In Rome do what Romans do.
When the English brought indented labourers from India, they brought with them their culture, religion and way of life. To keep them contended, the colonial master built arrack shop and let them build their own place of worship. Over the generations, the Indians who migrated to this land for better life have blended well into the society. They contributed their sweat, life and blood to transform this backwater malarial infested land into a near developed country with the help of other citizens. Well, malaria has been replaced by dengue, that's another story!
National integration, at least from the food perspective has infiltrated into Hindu temples. This, I discovered today. Generally, the Aadi month (the fourth month of the Tamil calendar) as I knew when I was growing up, was an inauspicious for many life altering events like weddings, consummation for newly weds, moving into a new house or childbirth. Now, I have come to understand that it is actually a good month for Goddesses and unmarried ladies to pray for a good husband! And now over the years, the temples have started becoming hive with activities, thus generating business again for themselves and its off-shoots that benefit from it (i.e.florists, caterers, textiles etcetera).
Historically, Aadi may have been a busy month for the farming community to work on their next crop cycle. Aadi was also a bad month for business. Couples who slept in Aadi run a risk of delivering their offspring in May, the hottest month in Tamil Nadu, perhaps when the highest rate of puerperal sepsis was!
So, I attended one of these prayers honouring Goddess Amman. After the long symbolic ceremony, again signifying the greatness of a weary space traveller with her various paraphernalia exhibited during the course of the elaborate prayers, we were treated to a vegetarian meal in the temple premises.
Adding Malaysian flavour to the menu was our good old nasi lemak, one of Malaysians' all time favourite dish. Of course, in keeping with the sensitivities of the host and the premises, it was a strictly vegetarian fare. Off the list of ingredients were eggs, anchovies and shrimp paste (belacan). The taste may not satisfy the tastebuds of die hard nasi lemak enthusiast but it tasted more than 80% as good.
And I was thinking to myself, "You can't force national integration. Given time, it would evolve by itself sooner or later!".
When the English brought indented labourers from India, they brought with them their culture, religion and way of life. To keep them contended, the colonial master built arrack shop and let them build their own place of worship. Over the generations, the Indians who migrated to this land for better life have blended well into the society. They contributed their sweat, life and blood to transform this backwater malarial infested land into a near developed country with the help of other citizens. Well, malaria has been replaced by dengue, that's another story!
National integration, at least from the food perspective has infiltrated into Hindu temples. This, I discovered today. Generally, the Aadi month (the fourth month of the Tamil calendar) as I knew when I was growing up, was an inauspicious for many life altering events like weddings, consummation for newly weds, moving into a new house or childbirth. Now, I have come to understand that it is actually a good month for Goddesses and unmarried ladies to pray for a good husband! And now over the years, the temples have started becoming hive with activities, thus generating business again for themselves and its off-shoots that benefit from it (i.e.florists, caterers, textiles etcetera).
Historically, Aadi may have been a busy month for the farming community to work on their next crop cycle. Aadi was also a bad month for business. Couples who slept in Aadi run a risk of delivering their offspring in May, the hottest month in Tamil Nadu, perhaps when the highest rate of puerperal sepsis was!
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Vegetarian nasi lemak with crispy soya based
fake anchovies, peanuts and hot red spicy sauce. |
Adding Malaysian flavour to the menu was our good old nasi lemak, one of Malaysians' all time favourite dish. Of course, in keeping with the sensitivities of the host and the premises, it was a strictly vegetarian fare. Off the list of ingredients were eggs, anchovies and shrimp paste (belacan). The taste may not satisfy the tastebuds of die hard nasi lemak enthusiast but it tasted more than 80% as good.
And I was thinking to myself, "You can't force national integration. Given time, it would evolve by itself sooner or later!".
greatness of a weary space traveller with her various paraphernalia ?? You were suppose to be praying.
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