Stories. Who doesn’t like them? In Mahabharata, throughout their life in jungle, Pandavas are treated to stories by the rishis about the various holy places and legends associated with the region. All ancient civilisations have a huge heritage of stories. In India, they are about the social habits, religiosity and myths surrounding the lives of interesting individuals.
Aithihyamaala is an anthology of The Great Legends of Kerala, which have their origin in oral heritage. Chapters from Aithihyamaala used to be part of school syllabus, till secular curriculum revisions chased them out of books. With the collapse of the grandma storytelling sessions, the stories are beginning to be related verbally less and less. With a huge number of Malayalee children growing up without learning the language, the legends ought to be placed in the endangered cultural heritage list.
It is in this context, one must appreciate the efforts of Mathrubhumi Books to bring out English translation of one of the most popular compilations of legends of Kerala by Kottarathil Sankunni. Aithihyamaala is the magnum opus of Sankunni. He started working on the collection in 1909 and completed it in eight volumes in 25 years. They were first published in the 19th century literary magazine Bhashabhoshini. The collection, reprinted several times, has sold nearly 2,00,000 copies. This is the first English translation.
The stories of Aithihyamaala are not dated. The incidents described are largely between 200 and 500 years ago in a vague long past. The story of Kayamkulam Kochunni, who is referred to in daily conversations in Kerala even today, begins by saying he lived 270 years ago.
KK is a thief, a compulsive lawbreaker. But he was not that to begin with.
Muslim by birth he finds employment with a shopkeeper. He learns the traditional martial art in stealth after the Thangal (Muslim teacher) refuses him admission into class. After learning about his mastery, the thangal accepts him. The shopkeeper, impressed by Kochunni’s great prowess in Kalari, relieves him of the job, out of respect. KK, without any means of work, takes to thieving and in no time gains expertise. He is a hypnotiser and a womaniser. After several attempts, he is caught by the police and imprisoned. After only 91 days in jail, KK dies at the age of 41.
The two volumes together have 126 stories. Several of the stories relate to the origin and history of famous temples. The one on the devi temple in Chengannur is fascinating. The presiding deity here menstruates and the annual festivals revolve around this.
The locations of the stories cover the entire geographical spread of Kerala. What would make the stories in Aithihyamaala appeal to every Keralite is that the place names exist even today, bringing in an intimacy to the reader. To a non-Keralite picking up the English version to read, it is a treasure trove of stories. The socio-economic history of Kerala runs parallel to the narration.
A copy of Aithihyamaala is mandatory in an average Kerala household. The translation of that into English, no doubt, will add a contemporary value to it. Sreekumari Ramachandran, renowned author, singer and dancer, has done an excellent job of translation, maintaining the original spirit and flavour.