By Pria Gokhale
Konkanastha Brahmins are a people native to the Konkan Coast of India. A shoreline of steep sea cliffs, sandy beaches and tidal inlets, this part of the western state of Maharashtra has been marked by multitudes of change over the last century. Konkanastha Brahmin life grows increasingly different from the people who came before us. Notably, in the last eighty years, our ancestral language Chitpavani has become nearly extinct. Still, our bodies carry connection to our ancestors and their relationship with the Konkan coast. The Anatomy of the Sea People praises these connections and the seascape from which they form.
- डोळे, eyes
My father’s eyes teem with algae
His mother’s eyes pool with seafoam
There is significant debate surrounding the origin of Konkanastha Brahmin eyes
Did they come to us from the Persians? the Greeks? the Berbers?
The waves breaking upon Konkani shores carry our answer
each drop of water a kaleidoscope of blue green hues
Legend prevails
We are people born of the sea
- जीभ, tongue
My tongue gently scrapes the roof of my mouth as I exhale
Ṭha (ठ, ಠ)
I long to string together praise and promise
with this sacred sound
But it belongs to those who came before me
To oceans of words which have long since dried up
- कान, ears
Our oldest stories tell of the great churning
which unearthed divine beings from the cosmic ocean
the goddess Lakshmi, the Asparas, Kamadhenu
I press my ear to the conch shell
and listen to the whispers of the seascape before me
Tendrils of algae peacefully swaying against the current
Rays of sunlight softly piercing the water’s surface
Dolphins quietly gliding through water and air alike
Each sound a small pearl of miracle and magic abound in the under-water
- नाक, nose
The curve of my nose mirrors the slight bend of the palm tree trunk
Both are lifelines carrying oxygen to their source
Aquiline noses allow their bearers to breathe efficiently in hot, semi-humid environments
I revel in the ways my body carries gifts from my ancestors
It holds the careful geography of all I have inherited
About the Author: Pria Gokhale is a 23 year old author and poet from Austin, Texas. Her book Her Story is Our Story: A Children's Book for Young Women of Colour has been featured in KUT, KXAN and The Daily Texan, while her poetry has been featured by Changing Wxman Collective and Saffron Magazine.