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PRESTOR JOHN, THE KALABHRAS AND MAHABALI ; WHAT IS ONAM ALL ABOUT? M. M. NINAN<br />
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to Pope Eugenius IV. Though there are several traditions in this regards, no<br />
details or documentation apart from scattered references and archaeological<br />
artifacts.<br />
It is believed that at the death of the last king without issue, the kingdom lapsed<br />
to the Cochin royal family.<br />
It is generally assumed that most of Kerala was ruled by various Christian<br />
Kings from that time until the eighth century. It is quite possible that Mar John<br />
might have talked about this while he was in Rome which led to the Prestor<br />
John stories as we have seen. But there is more to this as we will see.<br />
No doubt that it was Mar John’s visit to Rome that catapulted the Prestor John<br />
myth which escalated till the fifteeth century. It was the stories that John told<br />
about Malabar Thomas Christians that are to be looked into. We need to look<br />
back into the era to see the history behind this myth.<br />
It is certain that Mar John told them about the myth of Mahabali and the<br />
celebration of the memory as Onam. Did he present it as a Christian Kingdom?<br />
In the recent study on the Dravids, undertaken in the University Madras, this<br />
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