Leisure, Migrations and Ayurvedic Healthcare in Kerala, 1870-1990

Abstract

The paper seeks to examine the historical relationship between transnational migration and its subsequent impact on cross cultural flow of people for leisure and healthcare. This also seeks to explore as to how such interactions of people and ideas, in turn, shaped the reorganization of indigenous therapeutic practices of Kerala in the twentieth century. Archival documents prove that migrant concerns in the distant lands had played a major role in the reform of indigenous healthcare practices at home as well as its popularization abroad. Major concerns of analysis are therefore to examine as to how socio-cultural alienation and the feeling generated by a feeling of absence from the domestic society and culture shaped the reorganization of Ayurveda, based on the dominant Sanskrit based literary tradition in indigenous medicine. Following the paths of the migrants, Ayurvedic medicines also found a vibrant market in south eastern countries and Ceylon by the closing decades of the nineteenth century. A similar flow of ideas, drugs and therapeutic practices occurred from the late 70’s of the twentieth century onwards to the Middle East. As knowledge of Ayurvedic medicines came to be popularised by the migrant population of Kerala in the Middle East, there was also a return of the Arabs to Kerala for Ayurvedic health care. The paper also seeks to examine the nature of changes that occurred in the production and preservation of indigenous drugs, as a historical phenomenon, and its subsequent reorganisation as quick fixes to suit the needs of the migrant tourists in Kerala.

Speaker

Dr. Burton Cleetus, Lecturer at the University of Calicut and Associate Researcher at the French Institute of Pondicherry

Organisers

Department of Social Sciences, French Institute of Pondicherry. This lecture is part of the Medical Tourism Lecture Series (IFP / Heidelberg C4).

Venue

Jawaharlal Nehru Conference Hall, French Institute of Pondicherry, 11, Saint Louis Street, Pondicherry - 605 001

Time

4.30 pm