Kutten was digging the soil around the palm tree with a hoe. I was scared to go near the palm tree (yakshi lives on the palm tree). However I needed Kutten’s help. So I said a novena in malayalam and went to where Kutten was working.
“Chetta, will you help me?” I asked him
“What help do you need Kochumaharani?”
“I want to fish, will you make me a fishing rod?”
“You want to go to the river to fish now?”
“Yes!!”
“Does your grandmother know?”
“No”. I shook my head
“Then you can make the fishing rod yourself”
“Why Can’t I go fish now?”
“because, the river is overflowing and it is too dangerous to fish now.”
“I am bored, I hate coming here, I am always told, I can’t do this and I can’t do that”.
Kutten stopped digging and looked at me.
“Do you want to go for a treassure hunt?”
“Treassure hunt? Here?” I asked him
“Hmmm,”he nodded his head
‘What are we looking for?”
“Cashew nuts”
“But there are no cashew nuts on the tree now, they all finished last month.”
“ofcourse, there is no cashew nut on the tree, we are going to look on the floor”
“huh?” I looked at him.
“Come with me and I will show you.”
I followed Kutten and we headed towards the cashew trees. Kuttten was searching for something on the floor and then he found it. He pulled out a small plant from the ground. It has just sprouted and have just the seed leaves(cotyledon).
“Here, try this Kochumaharani”. he pulled the cotyledons and gave me.
“Are you sure I can eat this?”
“ofcourse”
I tried it and it was really crunchy and tasty, soon Kutten and I was busy looking for cashew cotyledons growing on the ground.
“Chetta, do you know how cashewnut got its name?”
“No, I don’t”.
“sit down and I will tell you the story”.
I collected few cotyledons and sat down on a small rock. I stretched my leg and while munching the cotyledons, I began my first official story telling session.
Kutten squatted on the floor waiting in anticipation for the story. I began my story
“Long ago, before the whites came to India, we used the old monetory system of Kash and Anna coins. When Vasco de Gama came to our port in Calicut(AD 1498), they saw a man pushing a cart full of funny shaped fruit and yelling
“kashinettu, kashinettu”(8 for 1 Kash)
“The travellers were hungry and they came to inspect the cart,they didn’t know what fruit it was, so they asked the seller,pointing the cashew ‘what is this’ ?”
“The seller didn’t understand what the travellers were asking him and he kept repeating kashinettu (8 for 1 Kash). The travellers thought the name of the fruit is kashinettu. Eventually the travellers took some fruit from the cart and ate. They liked it very much and they called the fruit “Cashewnut” .
“How did you learn this story,Kochumaharani?”
“Appa told me. Did you like my story?”
“ofcourse, but now I have to go back to work”. Kutten got up and started walking.
I was pleased with my first story telling session and just as I got up, I spotted Chackochan. He is doing something he is not supposed to, and I showed Kutten
“Chetta look!”
“oh oh”. Kutten said
Together we ran all the way home to get Ammachi.
Vasco Da Gama
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/gama_vasco_da.shtml
in front of my house there’s a river but i dont know why, my father never allowed us to fish!….whenevr he saw us with the equips, he get wild!
he says its a disgrace!….lol to fish?
something fishy…LOL
Q8techdrive: nanakkeda meene pidikkunathu enna achan paranje?
I was allowed to fish..but never really got any..except for couple of uppa..
Ayyo ee Chackochen inte karyam…
I have heard the kashinnu ettu story too…
oh… there is river also?.. must be a heavly place with greenary and river..!! i didnlt know the cashewnut sotry.. was it a stroy or fact?
Thanu: chakochan was a good old malayalee man.. you think he would forgive ammachi for flooding his field??
Sujit: all creeks go to the river!!!..I kind of believe the cashew story..kashinettu sound very much like cashewnut eh??
That’s a lovely story … and I certainy did learn something as well! I am crazy about cashews … here in Germany they are REAL expensive to buy though! You know … I envy you for the nature around you!! Eventhough Munich is beautiful and I love it … but a city alwas remains a city!
sarah, that wuz a nice story…u are a treasure trove of tales!!! but i’ve gotten another history lesson for u!!! well i admit i got wrong abt kulashekhara varman but i read in one of medieval india history textbooks that it was the portugese who introduced cashewnut in india!!
That’s a nice story, kutten would have told others too.
kappa venam ennu paranja sayippinoTu thappi nokkan paranjappozhalle tapioca undayathu
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A lovely post, Sarah!
That brought me memories of the lone ‘Kashmavu’ at the extreme end of our property with branches spread all over the place near the river making it practically a diving board for us to plunge from the height.
I have so many ‘thallukolli’ memories associated with it and the river.
wow really is that how the name came about?never knew this one
and wondering what trouble chackochan is creating now
Hey…I have heard this story too…and I always believed its one of the tricky thing that usually ppl come up with 🙂
Interesting…! And I remember when I visited Kerala …there ws this Pampa river where we used to catch fish with the white thin cotton towel…called ‘taurrt’ 😀
amzing to read all this…:)
Cheers
hmm.. those cashew cotyledons r so tastey..
it was my grandma who taught me to eat those..
u made me remember that..
*hugs* for that..
Did not know that this was how the name came about. nice story,
I love munich: Kerala is god’s own land and yes I was indded lucky to have spend time there..best years of my life!!
Jiby: you may be right abt the portugese..Cashew originally grew in Brazil..Sull ittu
Marthyan:thanks for the tapioca story
Jac:nalla thallukolli ayirunnu alle?
Maya: ah the two of them were always at each other’s throat
dawn: When I tell others about my thorthu experience.. they look at me like I landed from Mars.. it was so much fun catching fish with a thorthu
Hope & love: Thank god, you knew abt the cotyledons.. I thought I am the only weird one who ate them… nobody seems to know!!
Starry nights: Convincing stroy eh? kashinettu becoming cashewnut!!!
your descriptions are amazing. ivide ippam chakkeyudeyum mangayudeyum samayam anne, so time for chakkakuru and manga curry.
Suemamma:oru vattam koodi..aa meenkariyum mangayum kazhikkan thonnunnu.. Chakkakuru olathiyathum kuthari chorum kazhikkan thonnunnu!!
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ya, sounded like the tapioca (thappi nokkuva) story which i hav heard haha.
nice.