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The Print
2 days ago
- General
- The Print
Dogs were adored in medieval India. They saved cows from asuras, fought boars & tigers
For tens of thousands of years, dogs have worked with or scavenged from our ancestors; they have fed us with wild game, protected us from raids, and been worshipped by us on memorial stones. Just two weeks ago, Delhi High Court ordered the formulation of a policy for the rehabilitation of street dogs, with the goal of phasing them out entirely from public roads. While animal rights activists have raised justifiable concerns about the morality and practicality of this goal, there is no debating that our crowded cities have been unable to find a sustainable place for our canine companions. The Indian dog & its global footprint Scientists and historians universally agree that humans and dogs have an especially long shared history in the Indian subcontinent. A dog with a leash is visible in the rock paintings of Bhimbetka, conservatively dated to 5000 BCE, but likely much older. Indus Valley cities, at their peak in the third millennium BCE, had many breeds of domesticated dogs. Terracotta figurines of collared dogs have been found at multiple sites, and Harappans were even buried with dogs on occasion. German scholar Willem Bollée, in his monograph Gone to the Dogs in Ancient India, notes that a mastiff-like breed with floppy ears and a curled tail is visible in Harappan figurines. Even at this early date, there appears to have been some international trade in dogs, as a similar breed was also present in Mesopotamia. A few centuries later, c. 1500 BCE, dogs were mentioned in the earliest portions of the Vedas: the storm-god Indra was believed to have a female canine, Sarama. Other deities, such as Yama, the god of death, and Rudra, the roaring one, are also described as being accompanied by dogs. Legends described Sarama as a loyal hound who helped sages retrieve cows stolen by asuras. So positive was Sarama's reputation that the term Sarameya, 'Sarama's Children', became one of the many Sanskrit terms used to refer to dogs. Economist and Indologist Bibek Debroy writes in Sarama and Her Children that the generally positive view of dogs continued into the last centuries BCE. In the later recensions of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, dogs are spoken of as fierce hunters and loyal companions. At the same time, there was also a general trend toward linking dogs with 'lower', working-class people. Indeed, through most of the history of the Indian dog, the humans who worked most closely with them seem to have been largely illiterate and working-class. This by no means reduced their expertise in dog-handling. Around the 400s BCE, as the earliest Gangetic states were developing, the Greek writers Herodotus and Xenophon mention fearsome imported Indian dogs who accompanied the emperors of Persia—at the time the most powerful men in the world—on the hunt. These Indian dogs were exported as far as Greece, and used to hunt boar and deer. When Greek warlord Alexander III of Macedon arrived in the Indus Valley in 326 BCE, the historian Ctesias reports, a local Indian tribe entertained him by setting their mastiffs loose on lions. The dogs would not release their grip even when dismembered. These fearsome animals, according to Aristotle, were the cross-breeds of tigers and dogs. Also read: World's most expensive dog turned out to be a hoax. Abusive breeding is still very real The 'impurity' of the dog By the early centuries CE, Bibek Debroy writes in Sarama and her Children, there was a marked change in literate Indian views of dogs, particularly in the Dharmasutras – Sanskrit moral and social codes authored by Brahmins. Working with animals came to be seen as ritually polluting. As the Manusmriti puts it (Book 3, verses 162–3): 'A trainer of elephants, oxen, horses and camels… a breeder of sporting-dogs, a falconer…. Should be avoided during oblations offered to the gods and ancestors.' As an extension of this logic, dogs, and the people who worked with them, were pushed to the margins of society. In Book 10, verses 51–56, the Manusmriti declares that 'The dwellings of Chandalas [the 'lowest' caste] and the Shvapachas [literally 'Dog-Cookers', another 'low' caste] shall be outside the village… their wealth shall consist of dogs and asses. The clothes of dead bodies shall be their dress… They shall always execute criminals.' Dogs' breath and spittle—even their presence, and those of their 'Chandala' owners—came to be seen as polluting Brahminical rituals. Simultaneously, animals hunted by dogs (and Chandalas) were considered suitable to eat (Book 5, verses 130–131), and those who killed dogs were to be punished, as per the Gautama and Baudhayana Dharmasutras. It is difficult to pinpoint the reason for the literary disdain of dogs. Broader social changes were afoot in the early centuries CE, as Sanskrit became the dominant language of learning, and Brahmins transitioned from priestly roles into a broader administrative, intellectual, and ritual class sought after by new states. As the naturalist, critic, and historian S Theodore Baskaran writes in The Book of Indian Dogs, this upper class 'shunned' dogs. At the same time, there's plenty of