methods are adopted still.The extensive scale of sharing between peasant and

prince alike made it a honourable profession .

Uzhuthundu vazhvaara vazhvar

Mattellam thozhuthundu pin chelpavar(Kural 1033).A network of tanks and canals stored

water the year round so that even if rain does not come an year,the people could irrigate

to some extant .A great tank could feed land for I million parah of paddy.Such

Chira(lakes)were constructed by kings and by temples and by rich as apublic service and

to protect water reserves of the soil.The naagas were expert weavers and wove clothes of

finest texture with coloured prints which were as soft as the coverings of a snake.(Aravuri

or aravu=serpent /the middle of body .Two meanings.Uri =the discared skin of serpants

/the cloth or covering of the middle of body .two meanings).(Porunar 11 82-

83)Cherupanattupadai,permpanattupadai and Purananooru also mentions this.

Paampu payanthanna vadivil kambin

Kazhai paducholiyin izhai manivaaraa

Onpoonkalingahm (Puram V 383.11:10-12)is the margaritidae or clothes of muslin

sprinkled with pearls.

Neelanaaga nalkiya kalingamaalamar chelvarkamarnthanan kodutha…Ay)Chirupaanattu

11.95-97)Means the Ay king (Yadava /Venadu/pandya)dedicated the the silk gifted to

him by the blue snake/Neelanaaga to the God under the tree and here Ka +Lingha is the

sign of Brahmi + on which a tree is worshipped a constant sign in IVC/Harappan

artifacts.

Since India provided clothes and luxuries for women of Babylon,Assyria ,Egypt and

Greece and Rome the trade and commerce was the enterprise of these Naagavansi

Phoenicians from prehistoric/historic times.Pliny noted:-India drained the Roman empire

annually to the extant of 55000000sesterces(equivalent to 487000 pounds)and this is the

price we pay for our luxuries of our women.

In Korkai women and Kallar worked in pearl fisheries and in making shank bangles and

ornaments and these were taken to north and further westby land routes also .the iron

smelting,brass works ,etc were specialities and even surgil instruments were made.

Names with suffix Pon as in Ponnani /ponnadu/Honnavar or Ponnavar etc meant the

specialization in gold and its availability as ore.In river beds like Chaliyar gold was

taken from river by filtering sand.Before Ramayana period the Yaksha and Naaga tribes

had wellorganised sedentary ,hereditary republics with elected monarchy and purity of

race was preserved by intermarriages just as in the monoculture farms and crossmarriages

did encourage crossbreeds as well to strengthen gene and after 4 generations of marriage

between two families it was considered as a pure race .The naaga built the first urban

centers and hence the urban centers were called Nagara and they made the first writing

and hence called the Naagarai or Devanaaagri.Paali means old.the old writing of the

naaga was paali which was replaced by the Sanskrit or devanagari for about 3000 -4000

yrs and after Budhist times the old Prakritha lipi was again reinstated and called Paali

/Neypaali(the new paali/the new old ).

The administration of naaga had 5 perumkuzhu(big groups)and 8

peraayam(assembly).The dharma of protection of priests,women ,cattle,agriculture of

both sides was followed even in battle .The 5 big groups were

1 .Amaichar(ministers)

2.Purohithar(priestly astrologer/Teacher)

3.Seanapathiyar(army /navy chiefs)

4.Thavaathozhitoothuvar(ambassadors,diplomats/messengers)

5.Chaaranar(spies or guptachara)

The 8 assemblies:-

1.Karanathiyalavar. administrators/The karanavars

2.karumavithikal. Accountants who decide the laws of economics

3.Kanakachuttam kadai kaapaalar. Royal dependent confidential kinsmen

,priests,physicians,confectioners and soothsayers who are concerned with protection of

Society

4.Nagaramaanthar. The chieftains and citizens of urban centers with markets,chiefs of

city gates,urban representatives

5.Nani padaithalavar .The infantry captains

6.Yaanai veerarivuji.The captains of elephant squadrons and captains of cavalry

7.Mathavaivarinaiyar .(great sages and their progeny)

8.Makkal,anjoottuvar,manikkiramathavar ,panchayathanar . Citizens of various jobs and

guilds of them .

