Culture of fear and conservation of nature: Critiquing the construction of Sarppakavu in Kerala
Date
2021-04-08
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
In Search of Fearlessness Research Institute
The Fearology Institute
The Fearology Institute
Abstract
This paper critiques the culture of fear accredited to sarppakavu in Kerala, through an investigation of William Logan's Malabar Manual. Kavu, the regional variant of sacred groves in Kerala, a state in Southern India, in the traditional sense is a consortium of trees devoted to various deities and sarppakavu is a variant that is dedicated exclusively to the worship of serpents. An ecozone guarded in the interest of a presiding deity, human intrusion into kavu is prohibited through a strategic amalgamation of myths and taboos. As a symbiotic space permeated by nature (forest) and culture (deity), it has undergone tremendous transformations. The paper argues that sarppakavu in Kerala is an epitome of human-nature-culture co-existence practised among non-indigenous communities, managed through the culture of fear-appeasement. It foregrounds that Logan analysed this culture of fear-appeasement from a religious perspective that delimited the sacred space of kavu and overlooked the role of ecofear in enhancing nature-human cohabitation through the construction and conservation of sarppakavu.
Description
Keywords
fear, kavu, ecozone, culture, conservation
Citation
Mohan, M. & Alex, G. J. (2021). Culture of fear and conservation of Nature: Critiquing the construction of sarppakavu in Kerala. International Journal of Fear Studies, 3(1), 92-104