14
THE FIRST VAISHNAVA CONQUEST OF KERALA
You can deliberately obliterate
all evidences, but the collective memory of the community could
not be suppressed. They are handed down from generation to
generation and still exist as myths and legends and festivals of
Kerala.
The Politics of Rewriting History
in India.
K.N. PANIKKAR
Although elements which constitute myth are not verifiable like
historical facts, myths do represent reality even if
symbolically and metaphorically. Myths are essentially illusory
representations of phenomena and as such do not help discover
the historicity of events and by the very nature of
representation they tend to mask the reality. Yet, there are no
myths in which reality is not embedded in some form, be they
origin, explanatory or legitimatory myths. This integral
connection between myth and history facilitates the
transmutation of the latter into the former and through that
change, the existing historical consciousness in society.
http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1801/18010730.htm
The biggest festival of Kerala is
“Onam” which is associated with the myth of Vamana. It tell the
story of how Vishnu (the god of Vaishanavites) defeated the Asura
King Mahabali and pushed him down to the lower most part of the
World – Kerala. This. I believe tells the root story of how the
Chola and Pandya areas of the Christian
Kingdom of Mahabali was ripped off and taken over my the Pallavas..
The Story Behind the Onam
Festival
A long long time ago, an Asura (demon) king called Mahabali ruled Kerala.
He was a wise, benevolent and judicious ruler and beloved of his
subjects. Soon he conquered all the three worlds. Aditi, the
mother of Devas went to Vishnu for help.
Vishnu incarnated in the form of a dwarf called Vamana and approached
Mahabali while he was performing a sacrifice (yajn) and
asked for alms Mahabali granted him a wish.
The Vamana asked for three paces of land for his living — and the king
agreed to it. Vamana grew to great proportions. In the first
step, he covered the heavens and with the second, he covered the
netherworld. Realizing that Vamana's third step will destroy the
earth, Mahabali offered his head as the last step in order to
save this world.
Vishnu pushed him to the netherworld, but before banishing him to the
underworld, Vishnu granted him a boon. He was allowed to
return once a year to visit his people. It is during this day,
called Onam, that Kerala pays tribute to the memory of this
benign king who gave his life for his people
There is an expectation that one day Maha Bali will return and establish
his glorious kingdom once again on the eath.
Onam Celebrates the Christian Rule
of Kerala
The name Mahabali literally mean
s
the Great Sacrifice.(Maha = Great; Bali = Sacrifice) This epithet
does not fit any other person other than Christ. It probably was
a name for Christian Kings or the general epithet for Christians
in India. It is actually strange that the story is kept still as
a legend and myth, in spite of the fact it shows how Vishnu, the
great and mighty god of Vaishanvites, had to resort to deception
and trickery to kill a King who is described only in superlative
terms even in their own Puranas. This cannot be explained
in any other terms other than as a story of how Brahmin (Iran -
Aryan) dominated Vaishnavism tried to destroy Christianity in
South India. Silk route brought in Manichaen missions first into
Northern India and it fell victim to the heresy. When
Christianity became powerful in South India, the Northern heretics
resorted to trickery.
This identification of Mahabali
with Christ or Christians is also supported by pre-cosmic myth
of Palaazhi Mathanam (the story of churning of the cosmic milky
way to separate the good from the evil.) in which Mahabali was
killed and was brought back to life. Here the subtle
implication of the sacrifice, death and resurrection of Mahabali
is implied.
Mahatma Phule sees this story
as an attempt by the Aryans to dominate the rest of India:
“Slavery”
by
Mahatma Jotirao Govindrao
Phule.
The chapter :`Baliraja'
“Baliraja's kingdom, extended
from Maharashtra to Srilanka and northwards to Ayodhya and
Benares. It was attacked by the Dwija (Aryan), Vamana. Dalit
kings such as Hiranyakashyapu had also been attacked by Dwija
kings as a racial battle for power zigzagged across the
subcontinent. The story of Prahlada is then interpreted as that
of the son of the royal Hiranyakashayapu dynasty being subtly
influenced by the Machiavellian Dwija, Narasimha, to become a
collaborator of an `invasive' hegemonic
discourse..”