Who were to be protected in wartime? (puramV 9)

.Aavu,maaniyar,paarpanamaakalum (cows,respected elders,seers)

Pendirum piniyudaiyeerum penithen- (women and sick people)

Pulavaazhnaarkarum kadanirukkum ( those who are for doing the ancestral rites

Ponpor puthalvar peraa atheeru (who are the golden children )

Memmam pukatividuthu nammaran chermeen(to be taken to a safe refuge)

What were taken in ships?

Muzhankum kadar thantha vilanku kathirmutha(bright lustrous pearls given by the

echoing seas)

Maram pozhtharutha kannerilankuvalai (broad shining conch bangles cut with saw

neatly)

Parathar thantha palveru koola (different types of grains consigned by the parathaver or

the fishermen folk of the lowlying areas who are great artisans and agriculturists)

Mirunkazhi cheruvinneem pulivelluppu(white salt from the clayey beds of sea and

sweetened tamarind)

Paranthonkuvaraipin vankai thimilar kozhumeen kurai iya

Thudikkattuniyal vizhumiya naavaay(the fleshy fish cut into round pieces by the strong

armed Timila or thamizha fishermen and salted and dried on sanddunes loaded into a

wellbuilt ship.

The estimated goods were impressed with a mark of the empire for recovering the

Custom duty..In Chola it is tiger. (Puli porithu ppuram pokki mathi niraintha

malipandam).

The assignments were sent in ships and in carts accompanied by armed soldiers and these

soldiers were wearing a striped bandlike snake ornament on shoulder and chest

Viravu varikachin venkaiyonvaal

Varaiyoor pamper poondu ..vampavar.

A classification of people according to the regions they were lived:-

1.Kurinji were hill tribes and included vedar or vedda and Kuravar/kuntraar

(girijana/kurichiar)and their lifestyle and agriculture and food habits suited the

geographical features of their habitat for survival.God Murukan protected.

2.Mullai forest tribes and pasturelands. The idaya ,wandering tribes and aranyaka,kaadar

/kaadambar .Maayon or Vishnu protector.

3.Marutham .people of arable lands .The uzhavar who plough and do agricultural

activities .Indran and pooshan and Maruths protects.

4.Neythal.The sea coastal people called parathavar who also do agriculture and are artists

/musicians/dancers /fisherfolk. Varuna.protector..

5.Palai.Dry and arid land where Maravar and vedar and kallar lived.Kottavai or Durga.

Each tribe had their own chieftain and a common chief or king for all.Priests,ascetics and

holy men(Brahmins)came from all tribes depending upon their vaasana.They were called

paarppanar (seers)or anthanar due to compassion to all and acceptable to all.Honoured by

all.

Anthanar enpor aravor mattavvayirkku nchenthanmai poondozhukalaal(Kural 30).Their

habits of unselfish behaviour considered the best by all people for healthy social life.

Vellala priests /gurukkal also were vegetarians.Royalty ate rice and vegetables usually

but on rare occasions they ate meat and drinks toddy taken from palmyra.The vellala food

was rice,vegetables and fruits.

Idaya ate millets and milk products.Fruits ,vegetables.Both jurava and uzhava kept cart

wheels and ploughs against their walls.large pillows supported the portico.Flourgrinding

and avalmaking mill stones ,sugar cane presses .paddy granaries,childrens toys and

pushcarts seen around their residences.Diet was rice,boiled pulses,cooked fowl.The

kurichiar had same habits.Among kurava only a few had this habits of agriculture .Others


were wandering tribes.

