374
not taken to propagate the purebred animals and increase the population, it is feared
that the Toda culture that dates back to ancient times, might collapse …” (Fig. 41.4).
44
Konawsh is one of only two remaining conical temples in India (several hundred
years ago, a third existed). It is considered the most sacred of all Toda póh or dairy
temples, about a 45-minute trek from the nearest Toda hamlet of the Kerrir patrician, with Mount Tehhkolmudry looming through the mists far in the distance, a
peak where Toda gods are said to have once met. Tarun has published many details
of the Konawsh Temple.
45
While its significance to the Toda may be said to equate
with that of the Vatican for Catholics, the temple presents an entirely different set of
aesthetic, spiritual, and utilitarian objectives. To most, it resembles a strange,
approximately 40-foot tall leaning cone of striped rattan hoops and braided native
grasses, support beams, and stonework. A thatched, otherworldly structure of inviting considerations, in a jungle teeming with eyes that were watching us and elephants, leopards, tigers, bears, wolves, jackals, wild dogs, Nilgiri langurs, and many
others.
46
44 “Restoring Traditional Landscapes in the Nilgiris,” by Dr. Tarun Chhabra and Ramneek Singh,
ibid., pp.10–11. See also, “Indigenous Peoples’ Plan – Todas,” https://www.cepf.net/sites/default/
files/56154-safeguard-ipp.pdf
45 op cit., Chhabra, 2015, pp. 216–288.
46 At least one scholar has suggested that the Toda conical temples may be the original Dravidian
Fig. 41.4 Konawsh Conical Temple. (Photo © M.C.Tobias)
41 The Conical Temple of Konawsh
not taken to propagate the purebred animals and increase the population, it is feared
that the Toda culture that dates back to ancient times, might collapse …” (Fig. 41.4).
44
Konawsh is one of only two remaining conical temples in India (several hundred
years ago, a third existed). It is considered the most sacred of all Toda póh or dairy
temples, about a 45-minute trek from the nearest Toda hamlet of the Kerrir patrician, with Mount Tehhkolmudry looming through the mists far in the distance, a
peak where Toda gods are said to have once met. Tarun has published many details
of the Konawsh Temple.
45
While its significance to the Toda may be said to equate
with that of the Vatican for Catholics, the temple presents an entirely different set of
aesthetic, spiritual, and utilitarian objectives. To most, it resembles a strange,
approximately 40-foot tall leaning cone of striped rattan hoops and braided native
grasses, support beams, and stonework. A thatched, otherworldly structure of inviting considerations, in a jungle teeming with eyes that were watching us and elephants, leopards, tigers, bears, wolves, jackals, wild dogs, Nilgiri langurs, and many
others.
46
44 “Restoring Traditional Landscapes in the Nilgiris,” by Dr. Tarun Chhabra and Ramneek Singh,
ibid., pp.10–11. See also, “Indigenous Peoples’ Plan – Todas,” https://www.cepf.net/sites/default/
files/56154-safeguard-ipp.pdf
45 op cit., Chhabra, 2015, pp. 216–288.
46 At least one scholar has suggested that the Toda conical temples may be the original Dravidian
Fig. 41.4 Konawsh Conical Temple. (Photo © M.C.Tobias)
41 The Conical Temple of Konawsh