The Rustic notebook: In Chikkeri - The Cattle Racing in Western Deccan of Karnataka, India

The Rustic notebook: In Chikkeri - The Cattle Racing in Western Deccan of Karnataka, India

Gundu Thop's of South interior Karnataka /Tiptur

ಗುಂಡು ತೋಪು 

ಗ್ರಾಮೀಣ ಸಮುದಾಯಗಳು ಅಥವ ಸಮುದಾಯ ಪ್ರಜ್ಞಾಯುಳ್ಳ ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿಗಳು ತಮ್ಮ ಗ್ರಾಮದ ಹೊರ ಭಾಗಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಜ್ಞಾಪೂರ್ವಕವಾಗಿ ಗಿಡಗಳನ್ನು ನೆಟ್ಟು ಅದರ ಪೋಷಣೆ ಹಾಗು ಸಂರಕ್ಷಣೆ ಕಾರ್ಯಮಾಡಿ ನಿರ್ಮಿಸಿದ ವೃಕ್ಷಗಳ ಸಮೂಹ ಅಥವ ತೋಪುಗಳನ್ನು ಇಂದು ಗುಂಡುತೋಪುಗಳೆಂದು ಕರೆಯುತ್ತೆವೆ.  ಬಯಲು ಸೀಮೆಯ ಹಿಂದಿನ ಮೈಸೂರ ಪ್ರಾಂತ್ಯಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕಂಡುಬರುವ ಈ ವೃಕ್ಷ ಸಮುಹಗಳ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣದ ಮೂಲ ಪರಿಕಲ್ಪನೆಯು ಈ ನೆಲದ ಮೂಲವಾಸಿ ಮತ್ತು ದ್ರಾವಿಡ ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತಿಯದಾಗಿರುತ್ತದೆ. ತದನಂತರದಲ್ಲಿ ಈ ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತಿಯು ವೈದಿಕ ಸಂಪ್ರದಾಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಬೆರತು ಕ್ಷೀತಿರುಹನೋಂಪಿ (ಗಿಡ ನೆಡುವ ವ್ರತ) ಎಂಬ ವೈದಿಕ ಸಂಪ್ರದಾಯವಾಯಿತು. 

ಗಿಡ ನೆಡುವ ವ್ರತದ ಉದ್ದೇಶ ಸಾಮಾನ್ಯವಾಗಿ ಪಾಪಗಳನ್ನು ತೊಳೆದು ಪುಣ್ಯಗೊಳಿಸುವುದಾಗಿರತ್ತದೆ. ಬಿಜಾಪುರದ ಹಿರೆಬೇವಿನೂರುನಲ್ಲಿ ದೊರೆತ ಕ್ರಿ. ಶ 1190 ರ ಶಾಸನವು, 30 ಗ್ರಾಮದ ಯಜಮಾನನಾದ ಬೂಪಯ್ಯನ ಹೆಂಡತಿ ಸಿರಿಯದೇವಿಯು ವೈದಿಕ ಧರ್ಮದಲ್ಲಿ ಸೂಚಿಸಿದ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ವ್ರತಗಳನ್ನು ಮಾಡಿ ಮುಗಿಸಿದರೂ ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ಕ್ಷಿತಿರುಹನೋಪಿ ವ್ರತವುಂಟೆಂದು ಕೇಳಿ ಸಂತೋಷದಿಂದ ಗಿಡ ನೆಡುವ ವ್ರತ ಆಚರಿಸಿ ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ನೆರಳೆ, ವಿಳ್ಯದೆಲೆ, ಹಲಸು, ತೆಂಗು ಮತ್ತು ಇತರೆ ವನಸ್ಪತಿ (ಕಾಡು ಗಿಡ)ಗಳನ್ನು ನೆಟ್ಟು ಪೋಷಿಸಿದಳು ಎಂದು ತಿಳಿಸುತ್ತದೆ. ಹಾಗೆ, ಗಿಡಗಳನ್ನು ಪೋಷಿಸಲು ನೀರಿಗಾಗಿ ಸಣ್ಣ ಕೊಳ ಮತ್ತು ಆತ್ಮಸ್ಥರ್ಯ ಹಾಗು ವಿಶ್ರಾಂತಿಗಾಗಿ ಸ್ಥಳಿಯ ದೇವರ ಗುಡಿ ಕಟ್ಟಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು.

