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By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist
So, the Government has appointed a committee to delve into the “true” history of India, starting from 12,000 years ago, since the Ice Age, which Hindutva historians assume is the “pralaya” of the Puranas. The committee has only “upper” caste men. No one from below the Vindhyas, no one from tribal communities. But, there is much in India, and Hinduism, that is neither northern, nor Brahmanical. Take the case of Karuppu Swamy for example, the dark-complexioned God, adored in rural Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
In South India, one is familiar with the gigantic temples with its massive gopurams. These temples are found especially in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. But these structures are less than a thousand years old. Much older are the tiny village and clan Gods such as Karuppu Swamy, who have been worshipped perhaps long before Brahmanism entered South India.