My most precious object I bring back from India is a present given to me: an Aranmula Kannadi, or metallic mirror from an ancient tradition.
This mirror is manufactured since medieval Dravidian times and was in vogue long before the appearance of today's silicon glass mirror.
It is a technological wonder !
In an ordinary mirror, the is a silver nitrate coating which reflects the light, thus presents the image of the object.
There is no silver coating in the metallic mirror.
Apparently, when you touch a piece of paper on the surface of an ordinary mirror, a gap appears between the object and image, whereas in the metallic mirror, there is a point of touching of two images and no gap between the images. Ah, ah !
The manufacturer says: the making of this mirror needs intuition, expertise, precision, lots of dedication and to be done in a sacred atmosphere.
I rejoice in the fact that people could take pride in their work so much that they can picture themselves in 'a sacred atmosphere', making their daily task all the more meaningful.
The mirror itself is sitting majestually in a red felted box; it is truly a beautifully hand-crafted object.
It also reminds me of how much I loved India's craftmanshift displayed humbly at every street's corner, from the stone sculptor of Mahabalipuram holding his sculpture between his feet, all the way to the Aranmula Metallic mirror makers.
It also reminds me of people of my life.
