INDIAN SPORTS

Sports has been an integral part in the life of Indians

since time immemorial. It dates back to the Vedic era and
in Nalanda and Takshila are perhaps the first sports
universities in the world.
In recent times however, the rich tradition of sports and
Indians has been on the decline. India, despite a
population of more than a billion, could harness a mere 11
gold compared to the Chinese, who grabbed 151 gold at the
recent Asian Games.
Even in Malaysia, where Indian descent sports personalities
once ruled the roost at regional level, are dwindling with
each passing year.
It is important that we as Indians do not forget our
sporting roots.
Malaysia has had it fair share of great sportsmen of Indian
origin. To name a few Datuk Punch Gunalan (badminton),
Datuk M Jegathesan, M. Ramachandran (athletics), A.
Arumugam, Santokh Singh (football), Dato R. Yogeswaran
(hockey).
We have had great players as well as officials in hockey,
cricket, golf, tennis and even had a national basketball
captain.
But of late the interest of Indians in sport has been
waning. It is time for us to understand our roots and
redeem our place in sports.
While it is common knowledge that kabaddi originated in
India, not many are aware that sports like hockey, polo and
chess all have their origins in India.
Badminton also owes its beginning in India and was
originally known as Poona before it was brought to England
by the British soldiers.
Nalanda and later Takshila flourished as institutes of
higher learning in India as early as the 5th century.

Takshila was famous for military training, wrestling,

archery and mountain- climbing while in Nalanda, swimming,
breathing exercises and yoga were part of the curriculum.
Among the other sporting activities which were practiced at
these universities includes swimming, sword-fighting,
running, wrestling and ball games.
Even before that, in the age of Ramayana and Mahabharata,
men of stature were expected to be competent in chariotracing, archery, horsemanship, military tactics, wrestling,
weight-lifting, swimming and hunting.
Lord Krishna wielded an impressive discus or Sudarshan
chakra. Arjuna and Bhima, two of the mighty Pandavas,
excelled in archery and weightlifting respectively.
Bhimsen and Hanuman were two of the great champion
wrestlers of yore.
Special mention has been made of gymnastics during the
Mahabaratha period.
It is also said that Lord Krishna played ball-games with
maidens on the banks of the Yamuna.
"Iti-Danda " or "Gullidanda" was a personal favourite of
Bhima, who was also known for his swimmimg prowess. The
game is popularly known in Malaysia as konda kondi. It is
believed that cricket originated from this game.
Women, too, excelled in sport and the art of self-defence,
and were active participants in games like cock-fighting
and quail-fighting.
Studies done at the ruins of Harappa and Mohenjodaro
confirm that during the Indus valley civilization (25001550 B.C ) the weapons involved in war and hunting
exercises included the bow and arrow, the dagger, the axe
and the mace.
These weapons of war, for instance, the javelin (toran) and
the discus (chakra), are also used in sports and are now
Olympic sports.
Indian sport reached a peak of excellence when Buddhism
took root in India.

Gautam Buddha was an accomplished sportsman in his youth.

Not only it is written that he played kabaddi, as a prince
he was also proficient in archery, chariot-racing, and
hammer-throwing.
Kerala's martial art form, Kalari Payattu, is very similar
to Karate.
With the advent of Buddhism, this art form spread to the
Far East countries. Buddhist monks who travelled far and
wide, mostly unarmed, to spread the teachings of the Buddha.
In this modern times, sports is a billion dollar industry,
surpassing even the entertainment industry in many aspects.
But, Indian in Malaysia are increasingly seeing sports as a
distraction instead.
It took a movie director A R Murugadoss to educate Indians
worldwide of the Indian monk Bodhidharma, whose teaching
laid the foundations for kungfu, taekwondo and karate in
the far east.
We should understand the rich heritage of Indian sports and
look into making it an integral part of our lives.

S.T. ARASU is a former two time Malaysian Sportswriter of

the Year (English) award winner.