evidence to suggest that the population of Indian dogs only continued to grow with states and cities, and it wasn't just the 'lower' castes that associated with them. In the Ajanta murals of the 5th century CE, a stocky little dog breed with small ears is shown as part of royal hunting processions. Dogs are also mentioned as eating up offerings placed in town squares, in Sanskrit dramas such as the Mricchakatikam. This mixed attitude toward dogs—textual disdain from the ritual elite, paired with adoration from those who actually worked with the animals—would go on to become the new norm in the medieval period. Literature routinely looked down upon dogs, and to this day, 'dog' and 'bitch' are considered terms of abuse in many Indian languages. Yet, working dogs were everywhere in the subcontinent, and as literacy trickled into new groups, they recorded much more positive relationships with their canine companions. In Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, sculptures, both in temples and on memorial stones, depict powerful guard dogs and hunting-dogs. Dogs were gifted by kings to their loyal vassals, such as Kali, who belonged to the Ganga king Butuga II and was granted to his knight Manalera for his services in battle. Kali was later killed during a fight with a wild boar in 949 CE. While Kali and Manalera belonged to the medieval elite, we also know of humbler pairings of master and companion. In Kolar district, a pair of dogs called Dhalaga and Loga killed over 100 boars over the course of their lives before dying in a hunt; they were commemorated by their master, son of a local chief called Parasandi. Archaeologist AV Narasimha Murthy recorded other cases of dogs fighting off tigers and cattle-raiders in an archived piece in the Star of Mysore. By the 12th century, the Deccan emperor Someshvara III, in his Manasollasa court manual, wrote with admiration of dog breeds sourced from present-day Punjab, Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, and Maharashtra. He described their colours – ranging from whitish to red and yellow – and how some of them bore stripes or spots. They could do everything, from chasing down hares to tearing apart boars. Around a century later, the Jain writer Hamsadeva, in his Mriga-Pakshi-Shastra, seemed to be taking direct aim at earlier Brahminical writers when he declared, at the end of Book 1: 'Those who do not protect the animals in the world, will never get fame, virtue and pleasure… Though animals cannot talk as human beings, they are very useful to people.' In medieval India, as today, there seemed to be as many attitudes toward dogs as there were dogs. Also read: India can resolve dog-human conflict like US and Netherlands without killing the canine Indian 'street' dogs today It would appear that India has always been home to a dizzying variety of dogs, some selected and bred for work, others evolving to live at the margins of settlements. According to Theodore Baskaran (Indian Dogs), there was no conception of 'purebred' dogs, or even of house dogs as pets. Rather, just as humans had a jati or caste linked to their occupation, so did their dogs. The Banjara tribe, for example, kept Banjara hounds. What made the dogs Banjara hounds was the fact that they lived with, hunted with, and travelled with Banjara caravans. Such working dogs were not allowed into living quarters, bathed, or groomed. They were fed and worked. Or they scavenged and begged in towns and villages, evolving to fill a specific niche in urban ecology. This was in marked contrast to European attitudes to dogs, which from the 18th century onwards had a deep, often painful, impact on our relationship with our canine companions. The European traders and mercenaries who immigrated to India brought with them the concept of breed purity, and considered their dogs suitable house-pets who were superior to Indian 'mongrels' and 'pariah dogs'. Krithika Srinivasan, an expert on human-dog interactions and public health, writes that 'pariah dogs' were probably a type kept by the Paraiyar, now a Scheduled Caste in Tamil Nadu. As 'mongrels' they were sometimes hunted by Europeans for sport. Art historian Dorota Kamińska-Jones, in 'Multiple Roles of Dogs in India: Culture, Art and the Colonial Context', writes that Indian artists often stereotyped Europeans by showing them accompanied by tiny 'purebred' dogs. Soon, though, European breeds were all the craze, and Maharajas who once took pride in their native hunting-dogs were importing foreign dogs ill-suited to the Indian environment. This fad was then picked up by Indian middle classes, who invited European dogs into their homes before our native breeds. This led to the dying out of many specialised Indian dog breeds, who were expelled to the streets and mingled back into the pool of urban, free roaming dogs. But there is still hope. Rescued Indian dogs, now called 'Indies' and 'desi', are slowly but steadily finding welcoming homes in urban India. As for the less lucky ones, as Srinivasan puts it in her article for Aeon, though Indians frequently see 'stray' dogs as a 'problem', there is also a strong sense that they deserve to live on the streets where they have evolved for countless generations. In a survey she conducted in Chennai, 79.3 per cent of respondents agreed that dogs were paavam — a most endearing term, meaning 'innocent' or 'vulnerable'. It often seems to be the case that elite Indians, who rarely interact with street dogs, are most insistent that they be removed for 'safety' or in order to conform to European notions of sterile urban spaces. Indians who actually occupy these spaces, however, tend to have more positive views of dogs. At the same time, rabies, dwindling populations of other Indian wildlife, and occasional conflict with humans are real challenges. Solving them will require serious state capacity, animal welfare laws, and consultations with urban ecologists and public health experts. An interspecies relationship of 10,000 years is not going to be fixed overnight. All I can say is that any lasting and humane policy toward India's dogs must take into account our long, shared history, replete with warmth and affection, and sometimes fear and contempt. For thousands of years, dogs have shared our urban and work environments, sometimes independent from us, sometimes not. Anirudh Kanisetti is a public historian. He is the author of 'Lords of Earth and Sea: A History of the Chola Empire' and the award-winning 'Lords of the Deccan'. He hosts the Echoes of India and Yuddha podcasts. He tweets @AKanisetti and is on Instagram @anirbuddha. This article is a part of the 'Thinking Medieval' series that takes a deep dive into India's medieval culture, politics, and history. (Edited by Zoya Bhatti)
Associated Press
10-02-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Sarama Resources Geochemistry Program Underway at Cosmo Gold Project
First Major Exploration Program in Several Decades on Highly Prospective Cosmo Project with Soil Sampling Designed to Generate Drill Targets PERTH, AUSTRALIA AND VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / February 10, 2025 / Sarama Resources Ltd. ('Sarama' or the 'Company') (ASX:SRR)(TSX-V:SWA) is pleased to advise that it has commenced a multi-stage regional soil-geochemistry program at its majority-owned(1) 580km² Cosmo Gold Project (the 'Project')(2) in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia. The program is the most significant exploration work to be undertaken on the Project in decades and is a foundational stage for drill target generation. The program follows the Company's acquisition of a majority and controlling interest in the Project in December 2024 and its agreement to acquire a majority and controlling interest in the nearby Mt Venn Project in January 2025(3). In aggregate, the belt-scale projects will cover approximately 1,000km²( 2,3) and +100km of strike-length of greenstone rocks and are well-positioned and underexplored, presenting an exciting opportunity for Sarama in the Laverton Gold District which is known for its prolific gold endowment (refer Figure 1). Highlights Sarama's President, Executive Chairman, Andrew Dinning commented: 'We are very pleased to get exploration underway and bring the belt-scale Cosmo Project to account. Cosmo is genuinely underexplored, has all the geological ingredients to generate a discovery and with core team members that led the discovery of the multi-million ounce Moto and Sanutura(6) Projects in Africa, we look forward to seeing what this project can deliver. Leveraging its position at the Cosmo Project, upon completion of the transaction to acquire a majority interest in the nearby Mt Venn Project, Sarama will have 1,000km2 of highly prospective ground in the prolific Laverton Gold District.' Cosmo Project The Project is comprised of 7 contiguous exploration tenements covering approximately 580km² in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia, approximately 85km north-east of Laverton and 95km west of the regionally significant Gruyere Gold Mine(4). The Project is readily accessible via the Great Central Road which services the Cosmo Newbery Community. The Project captures one of the last unexplored greenstone belts in Western Australia and with a strike length of +50km, the Cosmo Newbery Belt represents a large and prospective system with gold first being discovered in the area in the 1890's. Multiple historical gold workings are documented within the Project area and work undertaken to date has identified multiple exploration targets for follow up. Despite this significant prospectivity, the Project has seen virtually no modern exploration or drilling of merit due to a lack of land access persisting over a significant period. As a result, the Project has not benefited from the evolution of soil geochemical and geophysical techniques which now facilitate effective exploration in deeply weathered and complex regolith settings which is particularly pertinent given approximately 75% of the Project area is under cover. Following the relatively recent securing of land access, the Project is now available for systematic and modern-day exploration programs to be conducted on a broad scale. Future exploration programs will initially follow-up preliminary targets generated from regional soil sampling and limited historic reconnaissance drilling programs, a majority of which extended to approximately 5m below surface with a small percentage extending up to 30m below surface. Figure 1 - Sarama's 1,000km² Project Footprint(2,3) in Eastern Goldfields, Western