Good old Iyer household - Castor oil ceremony!

This picture is very true of life in my childhood days.

We were regularly administered Castor oil, as a laxative, and it had amazing and instantaneous results. The entire body gets drained of toxins. Only the taking-in of the oil was a laborious and detested ceremony. We were asked to close the eyes and the nose and drink the warm oil in one gulp. And, someone would be waiting with a handful of sugar to chase the oil. I had no problem gulping it, but once, my brother Sahasranaman resisted very visibly and Ammalu had to lock him inside her laps, while my brother Raman opened his mouth and my mother pushed the Kokarnam with oil inside his mouth. And, in a jiffy, the blighter spat it all out. The process was repeated successfully. Another time, he wriggled out of the grip and ran away. When he came back, he had to succumb. When it came to Castor oil, my brother was a real rebel, literally uncontrollable.

Jayasree, thanks for letting me enjoy my childhood days, for a moment.