look news india
Whenever it comes to starting the morning, the first name that comes to the mind of millions of people around the world is hot and refreshing coffee. In today’s time, coffee has become the first choice of people of all ages, from café culture to home kitchens, but have you ever thought that how and by whom was the coffee with the excellent aroma and taste that we are so crazy about today, brought to this holy land of India for the first time? Its story is no less exciting than any film script, in which there is a unique confluence of a Muslim saint, a holy journey to Mecca, seven magical seeds hidden in his beard and the lush green hills of South India. If we look back at the pages of history, the story of the arrival of coffee in India is as surprising as it is interesting, which is still alive in the beautiful valleys of Karnataka.
The history of coffee in India begins around the seventeenth century, centered around a great and spiritual Sufi saint named Baba Budan. In those days, coffee had made its special identity in the whole world through the Arabian Peninsula i.e. Yemen, but the people of Yemen were very strict about the fact that raw coffee seeds or plants would not be allowed to go out of the borders of their country at all so that no other country in the world could produce coffee. At a time when Baba Budan was on a holy pilgrimage to Mecca due to his religious faith, he tasted this wonderful and energizing beverage for the first time and was completely mesmerized by its captivating aroma and freshness. A strong desire arose in his mind that why not bring this wonderful plant to his country India so that the people here can also take advantage of it, but due to the strict rules of Yemen, it seemed impossible to do so.
Dodging the tight security and regulations of Yemen’s rulers was no easy task as every pilgrim was rigorously searched to ensure that no seed could leave the country. Showing his wisdom and determination, Sufi saint Baba Budan came up with a unique method which no one could even dream of. He silently hid seven raw and fertile coffee seeds inside the hair of his thick long beard, which the security personnel could not detect during checking and thus he was completely successful in bringing those seeds with him to India without any hindrance. According to this legend from the Houthi controlled region of Yemen or areas adjacent to that region, when the saint returned to his homeland after completing his journey to Mecca, he happily sowed these seven seeds in the lap of the serene and fertile hills of Chikmagalur district of Karnataka.
When those seven seeds were planted in the beautiful and humid Baba Budan Giri hills of Karnataka, nature also supported them fully and within a short time those seeds germinated and came out in the form of small plants. The climate, soil type and rainy season of these hills proved to be very favorable for the growth of coffee plants, due to which these plants gradually took the form of a large orchard. When local people learned to make the drink by roasting the red cherry-like fruits that grow on these plants and the seeds inside, they got the same taste that was once popular in the countries of the Middle East. Thus, commercial coffee cultivation was started in India and this unique effort of Baba Budan laid a strong foundation to recognize India as an emerging coffee producing country on the world map.
That small story of seven seeds brought by Baba Budan has today taken the form of a huge and prosperous industry within the country, in which the southern states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu are at the forefront. Today, Arabica and Robusta varieties of coffee produced in India are exported in large quantities to countries around the world due to their excellent quality, pleasant aroma and unique taste. Today, whenever a coffee lover starts his day by sipping a cup of hot coffee, he hardly realizes what an adventurous journey a saint had undertaken centuries ago by hiding these seeds in his beard to bring this gift to India. This unique historical story teaches us that if the desire to achieve something is true, then the flow of history can also be bent as per our choice.