Australia Cosmo Project - Regional Soil Geochemistry Program The soil geochemistry program at the Cosmo Project is the first large-scale systematic exploration program to be conducted on the Project in several decades. Similar fieldwork to date has included discrete, small-scale soil geochemistry programs designed to evaluate localised areas of interest and select broad-spaced reconnaissance lines. Much of the work was conducted in the period 1970-1995 and is considered to be of limited value given the nature of sample collection, the regolith environment, analytical methods utilised at the time and quality control measures applied. Sarama's exploration strategy is to conduct broad-scale exploration programs to generate multi-layer datasets, developing a foundational understanding of the potential for gold mineralisation at the Project. Given the lack of base-level work conducted on the Project to date, there is an immediate need to gather regional gold-in-soil geochemistry data to complement preliminary magnetic and radiometric airborne geophysical surveys. This geochemistry work, combined with field mapping, is designed to identify areas of near-surface gold anomalism. The majority of the 580km² Project will be covered with gridded soil sampling of spacing in the order of 400-800m x 100m on an east-west grid. Higher-priority areas will initially be covered by a 200m x 100m grid. Sarama intends to use the UltraFine+TM analytical process, developed and commercialised by the CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization) specifically to assist in the exploration of the complex regolith conditions which are prevalent in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia (refer Figure 2). The method was not commercially available for the majority of the Project's exploration history and Sarama is keen to capitalise on this technical advancement in soil geochemistry which has been used by prominent mineral exploration companies including WA1 Resources, OreCorp, Sayona Mining and S2 Resources. Figure 2 - Highly Prospective Western Greenstone Belt Suited to Soil Sampling for Drill Targeting Interpretations of previous airborne geophysical surveys have identified numerous areas of interest associated with structural features, lithological contact zones - which are considered to create or are associated with favourable host settings for gold mineralisation. The regionally significant Sefton Structural Corridor, extending for +50km along the western edge of the Project hosts a series of priority areas. Further target areas in close association with two prominent internal granitic intrusions within the greenstone belt illustrate further potential for gold mineralisation. Transported soil cover over the highly prospective western portion of the greenstone belt ideally suited to soil geochemical sampling for drill targeting. Sarama intends to prioritise these high-potential areas within the larger program to generate potential drill targets for testing as soon as possible. In addition to these zones, historical prospecting activities by various operators within the Project have returned high-grade gold values of up to 52g/t Au(5) in surface grab samples. Further ground-truthing work will be undertaken in these areas with a view to incorporating them into the priority areas. Figure 3 shows the initial areas prioritised for the program. Experienced field crews have already been mobilised to the Project and are executing the work program with good productivity and quality control. The first batch of samples is expected to be submitted for analysis in the next 2 weeks. Appendix B: Tenement ownership details For further information, please contact: Sarama Resources Ltd Andrew Dinning or Paul Schmiede e: [email protected] t: +61 8 9363 7600 FOOTNOTES Sarama, via its 100%-owned subsidiary, holds an 80% interest in all the Project's Exploration Licences, with the exception of E38/2274 for which Sarama holds an effective 60% interest (with Cosmo Gold Limited ('Cosmo Gold') retaining a 15% interest and an exisitng joint tenement holder retaining a 25% interest). The tenements in which Sarama holds an 80% interest account for approximately 80% of the total area of the Project. For a period of 2-years following completion of the transaction which results in Sarama acquiring an interest in the Project, Sarama has the right to acquire Cosmo Gold's remaining 20% interest, which would result in Sarama having an aggregate 100% interest, in all the Project's Exploration Licences (with the exception of Exploration Licence E38/2274 which would be held 75% by Sarama and 25% by an exisitng joint tenement holder in the event that Sarama exercises the option to acquire Cosmo Gold's remaining interest in the Project). See Appendix B for further details. The Project is comprised of the following contiguous Exploration Licences: E38/2851, E38/3456, E38/2627, E38/2274, E38/3525, E38/3249 and E38/2774 covering approximately 580km². Sarama executed a non-binding Heads of Agreement in January 2025 (refer Sarama news release 13 January 2025) that contemplates the acquisition of Orbminco Limited's (ASX:OB1) 80% joint venture interest in the Mt Venn Project, with Cazaly Resources (CAZ) holding the remaining 20% interest. The project is comprised of the contiguous Exploration Licences E38/3111, E38/3150 and E38/3581 which cover approximately 420km². Gruyere Project Mineral Resources December 2023: 113.3Mt @ 1.32g/t Au for 4.8Moz Au (Measured & Indicated) and 68.6Mt @ 1.44g/t Au for 3.2Moz (Inferred) (December 2023 Quarterly Report, Gold Road Resources Limited, 29 January 2024). See Appendix A for surface grab sampling details. Moto Gold Project Mineral Resources (January 2009): 112.4Mt @ 3.1g/t Au for 11.3Moz Au (indicated) plus 107.2Mt @ 3.3g/t Au for 11.2Moz Au (Inferred) (News Release, Moto Goldmines Limited 21 January 2009). Key executives of Sarama discovered and advanced the project to the quoted mineral resources. Sanutura Gold Project Mineral Resources (November 2021): 9.4Mt @ 1.9g/t Au for 0.6Moz Au (Indicated) plus 52.7Mt @ 1.4g/t Au for 2.3Moz (Inferred) (News Release, Sarama Resources Ltd, 16 November 2021). Key executives of Sarama discovered and advanced the project to the quoted mineral resources. CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION Information in this news release that is not a statement of historical fact constitutes forward-looking information. Such forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements regarding the prospectivity of the Mt Venn and Cosmo Projects, opportunities for Sarama in the Laverton Gold District, information with respect to Sarama's planned exploration activities, including soil sampling, having or acquiring mineral interests in areas which are considered highly prospective for gold and other commodities and which remain underexplored, timing for receiving sampling analysis, costs and timing of future exploration, the potential for exploration discoveries and generation of targets, opportunities for recommencement of modern exploration due to changes in land access, the intention to gain the best commercial outcome for shareholders of the Company, and leveraging Sarama's position in the Laverton Gold District, the Project have the ingredients to generate a discovery, generating multi-layer datasets, use of the UltraFine+TM analytical process, completion of ground-truthing work, timing and receipt of various approvals, consents and permits under applicable legislation and the completion of a transaction to acquire an interest in the Mt Venn Project. Actual results, performance or achievements of the Company may vary from the results suggested by such forward-looking statements due to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. Such factors include, among others, that the business of exploration for gold and other precious minerals involves a high degree of risk and is highly speculative in nature; Mineral Resources are not mineral reserves, they do not have demonstrated economic viability, and there is no certainty that they can be upgraded to mineral reserves through continued exploration; few properties that are explored are ultimately developed into producing mines; geological factors; the actual results of current and future exploration; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be evaluated, as well as those factors disclosed in the Company's publicly filed documents. There can be no assurance that any mineralisation that is discovered will be proven to be economic, or that future required regulatory licensing or approvals will be obtained. However, the Company believes that the assumptions and expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the Company's ability to carry on its exploration activities, the sufficiency of funding, the timely receipt of required approvals, the price of gold and other precious metals, that the Company will not be affected by adverse political and security-related events, the ability of the Company to operate in a safe, efficient and effective manner and the ability of the Company to obtain further financing as and when required and on reasonable terms. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Sarama does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except as required by applicable laws. QUALIFIED PERSON'S STATEMENT Scientific or technical information in this disclosure that relates to exploration is based on information compiled or approved by Paul Schmiede. Paul Schmiede is an employee of Sarama Resources Ltd and is a Fellow in good standing of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Paul Schmiede has sufficient experience which is relevant to the commodity, style of mineralisation under consideration and activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101. Paul Schmiede consents to the inclusion in this news release of the information in the form and context in which it appears. COMPETENT PERSON'S STATEMENT The new Exploration Results reported in this disclosure are based on, and fairly represent, information and supporting documentation prepared by Paul Schmiede. Paul Schmiede is an employee of Sarama Resources and a Fellow in good standing of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Paul Schmiede has provided their prior written consent as to the form and context in which the new Exploration Results and the supporting information are presented in this disclosure. This announcement has been authorised by the Board of Sarama Resources. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
