EXPOSING THE PARASURAMA MYTH

KERALA WAS THERE MUCH BEFORE PARASURAMA

In the oldest Purana, Matsya Purana, the incarnation of Parasurama happened in the Malaya Mountain. He killed the race of Kshatriyas and filled seven lakes with their blood, and then did penance at Gokarn. Varuna appeared and blessed him. Parasurama went to Kanyakumari and flung his axe into the sea. The sea receded in the area between Kanyakumari and Gokarna. The area thus formed was 160 Kada.

Parasurama makes his appearance in the Aithareya Aranyaka of Rigveda, the Sahyadri episode in Skanda Purana, Kerala Mahatmyam, Keralotpathi, Kerala Avakasa Kramam and Kerala Vamsakavyam. Chattambi Swamikal has tried to expose Parasurama in his work, Pracheena Malayalam, quoting the Sahyadri episode.

Guru,Chattambi,Neelakanta Theerthapadar

From Malaya Mountain, he saw fishermen below, on the sea shore, climbed down, took out the string from the Angle (choonda) made it the sacred thread, and thus made them Brahmins. So, the Malayali Brahmins, Nambudiris were originally fishermen, according to Chattambi Swamikal. The Kerala he founded spread from south of the Vaitharani river to Subrahmanyam, in the North, From Sahya Mountain to the sea, in the form a Soorpa (Sanskrit for Malayalam Muram, a flat, shallow sieve used to winnow grain). Though he recovered a land, Brahmins from North India, refused to come and inhabit it. So he made fishermen, Brahmins.

The problem with this episode is, Kerala existed before Parasurama, because, the incarnation of Vamana was just before him, in which we have the story of Mahabali reigning over Kerala. In Dasavathara, Vamana is 5th and Parasurama is 6th. So, to fill the loophole, it is said that Vamana recovered Kerala from Mahabali, then gave it to sage Kasyapa, Kasyapa, in turn, to Gowders, Dravidas, scholars and priests.

In Thretha Yuga, the kings like Karthavirya Arjuna, protected and nurtured the earth. Afterwards, conceding to the prayers of Brahmins like Kasyapa, Mahavishnu incarnated as the son of Jamadagni. The son, Prasurama, killed Kshatriyas 21 times, gifted the entire land to priests like Kasyapa and Vasishta while he performed Aswamedha, climbed over Mount Sahyadri and meditated, viewing the vast expanse of the sea before him. When Narada arrived, Parasurama the fool lamented that he has no space to sit, because he has gifted the lands to the priests. Narada advised him to split the Ocean. Parasurama sent the arrow from the Mountain, creating Ramakshetra, or Kerala. The place where the arrow, or, Bana, fell, came to be known as Banavalli.

An Asoka pillar edict

The entire myth of Parasurama collapses here, because, instead of his brand axe, he sent the arrow. In this story, he sent the arrow from Sahyadri, not from Kanyakumari. Most importantly, Kerala was there, before Parasurama, because of Vamana.

The recovered area was called seven Konkanas: Kerala, Thulanga, Saurashtra, Konkan, Kamhad, Karnataka and Barbara. Kerala Mahatmyam says he flung the axe with his left hand from Kanyakumari, whereas, Keralotpathi differs by insisting, he threw the axe from Gokarn, and Nagas ruled over the area when Brahmins fled. It says Parasurama made Durga the protective deity, made and deposited the Rasi gold coins, under the earth. When fortunate people dig the earth, Rasi appears as a treasure.

Historically, the word Kerala first appears in the rock pillar edicts of Emperor Asoka(BC 274-237), by referring to a king, Kerala Putra. Kerala was one of the four kingdoms in South India, the other three being, Chola, Pandya, and Sathya Putra. The whole area was called Thamizhakam. Pandyas say Parasurama was a Pandya king, and the era of him was known as Parasurama Sathakam. Chera history mentions that Parasurama anointed Bhanu Vikrama, the Chera king on the throne. The Chera legend also says it was Velkezhu Kuttuvan, the king who recovered the land from the sea by throwing his spear. There are other versions too: it was the Pandyan who ruled Vadingalamba who threw the spear. No, it was Ugra Pandyan who ruled Madurai, who got the spear from Siva and threw it into the Ocean.

Kerala Putra in the Asoka edict is considered a Chera King. The Chera empire consisted of modern Kerala, Coimbatore and Salem with Muziris or Karur as the capital.

The Kerala Brahmins took out the spear from the Tamil legend, fixed an axe, and brought Parasurama the Brahmin into the picture. Thunchath Ezhuthachan is said to have written Keralotpathi, based on the Sanskrit Kerala Mahatmyam, which is quite unlikely, because the text is so raw, and has no sublimity associated with Ezhuthachan. It does seem to be written by a Nair because the text accepts Nambudiri dominance. The new converts to Brahminism, had their Kuduma (tuft of hair)on the front, whereas in North India, it is on the back. The politics is, Malayali Brahmins will never be accepted by the North Indian Brahmins, and they will remain in Kerala to do the rituals. The capital of the 64 Brahmin families, was Vellappanad. Sudras were brought from different parts. The Malayali Brahmins violated the laws given to them by eating meat and instigating wars. They split into Val Nambi and Pattini Nambi, the former wielding the sword and the latter only the umbrella and conch. Since they took to battles, the Tamils came to Chengannur and entered into a conflict over the cremation of a dead body, the body was thrown into the river. From then downwards, Chengannur Nairs, avoided using lime (Chunnambu), while chewing betel leaves.

The Brahmins became corrupt and were removed from administration and Perumals were brought from Keyapuram. They stayed in the capital of Thalyur, North of Thaliparambu in modern Kannur. A period comes when the Brahmins quarrel with the Perumals and take over the reins again, with Thrikkariyur (birthplace of Ezhuthachan 1495-1575)) as capital. From then on, Brahmins were allowed to wed Kshatriya women...It is a long story in Keralotpathi. The book is also considered the handiwork of the Brahmins in the 18th century, which is disputed by M R Raghava Warrier and Rajan Gurukkal in their history of Kerala, because, a copy of the text was found in 1527, in Nellikanthuruthy kazhakam, North of Payyannur. But that doesn't absolve the Brahmins from fixing Parasurama as the founder.

Caldwell

The fact is, Kerala has nothing to do with Parasurama, and the name Kerala has nothing to do with coconut, Keram. The state, historically was Cheralam, the Chera country. Cheralam means the declivity of a mountain. Plini who lived in the first century AD mentions, Muziris is in Chelobotras. The alphabet,' k'in Dravida becomes, 'ch', when followed by a vowel, in Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu, according to Robert Caldwell (1814-1891), the linguist. Thus Kerala becomes Cherala. Conversely, 'ch' becomes,'k'too-Cheera, and spinach, becoming, Keera is a fine example. Chera Puthran became Kerala Puthran with the root of the name in Cheru or mud, from an area where paddy is sown. Kerala, is thus, Cherala, the wetland. Coconut is out, and Paddy is in.

Reference:
1. The Eight Anthologies/John Ralston Marr
2.Kerala Charithram/Raghava Warrier, Rajan Gurukkal
3. Kerala: Word Lore/Dr V Sankaran Nair
4. Keralotpathi

© Ramachandran

See my Post,PARASURAMA,DALITS AND THE ART OF AXING