Friends, today more than science, let us know an interesting fact,  why our forefathers used a particular grain for all auspicious and inauspicious rituals. It is the daily staple food for millions around the world. Curious to know, it is our RICE.

 

Friends, just think –

  1. Why only Rice?
  2. Why not other pulses or grains?
  3. Even more curious is, Why is such importance given to this seed? The bride has to push the rice-filled Kalash, kept at the main door, from her toe, and then should enter the house
  4. why Turmeric or Kumkum coated rice (mantrakshate) for Pooja and only plain white rice for antim yatra of a person?

 

Let us try to find out answers to all the above valid questions, before that, let us know the origin and nutritional properties of Rice.

 

Friends, the ideal intake of daily food, for humans, should contain 30% proteins and 70% carbohydrates. So, in South India, many houses’ morning breakfast is idly, we get 30% protein from Urad Dal and 70% Carbohydrates from Rice. Amongst many grains, it is in Rice we find an abundance of carbohydrates.

 

Ok, straight to the point, as we all know Rice is a seed, and originally it belongs to the wild grass family. Rice has a  13,000 years history, way back then, when our ancients were in search of staple food grain, they found the wild grass seed.  Discovered the nutritional content when in their natural unprocessed form, the whole seed is a rich source of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, etc., When processed, by the removal of the bran, the remaining is mostly carbohydrates. Then this healthy seed got the name ‘Dhanyottama in Sanskrit means Rice’ and our ancestors decided to domesticate it.

 

While domestication is a long-term process and continues till today, that involves INTROGRESSION – (“Transfer of genetic material between species following hybridization and backcrossing to the parental species”, happened thousands of years back!) – of different types of wild rice.

 

A single event during domestication, the selection of the type, resulted in rice becoming an only specie* dependent on humans for survival.

 

At later stages, few wild grass species might have extincted and it was merely impossible to create the same product. Our ancestors understood that continuous cultivation of the crop will stop the domesticated grain from becoming extinct.

 

Friends, Indians give importance to rituals. To make future generations understand the significance and gravity of the domesticated grain, our ascendants correlated Rice to Rituals, like how VIPs get a seat on stage.

 

Then why Turmeric or kumkum coated rice for an auspicious day and plain white rice for an inauspicious day, will see in my other blog.

 

Namaste

 

*https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0168945208000198