a niche excavated in the side of the grave. After death has set in,
a cocoanut is broken, and camphor burnt. The corpse is washed by
relations, who bring nine pots of water for the purpose. The lingam
is tied on to the head, and a cloth bundle, containing a rupee, seven
bilva (Ægle Marmelos) leaves, nine twigs of the tulsi (Ocimum sanctum),
and nine Leucas aspera flowers, to the right arm. The corpse is carried
to the grave on a car surmounted by five brass vessels. The grave is
purified by the sprinkling of cow's urine and cow-dung water before the
corpse is lowered into it. On the way to the burial-ground, the priest
keeps on chanting various songs, such as "This is Kailasa. This is
Kailasa thillai (Chidambaram). Our request is this. Nallia Mutthan
of the Nandidarma gotra died on Thursday in the month Thai in
the year Subakruthu. He must enter the fourth stage (sayichyam),
passing through Salokam, Samipa, and Sarupa. He crosses the rivers
of stones, of thorns, of fire, and of snakes, holding the tail of
the bull Nandi. To enable him to reach heaven safely, we pound rice,
and put lights of rice." The priest receives a fee for his services,
which he places before an image made on the grave after it has been
filled in. The money is usually spent in making a sacred bull, lingam,
or stone slab, to place on the grave. On the third day after death,
the female relatives of the deceased pour milk within the house into
a vessel, which is taken by the male relatives to the burial-ground,
and offered at the grave, which is cleaned. A small platform, made
of mud, and composed of several tiers, decreasing in size from below
upwards, is erected thereon, and surmounted by a lingam. At the north
and south corners of this platform, a bull and paradesi (mendicant)
made of mud are placed, and at each corner leaves are laid, on which
the offerings in the form of rice, fruits, vegetables, etc., are
laid. The final death ceremonies are celebrated on the seventeenth
day. A pandal (booth) is set up, and closed in with cloths. Within
it are placed a pot and five pestles and mortars, to which threads
are tied. Five married women, taking hold of the pestles, pound some
rice contained in the pot, and with the flour make a lamp, which is
placed on a tray. The eldest son of the deceased goes, with the lamp
on his head, to an enclosure having an entrance at the four cardinal
points. The enclosure is either a permanent one with mud walls, or
temporary one made out of mats. Within the enclosure, five pots are
set up in the centre, and four at each side. The pots are cleansed
by washing them with the urine of cows of five different colours,
red, white, black, grey, and spotted. Near the pots the articles
required for puja (worship) are placed, and the officiating priest
sits near them. The enclosure is supposed to represent heaven, and the
entrances are the gates leading thereto, before which food is placed on
leaves. The eldest son, with the lamp, stands at the eastern entrance,
while Siva is worshipped. The priest then repeats certain stanzas,
of which the following is the substance. "You who come like Siddars
(attendants in the abode of Siva) at midnight, muttering Siva's name,
why do you come near Sivapadam? I will pierce you with my trident. Get
away. Let these be taken to yamapuri, or hell." Then Siva and Parvati,
hearing the noise, ask "Oh! sons, who are you that keep on saying Hara,
Hara? Give out truly your names and nativity." To which the reply is
given "Oh! Lord, I am a devotee of that Being who graced Markandeya,
and am a Virasaiva by faith. I have come to enter heaven. We have
all led pure lives, and have performed acts of charity. So it is not
just that we should be prevented from entering. Men who ill-treat
their parents, or superiors, those addicted to all kinds of vice,
blasphemers, murderers, perverts from their own faith and priests,
and other such people, are driven to hell by the southern gate." At
this stage, a thread is passed round the enclosure. The son, still
bearing the lamp, goes from the eastern entrance past the south and
western entrances, and, breaking the thread, goes into the enclosure
through the northern entrance. The Nandikol (hereditary village
official) then ties a cloth first round the head of the eldest son,
and afterwards round the heads of the other sons and agnates.
The Valluvans abstain from eating beef. Though they mix freely with
the Paraiyans, they will not eat with them, and never live in the
Paraiyan quarter.
The Valluvans are sometimes called Pandaram or Valluva Pandaram. In
some places, the priests of the Valluvans are Vellala Pandarams.
Valluvan.--A small inferior caste of fishermen and boatmen in
Malabar. [106]
Valmika.--Valmika or Valmiki is a name assumed by the Boyas and Paidis,
who claim to be descended from Valmiki, the author of the Ramayana, who
did penance for so long in one spot that a white-ant hill (valmikam)
grew up round him. In a note before me, Valmiki is referred to as
the Spenser of India. In the North Arcot Manual, Valmikulu, as a
synonym of the Vedans, is made to mean those who live on the products
of ant-hills.
Val Nambi.--Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as "a
synonym for Mussad. