Ways of an indolent.

Dawn breaks. A young elephant slowly opens one eye and peers sleepily at the world around him. “Yawn!! Another day. Oh well, better go back to sleep.” This is probably what went through the mind of little Damodar as he rolled about in the grass trying to make him comfortable in the mist surrounding the morning hours. 

 “That elephant is the laziest guy in the Annakotta”, Hari, his mahout, grumbled. With a sigh, he moved towards his charge gently coaxing him to get up. No response. Hari raised his voice a little and repeated his words; this time they were a little clipped. Still no response. “DAMODARA!!” This time it was a shout. Damodar raised his head, blinked twice and flopped back down again. Hari groaned and wiped his forehead. 

I was at the Annakotta near Guruvayoor in Thrissur. Covering an area of 50 - 70 acres, this place is home to 55 of the best elephants that the Devassom maintains in this part of the state. I was here on a visit and came across Damodar. I took an instant liking to him. We both seemed to have a lot in common. The scene unfolding before me now reminded me a lot of my mom’s struggles to get me out of bed in the morning. [I of course, had played the part of Damodar].

By now Hari had brought a few sticks of juicy sugar cane. He held them enticingly in front of Damodar. The elephant stirred. Hari slowly backed away. And finally, Damodar got up. He quickly scrambled to his feet and followed Hari. Chuckling softly, Hari fed him the sugar cane. He stroked his back and trunk, gently tugged his ears, all the while talking to Damodar in a low, calm voice. “Did Damodar understand the words?” I wondered. He certainly seemed to, as he rhythmically swayed his head and curled his trunk round his master’s hand that held the Molasses. I suddenly felt like an intruder as I watched elephant and mahout sharing this moment. And then, as suddenly as it began, the moment passed. Damodar flopped back down onto his bed of dry grass. “DEFINITELY the laziest” murmured Hari, ruefully shaking his head.

As I spoke to Hari, Damodar’s story unfolded. He was born in the wild jungles of Assam and had been captured with his mother when he was about a year old. While his mother had later been set free, Damodar was taken to Bihar to be sold. Brokers of the Devasom Board, always on the look out for strong elephants, had bought him and brought him to his new home at the Annakotta. Now he was 6 years old. Over the years, he had been slowly trained to follow specific commands and he still had a lot more to learn.  “Elephants are not trained after they are 12 years old” explained Hari “So, we have to teach them all we can before that.” “What will his work be?” I asked. “Well, he’s a strong, well built elephant. Once he grows up, I’m sure he’ll be selected to participate in the Thrissur Pooram and other temple festivals. Here, people like having an elephant around on special occasions like marriages or business inaugurations; they believe it brings them good luck.”

“So, what does he do now?” I asked. Hari didn’t answer. Instead, he helplessly gestured to where Damodar was lying. Now he was throwing bundles of dry grass over himself with his trunk, completely oblivious to the many excited spectators and his exasperated mahout. “That guy has forgotten that he’s an elephant; thinks he’s a cat” laughed one of the other mahouts as he passed by. “I don’t understand it,” said Hari. “Usually, elephants prefer to stand rather than lie down especially when visitors come to see them. This guy is kept near the entrance; he sees everyone who enters the Annakotta. But nothing bothers him. He loves to lie down and play in the grass. The longest time he spends on his feet is when he has his bath.”

“Can I give him something to eat?” I tentatively asked Hari. “Sure” he replied. So, under Hari’s watchful eye, I picked up a leafy palm branch and offered it to Damodar. He blinked at me a couple of times and then got to his feet and politely accepted the branch from my hand. He then proceeded to strip the leaves away. Once he had stripped the branch clean, he neatly rolled up the leaves in his trunk and stuffed then into his mouth. I watched him purposefully chew on this mouthful. And then, it was back to his favorite pastime. 
 

Now it was time to say goodbye. Before I left, I had one last question for Hari. “Do you ever wish you had taken another elephant to train?” Hari smiled gently and shook his head. “There are times when I get very angry with him. But in spite of all that, I love this little guy. I wouldn’t exchange him for any other elephant”. As I headed out of the gate, I turned to wave one last time to the elephant and his mahout. It was getting dark, but I’m sure I saw Damodar raise his trunk as I waved goodbye.