Lota (vessel)
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates
_LACMA_M.85.193.2.jpg){kind=link}
,_Patan_Museum.jpg){kind=link}
A lota (Template:Langx; Template:Langx; Template:Langx) is a small, spouted, and rounded jug that has been used in India<ref name="Definition of Lota">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> since the 2nd millennium BCE or earlier.<ref name=singh/> Normally there is no handle. The design itself serves multiple purposes; a copper lota is commonly used in Indian religious ceremonies, such as yajna during puja, for wedding rituals, and other sacred traditions. It is also used for serving water and liquor.<ref name=kalshlota1/><ref name="ok01">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> According to the ancient Indian/Hindu-origin traditional medicine system of ayurveda, drinking water stored in the copper lota has health and nutritional benefits.<ref name=ayurlota1>11 Amazing Healing Benefits of Drinking Water in a Copper Vessel, NDTV, 6 July 2018.</ref>
The vessel's regional variations include the bodna (Template:Langx) in Bengal, the kindi in Kerala, and the Karuwa in Nepal.
In the Western World, where the supply of the lota is less, the South Asian diaspora has often used watering cans for the same purposes.
History
The earliest known examples of lota and kindi in ancient India are from the Chalcolithic period, notably in the Savalda Culture and two well-preserved examples from the pottery of the Jorwe Culture, dating back to the 2nd millennium BCE.<ref name=singh>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="asi">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Highly decorative spouted vases with floral motifs are also known from Chandraketugarh, dating back to around the 2nd century BC or the 1st century CE. The earliest lotas were made of clay or teracotta while modern versions are notably metal.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Design
Regional variations
In West Bengal and parts of Bangladesh, the term bôdnā (Template:Langx) describes spouted (teapot-like) vessels, and the vessels used for puja are called ghôt or ghôti, while lotā is used for cleansing mugs.<ref name="bang1">Template:Cite magazine</ref> In Odisha, vessels without the spout is also known as lota, while spout vessel is known as Jeri, used for prayer rituals and serving liquor.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="kalshlota1">Daniel Miller, 1985, Artefacts as Categories: A Study of Ceramic Variability in Central India, pages 126–130.</ref> They are also known as Karwa, Jharis and Achaman Jharis (utensils with spouts) in Hindi Belt and Gujarat in northern and western India, used for prayer rituals.<ref>Jhariji, Achaman Jhariji And Karwa https://inbrindavan.com/jhariji-achaman-jhariji-karwa/</ref> It is also known as Mooku sombu and Pal Kindi used as milk feeder for babies in southern parts of India. In Nepal, it is known as Karuwa which is used for religious rituals, serving water and liquor.<ref name="ok01">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Reception
American designers Charles and Ray Eames in their The India Report expressed a great admiration for the lota, saying about its design, "Of all the objects we have seen and admired during our visit to India, the Lota, that simple vessel of everyday use, stands out as perhaps the greatest, the most beautiful."<ref name="An Eames Primer">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="The India Report">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>"Charles & Ray Eames India Report, April 1958", Design Observer</ref>
Usage
Idioms and literature
In some parts of the Indian subcontinent, the use of the phrase "bependi ka lota" (a "lota without a base") is colloquially used to refer to a person who may switch their loyalties. This comes from the observation that a spherical lota without a base tends to roll over in unpredictable directions when kept on uneven ground. The neologism "lotacracy" was coined in Pakistan to describe politicians who switch parties for their convenience.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Ayurveda
According to the ancient Indian/Hindu-origin traditional medicine system of ayurveda, drinking water stored in the copper lota has health and nutritional benefits.<ref name="ayurlota1" /> It is used for jala neti, a traditional ayurvedic and yogic practice that is used for cleansing the nose and sinus passages through nasal irrigation.
Sacred ceremonies
In the Indian-origin religions, the lota is a multi-purpose utensil. It is also used in the sacred rituals,<ref name=kalshlota1/> such as yajna, puja, for wedding rituals, and other sacred ceremonies.
Cleansing
Throughout the Indian subcontinent, the lota is commonly used to assist with hygiene, such as during baths or anal cleansing.<ref name="Donald Albrecht">Template:Cite book</ref>
In Bengali, the term lotā is used for bath mugs.
See also
- Aftabeh, a similar vessel used in Iran, Azerbaijan, and Central Asia
- Ghatam, a large water pot related to the lota design
- Kalasha, a metal pot used in Hindu rites—the lota is a type of falsha
- Anal cleansing, for which a lota is commonly used
Citations
External links
- Bodna Nai—Music video depicting the extinction of the bodna from urban Bangladesh
- Template:Usurped—A comedic blog about the use and application of the lota in modern times
- Nuevos Habitos—An artist dedicated to lota and other stuff
- [1] - HOW TO USE A LOTA: THE SECRET TO ISLAMIC HYGIENE.