Irreverent history: a collective exercise

MGS, the meticulous historian

MGS would not accept a scholarly work without subjecting it to a thorough analysis and criticism. Thus, he analyzed the sources and revised his conclusions, thereby showing his zeal for the subject, i.e, history. The work is useful, generally, for the student of the history of India, and it has particular relevance to the history of South India, as most of the issues are specific to South Indian society, religion, and culture. The articles deserve to be included in this sort of a work, as they have dealt with the topics that are dear to MGS, who has worked in different capacities in Calicut University, the Indian History Congress, and Indian Council for Historical Research. The editors have done a commendable job by carefully selecting the articles for the opus. In addition, Kesavan Veluthat has given the rare insights into the thought process of MGS, thereby inspiring the student of South Indian history, who would be encouraged to dwell in the social and economic history of the regions. It is pertinent to suggest that we need many irreverent historians who can disrupt the traditional historiography and encourage the researchers to adopt new ways of looking at the past. It is revealed that MGS was one of the earliest historians of Kerala to discuss the political structure comprising the central and local authorities. He, through a meticulous analysis of the inscriptions, had analyzed the terms and concepts that relate to the agrarian relations, the brahmana settlements, and the relationship between dominant political and social groups, thereby showing the need for an integrative approach, which would allow the reader to comprehend not only the political but also the social history of the region. It is true that he has adopted the theories such as feudalism in the context of South India, but he has modified this theory based on the evidence available in the region. For example, his analysis of the temple-based bhakti movement representing feudal ideology is significant.

Tradition, nadu, state, and land relations

Christophe Vielle analyzes the Parasurama tradition, which narrates the process of emergence of the brahmanical settlements in the seven konkanas, including Kerala. The article, no doubt, is significant, as it traces the history of the tradition itself to the works of Kalidasa. In addition, the article finds evidence in the texts such as Skanda Purana, Sahyadri Khanda, Gramapaddhati, and inscriptions. The work is useful to analyse the history of Kerala in general and the history of agrarian institutions and brahmana settlements in particular. There is need for a further research, by exploring and publishing manuscripts found in not only Kerala but also other parts of South India. In actuality, there is a need to trace the migration of the tradition along with the migration of the brahmanas from one part of the county to the other.
K.N. Ganesh, following the tradition of MGS, studies the nadu and swarupam of Venad, a region, which has not obtained the attention that it deserved. The article analyses the nadus established by the ruling households called swarupams. The work of Ganesh discusses the transition from the pre-state to the state society, based on the archaeological and inscriptional evidence. The ays and vels, the pastoral tribes, for example, were transformed into the agrarian population. Simultaneously, there was the emergence of the state under the Cholas. However, the decline of the Chola power in this region allowed the local ruling households to establish their domination over the nadus. The growth of the swarupams is associated with the growth of agricultural production on the fertile tracts of the region.
Manu Devadevan analyzes changes in the land relations along with the decline of the Cera state. It leads to the emergence of statelessness. Lack of central authority affects the life of the common person and the elite. However, it is found that the major problem with the study of the Cera period is the lack of reliable sources such as the inscriptions. Consequently, historians need to depend on traditional chronicles, which may create problems to the historian who attempts to analyze various periods in the Cera history. The author also cautions against generalization of the Cera period as a single whole. This suggestion is applicable to not only the Ceras but also other dynasties of South India. There is a need to divide the history of a region into different periods. The author attempts to analyze the land relations based on the study of brahmasvam or brahmana settlements and devasvam or temple lands. In the initial period of the Cera rule, there are large numbers of grants to the brahmanas and the temples. However, in the later period, a few local elite families emerged as dominant as they were able to exercise their control over the local resources. The landed magnates played an important role in the temple meetings and other transactions. Another development was the decline in the numbers of land grants to the temples. Emergence of the landed intermediaries was a major notable development in the later Cera period. The weakening of the central authority had a considerable impact on the local polity, society, and economy.
There are articles that discuss the issues such as social structure and commercial communities, the scribe in medieval India, varna and jati in ancient India, cultural histories of the Indian Ocean, political compacts of the later Chola period, copper plate inscription of the Vijayanagara period, and Vijayanagara historiography. Upinder Singh shows the need to review the use of the words that show the nature of the ancient Indian social structure Noboru Karashima shows the emergence of the hill chiefs in the later period of the Cholas and their replacement by the Vijayanagara Nayakas. Elizabeth Lambourn shows the existence of loan words in the South Indian languages such as Malayalam and Tulu. Y. Subbarayalu analyzes the terms related to the nattars and nayakas that are found in the Chola and Vijayanagara periods respectively. Venkata Raghotham attempts to understand the Vijayanagara statecraft in the light of the historical memory. These articles have enriched our understanding of the Cholas and the Vijayanagara periods.
The present reviewer had the good fortune of interacting with MGS as well as one of the editors, Kesavan Veluthat. Both have inspired large numbers of researchers to use a methodology and approach while understanding the historical subject. The articles included in this volume have discussed issues such as Parasurama tradition, nadus, feudalism, temples, brahmanas, and peasants. The work is useful to the specialist of the history of South India. However, a lay reader with an interest in this subject would also benefit from this work.

Nagendra Rao, Goa University (nag@unigoa.ac.in)

Citation:
Rao, N. 2016. A review of Veluthat, K. & D.R. Davis, Jr. (eds.). 2014. Irreverent History: Essays for MGS Narayanan, posted online on 7 June 2016: http://newbooks.asia/review/irreverent-history