Fishermen took rice gruel with palmyra leafs .They took toddy and burned fish.Veda had

domesticated dogs for hunting.They ate redcoloured rice with bran,meat etc.They stole

cattle and drank toddy .Veda women(Ainer) dug up grassrice from ground anthills and

ate it with salted meat.The rice thus obtained is called mumpirai arisi
.
All the tribes were hospitable and it was considered avirtue to be hospitable to

guests(Athithipooja)by all.Both men and women had longoiled hair ,combed and

smoothed .Females wore it in single or multiple plaits upto 5 which hang behind or kept

as a tuft(konda)in shape of a plantainbud.After bath hair was dried with fragrant smoke of

akil ,jasmine,and flower garlands worn.Both men and women wore ornaments.

Flora related to kings and warriors:-

1Vetchipoo or Thechi (Ixora coccinea)after stealing or winning the cattle from the

neighbouring chieftain.
2.Karanthai (ocimum basilium)or common Thulsi when the cattle are taken back by the

owner.

3.Those who were prosecuted wear Vanchi.The Chera king wore vanchi even when not

prosecuted.They were always the prosecutors of others?

4.The defenders wore Kanchi or Holoptelia integrifolia. Where they always the

defenders?

5.Defenders of a fort wore Nochi or Vitec trifolia.

6.Those who sieged the fort wore Uzhinja(Illecibrum lanatum)

7.Thumba or plitomus indica was worn by warriors

8.Vaaka or albezzia lebbele was worn by the conqueror Emperor of Chera kingdom at

Vaakayur Perumthurai or Vakayur great harbour (in Thirunaavaai) once in 12 yrs .

Vaaka +Kaadaka or forest tribes makes their racial name Vaakataka .And one synonym

for vaaka is Mooshaka (which also means a rat) and therefore the Mooshaka dynasty of

Vaakataka/Kaadava /Naaga /Yadava lineage had been the oldest known and most

respected dynasty from prehistoric to historc times and they existed from Mahishmathy in

central and Northwest coast of India upto the southern tip of India

Flora related to love:-

1.Samyoga/union of couple

Venkai (pterocarpus bilobus)

Kurinchi(calophyllum inophyllum)

Kaanthal(gloriosa superba)


2.Viraham /separation

Kura(webera corymbosa)

Mara (Eugenia racemosa)


3.Vaasakasajjika (waiting )

Kullai or thulasi (ocymum sanctum)

Mullai (Jasmium trichotonnium)

Thontri/kanthal(gloriosa superba)

Pidavam ?


4.In quarrel./paribhava

Lotus,waterlily (nymphoea rubra)

Kuvalai (pontedaria)

5.Commissuration (proshithabarthruka)

Neythal(Nymphoea alba)

Thalai (Pandana oderatisssima)

Mundaka(lotus)

Adambam/kadambam

Dress of women:-

The ears were elongated to wear thoda,thodu or Kulai.In prehistoric times flowers and

leafs were worn and the names kulai and thodu are stillused for golden ornaments.

Mekhala was the old Thazhaiuda with leafs to cover body .later it became a relic name

for ornaments worn in the middle of body .

Makarakkuzha is a fishshaped ornament seen as symbol in IVC

Naagapadam is the ornament in shape of hood of serpents worn by naaga tribes

Pulippal relic of hunter tribes ornaments.

The singers called Pana wear a hoodlike headdress in ceremonial functions.The Budhists

recruited from naaga tribes wore it in upasamvada ,an initiation ceremony.

Women did guarding of fields,crops,garden,grains etc and enjoyed freedom to choose a

man .Gandharva marriages and love marriages were common.

The paanar/virali/women were educated and made extempore poems and music and

danced.In kurumthokai among 200 poets 30 are females and in it a Pandya queen,a chola

princess,a naaga woman,a kurava woman,a parathava woman,a veda woman are seen

showing education and poetry was cosmopolitan.Kakkapadini and nachellayar and

ouvayar were great women poets .

Music,musical instruments of different types were known with their principle and

mathematical precision of acoustics.

Thus from prehistoric and vedic times to historic and sangham periods and till date we

see a continuity of cultural practices and ecological interaction of people and their

geographic environment.By disturbing that ecological interaction we might destroy entire

life patterns in the geographic region.Therefore we should pay more attention for

preserving biodiverse environment of our geographical locality .