Guest guest Posted August 27, 2004 Report Share Posted August 27, 2004 AUGUST 27, 2004: It has been treasured, sought after and coveted from the beginning of human history. It has inspired some of the most wonderful art and craft the world has ever known and triggered some of the greatest human obsessions. It gave birth to the science of chemistry. To this day, it is the only guaranteed hedge against inflation in any culture anywhere in the world. In the 21st century, all over the world, gold is still regarded the way it was in the misty beginnings of race. In India, however, it always was and still is, much more than just a precious metal. It is part of the fabric of our culture and an inseparable part of our belief system. It is the essence from which the universe was created. In a dark and lifeless universe, the Creator deposited a seed in the waters he had made from his own body. The seed became a golden egg, bright and radiant as the sun. >From this cosmic egg of gold was born the incarnation of the Creator himself — Brahma. From the root word Hri meaning imperishable, comes Hiranya the ancient name for gold. Brahma is referred to as Hiranyagarbha — the one born of gold. "Gold has always been an integral part of Indian society even outside religion and mythology," says Dinesh Parikh, a bullion consultant and authority on gold. "It has been considered auspicious because it has formed the basis of the concept of stridhan, the woman's endowment at marriage that is a buffer against a rainy day. Gold is, therefore, an essential part of the Indian social fabric. There are established patterns for gold acquisition at festivals, especially Diwali, all over India, Durga Puja in the east and Onam and Pongal in the South. The agriculturist usually goes in for kadas or bangles and necklaces of traditional design, with gold content the only real deciding factor. Adivasis and other tribal societies go in for their traditional designs and patterns." Parikh says that in urban areas, apart from this traditional buying, the new branded jewellery has made some inroads into middle-class buying patterns. "They have targeted mainly the younger generation and have achieved some success in getting them to buy bracelets and rings and in getting a brand name to matter." Parikh stresses, however, that the main drivers for gold acquisition in India still remain festivals and occasions like weddings. ROOTED IN TRADITION Indira Bhojwani, a jewellery retailer who is continuing a family tradition with solid roots in traditional jewellery, observes that "the new Italian and French styles and even platinum jewellery don't really suit the Indian psyche. They're nice and they certainly have stirred some interest, but the bulk of Indian jewellery buying is still rooted in tradition — something that has undoubtedly been modified and shaped by fashion trends and a design element over the years." Bhojwani makes the interesting point that the Gaurishankar pendant, one of the most important types of traditional jewellery, which consists of a 22-karat pendant with figures of gods and goddesses in relief, strung on rudraksha beads, was originally worn by priests during religious ceremonies. "Over the many years, the wearing of the Gaurishankar moved gradually from religious ceremonies to festive occasions and it is now worn also simply as a design and fashion statement. The important thing is, it also moved from being the prerogative of priestly men to women." This kind of rooting of many current fashion-driven trends in religion and tradition is apparent in the navratna jewellery. Says Bhojwani, "The navratna gems are representative of five planets — Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter — as well as the sun, the moon and separately, the ascendant (rahu or dragon's head) and descendant (ketu or dragon's tail) phases of the moon. Each stone draws energy from the cosmos and in their specific, traditional pattern, the navratna are said to be an unending storehouse of energy, enhancing the life of the wearer. For this combination of gems to be efficacious, they have to be set in gold." PRACTICAL BASIS Part of what makes gold auspicious in Indian society is the solid practical philosophy behind traditional gold acquisition. Stridhan was the only insurance available to women who traditionally were never given work skills and thus had no earning power of their own when enveloped by an ill tide. But since gold has traditionally been a major component, stridhan was able to act even as a hedge against inflation or collateral for loans in a fluctuating social and economic environment. Which is why the Indian preoccupation with gold goes far beyond jewellery. While jewellery can be worn and enjoyed even every day, it has the drawback of leading to wastages when being melted for its gold content. Thus gold bars and coins have long been a tradition in India. Says Parikh, "Currently, what's in favour are 1- and 2-gram bars as well as gold coins. Each city or locality will have a bullion dealer who