Visit of a queen

The vigil started at sunset. The four of us – two of the cousins, Paul and Johnny, my brother Jacob, and I – sat on the front veranda, Thekkanattu Parayil., Olavipe, glancing often at a lone plant on the courtyard with great anticipation.

We were waiting for the first bud of the night-blooming Cerus plant to open. It is a rare plant that flowers once in twelve months and only around midnight. The blooms are on the leaves and survive only for a few hours.

The flower is generally known as Nishagandhi in India. The common names include ‘Queen of the Night’. It belongs to the cactus family and grows indoors or outdoors. The leaves are normally planted to propagate the plant.

I had taken the following photo of the bud two days earlier:

The boy who was attending to us would inspect it at regular intervals to see if it had started opening. At about 8.30 pm he gave us the good news. Then I took a series of pictures:

At full bloom the queen looks stunning. The Japanese name for the flower is so appropriate – Gekka Bijin, which means ‘Beautiful Woman Under the Moon’. There was an exotic fragrance as though she was wearing a subtle perfume.

At her moment of glory the queen didn’t know that her life was only for a few short hours. By morning it was like what Omar Khayyam said in the Rubaiyat: ‘Like dew upon the desert’s dusty face lighting an hour or two is gone’. Here is the picture:

But the cycle does not end. In the photo you can see a small bud on the leaf on the right.

Life goes on.

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Click on photos to enlarge. Copyright reserved.

Also see: Gardening: More photos of Kerala flowers

Photos: Rains at Olavipe

Photos by me. Copyright reserved.
Click on images to enlarge.
Also see:

Cool stones

Coconuts: Details in pictures

Also see

World Coconut Day: Photo of piggyback coconut sapling Coconut photos:

From sprouts to saplings to yielding trees

Photo by me. Copyright reserved.

Drawings by Koeh from Wikimedia Commons. PD.
Click on images to enlarge.

Art: Blue porcelain from Russia

Last week at Olavipe I came across some beauties tucked away in the archives room - the Gzhel porcelain collection my brother Jacob acquired during his stint in Moscow. What makes them unique are the cobalt blue against white background, and the motifs. Each design is handmade, and a work of art.

What I found amazing is that Gzhel porcelain is not just decorative pieces or souvenirs. They are mostly functional household items embedded with beautiful artwork – plates, serving dishes, cups and saucers, mugs, samovars and the like. The range also includes clocks, vodka containers and figurines.

Gzhel is the name of the village where these stunning pieces are crafted. It is about 60km SE of Moscow. High quality white clay is abundant in the area. That apparently was the reason why the people there took up pottery centuries back. It seems that the oldest record relating to this dates back to 1339.

Initially the artisans of Gzhel produced plain or enameled utensils and toys. In course of time they mastered the art of majolica and faience. The cobalt blue and white stream was developed in the 19c and became popular within a short span of time.

The outbreak of the First World War and the subsequent Bolshevik Revolution pushed the Gzhel porcelain industry into a crisis. But it bounced back. Today the masterpieces from Gzhel are admired all over the world and are in great demand.

I took photographs of some of the pieces. They are reproduced below. The copyright is reserved. You can click on them to enlarge.

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Also see Divine Strokes

Kerala: Left, Right and two steps backwards

Kerala has made stunning progress in the fields of literacy and population control. These were achieved through awareness programs and not by coercion. In both fields, the projects have reached self sustaining levels, a pattern where the vast majority of the people pursue the objectives automatically. The current situation is that many schools do not have sufficient students as a result of the family planning program, and face closure.

The Kerala Catholic Bishops Council (KCBC) recently threw a spanner into the works by asking its flock to beget more children to arrest the decline in the Catholic population. One is reminded of the Nazis directing Aryan women to produce as many children as possible to increase the number of true Aryans in Germany. The Church, of course, can argue that it was always against birth control except through restraint.

Almost on the heels of this came the recommendations of the Kerala Law Reforms Commission headed by Justice VR Krishna Iyer that opened up a new controversy. Justice Krishna Iyer, it may be recalled, was a member of Kerala’s first Communist Ministry and held important portfolios. Subsequently he was a Supreme Court Judge (1973-1980). He claims that he was never a Communist but only shared ‘socialist dimensions’ with them.

The Kerala Law Reforms Commission has recommended that a fine of Rs.10000 be imposed on couples with three or more children, along with other severe measures to ensure more effective birth control among the people. In Communist countries, which are usually called People’s Democratic Republics, such steps may go unchallenged. But India is a thriving democracy with a Constitution that ensures Fundamental Rights to its citizens

KCBC was, understandably, among the first to react. It claims that the Law Commission recommendations, if enacted, would infringe on the fundamental rights of the citizens. The Bishops’ organization goes on to say that it stands for responsible parenthood, which means that couples should decide on the size of the family based on their health and financial capabilities. Muslim groups also have protested vehemently against the Law Commission’s views.

I, a person with no formal law education, too feel that the recommendations would infringe on fundamental rights if they are made enforceable. Also, a question that comes to mind is what would be the legal implication if a person denies conjugal rights to his/her spouse in the name of State ordained birth control.

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Also see Kerala: Left with empty granaries

Kerala food: Peechappam, a forgotten item?

How many people make peechappam (it may have other local names) these days? When I asked Velayudhan, our chief cook at Thekkanattu Parayil, Olavipe, to make peechappam, he had to think for a minute to remember the item.

Peechappam is a tender steamed rice cake. The name means squeezed appam. The prepared dough is squeezed in the palm before steaming, and the fingers leave dimples on it. Though easy to make, tasty and versatile, it is lesser known than the other famous Kerala appams like palappam (lace hopper) and idiyappam (string hopper).

Peechappam is an anytime food – breakfast, lunch, dinner. It goes well with pickles, curries, preserves, honey, syrup, and chutney.

A modified version is to make patty shaped stuffed peechappams. There is a large choice of fillings – vegetables, shrimps and other seafood, cheese, corned beef, sliced sausages, chopped bacon rashers or ham and so on. It can be an excellent snack or a full meal.

The basic recipe for peechappam is:
2 cups rice flour
1 cup grated coconut (not too mature). The coconut can be coarse or fine grated, or even ground, according to preference.
Jeera to taste (Powder, crushed or whole)
Salt to taste.

Method:
Mix the ingredients in hot water
Squeeze small portions of the dough with fingers. If stuffing is used, place it inside the dough, roll into balls and shape them.
Steam till done. (Note: Over steaming will make the appam hard.)

I have translated the recipe Velayudhan wrote down for me in Malayalam. Photos (copyright reserved) are by Rijo (top) and me. The first one is the traditional peechappam Velayudhan made yesterday. It was more succulent. The stuffed ones were made by an assistant cook today. They are a bit too hard.

Click on the images to enlarge them.

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Also see Kerala Food: Breakfast range

Photos: African Tulip

African tulips are among the most spectacular flowers in the world. Often found in the tropics, it is also known as the Fountain Tree, Flame-of-the-forest and Nandi Flame. The botanical name is Spathodea campanulata

I took these photos (copyright reserved) at Olavipe. Click on them for enlarged view.

Also see Garden photos: Lantanas of Olavipe

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