Vasant

Maha Shiv Ratri

Karlakattai is the art of Shiv Ganas and Bhootas. Dhanurveda Parampara too starts with Shiv. This makes Maha Shivratri a very special celebration for Karlakattai Sadhakas.

Youtube link

Check Maha Shiv Ratri's performance of Asan. His main performance starts from 10:00 minutes. One of my favourites of Asan from the recent ones that are available online.

Read "The Famous Five & Idumban Karlai"

On Shivratri, I shared a comprehensive article on the great Shiv Bhakt family of Idumban, and their current relevance in Karlakattai practice and tradition. It knits written Itihasa of Mahabharata with various cultural traditions around the world from Indonesia, Nepal to India. It also draws side-notes on how external forces like colonization, marxist thoughts have affected the practice. A good dose of Itihasa, traditions, background, spirituality and tales to get you motivated for sadhana.

Karla Sadhaka Story #1

Karlakattai is so many things and we tend to be in touch with different aspects at different times. Kalakattai is a performance art & skill, it is a therapy for the mind, it is a Sadhana for connecting with Devatas & Devas within & without, it is also a way to have a fit & strong body, it is a weapon and also a practice tool for training many other weapons and it is also a way to fix various structural issues and lifestyle issues. Inspite of being as ancient as the Vedas, for many of us it is a new approach to many of these things. The actual depth of its effectiveness builds up with our own experience, intense consistent practice and possibly experiences of our fellow Sadhakas. For this reason we will regularly bring stories of how Karlakattai touched and brought joy in different lives. This time is the story of Parimala Ji, which is a reminder that Karlakattai is a holistic rehab, prehab or physiotherapy practice for fixing various acute structural issues.

Parimala Ji at 47 years of age can do a lot of strength, endurance and mobility moves without a sweat. But it was not the same when she started. She had tennis elbow (tendinitis) since years that would not go away even after trying physiotherapy, doctor's advice and medication. She also had issues like numbness in fingers, head-aches, breathing issues etc. and the body coordination was a little off too. Initially it was not very easy to take up physical training for her. At the ending phase of MeiPadam when it gets demanding, she was even thinking of dropping-off. But she somehow trusted the process and it paid off. Four months down, the tennis elbow had almost faded, and now she can do decent skill work with double hand sticks and Padi-Karlai, and can continue for hundreds of repetitions of Kai-Karlai Sutrus & TaraiPadam and this is just the beginning. As a coach it is rewarding to see how KarlaKattai changes health status and brings joy in life. But it all comes with a lot of determination to improve, to be consistent, to trust the process and understand that Karlakattai indeed is more effective than all of us think it is. Training with her has also taught me a lot and improved me as a coach.

While it is common to see elbow issues with people training Karlakattai incorrectly, it is Karlakattai coaching done right that works as an all round rehab for various issues. All credit goes to the whole GuruParamara starting with Shiva himself, carried on today by Jothi Kshatriya Gurukulam for teaching this ancient knowledge system in its most authentic form.

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Namo Namah. PunarMilamah.