diversity in religion is a seperate issue though, i was just talking about ethnic diversity. and also, the willingness of people in india to go outside their group to me seems kind of low at times

Not entirely true. A good etiquette(atleast in South Indian society) requires men/women wearing lungi/mundu/sari above navel.

Manu Smriti declared that all Dravidas(don’t know if that meant South Indians during Manu’s period..I or II century AD) are Shudras(Originally Kshatriyas degraded to Shudra position). South Indian Brahmins never recognized any South Indian warrior or merchant families as Kshatriyas or Vaishyas respectively. Kerala royal families were matrilineal and didn’t wear thread(So were Tulu royal families). However, now many South Indian communities like, Reddys, Bunts, Nairs claim themselves to be Kshatriyas. Likewise, many merchant communities declare themselves Vaishyas.

However, wearing thread is bit more complicated in South India. I suppose Mysore royal family Aras(Uras) wear thread. So do many weaver castes of Karnataka(Devanga) and Andhra Pradesh(Padmasali). In Kerala, few artisans(sculptors) wore thread only when they engaged in some kind of sculpting activity. The goldsmiths(Vishwakarmas) wear thread. Curiously when it comes to South India many socially marginal groups of artisans(theoritically Shudras) wore thread and not socially dominant castes.

However, there were stories where Brahmins upgraded Varna of few declared Shudras. I suppose Shivaji was declared “Maratha” during his coronation. A Nair chieftain was made king by a ritual called “Hiranya Garbha Kriya” by Namboothiris in Kerala. I couldn’t get much information about Hiranya Garbha Kriya. It looks like a useful tool for caste upgradation and linguist conversion. The only other instance where I came across Hiranya Garbha Kriya was Namboothiris claim that they transformed themeselves to Malayalee Brahmins from Tulu Brahmins by undergoing Hiranya Garbha Kriya.

dhaavak, you are right. She’s on a luxury trip.

They do something called “ayudh pooja” on this day.

You are correct on both counts.

Did not notice anything interesting on Kalita’s blog yet. It’s all about malls so far.

Ayudha Pooja is an important festival in the south, observed towards the end of navaratri. People clean all instruments and devices they use (books, cars, tools, etc.) for worship. In fact, last week I had trouble getting a plumber to fix my water-heater as most of them had kept their tools in puja and would not touch them.

And in contrast to an NRI’s India blog, here is an American woman’s India blog.

Kush: I don’t think it’s Diwali. I’ve seen it’s celebrated mainly in Bangalore(S.India in general) in a big way, where people have banana leaves forming arched entrance to their houses. They do something called “ayudh pooja” on this day. (my spelling of ‘ayudh’ could be wrong). So either it’s Dushera or some other day.

The price of globalization is much higher than I expected.

I just went back to kalita’s blog – have to disagree – she appears to be caught in the web of the relatives who are obviously very affluent – just to give a general idea – i’ve blogged about it but my fiancee and i travelled over 7-8 days in india and spent no more than $150 CAD in all – including gifts for some 6 people, lodging, food and travel. That’s about $18USD per day for two people. We are not rich people – but we’re frugal only to a limit – and it really sounds like kalita’s taking the de-luxe tour of the country – basically the blouse she says she bought for $30 can be had for under $8 USD – if all it is mirrorwork and some brocade. Anyway – just wanted to add this point of view – it’s a very free market out there – and sellers charge what they think the client’s going to pay. I am a little saddened though – that this was a good opportunity for a sepiate to write a travelogue for the masses – and she’s giving it the mickey mouse treatment. anyway … to each their own.

not implausible if you trace the chain of ancestries back. the last genealogical common ancestor of all human beings alive today probably lived 5,000 years ago. of course, that doesn’t meet that everyone carries genetic material from that individual, genes are discrete combinations of base pairs.