BENGALURU: An international meeting of shepherd communities is being organised by the Sri Lankan, Ceylonese, shepherd community. The Shepherds India International, a prominent organisation in the country, too is participating in the three-day event starting from Sunday.
BJP MLC Adagur Vishwanath, founder-president of the organisation, said, “There are many shepherd communities across the world, and we are coming together to celebrate this movement in Sri Lanka.” He also highlighted the historical and cultural significance of shepherding, pointing out that such practices have deep roots in many ancient traditions.
The Rigveda, one of the oldest texts in Indian literature dating back to around 1500 BC, makes several references to pastoral life and sheep rearing. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad speaks about the shepherds. In the Sangam literature too there are many references to sheep rearing, he said.
The Kuruba community, with approximately 12 crore members across India, sees Sri Lanka event as an opportunity to foster global unity among shepherds. “Worldwide, there are many more Kurubas or shepherds,” Vishwanath noted.
He also recalled a previous gathering in Egypt, where the shepherd community is notably large and traces its ancestry back to the Pharaonic period, about 6,000-7,000 years ago.
He said, “In ancient Egyptian mythology, pastoral life was closely linked to divine imagery. Gods like Khnum, depicted as a ram-headed deity, were associated with creation and fertility, and Osiris, another prominent deity, was sometimes depicted as a shepherd or associated with agriculture, symbolising resurrection and renewal.’’
The Indian team flew out to attend the Sri Lanka event on Saturday and is participating in the three-day conference that started on Sunday.