Posted on 12/22/2002 10:25:04 AM PST by dighton
MANGALORE: ‘‘Culture is nothing but a way of life and Bunts’ culture which is thousands of years old is losing hold owing to various reasons,’’ said Bangalore-based industrialist and litterateur D.K. Chouta in his welcome address at a seminar on ‘Role of Bunts in the changing universe’ held at A.B.Shettynagar as part of the World Bunts Convention on Saturday. Chouta cited the example of the Roman empire which was destroyed owing to the excesses committed by its citizens over a course of time. ‘‘Pursuit of wealth is the main cause for the downfall of the Bunt culture,’’ he said.
New York-based vascular surgeon and former president of the Bunts Association Dr. Dinakar Rai called upon the Bunts’ community to pass on the rich culture to their children and encourage them to speak their native language Tulu. ‘‘History and culture are an important part of the Bunt community and should be maintained at all costs. Although the world is changing and we have to be on the move, one should not forget their origins,’’ he said.
Nitte Education Trust president Vinay Hegde who gave a call for introspection by leaders of the Bunt community, said the Bunts were traditionally agriculturists and were the mainstay in villages, following the joint family system in which women were placed prominently. He believed in ‘Aliya santana’ and said women should again don the role of a leader and elevate the community to a higher level from the morass that they have sunk into. He recalled the 1950s which he said was the ‘golden era’ for Bunts, but after 1980 the pursuit of wealth has caused their downfall. He urged elders to view the future from a wider angle and promised the gathering that Bunts were intellectuals and in course of time they would realise where they have gone wrong and change accordingly.
Other speakers were Mumbai-based litterateur Dr. Sunitha Shetty and Managing Director of Farstar Distribution Network Ltd, Chennai, Rekha Shetty who urged the Bunts community to help eradicate dowry system and inculcate cultural values in the new generation.
What, you've never tasted bunt cake? And whaddabout their contribution to our national past time? What the does a National Leauge pitcher do when there are no outs and men on first and second?
On a more series (sic) note: I'm a descendant, inter alia of folks from the Isle of Man. The Manx language has died out in my lifetime. Judging from the facts available to me, I'm better off for their migration, I don't want to go back to the Middle Ages. Sorry.
"Bunts do not follow PUROHITASHAHI culture. We follow GURIKAARIKA culture. The GURIKAR (Community Head) has the controlling power on community. From birth to death, all rituals are supervised or controlled by the GURIKARA. Village GURIKAR is under SEEME (area) GURIKAR. Earlier Bunts had two SEEME, (Area) Mangalore and Barkur and both SEEME had SEEME GURIKARS. On essential matters they had control over village GURIKARS.
"Brahmin Purohits never performed our rituals, instead Barber and Laundry ladies had played an important role in our family rituals. Barbers used to sanctify the house and relatives of dead person. In this point of view Barbers and Laundrymen are our purohits."
From Original Kannada Article by Sri. Aerya Laxminarayan Alva, Translation by Mr. Kushal Shetty
Excuse me now, I have to go perform aaratu.
.
What the hell are you talking about? What does the English language have to do with ANYTHING? The reason the English language has become the global default is because it is the national language of the USA which is the world's only superpower. Germans didn't need the English language to kick the living tar out of most of the world, and if it weren't for America, it is arguable that German would be the ONLY language spoken on the planet.
Gaelic is an incredibly beautiful language and certainly the least of the problems faced by the Irish. I think your understanding of history is very superficial. You would do well to delve deeper into subjects on which you plan to speak out.
So the Buntestaag is a .... colorful deer?
Seminar focuses on rich-poor divide in Bunt communityDecember 23, 2002
MANGALORE: Divergent views emerged at a seminar on ‘Bunts in the changing political scenario’ held as part of the World Bunts Convention here on Sunday, all but a few touching merely the fringe of the core question.
In fact, the seminar threw up more questions than answers, going by the meandering course the discussions negotiated and the confused state in which the proceedings ended.
The limited time (of only 90 minutes) allotted for discussions on such a vital topic may partly be the reason.
The fundamental question, for instance, as to the place of Bunts, also known as Nadavas, a leading community of the coastal region, in the changing political milieu of the State and the country, was lost in the midst of conflicting versions of the speakers, though the main speaker, V.T. Rajasekhar, editor of Bangalore-based Dalit Voice, had set a very solid base and set the tone by placing his views in the light of the ideology he is committed to.
For instance, Rajasekhar held that much of the failure of the Bunts in making a mark in politics could be traced to, what he described, their ‘‘cultural contamination’’; their desertion of the ethnic moorings and Dravidian faiths in preference to Aryan practices; the shift of the rich and the city-bred among them from the worship of the ‘‘bhoota’’ (past) and ‘‘daiva’’ (divinity) to the Aryan practices of worshipping ‘‘devas’’ (gods).
Rajasekhar accused the privileged among the Bunts of distancing themselves from the large majority of the poor in their community while making a big fuss over the loss of their land-holdings under the Tenancy Act although it was a large number of poor families of their own community that had gained from the redistribution of the lands.
More disastrous, Rajasekhar pointed out, was the alienation of the Bunts from the Billavas and the Mogaveers, the two other important communities of the region, with whom they had close affinity for ages –– when all the three were considered the members of the same fraternity –– for which the Bunts themselves were to blame.
This ‘cultural contamination’ it was that had cost the Bunts their identity even in politics.
Obviously, not being able to either refute his views or concur with them, the other speakers digressed and placed their differing, and often contradictory, views during the interaction that followed. Former Karnataka ministers Jayaprakash Hegde and Amarnath Shetty, for example, prevaricated on the caste-based politics that had reared its ugly head in the recent past and which had to a great extent engulfed the Bunts community, as also the question whether politicians should retire at some point of time to make way for the young blood.
While former Dakshina Kannada ZP president and Congress leader Sadanand Poonja and BJP Mahila Morcha national secretary Shakuntala Shetty tended to harangue on the party’s views on the subject former MP from Kasargod Ramanna Rai chose to remain non-committal. It must be said to the credit of D.K. Chowta, a businessman and writer, who, as the head of the three-member moderating panel, intervened effectively to put the discussions back on the track. The other two moderators were Dr.Ramdas Rai and Sheela Shetty.
There were a number of good questions posed by the members of the audience such as the Bunts’ perception of ‘Hindutva’ in politics, the failure of their leaders to make out a case for reservation for Bunts in jobs, their lukewarm response to different commissions in the past. The speakers only whimpered while answering while the question on Bunts’ perception on Hindutva in politics was dismissed as unworthy of a debate.
newindpress.com
Donkey traffic causing hardships to pilgrimsPAMPA: Incidents of injuries sustained by pilgrims owing to donkey traffic on the trekking path from Pampa to Sannidhanam are on the increase, especially during the last few days.
At least seven pilgrims, including a four-year-old Malikappuram, were hurt owing to this traffic during the last two days. The Malikappuram was taken to the Government Hospital at Pampa. Though the High Court had, by an order, restricted the donkey traffic between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., copra-laden donkeys in large numbers are a usual sight at Marakkoottam, Appachimedu, Neelimala and Pampa, causing severe hardships to pilgrims. Contrary to contractual obligations, the donkeys are also being used for carrying soft drinks to Sannidhanam and copra on the way back to Pampa from Sannidhanam. If the situation continues during the coming peak season days, the pilgrims will face more hardships as well as health problems.
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