Mahatma Jyotirao Phule (1827 – 1890)
was an
activist and social reformer from Maharashtra, critical of caste
relations in Western India and noted for his work in the
upliftment of widows and the lower castes in India.
The Period of the King of the
Great Sacrifice
When Maha Bali Ruled.
Here is a song which we have been
singing through generations during the Onam festival.:
"Maveli Nadu Vanidum
Kalam
Manusharellarum Onnupole
Amodathode vasikum kalam
apathangarkumottilla thanum
Adhikal Vyadhikal Onnumilla
Bala maranangal Kelkanilla
Kallavumilla Chathivumilla
Ellolamilla Poli Vachanam
Kallaparyum Cheru Nazhiyum
Kallatharangal mattonumilla”
It translates as:
' When Maveli, our King, ruled the
land,
All the people were as One.
And people live joyful and merry;
They were all free from harm.
There was neither anxiety nor
sickness,
Death of the children were never even heard of,
There were no lies,
There is neither theft nor
deceit,
And no one is false in speech either.
Measures and weights were right;
No one cheated or wronged their neighbor.
When Maveli, our King, ruled the land,
All the peoples formed one casteless race.'
The Onam festival lasts for
ten-days and falls during the harvest season. It is celebrated
with much pomp and gaiety. People decorate their yards with
carpets of fresh flowers called 'Pookalam' to welcome the King
Mahabali. They wear new dresses and perform communal dances such
as Thiruvathirakali and Thumbi Tullal. Thiuruvonam the climax
comes on the fourth day of Onam when sumptuous meals are eaten
with the whole family sitting together along with those who are
less fortunate. The ten days are meant for feasting, singing,
dancing and making merry with friends family and neighbors. The
whole community come together for floral decorations, elephant
processions, dance performances, classical and folk music
recitals, cultural pageants and water carnivals
A veritable Kingdom of God in the
fashion of the early Christian community in Jerusalem was in
existence under the Christian Kingdom of Maha Bali. If we can
trust the archeology, it lasted until at least sixth or
even to the eighth Century AD. These periods were totally blacked
out from history by destroying documents and they survive only in
the memory of the community as legends and myth.
Mahabali was a Christian King;
and may be dated before 6th century. This Kingdom was at least
partially destroyed by deceit by the entry of heresy. In this
conquest all territories except Kerala was lost to the Christians.
Mahabali, the Asura King
Hindu Puranas describe Mahabal
i
as an Asura King. Here is what Madame Blavatsky the great
Theosophist Gnostic has to say about the meaning of Asura.
“Mahabali was an Asura King who
was defeated by the Suras by trick. In the Rig-Veda, the Asuras
are shown as spiritual, divine beings. Their etymology is derived
from asu (breath), the "Breath of God," thus, Asuras are
those who were created by the breath of God, who has the Holy
Spirit within them.
It is later on, after Brahminic
domination, they are shown issuing from Brahma's thigh, and that
their name began to be derived from “a”, primitive, and
sura, god (solar deities), which is interpreted as
“not-a-god.”
(Madame H. P. Blavatsky in `The
Secret Doctrine', II, 59
Blaviatsky was the originator of
theosophy.)
The word asura
is formed from the word asu with the addition of the
suffix ra and means 'one full of ra spiritual life
i.e., asu and 'by curious process of semantical change
came to mean a demon.' Pt. Satya Vrat - Ramayana - A Linguistic
Study
The Asuras
“The asuras "are the sons of
the primeval Creative Breath at the beginning of every new Maha
Kalpa, or Manvantara; in the same rank as the Angels who had
remained 'faithful.' These were the allies of Soma
(the parent of the Esoteric Wisdom) as against
Brishaspati (representing ritualistic or ceremonial
worship).
Evidently they have been
degraded in Space and Time into opposing powers or demons by the
ceremonialists, on account of their rebellion against hypocrisy,
sham-worship, and the dead-letter form"
(Secret Doctrines 2:500).
Theosophical Society - Madam
Blavinsky.
