R. Balakrishnan > Quotes

“BRW [Black & Red Ware] is the Pan-Indian Pot and Sangam literature is the Pan-Indian Literature. The Pot Route that links Indus and Vaigai was made of clay, overlaid with burnt bricks and embellished with copper. It is the red-topped road to Tamil antiquity, and the colour was a deep Dravidian Red.”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“... the Sangam Tamil corpus is essentially a literature of diverse landscapes and a plural demography. Sangam texts stand witness to the plural social systems, polity, cultural ethos and ideology of the early Tamils. At the same time, they also represent some of the ‘carried forward’ memories that probably emulate the ideologies of the IVC [Indus Valley Civilization], including its inherent pluralism.”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“Above all, the very world view, “Every town our home town, every[one our kin - யாதும் ஊரே யாவரும் கேளிர்]” can only emanate from a civilizational wisdom which has seen places, found merit in give and take and is enriched by travels, journeys and migrations.”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“... neither the metaphor of ‘melting pot’ nor of ‘salad bowl’ can accurately explain Indian culture. My preferred metaphor is that of the Rain Forest. The ‘tropical rain forest’ characteristically has a number of layers, each with a variety of flora and fauna adapted for life in that particular layer. The layers include the uppermost ‘emergent’ layer that rises above to form the canopy of the forest, the ‘under-story’ and finally the ‘forest floor’, the foundational core. This emergent layer has its roots in the forest floor that is full of shrubs, vines and fungi... A ‘bird’s-eye view’ cannot reveal this rootedness, the underlying substratum, the under-stories and the forest floor.
If the metaphor of ‘tropical rain forest’ is applied to the Indus Valley Civilization, the citadels, the rulers, and the rich merchants with their maritime wealth, the urban structure and its finesse are comparable with the ‘emergent canopy’. Yet the bulk of the demography was at the root – the substratum, from which the mature urban cities emerged... The nature of its religion, the cultural practices, cockfights and bull-vaulting visually represent the ‘under-story’ of the IVC.”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“Starting the history from the South does not mean tampering with the chronology of events or the locus of geography in which the events ought to have taken place. It is about understanding the Rain Forest metaphor of Indian pluralism from another end. The pluralism of the Indus Valley civilization, the pluralism espoused in Sangam texts and the plural realities of contemporary India have a connecting thread of continuity. The Idea of India cannot be appreciated without understanding these connections.”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“The illuminations of research would remain disjointed, and even fail to reckon the simple fact that life as it persisted in the seven continents of this planet has been a continuum. –P.J. Cherian”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“The manner of employing the leisure time is always an index of a people’s culture. The Tamils of old had their own pastimes which reveal at once their rustic simplicity and their notable refinement (Pillay 1969: 326-327)”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“There was a story before and beyond Harappa. There is a story before and beyond Keeladi. This journey of a civilization is not a point to point journey. It is an unending expedition of human spirit.
yātum ūrē yāvarum kēḷīr Every town our home town, every man a kinsman - Kaṇiyaṉ Pūṅkuṉṟaṉār”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“The fact that the pluralism of India is not an ornamental frill but a foundational core needs to be duly recognized.”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai

“The Sangam Corpus is one body of literature that could possibly represent the ethos of the IVC [Indus Valley Civilization] such as maritime trade, eminence of crafts and skills, technology and knowledge, spread of literacy, Mother Goddess worship, participatory festivals and pass-time activities, secular orientation, enjoyment associated with group-bathing, place of flora and fauna in narratives, writing and graffiti skills.”
― R. Balakrishnan, Journey of A Civilization: Indus to Vaigai