has built up a relationship and reputation with people and will issue gold bars with his own stamp on them and sealed in plastic bags as a further guarantee of quality." Some 700 years ago, the British had standardised the minting of the gold guinea. This was a coin with a guaranteed weight of 8 grammes of 22-karat gold. The British had also developed hallmarking of gold bullion as a guarantee of purity. The Indian association with the British gold guinea, however, began only in the 19th century when gold from India was used to mint the coins during the reign of George III in 1817. It was during this minting that guineas first displayed the motif of St. George slaying a dragon. It was, however, during the 64-year reign of Queen Victoria from 1837 to 1901 that guineas became a particularly valued possession in India. The Victorian guineas were minted with three different heads of the queen — the young, the jubilee and the old. The prosperous British empire spanned the globe and royal mints were set up in six Commonwealth countries including one in what was then Bombay. The mint in Bombay was the one that provided the most guineas for Indians. The guinea became established as a standard of gold weight in India. Successive monarchs including the current Elizabeth II have minted gold coins, which also came to be known as sovereigns. FESTIVE ASSOCIATION Given that it was the symbol of the world's most prosperous empire and stood as a guarantee of gold purity, it is no surprise that the gold acquiring and giving traditions of India soon came to be associated with the guinea or sovereign. In this association, the guinea too underwent a change. Guineas are even now minted in the country with the imprint of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity replacing the traditional head of the British monarch. The guinea has thus become a part of Diwali or Lakshmi Puja. Some families even worship Lakshmi in the form of a sovereign. Social customs too have absorbed the guinea and it is now routine to gift guineas to new members of the family — daughters- and sons-in-law and newborn babies. The goddess Lakshmi, it is said was bathed by elephants which carried pure water in golden vessels. In fact the Rig Veda states that "the giver of gold receives a life of light and glory" and that "to receive gold is to welcome Lakshmi." Which is why Diwali and gold are inextricably tied together. This festive relationship is most evident in the jewellery acquisition and gifting that takes place during the festival. The Arthasastra, which goes back 1,700 years, stipulates rules for goldsmiths and specifies the alloys that can be made with gold. The great poet Kalidasa even specifies how and when each ornament should be worn. Akshay Tritiya, an auspicious day in the Hindu calendar is also associated with the purchase of new gold and gold jewellery. Says Mr Raval, a journalist who writes about gold, "The association of gold with festive occasions is based on the assurance that gold provides people in their everyday lives. So even the jewellery that is worn for these festivals is grounded in that assurance. Traditional Indian jewellery hasn't changed in design for millennia. What does vary in every piece of traditional jewellery is the amount of gold it contains. That gold is always there to assure the woman that she has something to fall back on in times of need." Raval goes on to make the point that Hindu custom and belief has, over the years, quite naturally, evolved to include that constant assurance." Given the deep-rooted association of gold with almost every aspect of Indian life, it is hardly surprising that the use of gold is integral to many traditional systems of healing such as Ayurveda, Unani and Tibetan medicine. Ayurveda divides the human body into many different chakras or vital nodes. The heart chakra, which inspires divine thoughts, is defined as being golden yellow. The fact that gold does not rust spurred the interest of the traditional healing systems in using it to cure ailments. Dental cavities have been filled with gold since ancient times. Several systems advocate the use of gold jewellery as a curative for many ailments. Some festive sweetmeats even contain thin gold foil. Indians love gold so much, they even eat it! The ancient alchemists spent their entire lives trying to turn base metals into gold. They failed completely, but in the process of trying, they added chemistry to the many streams of human knowledge that dispelled many ancient myths and propelled humanity into the 21st century. Gold really is the foundation of our society. This festive season, when Indians go out to buy the special things they do, the vast majority will, as they always have, buy gold, precious not only because of its monetary value, but because it is a vital part of Indian life. Source: The Hindu, Chennai, India URL: http://www.hindu.com/lf/2004/08/27/stories/2004082700690200.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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