ಈ ಗುಂಡು ತೋಪುಗಳೂ ಸಮಾನ್ಯವಾಗಿ ಒಂದೇ ಬಗೆಯ ವೃಕ್ಷಗಳ ಸಮೂಹವಾಗಿದ್ದು ಬಹುತೇಕ ಸಮೂಹಗಳು ಹಿಪ್ಪೆ ಮರಗಳಿಂದ (ಮಧುಕ ಲಾಂಗಿಫೋಲಿಯಾ) ಕೂಡಿರುತ್ತಿದ್ದವು. ರಾತ್ರಿ ಸಮಯದಲ್ಲಿ ದೀಪ-ದೊಂದಿಯನ್ನು ಉರಿಸಲು, ಚಕ್ಕಡಿಗಳ ಕೀಲ ಎಣ್ಣೆಯಾಗಿ ಬಳಸಲು ಹಿಪ್ಪೆ ಎಣ್ಣೆಯನ್ನು / ಉತ್ಪನ್ನಗಳನ್ನು ಸಮುದಾಯದ ಅಗತ್ಯಗಳಿಗಾಗಿ ಆ ಗ್ರಾಮದ ಜನರು ಬಳಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಹಾಗೆ ಇವರುಗಳು ಬಿಡುವಿನ ವೇಳೆಯನ್ನು ತಮ್ಮ ಯುದ್ದ ಕೌಶಲ್ಯಗಳನ್ನು ಮತ್ತು ದೇಹದಾಢ್ಯತೆಯನ್ನು ಹೆಚ್ಚಿಸಿ ಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ಈ ವೃಕ್ಷಸಮೂಹಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಗಾರುಡಿ ಮನೆಯನ್ನಾಗಿ ಬಳಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದುರ ಬಗೆ ಅರಸೀಕೆರೆಯ ಹುಂಡಿಗನಾಳಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಮಾಹಿತಿ ದೊರೆಯುತ್ತದೆ. ಮುಂದೆ ಅಲ್ಲಿನ ಗುಡಿ ಮಂದಿರಗಳು ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನಗಳಾಗಿ ಮತ್ತು ಕೊಳಗಳು ಕಲ್ಯಾಣಿಗಳಾಗಿ ಪರಿವರ್ತನೆಗೊಂಡವು ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು ಕಾವಲು-ಗುಂಡು ತೋಪಗಳ ಬಳಿಯಿರುವ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನಗಳಿಂದ ತಿಳಿದು ಬರುತ್ತದೆ. (ಉದಾ:ತಿಪಟೂರು ಬಳಿಯಿರುವ ಬಿದಿರಮ್ಮನ ಗುಡಿ ತೋಪು, ಕಾವಲು ಬಂದಮ್ಮನ ಗುಡಿ ಮತ್ತು  ಬಿದರಮ್ಮನ ಗುಡಿ ಕಾವಲು).

ಕಾಲ ಕ್ರಮೇಣ ಈ ಗುಂಡು ತೋಪುಗಳು ಕಾಲ ಕಾಲಕ್ಕೆ ಪ್ರಯಾಣಿಕರು ಮತ್ತು ಸೈನಿಕರ ತಂಗುದಾಣವಾಗಿ, ವ್ಯಾಪಾರಿಗಳ ವ್ಯಾಪರ ಸ್ಥಳವಾಗಿ ಹಾಗು ಅಲೆಮಾರಿ ಪಂಗಡದ (ಬಂಜಾರರ ಹಾಗು ಜೋಗಿಗಳು) ಜನರ ನೀರ-ನೆರಳಿನ ಸುರಕ್ಷಿತ ಆಶ್ರಯ ತಾಣವಾಗಿ ರೂಪಾಂತರ ಗೊಂಡವು. ನಂತರದಲ್ಲಿ ಗುಂಡುತೋಪಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಹಿಪ್ಪೆಮರದಿಂದ ಹುಣುಸೆಮರ, ಮಾವಿನಮರ ನಂತರ ಸಂಪಿಗೆ, ಆಲ, ಅರಳಿ ಹಾಗು ಬೇವು ಮುಂತಾದ ನೂರು ವರ್ಷಕ್ಕು ಮಿಕ್ಕಿ ಬಾಳುವ ಮರಗಳು ಜನ-ಜಾನುವರುಗಳ ಅಗತ್ಯಕ್ಕೆ ಹಾಗು ಸಂದರ್ಭ ಅನುಗುಣವಾಗಿ ಈ ತೋಪಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಾಮುಖ್ಯತೆ ಪಡೆದುಕೊಂಡಿವೆ. 

