Are you tired of using mobile phones? Though the answer will be a big NO, the inner physique of each and every one of us will be obviously tired of our immobile activity.

What can we do to overcome this immobile sickness?

The universal answer will be to implement physical activity in our life. On hearing the term physical activity, obviously you would imagine yourself running on the treadmill with the songs echoed in the earphone. But, the activity which I mean here is different.

Here, I bring you this Vedic old mantra called Rural Games. Ok..! but how to implement so?

 Before diving to play these rural games, lets roll back to our past, to know its history.

The evolution of mankind dates back to 20,000 years. In the man’s list of essentialities, games and sports have been playing a prominent role. Games and sports in his period must have been a test for man’s survival. They helped to sharpen his mind, build his physique and develop a social relationship with fellow humans.

As man evolved, games too evolved and there were numerous games both for physical and intellectual development. Overtime, the term ‘Folk-life’ and its embrace of intangible cultural customs and tradition, have come to represent ways of life and expressions of traditional value. But in the long run, we have forgotten many games. And that is why the mankind is in this dreadful condition called ‘immobile sickness’.

Rural games are conglomeration of life and knowledge. India is a home for various games being played by majority of people. India is considered to be the birth place of various International Games like Chess, Golf. Most of the rural games are common in the southern parts of India. Before, the advent of scientific inventions rural games played a vital role in maintaining good health and bridging social relationship. These rural games had diverse varieties like indoor, outdoor and defense. It had games allotted for different age groups and gender.

Based on its impact, rural games can be divided into Physical Strengthening and Mental Empowering games.

One such games which strengthens our physical ability is PACHAIKKUTHIRAI.

This game is usually played by young boys and helps in the flow of blood to head. As the player bends and gradually raises, the blood flows to the head and nourishes both the brain and spine activity. Also, this game is considered to be the forerunner of Hurdles Relay.

HOPSCOTCH

It is the most popular game among girls, in which the players throw an object into the space of the rectangles drawn on the floor and the player has to hop and take it, without landing both the feet. The incredible impact of this game is that it has the ability to eradicate stomach related disorders.

How to implement it back into our daily activity?

Here, I list you three possible ways to implement it in our daily life:

1) “Forgetting, I would even go far as to say historical error, is a crucial factor in the creation of a nation, which is why, progress in historical studies often constitutes a danger for the principle of nationality.”

• Earnest Renan, “What is a Nation?” Earnest Renan was a French expert of Semitic languages and civilizations, philosopher, biblical scholar.

The important reason for losing the track of traditional and cultural ethics is ‘Forgetting’. As said by Robert Lynd, who is an anglo-Irish writer and an essayist, modern man is blessed with immense memories, but on the other hand, they forget. the findings of the researcher’s state that invention of gadgets and modernization make the modern man forget their past tradition. So, the foremost step is to rediscover yesterday is to remember the happenings of yesterday and relish the forgotten tradition.

This can be encouraged by emphasizing the past time tradition and its rural games, which molded the personality of the man.

2)     “State and Nation are at each other’s throats, and the hyphen that links them is now less an icon of conjuncture than an index of disjuncture”

-Appadurai 1996

(Arjun Appaduraiis an Indian-American anthropologist recognized as a major theorist in globalization studies)

The state and central government must work hand in hand for the development of yesterday’s tradition for a better tomorrow. The rural games can be incorporated in the agenda of the fest- “HAPPY STREET”. Happy Street is a program conducted by the collectorate of the central Tamilnadu districts on every first Sunday of a month. During weekends, the family can engage in playing rural games as it can increase their social bond and also decrease their stress level.

3) H.S. Panwar, who taught the wildlife Institute of India at Dehradun, reported the main criteria of success in ecologically oriented development projects were building trust and enrolling the full participation of local people in the planning and implementation process.

The important step to “Back to Tradition” is to conduct awareness programs to people and ensure their full participation. During festivals, the organizing committee may conduct rural games and promote it.

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