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The cleaned sap is
then poured into large shallow
round-bottom vessels or huge earthen
pots and heated up to 200oCelsius. After
dehydration, what remains is jaggery,
which is cast in required shapes.
Jaggery is used as an ingredient in both
sweet and savory dishes in most parts of
the world.
Whenever I see jaggery, my mind goes as
far back as four decades to an image,
which, I am sure, should be familiar to
my contemporaries in Azhagappapuram.
That image is none other than that of a
70-year-old woman jaggery-seller who
sold her produce in and around Azhagai.
Clad in white saree, she would come over
to the village daily in the morning on
foot from a far away place, sweating
profusely, with a palm-fronds-woven
basket containing more than 20 kilos of
jaggery pieces on her head, pronouncing
"karupatti karupatti." If she were late,
she would simply jog her way down to the
village in time. She exuded an aura of
liveliness. I routinely observed her for
years and was struck by her exemplary
style of working.
Of course, she evoked sympathy for her
having had to work so hard at that ripe
old age for her living. Perhaps nobody
knew her personal situation. Maybe she
was well off, yet chose to work so hard
as swayed by her innate habit.
Nonetheless, what was amazing about her
was her resolve to go on and on about
her arduous business, in spite of
advanced age and frailties. She walked
and ran daily around 20 miles with a
heavy load on her head. One wondered
what powered her through those eternal
years of toil. Besides, she had to
contend with competition. She displayed
honesty and uprightness in her trade.
She endeared herself to our people who
made it a point to buy jaggery from her
customarily. She was a model being for
hard work and resilience. I am sure she
was a source of inspiration for many to
work hard with a never-say-die spirit in
their respective fields.
I remember the teachers at Azhagai in
those days would invoke her as a shining
example for hard work and sincerity of
purpose for students to emulate. Man
learns more from fellow beings than from
books and mass media. Such learning is
deeper and everlasting.
Those who constantly complain of age,
joint pain, tedium and so forth, could
do well to replicate such lives as the
one lived by that vivacious lady, and
live ever so actively and productively.
I salute that remarkable woman for her
grit, determination and the inspiration
that we drew from her work ethics.
(J. Vensuslaus)
September 2006 |
Azhagai anecodotes