By ; Manohar Patel

Photo Courtesy : Mahesh Chandra Chikkamaglooru.

In Chikkeri - The Cattle Racing in Western Deccan of Karnataka, India

This time Ashok and my self were the happy witness of this beautiful traditional folk game called cattle raiding. Though we heard a lot about this sports i had no opportunity or even the knowledge of where it would be held and at what time and day. When Venkappa Malkappa Doodihalli a farmer from the far distant of Haveri-Chikkerror called me over a phone and invited to him join the cattle racing sports i was just thrilled and booked my date exclusively for that day. When i requested Ashok to join me he just went to the extent of booking the railway tickets and off course we were on right schedule as when we reached Hirekkeroor where Venkappa and other farmer friends received us joyfully and took to Chikkeroor. We were served with warm water to wash hands and legs as custom. Around five to six youths joined us and chatted for a while on cattle racing, cattle breeds, bull fighters etc., One of them showed us some of the accessories including T-shirts of their team named after their Bull – “Chikkeri Don” that would be used in decorating themselves and the bull for tomorrow games show. For them cattle sports was meant to show of their skills in maintaining the best breed of cattle, their vallurness and winning the race. Later in the evening we were served Kadak Roti, Curds, Ghee, Sabji,Rice, Dal and Payasam (A kind of sweet made of milk, sugar and rice noodles). Then we ourselves retired to our bed and had "Various sounds" sleep.

 

On next day in the dawn the six and half feet tall beast named Chikerror Don got his cold shower with the help of Venkappa and his assitents.  Then he was fed with paddy grass. Venkamma wife of Venkappa brought him his porridge made of wide variety of cereals, pulses with proper mixture of rice and wheat brawn and marinated overnight with dash of salt and local Jaggery. He relished it till the vessel bounced out of the stable. As soon as sun was rising on the horizon of the far distant temple of Chikkerooru the boy from the venkappa house came out with Vibhuti and litted insane sticks. He smeared his Don with Vibhuti on his horns, forehead, foot and back. Though the scent of the insane stick was irritative to the Don he tried not to shy away from the boys loving touch while he was offering the prayers to him....Don knew that it was not just an a another usual day of his life, for he had a special massage on previous day with rough brush and his horn was sharpened to piercing point with a glittering knife. This made him quiet aggressive because of the pain. This was his sixth year of cattle racing in Chikkeroor and was proud bullock of Venkappa by winning him several compitation of cattle race. As soon as he was decorated with paint, cloth and other accessories he was brought in front of the home where Venkappa and his wife offered him prayers by litting camphor on Asisana water. Venkappa’s wife wished him a very good luck and told him to win the race and come back.

This Cattle sport which is so ancient is also still found happening widely in remote places of rural India in different forms. The place which event took place was at  Ginivalla village. A remote village situated near Chikkeroor of the Haveri district. Somewhere in the remote corner of western Deccan region of Karnataka, which meets Western Ghats foot hills?  Lingayats, Banjaaras, Muslims and Vaddas are the major settled people. Most of their occupation was Agriculture. Paddy, Cotton, Jower and Maize are the basic crops which they are presently growing. Near and Far distance i could find few Coconut and Aracnut grooves. Otherwise the landscape was so vast and Dry cultivated. And also wildlife like Blackbuck offten shared this space by raiding in herds during cotton growing seasons. Ashok took few pictures of birds and trees during his early morning walk. He was wondering and said that birds hear are not afraid of human closure probably people heare are not disturbing their presence.

