Phyllanthus niruri - Keezhanelli

Phyllanthus niruri known as Keezhanelli in Malayalam springing in the rain in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

The south west monsoon has set in.

Keezhanelli standing in a pit of laterite soil brimming with rain water.

There was stillness while collecting the seeds of Keezhanelli after the monsoon had moved from Kerala to other parts of India in 2017.

The tender leaves of Keezhanelli are ground into a paste using coconut milk and given to those convalescing from jaundice and liver ailments.

This was part of the traditional knowledge handed from generation to generation in Travancore.

Keezhanelli is also known as 'stone breaker' in common parlance.

Some reflections on the 1971 War by a daughter

1. Jawans of the parabrigade being dropped in Dacca by Indian Air Force planes from Central Air Command Allahabad

From a newspaper dated 18 December 1971-

2. Transport planes used as bombers... 
A newspaper report dated 7 December 1971- 

3. The dashing Lieutenant General (Unni ) Candeth from Kerala who was the General Officer Commander –in- Chief Western Command during the 1971 War.

A newspaper report dated December 1971- 

4. The courageous Air Chief Marshal PC Lal, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, DFC

and his wife Mrs Ela Lal - both so inspiring, caring, compassionate… made sincere efforts to those impacted by the 1971 war and their families.

A message by Air Chief Marshal PC Lal from Air Head Quarters, New Delhi dated 24 December, 1971 -

On Guru Purnima

A sunny day, a gentle sea

A day to be reminded of ...an ocean of knowledge... ancestors... memories... gratitude..which have helped weather many storms when put to practice. 

Before the worship making a payasam with rice, jaggery, coconut milk, aromatic spices...

Aromatic spices leaves. before roasting and  powdering

A Platycerium gives forth new fronds on Guru Purnima day.

A Platycerium in Thiruvananthapuram Kerala

When a Gloriosa superba blossoms on Guru Purnima day... leading one to conversations towards the Kathopanishad. 
*They perceive that indescribable highest bliss as ‘This is That’ How shall I know that? Does it shine by itself or does it shine by another light*.

Gloriosa superba blossoms in Thiruvananthapuram Kerala

Gloriosa superba is known as 'Agnishika' in Sanskrit, 'Kalihari' in Hindi and 'Menthoni' in Malayalam. All parts of the Gloriosa superba are poisonous. The underground stems which are tubers are extremely poisonous due to the presence of toxic alkaloids like colchicine.

Reference: *transalated from Sanskrit - Valli ii of the Kathopanishad

Traditional Knowledge: A traditional comfort food - Chakkavarati

... from a Varrika Plavu, an Artocarpus heterophyllus in Kerala

The Jackfruit tree - Artocarpus heterophyllus, a native of the Western Ghats, known as *Plavu* in Malayalam used to be seen in abundance in most homesteads in Kerala. The numbers have dwindled with concrete structures replacing many homesteads. The wood is used as timber. The fruit is known as *Chakka* in Malayalam. In some parts of North India, the fruit of Artocarpus which has an altogether different texture and taste is known as *Kathal* in Hindi. In Sanskrit it is known as *Atibrhatphala*.

A variety of Artocarpus heterophyllus in Kerala is known as the *Varrika Plavu* and its fruit *Varikka Chakka* is sweet with a distinctive comforting flavour. During some seasons the *Varrika Plavu* bears its fruit *Varikka Chakka*, on the top branches making it difficult to pluck without dropping the heavy fruit on the ground.

A variety of Artocarpus heterophyllus - 'Varikka Plavu' bearing its fruit 'Varikka Chakkas' on its low lying branches in a season

Rubbing coconut oil one one's hands, on the knife for cutting, helps in smooth removal of the fruit, seeds and removing the stickiness from the inedible white long fibrous parts which hold the big fruit together.

A cut ripe fruit with the inedible white long sticky fibrous parts which hold the fruit together

It takes a lot of time and patience to remove all the edible parts and segregate the inedible parts

The Varikka Chakka is used in making a plethora of sweets like payasams, chakkavarati, and ela appams made in a banana leaf.

The seeds are removed and the fruit is sliced before making Chakkavarati

A big plate of full cut fruit, after cooking with jaggery and spices on a low flame, in a wide thick-bottomed cooking vessel with constant stirring for an hour and a half yields a small bowl of Chakkavarati.

Eating just a spoonful of Chakkavarati is comforting. Using a dry spoon makes it last long.

A spoonful of Chakkavarati, sometimes a bit more, helps in dealing with the cravings that sometimes come after taking the medications for serious mental illness.