The mythical abode
of Lord Shiva, the Mount Kailas(h), in the mountains of Himalaya ranges has
been a sacred peak for Hindus, Jains and, Buddhists since time immemorial. Probably the special dome shaped peak of the
mountain peak, made people to recognize as a holy abode.
Lord Shiva has been
considered the original master of Yoga and the dance forms. The dark coloured
ancient God, clad in a deer skin loin cloth appears to have been modeled in the
form of a tribal hero. The garland of
serpent around his neck merely signifies his power to subdue dangerous and
poisonous creatures. The moon and the river Ganges tied up in his knotted
hairs symbolize his ability to control
heavenly objects as well as to regulate elusive flows of water. The appearance
of Lord Shiva evinces the antiquity of the cult that dates back to tribal days.
However, the origin,
meaning and antiquity of the word Kailas
(or Kailash) is not clear even though
some (for example in Wikipedia) presume that it could have been derived from
the Hindi word ‘kelas’ which means a crystal.
In this post, We shall attempt to decipher, analyse and understand this word
Kailas in order to propose a possible source or origin of the word.
Kailas
The place name Kailas is neither
unique nor uncommon in India. We can find numerous places named after Kailas
such as Kailaspur(a) in different
parts of India. Besides, there are places known as Kail, Kaila and Kaili
which formed the root of the word Kailas. Besides, there are also places like Kailai,
Kailakh, Kailoori, Kail gaon, Kailawad, etc. In these, since -as, (or -asi or
–ase); -ai;-oori; gaon, wad; etc, are
spatial suffixes (denoting habitation) [eg. Banavasi, Varanasi, Gandasi,
Amase(bail), Teggarse, Vaddarse, etc] by analogy, we can infer the origin of the place name Kailas as Kail+as.
Thus the overall meaning of the word Kailas appears to be an abode or homely habitation.
Kail
Kail is an
interesting word, possibly of ancient Munda lingual origin. For example in Tulu language where the word
Kail has survived as a less familiar fossil word, it is used for representing (large)
dwelling houses or probably also habitations occupied by Munda(la) tribal people.(Tulu Nighantu/Lexicon). However, the
term kail is not restricted to
Mundala of Tulunadu. The word also exists among people of Munda origin in other
parts of India, suggesting that the word was prevalent all over India once upon
a time.
Other kails
However, the term kail do have other meanings also, derived
probably from other languages of the region.
1. The term kail2 in Tulu means a shoot
consisting of a bunch of fruits (for example of bananas). Perhaps it is
connected to the Munda word Kail which means the dwelling place for a group of (related)
individuals.
2. Among Kodagu
people, a traditional warrior tribe, Kail3
podu (or Kail muhurta ) means weapon festival of
worshipping weapons also known as ayudha pooja in other areas.
Kail / Kaila villages in India
The term kail as a place
name is quite widespread in India. There are some 194 Kail villages having the
prefix of ‘kail’ in India.
Andhra Pradesh : Kailapur, Kailas patham,
Assam:
Kailaspur, Kailel kepjan, Kaila disha.
Bihar:
Kail, Kaila, Kaili, Kailaratti, Kailakh, Kailani,
Kailashmath,
Chattisgarh: Kailashpur, Kailasgadh
Haryana:
Kail, Kailram, Kailash, Kailana, Kail
Gaon,
Himachal Pradesh: Kail, Kiala, Kailvin, Kailaspur, Kailar, Kaila,
J &K : Kailtri, Kail,
Jharkhand: Kailan, Kail Kanhar, Kailpur, Kailudih, Kailkha, Kaile,
Karnataka: Kailaspur.
Madhya Pradesh: Kailaras, Kailaspuri, Kaili
Ry, Kailware kalan, Kailwas, Kail
Maharastra: Kailasnagar, Kailaspur, Kailaswad, Kailenjang,
Orissa:
Kailash, Kailani, Kailasnagar,
Kailamba, Kailaspur,
Punjab:
Kailan, Kailpur, Kaila,
Kailash, Kailowal
Rajastan: Kailoori, Kailaspura, Kailadevi, Kailai, Kaila ke bas,
Kailaspur
Tamilnadu: Kailasgiri
Uttar Pradesh: Kailanpur, Kailawada, Kailmundi,
Kaili, Kailbakri, Kailsa,Kailora etc.
Kailas - a Munda/ Gond word
In case the origin
of the word Kailas is considered to be of ancient Munda lingual origin, it
would further throw light on the antiquity and origin of theosophy and legends
of Lord Shiva.
The Gond tribes of Madhya Pradesh can be considered a transitional
tribe between Austro-Asiatic Munda and Dravidian tribes., since there are (a) Munda and (b) Dravidian variants in the
Gond language.
The Gonds have
dormitories called Gotuls to discipline and train unmarried youngsters in the
ways of life. The deity of Gotul is known as Ling Pen. The term ‘ling’ represented the ancient cult of phallus
worship and the term ‘pen’ represents
Spirit God or deity. It is well known that the ancient cult of phallus worship
Ling Pen was assimilated into Shiva worship and even today Shiva is worshipped
in the form Linga.
Lingayats
are a major community in Karnataka and they worship Lord Shiva in the form symbolic
Linga. Interestingly, a devout Lingayat is referred to as Sharana. The term ‘Sharana’ appears to have derived from the ‘Sarna’ cult of Munda tribes. The Munda tribes traditionally have the
cult of worshiping groves of trees which are known “Sarna”.
The tradition of preserving
a part of forest as a sacred grove (bana
or kāvu) and the cult of worshiping
trees prevailed all over India. The vestiges of the tree worshiping cult can
be seen even now in Tulunadu and in other parts of Karnataka.
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