As soon i reached the Ginivalla Village i saw large crowd on and sides of the race track. The race track which was on a down hill road, was choosen by the COMMITTEE. i.e organisers whom most of them were standing in the mids of the crowd. I could recognize them only by their paper badges hanging on their left side of the chest. Where other main Committee people were mounted on the high platform on one side of the track where more than fourty tractor tailors were tagged each other in Que. On the other side of the track was enclosed by strong fence was built with bamboo and other pols and chemeflasosed it with green leaves of Mango, Cassia, and other tree species which were found far distant of the tracks. Mainly male crowed assembled on both side of the track. I saw a group of five women who have mounted on the qued trilers. Hundreds of bull fighter were seen on the track and they were ready to catch the bull. One of the Committee member was shouting at crowd Oye!! Hori bitta!!! Hori bitta!!! over microphone, which means the bull was left on run in the track. Venkappa informed us that this is the 1^st round, where the Bull will be made run through this track just to show it the path where to start and end it. To end ?!! I said. Yes it will just join one of us standing here as soon as the given running track completed. But not every ones’s bull will be same, some of the bull have ran back to their home or into the nearby fields. Usually they are disqualified from the game said venkappa.

More than 100’s of cattle were seen running on the downhill trail track of Ginivalla Cattle race, by taking their turn with guidance of the owner for another One and Half hour. It appeared that some of the cattle breed of Amrithmahl and Dyavni were specially bred for their fitness to participate in these sports. They were decorated with pink colour on their back, Mask of black woolen roaps were tied around their face, tilak marks on their forehead to indicate valourness or a black cloth doll was tied up to avoid evil eyes. Colour tapes were tied to the horns and some of them had lemon stuck into their horn tip which was previously sharpened. Some of them were decorated with liitle saffron flags, or with number of balloons to adore the bulls. The cloth of different colours were tied to both of their front leg looked like a kind of buffoons trousers. And some cloth stitched out of woolly cloth resembled black bear and designs of the cloth were purely bit of wild imaginations of character of their cattle brought into realization. 

Like Chikkeroor Don there were, Tsunami, Forest King, Rowdy, Inspector etc., etc., The sports was carried out for prizes such as Telivisios, Refrigerator, Cooking-mixer, Pressure cookers and Safe lockers. A garland of Copra balls made fast around the neck of the beast was the prize of the captor. Later he will also be awarded some prizes like Telivision or a mobile handset.

Though this Bull baiting/racing/ fighting was organized from the time of Dipavalii festival to Samkrati the sports which had folk character did not have any religious significance in this area. I guess earlier days these sports wrere conducted to win the girl with in the tribe or to demonstrate valournes in bull taming or to show their best cattle breed. Now I could not understand that why this event is done during the times of Dipavalli  in theses region. My guess was that this sports in this region was mainly organised by Banjaaras. The nomadic tribes of northers origin, where they would return to their natvie or sttled place after year long traveling across the state or country and conducted this sports to win their braid or just as a festival game where nothing seemesed to be a religious activity. Now as time pass on this ancient sports has bee observed by various communities. The price for the captor has been changed to some gadgets. At Ginivalla the particpents were mostly from Banjaaras, Lingayats, Muslims and Vadda communities. The animals were bulls of various native breeds of cattles across maidans and western ghats namely Amruthmahl, Hallikar, Killari, Devani, Malnad gidda and other native breeds. Each breed of beasts were distinct from another and of various age group and colours. Few of them participating in these games for last six years and champions in different event held in different areas.

It was real race time, when I heard the rise of Drum sounds and the voice of crowd reached the height of skye. The hundreds of young men who have already leaped into the enclosed reace track were after the bull. The dust was fumed out of the crowd. With no time an Hallikar bull with red paint breaked and jumped out of the crowd on the race track and ran another half kilometer whom chased by his only owner. The annoyed bulls with lowered heads kept charging wildly in to the midst of the crowd. Most of the cattle had single goal that to run away as far as possible out of the crowd without getting caught by threatening the crowd or fist running or by loosing the garland of copra to the captor. 

 Few of them just run away back to the starting point due to wrong coordination of the bull team members namely Leader, Guider and Cheer leaders. Leader usually runs before the bull and carried name of the bull or the team name on a holder held up heigh. Guider’s will hold control of the bull till it gets wild and starts running. And cheer leaders usually make annoying sound whiling hopping and jumping behind the bull, due to this either bull gets scared or wild and starts running into the mids of the crowd.  The youths among the crowds used quiet funny and interesting techniques to stop the running bulls. They raised their hands up high and started dancing in the way of the bull’s pursuit of escape or as a team they would straight away jumped on the way of the Bull only to end with few hurts. Some of them they just hoped on their shoulder, or hunged themselves as a garland on the neck of the bull and charged the bull by catching its ear and quench it to capture.

