Rivers 09 - Saraswati & Gowda Saraswata Brahmins Poem by Unnikrishnan Sivasankara Menon

Gowda Saraswata Brahmins
is a community scattered across
the entire length of western India
right from Kashmir to Kerala.

The word Gowda indicates that
these people hail from the North,
and ‘Saraswata' of their home
on the banks of Saraswati.

Researchers say that
the members of the community
speaking their own language
still carry the memories
of their affluent life on the banks
of the sacred river Saraswati
before it dried up in the desert
in their songs and prayers
that accentuate their
ancient august past.

They go on to state that
The community migrated
in various directions
in search of greener pastures
when the river dried up,
but they keep their identity,
their language and their songs.