Culture

Plague

The Plague pandemic came to Mulbagal perhaps after all other places in the vicinity. When the news spread that Plague had broken out in Kolar and Bowring Town, people of Mulbagal mused: “To the West of our town is Virūpākṣi Māramma. Nācāramma stands guard atop the hills. Raṇabheramma is at the centre of the town. And in the East Āñjaneyasvāmi stands tall with his mighty arm raised, protecting us vigilantly. When we are so protected on all sides, who or what can cause us harm?” Thinking thus, they emboldened each other.

I have previously described the vaidikas[1], scholars, and connoisseurs of Mulbagal, in bits and pieces, in many series of articles. In the present essay I shall describe the typical lifestyle of Mulbagal’s people. I have not selected the topic for this article from the town of Mulbagal because the place is special in any way. Scholars and common people alike resided there in those days as they did in all other places. Since I know this town from close quarters, I have set out to describe its social milieu.

The Beginning of Fragility

According to the Hindu calendar, a span of sixty years is counted as a paryāya. From the start of the Prabhava saṃvatsara till the end of the Akṣaya saṃvatsara is a period of sixty years.[1] We can imagine these to be sixty spokes in the wheel of kāla-puruṣa’s chariot.[2] From one Prabhava to the next Prabhava is one complete rotation of that wheel. Or from Vibhava to Vibhava, Śukla to Śukla, and so on.

[The legendary polymath D V Gundappa was not just a great littérateur, art critic, and connoisseur but an enthusiastic social worker and uplifter of the masses. Starting from 1949 until his death in 1975, DVG regularly conducted a 'study circle' every Sunday at the Gokhale Institute of Public Affairs, Bangalore.

Kumbāra Guṇḍayya (Guṇḍayya, the Potter)

In one of the plays – probably ‘Vijayanagara Patana’ – one of the characters is a potter. That day Raghavacharya beckoned me and told me to sit in the first row, just next to stage. I declined. He insisted I sit there compulsorily. “If you don’t sit there, I will have to call out your name loudly and make you come there. It will be an unnecessary fuss.” Thus he cajoled me. I sat there as per his instruction.

Circa 1909, the drama company Sumanorama Sabhā (or Suguṇavilāsa Sabhā) of Bellary arrived in Bangalore. Kolachalam Srinivasa Rao was the director of that drama company. He was an advocate. It was Sāhukār Netkallappa[1] who helped the company by making arrangements for them in Bangalore.

Revealing Character

What is necessary for a biography is a series of character-revealing incidents.

The People who are Worthy of a Biography

History is the external transactions of the people, while Biography comprises the inner landscape.

Two Sides

The important aspects of a biography may be divided into two categories: i. external aspects and ii. inner nature.