***SPOILERS*** ***SPOILERS*** Ammoru offers the Western student of Indian religion a fascinating glimpse into both traditional Dravidian religion, its relationship with orthodox Aryan thought and the way that Indian Cinema developed its unique flavours from traditional mythological drama.
The Aryans, the top three castes of India, are believed to have invaded India around 2,000 BC. They brought with them a religion similar to that of Greece, Rome, Persia and even Ireland, with whom Sanskrit shares a common linguistic origin. The lower castes originated from the earlier Dravidian people, who built the cities of Mohenjo Daro and Harappa, and possibly ancient Elam as well. Dravid now means Southern, because in the wake of the invasion these peoples fled south, but there may be a link with the words Dryad and Druid, because these peoples had a nature religion similar to ancient Greece and Ireland, and these words come from the same root as `tree'. Over 4 millennia, Dravid thinking influenced the development of Hinduism considerably, but there is still tension between the two traditions. All Hindus now believe in reincarnation, for example, not an original Aryan notion, and methods of meditation in the forest seem unique to the earlier peoples. Now, however, they have been incorporated into orthodox Hinduism, and local, tribal, non-Aryan customs are often viewed with distrust and contempt by the Brahmins.
Ammoru is a Telugu movie, a language which, like Kannada and Tamil, is not Indo-European. In it we see a Dravid girl recognise her village Goddess as an aspect of the universal feminine force, known in Tantra and Shaivism as Shakti. There then follows a series of miracle-stories, no doubt from traditional sources, but updated to the modern day. Between significant stories, or at significant moments, songs intervene. This is not a reflection of Bollywood directly, but a return to the traditional myth dramas that have been performed in India for Millennia. These lasted for hours, and individual portions of a myth were shown, then a song would allow explanation (and time for costume and scenery changes).
At the end of the movie the magnificent special effects prove that Ammoru is the same as Saraswati, Kali, Lakshmi and others. This justifies the vision of the original village girl and, importantly, places Ammoru as an equal with Aryan Goddesses.
Above all, it has led me to worship Her! The final scenes, as the Goddess kills the black magician and then transforms into various Goddesses before becoming the little girl again is stunning. Ditto the earlier procession and dance in which the little girl sings the revelation of the true nature of Ammoru while dancing in a wild trance. Quite frankly, for Pagans this is the best movie I've seen since, well, since, well, there must have been, well.......
The Aryans, the top three castes of India, are believed to have invaded India around 2,000 BC. They brought with them a religion similar to that of Greece, Rome, Persia and even Ireland, with whom Sanskrit shares a common linguistic origin. The lower castes originated from the earlier Dravidian people, who built the cities of Mohenjo Daro and Harappa, and possibly ancient Elam as well. Dravid now means Southern, because in the wake of the invasion these peoples fled south, but there may be a link with the words Dryad and Druid, because these peoples had a nature religion similar to ancient Greece and Ireland, and these words come from the same root as `tree'. Over 4 millennia, Dravid thinking influenced the development of Hinduism considerably, but there is still tension between the two traditions. All Hindus now believe in reincarnation, for example, not an original Aryan notion, and methods of meditation in the forest seem unique to the earlier peoples. Now, however, they have been incorporated into orthodox Hinduism, and local, tribal, non-Aryan customs are often viewed with distrust and contempt by the Brahmins.
Ammoru is a Telugu movie, a language which, like Kannada and Tamil, is not Indo-European. In it we see a Dravid girl recognise her village Goddess as an aspect of the universal feminine force, known in Tantra and Shaivism as Shakti. There then follows a series of miracle-stories, no doubt from traditional sources, but updated to the modern day. Between significant stories, or at significant moments, songs intervene. This is not a reflection of Bollywood directly, but a return to the traditional myth dramas that have been performed in India for Millennia. These lasted for hours, and individual portions of a myth were shown, then a song would allow explanation (and time for costume and scenery changes).
At the end of the movie the magnificent special effects prove that Ammoru is the same as Saraswati, Kali, Lakshmi and others. This justifies the vision of the original village girl and, importantly, places Ammoru as an equal with Aryan Goddesses.
Above all, it has led me to worship Her! The final scenes, as the Goddess kills the black magician and then transforms into various Goddesses before becoming the little girl again is stunning. Ditto the earlier procession and dance in which the little girl sings the revelation of the true nature of Ammoru while dancing in a wild trance. Quite frankly, for Pagans this is the best movie I've seen since, well, since, well, there must have been, well.......