Return to Earth - Review by Cibi
Discussion started warmly by the freshness of participants and hospitality of the coordinators. The unusual absence of women participants were compensated by the women of Kodi. Though the novel tells the four generation story of the men in a Brahmin family, the women of household are the hidden poles on which the climbers cling.
It tells how the touch of modernity pulls out the climber’s root from its traditional soil. Some give root in the new and flourish, and others couldn’t, so they live by absorbing nutrients of the settling ones. And then there are the plants which have a quest to fulfill, they, even when uprooted and though withering in the new air are capable of growing their root to find their right soil.
It is a classic naturalist novel, part autobiographical of author Kota Shivarama Karanth. He is a multi faced Kannada pioneer of art, literature, culture, history, science and social activism etc. He is a lone elephant roaming in wilderness. Others travel through the path made by it. His grandness maybe a reason of his neglect in contemporary literary discussion. Writer Jeyamohan is treated similarly. Once when making a list of hundred guitarist the first place was given to a black and all remaining were of white.
S L Bhyrappa is the next closest to compare. This novel tells how the household cope with loss and poverty. S L Bhyrappa’s “Gruhabhanga” has similar elements but it is more dramatic and has author’s voice. Eg Devastation like drought and disease are given more emphasis, eg people store ragi for coping with drought and that becomes part of their daily cuisine even in normal times too. But here, showing it as just any normal day’s description can haunt the reader. Nature of land could be another reason for the difference. When viewed in map it is greener near coast, the land of Karanth’s story and arid in the west, Bhyrappa’s.
Also here there is no protagonist. But the strongest and most liked character would be Sarasothi. She is the only woman in the novel who has opportunity to choose to stay in the Kodi household and chooses it, despite knowing the struggle. Though a widow, she was supported by her in-laws and she didn’t have to leave for Kodi. She somehow has a strong connection to the her Kodi home. Also neither could Parothi nor Rama Aithala live without her. She is their moral, mental and practical support. Aithala though affectionate and submissive, exploits the women of Kodi household by not considering them worthy of knowing the important things. So she leaves to teach him a lesson which he could never learn and she returns anyway. Whenever someone is about to lose connection with household, like when Lachcha is made to study outside the village and when Lachcha has affairs, she is the one to suggest the practical step to rectify it. Every woman of household at some point becomes Sarasothi. Her last wish to visit Kashi, being fullfilled, she wills her death and dies beside her beloved grandson Rama peacefully.
In the novel death too is described as any other event. Death of Sathyabhama and Nagaveni’s father though devastating is just news. Aithala, Sarasothi, Parothi die after their last wish is fulfilled. It too is in brief.
Death brings out the deep hidden things up. Parothi the first and childless wife of Aithala, is not the one to tell her feeing openly. During the second marriage she takes part in key events to not give notion of disapproval to bride family. Sarasothi asks jewels also for Parothi which Aithala and Sheena tactfully evade. When Parothi comes with water for Aithala he mocks her saying “I called Sathyabhama for water, are you Sathyabhama”.Usually a character’s mind is shown directly through thoughts like in Doestoevsky’s novel or through their body. Here the author craftfully created such situations allowing us to imagine her anguish. Her last wish is to die in Aithala’s lap and she dies after its fulfillment.
Death also brings the true hidden thing in the alter ego too. Sheena and Aithala were friends and become close after Sheena heads the second marriage of Aithala. He then becomes Sheena Mayya. Once Rama serves his brother-in-law betel leaves in a silver one instead of the normal old one to offset the earlier feel the in-law would have had, when he saw Aithala working in loincloth carrying mud and fully covered by it. Seeing that and also the golden waistband of Aithala’s child, Sheena tries to get a loan by buttering him and his wife. He then builts a tile roof, instead of the loans actual intent. This slowly divides them and they become bitter rivals. But when Aithala is in deathbed, Sheena hurries weeping to him and they both forgive themselves.
But the alter-ego-ishness carries on to their sons Orata and Lachcha. Lachcha is pampered to become different from them but also is expected to follow their basic identity. He gives up easily and distances himself completely from that household. He becomes venomous and foments enmity in Sheena’s sons through Orata. But the household does everything to compensate the losses laid by him to others even knowing well that he has gone hard and unlikely to return back normal. In particular Nagaveni, the one who has suffered most by him, gives him back the house registered to her by Aithala.To compensate for the injustice meted to her by his son, Aithala transfers it before his death. It may be a Sita like archetype which is influencing the women of household unconsciously.
The fall and rise of successive generation can also be viewed in Hegelian dialectics. Rama’s coming out can be viewed through Schopenhauer’s aesthetics. Rama, nurtured through love and nature during his childhood grows loving of his mother. When he leaves out of village in poverty for new opportunity his mother narrates him about his father’s deviancy and derailment. He takes to extreme to never be like his father but also senses a feeling inside to meet his father. His life is one of gliding on waves. In between he is enraptured by Gandhian values, deviates non-negatively and even propagandizes it in his village. Later he sees the unsuitability of it and feels it not completely right to do, when one is poor. Then again the job hunt and again the feeling of helplessness. Only sea and art which travels silently with him from his childhood gives him solace. After putting himself to extreme in drawing he finally finds a balance in life which carries him with peace.
Soora’s family and Narayanappa, both stand beside the Kodi household at all difficult time. Atleast Narayanappa can be reasoned out saying he is the one who recommended Lachcha for Nagaveni. But Soora’s family stands without any such. As modernity touches, one can feel the caste notion breaking up. Eg People sending children to common school, later brahmins opening hotels for others to dine in.
Even small character’s entire life can be obtained from few lines. The violin teacher of Nagu, who respects the art but also loath it for his poverty, wishes other to cover him at death by the shawl gifted by his beloved artist. Also the choice of violin here is important, as among the western instrument violin needs a tuning of the body for expressing the note. The welling and sorrow of Nagu and Rama can be truly expressed through such means only.
The money supposedly hidden by Aithala and which is referred to by Bachchi becomes a metaphor for the return to soil. Rama is salvaged of his destitute position because of assurance that he can rely on something solidly when he fails in his venture. Kerala’s gulf foreign return was made possible by the assurance that if they fail their women is there at home to take care. After discussion, conversation moved to books on shelf. Then experience with a Buddhist school, their syllabus, class, shunyatha and actual realization were spoken about. Also discussed were schools which have diluted their teachings.