While witnessing and capturing this freaky show of this bull biting continued, Ashok and myself managed to quench our thirst with child Dixie cola nearby petty shop and Committee people mounted on the heigh platform quenched their thirst with Knock-out Beer in a steel glass and kept shouting over microphone Hori bitta..!! bitta..!!

Manohar Patel  on 22 Dec 2012.

ಕೊಲ್ಲುವ - ಕಾಯುವ ವಿದ್ಯೆ

ಕಲಿಯುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು ಕುರವರು - ಪಾಂಡವರು
ಕೊಲ್ಲುವ ವಿದ್ಯೆಯನ್ನು, ಕಲಿಯುತ್ತಿದ್ದನು
ಏಕಲವ್ಯನು ಕಾಯುವ ವಿದ್ಯೆಯನ್ನು.

ಕಣ್ಣಲ್ಲಿ ಗುರು ಮೂರ್ತಿ ತುಂಬಿದ್ದ ಅಂತರಂಗದಲ್ಲಿ
ತನಗೆ ತಾನೇ ಗುರುವಾದ ಈ ಶಿಷ್ಯ ,
ಹಗಲು - ರಾತ್ರಿ , ಹಸಿವು ತೃಷೆಗಳ
ಮರೆತ ಅನವರತ .

ಆಯಿತು ಕರಗತ , ಅಮೃತ ವಿದ್ಯೆ !
ಬೊಗಳುವ ಶ್ವಾನಗಳ ಬಾಯಿಗೆ
ಬಾಣಗಳ ಬೀಗ ಹಾಕಿದಾಗ...

ಅರ್ಜುನನನಿಗೆ ಅರ್ಥವಾಯಿತು ಇವನು
ಯಾರ ಶಿಷ್ಯನೆಂದು, ಕೇಳಿದ ತನ್ನ ಗುರುವನ್ನು
ನಾನು ಸವ್ಯಸಾಚಿ ಹೇಗೆ ಎಂದು?!




ದ್ರೋಣರಿಗೆ  ತಿಳಿದಿತ್ತು ಕೊಲ್ಲುವ - ಕಾಯುವ ವಿದ್ಯೆ,
ಪರೀಕ್ಷೆಯಾಯಿತು ಏಕಲವ್ಯನ ಅಹಿಂಸಕ ವಿದ್ಯೆ !

ಅಪ್ಪಣೆಯಾಗಲು ಗುರುವಿನ ಆಜ್ಞೆ
ಆಯಿತು ಬಲಗೈ ಹೆಬ್ಬೆರಳು  ಗುರು
ಪಾದಂಗಳದಲ್ಲಿ ಗುರು ದಕ್ಷಿಣೆ !!

ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ದವಾಯಿತು ಕೊಲ್ಲುವ ವಿದ್ಯೆ ! ಜಗತ್ತಿನಲ್ಲಿ
ಏಕಲವ್ಯ ಉಳಿದಿದ್ದ , ಕಾಯುವ ವಿದ್ಯಾ ಮರೆಯಾಗಿತ್ತು.

ಮ

Dear....can u see this...!?

By. T. M Shedakshari
Traslatation : Manohar Patel

The play on the dark stage

falchion,shield are the moral & Religion

Assassins of Truth

are trembled by new light.

Life slavery imagined as divinity!

Heaven and Hell are the colours sown

Decivers....by words

Make soil the vision

"Let lord be god unto you,"

"Let Guru be God unto you"

"One who protect the Righteousness are protected"

"let there be peace in all beings"

are the slogan they up hold high

down nith they squeezes neck!

Scriptures have been manipulated

when ever their impulse are raised

& Loincloth's are made warm!

Though not worked/toiled

belly is stuffed with feast

Though not go out

make world dance by tip of the finger.

Assassins of Truth

are trembled by new light!

Fresh Raising Sun on the horizon of Hermit

Trembled by Trumpet Voice !

What If ?......

Dark Secret are seen in light....!?

Dark stage is seen ........!?

Shattered by the fear of Shaking Roots,

Looks for Right support in scriptures.

Valorous who embrace darkness

are Trembled by New Light !!