Together once, divided Now

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Mullaperiyar has created disharmony between Kerala & Tamil Nadu. But, the two States need not lose hope. For, they still retain the grains of a common past. That’s the message DC gets from the 1000 BC rock art recently discovered at the troubled border.

Trouble may be brewing between Kerala and Tamil Nadu on the vexed Mullaperiyar issue. However, not very far off from the disputed dam, in the deep jungles bordering the two States, human history remains frozen on the walls of a magnificent cave.

And, it’s the history that goes back to 1000 BC when neither Kerala nor Tamil Nadu existed, going by the day’s geographical sense. The disputed dam, the source of the present troubles, of course was not there.

That's what archaeologist C.Vijayakumar, who stumbled upon some stunning paintings on the walls of an extra-ordinary cave, would like to insist. The paintings from the distant eons of time depict humans, animals, sun and nature.

"When you meditate on those paintings, what you ultimately get is the universal message of oneness and the unbreakable bond that welded together diverse forces which peacefully co-existed", Vijayakumar told Deccan Chronicle.

It was some three months ago, Vijayakumar reached the cave braving black panthers, leopards, Indian gaurs and wild elephants located at Pottha Malai inhabited by the tribes who belong to Mudhuvan community.

“The cave is located exactly on the border of Marayur forest range. Mudhuvans speak a language of their own and it’s closely related to Malayalam. Even today, they worship the paintings in this cave,” he said.

Currently pursuing Phd in Landscape Archaeology of Anamalai Region, Vijayakumar had also completed his Mphil and diploma in archaeology and epigraphy. He, in fact, had tried to get into the cave during day time once.

“But, the cave is home to innumerable bats and I didn’t succeed. It was then with the help of local tribes I entered the cave during night,” he revealed. The cave, according to him, measures to a size of 1,186 meters in length and 782 meters in breadth.

Mudhuvans call the cave Orunan Alai. Orunan represents Varuna the Lord of Rain and ancient Tamil term for cave is alai. The reference appears in porananooru. Mudhuvans pray before the paintings even today for copious rains.

The paintings, originally, were red-ocher, according to Vijayakumar. “But, tribes during later period had super-imposed them with white-ocher. Because, the famed hand appearing twice still remains in red-ocher,” he explained.

It’s historical fact that tribes bow before the famed hand symbol, which they consider as the hand-mark of their ancestral chief. “The symbol is God to them. It must be for this reason they abstained from repainting it with white ocher,” he felt.

The white ocher, according to him, is made using the milk derived from Arali (sapium insigne) and Kalli (euphorbia antiquorum). Vijayakumar, interestingly, is the first person to crack the secret behind the making of white-ocher.

According to him, kumil tree (gmelina aroporea) is first burnt and its pure white ash along with calcium carbonate (CaCo3) is mixed with the milk derived from Arali and Kalli plants. “It’s using this substance the painting are drawn,” he confirmed.

The paintings based on nature theme depict sun, couple of elephants, man-atop-a-deer, five monkeys and 28 sketches of the early man. The figures range from 5 centimeters to 32 centimeters in size.

Eminent epigraphist S. Ramachandran confirmed, the painting belonged to 1000 BC. “It must have been a period of hunter-gatherers. Paintings that depict wild animals and tribal dance confirm this,” he said.

He’s surprised the term alai (cave) survives even today among local tribes. “In the early Vedic period, you won't find the sound ra. That’s why Surya's earliest form was solar. Down ages la could've become ra since arai or ara presently means shelter", he opined.

Ramachandran further confirmed, no one till now knows how exactly the white-ocher is made and what goes into its making. "Vijayakumar has done a splendid job by unraveling the secret by taking the tribes into confidence", he said.

These rock-arts, of course, function as a mirror to our past history and also show the communion and amity that once bonded the nature, man and animals. In these days of parochial politics, they come as a great relief.

For, as they say, if we’ve a past we should also have a future!