ONE DAY, FOUR COUNTRIES
From VijayaVarman II to Annadurai, Comrade Anna of Dravida Muneta Kadakam, the pan Dravidian movement based in Madras, India.
It is IX Century, an Immigrant South Indian King, possibly a Tamoul Prince, founded what later became in all its glory---ANGKOR, on the shores of the unique and large fresh water lake in south East Asia, Tonle Sap, near the current day city of Siem Reap.
It was a retracing of their steps; they followed the monsoon winds and sailed back and forth between South India and Burma, Malacca, Annam…among other routes, including Southern Indo Chine (a colonial term)
Two great contributions from TamoulNadou (as it is called in the XXIst century) to Annam!
Theravada Buddhism, which had a centre in Tanjore in TamoulNadou.
By the time VijayaVarman II had begun the dynasty in Cambodia, the language Tamoul had been a written language for centuries, if not millennia, with a flourishing literature (in fact it has one of the oldest recorded literatures). The written scripts of Burmese, Thai, Lao and Khmer all have Tamoul origins!!!There are engravings in Tamil at Angkor Wat!!
This memory is occasionally seen in some faces of the Khmer people, especially children.
Tamouls in Malaysia are mainly children of indentured labourers who were brought over by the British masters to tap rubber in the XIX century.
The Tamouls in Singapore are part of the laptop totting IT Tamoul crowd around the world...
The original Tamouls are of course in Madras, whose name now has reverted back to its original Chennai, in TamoulNadou.
This journey through memories of centuries, which took months to complete a few years back, now has been done in one day, by a humble Jew of Cuban Soul, French heart and Australian Passport.
0600 left the hotel of Brother Maung Maung in Siem Reap in Cambodia
Through Kuala Lumpur, Low Cost Terminal and International Terminal, to Johor Bahru Airport at the mouth of the Malay Peninsula, and with the help of Buses and Metro and crossing Border Posts and Immigration Points to the Budget Airlines Terminal of the Changi International Airport in Singapore,
To take a Tiger Airways (the Tamoul Tigers? A coincidence?) to Madras,
Ending up in a wooden cot of the hospitable home of a good Brahmin friend at Nanganallur, a suburb of Madras, close to the hour of midnight.
Started this year, 2008, this month of January, in the Mayan Indian Town of Merida in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico
Then
Miami, Los Indios, a long flight from Dallas to Tokyo connecting to Singapore, a bus to Kuala Lumpur to Bandar Seri Begawan and other towns in Brunei, connecting at KL to the hotel run by Brother Maung Maung in Siem Reap in Cambodia, and now to Madras…in India
Madras to Bangalore
Premier Book Store, one of the best in India for books on all topics
Bombay Store for silk scarves and other gifts for friends
Khadi Bhandar for Kurtas to wear to give lectures in the West..
Bangalore to Bombay and then this flight to London, this evening London to Paris..
Ha! Here ends my journey for the month..
Home, comfort and Love, nourishment and encouragement!
From VijayaVarman II to Annadurai, Comrade Anna of Dravida Muneta Kadakam, the pan Dravidian movement based in Madras, India.
It is IX Century, an Immigrant South Indian King, possibly a Tamoul Prince, founded what later became in all its glory---ANGKOR, on the shores of the unique and large fresh water lake in south East Asia, Tonle Sap, near the current day city of Siem Reap.
It was a retracing of their steps; they followed the monsoon winds and sailed back and forth between South India and Burma, Malacca, Annam…among other routes, including Southern Indo Chine (a colonial term)
Two great contributions from TamoulNadou (as it is called in the XXIst century) to Annam!
Theravada Buddhism, which had a centre in Tanjore in TamoulNadou.
By the time VijayaVarman II had begun the dynasty in Cambodia, the language Tamoul had been a written language for centuries, if not millennia, with a flourishing literature (in fact it has one of the oldest recorded literatures). The written scripts of Burmese, Thai, Lao and Khmer all have Tamoul origins!!!There are engravings in Tamil at Angkor Wat!!
This memory is occasionally seen in some faces of the Khmer people, especially children.
Tamouls in Malaysia are mainly children of indentured labourers who were brought over by the British masters to tap rubber in the XIX century.
The Tamouls in Singapore are part of the laptop totting IT Tamoul crowd around the world...
The original Tamouls are of course in Madras, whose name now has reverted back to its original Chennai, in TamoulNadou.
This journey through memories of centuries, which took months to complete a few years back, now has been done in one day, by a humble Jew of Cuban Soul, French heart and Australian Passport.
0600 left the hotel of Brother Maung Maung in Siem Reap in Cambodia
Through Kuala Lumpur, Low Cost Terminal and International Terminal, to Johor Bahru Airport at the mouth of the Malay Peninsula, and with the help of Buses and Metro and crossing Border Posts and Immigration Points to the Budget Airlines Terminal of the Changi International Airport in Singapore,
To take a Tiger Airways (the Tamoul Tigers? A coincidence?) to Madras,
Ending up in a wooden cot of the hospitable home of a good Brahmin friend at Nanganallur, a suburb of Madras, close to the hour of midnight.
Started this year, 2008, this month of January, in the Mayan Indian Town of Merida in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico
Then
Miami, Los Indios, a long flight from Dallas to Tokyo connecting to Singapore, a bus to Kuala Lumpur to Bandar Seri Begawan and other towns in Brunei, connecting at KL to the hotel run by Brother Maung Maung in Siem Reap in Cambodia, and now to Madras…in India
Madras to Bangalore
Premier Book Store, one of the best in India for books on all topics
Bombay Store for silk scarves and other gifts for friends
Khadi Bhandar for Kurtas to wear to give lectures in the West..
Bangalore to Bombay and then this flight to London, this evening London to Paris..
Ha! Here ends my journey for the month..
Home, comfort and Love, nourishment and encouragement!
