Connecting Landscapes, communities, cultures and the classroom

The title tiNai refers to an Indian ecosophy which integrates the nature, the culture and the sacred, similar to the Greek concept of “oikos,” meaning “household” or “family.” tiNai, a South Indian concept, categorizes the landscapes into five, all of which are named after native flowers. These divisions of landscapes—montane (known as kurinji), pastoral (mullai), riverine (marutam), littoral (neytal) and desertic (palai)—are dependent on the natural and cultural features of the land and people. tiNai is a poetic convention and the social order of the people, even centuries ago.