All parts of India have deities associated with rice. As its use as a staple spread through East Asia, it invoked deference. All countries in this area have unique legends about how rice came to their land.
India observes Sankranti as a mid-winter harvest festival. Celebrated with kites in Gujarat, prayers in the north and Pongal in Tamil Nadu, the festival symbolises new beginnings and prosperity. Sankranti marks the transition of the Sun into makara rashi or Capricorn and the beginning of Uttarayanam, when the Sun ‘enters’ the northern hemisphere. It’s a prayer of thanks to our star.
Rice was probably domesticated first in the Yangtze basin in China around 7,000 BCE, although the approximate time is disputed. It’s also said have been grown near the Vindhyas about 7000 BCE and domesticated along the Ganga by 6000 BCE. By 3500 BCE, it spread to Southeast Asia.
Today, rice is a staple for 65 percent of India’s population. Its production, processing and trading is a major employer. There’s a wondrous variety of rice varieties, too. For example, in the Kuttanad region of Kerala, it’s uniquely cultivated below the sea level. It’s also a global staple, and hence important for food security everywhere.
The cultivation and sanctity of rice is as old as Indian culture. Sita in the Rigveda means furrow. In the Ramayan, the childless King Janaka finds a baby in the furrow and names her Sita. Ahalya, created by Brahma, means ‘unploughed’. Rabindranath Tagore suggested that Rama’s release of Ahalya from a stone probably refers to the reclamation of uncultivated land.
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