KURUBARA BALAGA OF AMERICA
Kurubara Balaga of America is a non profit organization for the Kuruba community members of North America to come together and work for the upliftment of Kuruba Samaja in India and in North America.
Kurubas constitute the third largest community in the state of Karnataka. They are called Kurumbars in Tamil Nadu, Kuruma in Andra Pradesh, Dhangars in Southern Maharashtra and Yadavs in Northern India. We worship Lord Shiva in the name of Bheereshwara, Mylareshwara, Muneeshwara and Revanna Siddappa.
Our ancestors:
Kurubas can boast of the famous royal dynasties such as Pallavas, Hoysalas, Holkars and Nayakas and Hakka Bukkas of VijayaNagara Kingdom. There have been several notable figures in the history of India that belonged to the Kuruba community. Chandragupta Maurya who built one of the largest empires in the Indian subcontinent, Ahalyabai Holkar who was the Holkar Queen of the Maratha Indore state, Sangolli Rayanna, the 18th century freedom fighter and a warrior who fought the British East India Company and Sri Kanaka Dasa who was a poet, philosopher, musician and composer from modern Karnataka are just a few to note here.
We have a culture enriched with beautiful folk art like kambali making, dollu kunitha and a tremendous legacy created by so many brilliant people before us. It is an honor to be their descendants. It isn’t lost on this group of people that it’s a huge responsibility to uphold this legacy and we strive to live up to the ethics and values that this proud legacy teaches us.
KuruBA Story:
We are all birds of the same feather that have left the nest in search of the warmth. And here in North America, thousands of miles away from our nest, we have made a new home. This group is an effort to bring together all our Kulabandhavas in the US. This chapter of our story started with COVID-19 pandemic! There had been many efforts in the past to bring our community in North America together. The groundwork laid by the members then acted as the starter fire to get the new movement going. The pandemic did a lot of things to the world and one of the biggest impacts was on how we communicated. In a matter of a few days almost everything was done virtually, removing the physical barriers and that was a major contributor in bringing this community together with a much stronger bond. What started as a small group, very quickly grew to 100s strong, paving the way for formally registering the community in the year 2021.
Historically, Kurubas have been called ‘Haalu Mathastaru’ to convey that we have an innocent mind, devoid of impurities and negativity. KuruBA group strives to uphold these values that our community is so well known for. The community comes together through quarterly large scale events and bi weekly virtual events. There is a concerted effort to give a sense of belongingness to all the Kulabandhavas living in North America along with imbibing our cultural and social values in our next generations.
The kula kasubu of Kurubas is herding sheep and it is one of the oldest professions in human civilization. Due to the nature of the profession, we are scattered in the hills and drylands of Karnataka and henceforth they cannot command political power which is further decimated by lack of education and lack of economic and political power. Kurubas are mostly a rural community sector in India, with the majority of our Kulabandhavas still living very hard shepherd lives. Through various initiatives, we aim to work together with the members of our community in India.
The Sanskrit word Yugma means ‘the state of being in unified collaboration’. And when like minded people join hands to work towards the same goal and be in Yugma, mountains can be moved and great things can be achieved. We look forward to making the community stronger!