Genealogy of Maha Bali
Genealogy of Maha Bali in the
puranas also asserts the similar origin. Here Maha Bali is the
descendant of the two gate keepers of heaven known as Jaya &
Vijaya– (meaning Victor and Great Victor – Those who overcome –
The Overcomers) They were forced into incarnation on earth due to
the curse of the Sages because they would not allow these sages to
enter the presence of god. Jaya was born as Kasyapa.
In pre-Vedic times, Kasyapa was a
primordial god. He was the father of the Devas (Suras - gods),
the Asuras (demons – Breath of God), the Nagas (The Serpentines),
and the Mankind. His name means tortoise, and he was connected
with the cosmic tortoise which made up the universe.
In Vedic times Kasyapa had Aditi
as his consort, and he was the father of the Adityas (literally
means the Suns). In later times he became equated with Prajapati
(Means “Lord of Hosts”) and Brahma (the Creator), and was also
named as one of the Rishis (sages).
He had two sons Hiranyakshu and
Hiranya Kasipu (Meaning the Golden Eye and the Golden Dress).
They were Demon (Dravidian) Kings. Both were killed by two
incarnations of Vishnu possibly indicating the destruction of
Christianity in the North and Middle
India.
Hiranyaksha was killed by the
Boar Incarnation and Hiranya Kasipu by the Lion- Man Incarnation
of Vishnu. Hiranya Kasipu was killed at the betrayal of his own
son Prahalada who became a Vaishnavite. Maha Bali was the great
grand son of Hiranya Kasipu. He was also defeated by Vishnu in
the Vamana incarnation. So here we have a series of pictures of
struggle by the Vaishanavites to destroy the teachings of the
Asuras.(Christian?).
|
HARI VAMSA
(6 Avatars) |
NARAYANI AKHYAN
(10 Avatars) |
VARAHA PURANA
(10 Avatars) |
VAYU PURANA
(12 Avatars) |
BHAGAWAT PURANA
(21 Avatars) |
|
1)Varaha, 2)Narasimha, 3)Vaman,
4)Parashuram, 5)Rama,
6)Krishna |
1)Hansa, 2)Kurma, 3)Matsya, 4)Varaha, 5)Narasimha, 6)Vaman,
7)Parashuram, 8)Rama, 9)Krishna, 10)Kalki
|
1)Kurma, 2)Matsya, 3)Varaha, 4)Narasimha, 5)Vaman, 6)Parashuram,
7)Rama, 8)Krishna, 9)Buddha, 10)Kalki |
1)Narasimha, 2)Vaman, 3)Varaha,
4)Kurma, 5)Sangram, 6)Adivaka, 7)Tripurari, 8)Andhakarah,
9)Dhvaja, 10)Varta, 11)Halahal, 12)Kolhahal
|
1)Sanat Kumar, 2)Boar,
3)Nara-Narayan, 4)Kapila, 5)Dattatreya, 6)Jadna, 7)Rashabha,
8)Prithi, 9)Matsya, 10)Kurma, 11)Dhanwantari, 12)Mohini,
13)Narasimha, 14)Vaman, 15)Parashuram, 16)Ved Vyas,
17)Naradeo, 18)Rama, 19)Krishna, 20)Buddha, 21)Kalki |
We can actually see the sequence
of Vaishanavite conquest in the figure.
Avatar Dravida Asura King killed
1. Boar (Varaha) Hiranyaksha
2. Man-Lion (Narasimha) HiranyaKasipu (Brother of Hiranyaksha)
3 Dwarf (Vamana) Maha Bali (King of Dravida)
great grandson
of HiranyaKasipu
4. Parasu Rama
(Rama with the axe) Lifting Kerala out of the
sea and giving to Brahmins
5. Rama Ravana – The King of
Sri Lanka
Ravana was a
great-grandson of Mahabali.
First of all we notice that all the incarnations were Vishnu
incarnations. Hence they are a history connected with the
Vaishnavite traditions and, it is the history which tells how
Vaishnavism defeated their opponents.
The opponents were all Daityas – who are usually considered as Dravidian
Kings and Kingdoms
Second all the victims were of one family coming from one lineage.
The placement of the events are also interesting.
