May 8, 2007

Blog Speaketh!


A fellow blogger had once suggested that I display a picture of Kiskara Huvu - (Kiskara: the vernacular name for the Ixora flower. huvu: flower) to which I gladly oblige. The picture here is of the wilder speices of Ixora Coccinea. Some how, I don't prefer the domestic or hybrid or what ever it is called (which we see in our/neighbors' gardens). The picture was taken on the way to a temple situated on a hillock.
Since I was unsure of the common name (which usually is in English) I tried googling as usual.

Two things interested me.
That, it is the national flower of Republic of Suriname, one of those chutku countries in South America. (However, there were contradicting pictures citing the same at several websites. So, I am not really sure.)
That, the name Ixora is a Portuguese rendering of the Sanskrit name of the Indian god - synonymous with Iswara. (Source: www.gardenasiamag. com).

Obviously, of the two what surprised me more was the fact (which, I didnt state in my blog) that the website quoted Iswara as the Malabar deity. Now, what/who exactly is Malabar Deity? (I had always associated malabar with kerala - does it mean Iswara is a mallu god?)

Contributions of any info on this issue would be enlightening.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Lovely post Rustyji!

The word Ishwara refers to Shiva. Ishwara temples are found all over India not just in North Kerala (Malabar).

It's true that the Ixora is commonly used in Shiva temples for worship. However I feel the Portuguese must have derived the name Ixora not from the word Ishwara, but from the Tamil/Old Malayalam word for the flower: "Vrikshai".

It seems likely though that the word Kiskara itself is a corruption of the Portuguese Ixora.

The domestic hybrid is from South America. The Indian one is much hardier, and despite its smaller bunches, somehow prettier.

RustyNeurons said...

Thats what I had thought! (I mean, "shivji ka mandirs" were famous in all B grade hindi movies)
As to the origin of Kiskara, I really have to dig it out and see if there is a portugese connection!

Jayashree Bhat said...

Which temple on hillock?? Now how do I say that!!
Beayoootiful picture...

DreamCatcher said...

beautiful photo of a humble flower! U got talent there! And yeah this flower is commonly used in shiv temples in bengal aswell! goto check whether the portugese had anything to do with it...

RustyNeurons said...

@J.Bhat: Thank you. Kunjarugiri :)

@DC: Thank you! Though I would say the credit goes the efficiency of digital camera :)

Prashanth said...

Hiya, that would be some quest! Iswara - a Mallu god. Now, that's quite an idea.

RustyNeurons said...

@ Prashanth: I dont know what aspect of Iswara makes him a mallu god! :)