TheKerala Charactertc"The Kerala Character" Amazing forests,mountains and waterfallscan be witnessedif we goaround
the enchanting‘God’s Own Country’.Kerala the landof Ayurveda, Kathakaliand Kalari isnaturally India’s pride.But this last wordhas never affectedthe people ofthis land and that is one ofthe peculiarities ofthe Keralites. SinceKerala is a miniatureland of different culture andreligions and my exposureto this partof the worldis limited theseobservations won’t bemeticulous. Never in myone year experience inKerala my attentionhas been diverted from enjoyingthe nature byany Keralite insidea bus ora train whiletraveling. I couldunderstand the realmeaning of serenityonly after seeingthe unaffected, peacefulfaces of Kerala menand women. Fromwhere they got this,from their longcherished culture orfrom peaceful historyor from education?Anyhow an
original Keralaman or womannever disturbs us and never getdisturbed. They don’tneed any artificialscent because from thememanates the sweetsmell of cottonand the original fragranceof nature. They never adorn themselveswith diamonds and costly ornaments. Nylonand Silk hardlyget opportunity towrap up thesenature’s
children. Infact I amconfused of thefact whether the neatlyironed cotton sariesand shirts make these peopleelegant or these original peopleelevate the Indiancotton’s texture. Eventhe most simplewhite saries and dhoties ( specialKerala dress ) look royalupon these people. Ihave got theopportunity to minglewith Kerala nurses,who worked abroadfor many years.They experienced more,learned more and earnedmore, but nevercould I identifyany real changein them from thepure Kerala nature. Never they beat their drumsand show off anything. Simplicityis their school,cotton is theiruniform, vulgarity andpomposity are alwaystheir enemies. If wethink that they areserious, unfriendly andproud in their natureby their coldesteemed appearance froma distant viewwe would becheated. Go closeto them theircoldness would becomewarmth and seriousnesswould become a smile. Who can workhard as theKerala nurses ? Theyare looking aftertheir families, doingthe night duties in hospitalsand preparing forIELTS and CGFNSfor going to the U.K.and the U.S.A. We mayhave some doubtslike whether theytake any timeto enjoy theirlife or simply goafter money. If theyjust enjoy whateverthey do thendo you think theyneed any extraactivity to enjoy life?If drinking andeating more isreally enjoying then Iafraid they arenot. But theygo out, visitplaces and Ibelieve these experiencesgive them enoughinsight and pleasurein life. As anoutsider to Keralaand one who writein one of themost pleasing languagesin the world (English ), I amsometimes irritated listening to these people’sway of communication. Fewdays back when Iwas walking along a road in Thiruvananthapuram, suddenlyI heard avoice from my behind like,‘ chu…..chu…..’ and I thoughtsomebody was calling a dog, but only when I turned back Icould understand that a gentleman was calling me toknow the time. Inthe buses alsothe bus staffwho stands in the frontdoor usually abusesthe travelers, pushes themand pulls themviolently if theyare a little bit lateeven if thetraveler is a lady. Evenin shops, theshop keepers whoare supposed to bepleasing to thecustomers, stare atus and frownat us if we ask the price for asecond time. Totally, Ifeel, these peopleare far away frompleasing communication. In certainsituations, I reach to mymaximum anger watchingsome unhealthy incidentslike unnecessary hartalsand frequent current cuts.But when I am aboutto burst out only Iwould watch allthe people aroundme being calmand quite unaffectedby any ofthose incidents unwillingto react. Theyrefuse to raise their voice forpublic issues in publicplaces. There is a peculiarpolitical custom inKerala : if thereis a fight between husband andwife in aremote home inKasargode, the nextday there wouldbe a hartal called forin the wholeState. In Keralafrom schools tooffices everywhere wecan find politicsandone of themajor functions ofpolitical parties hereis conducting hartals.I have talkedto many Keralamen and women individually andthey all utteredagainst hartals andworried about theevils of hartalsas they are well educatedand thinking peoplebut they neverget ready toreact. Now-a- days familiesare shrinking toindividuals. In atypical family inKerala mother isworking in oneplace, father isin another placeand children arestudying somewhere else.There are amplereasons quoted forthis like population explosion,unemployment etc. Yesnow children arenot depending on their parents.They are standingon their ownlegs. We cannotblame them. So wemust believe, consideringthe positive aspectsof Kerala characterthey won’t go behindmoney sacrificing valuablehuman relationship and life. Theseare the plain,simple, pure sonsand daughters ofKerala. Even though, sometimesthere are paradoxesin their characterand puzzles in their action, wealways feel ourlives worth livingin their company. J.T.JayasinghIndia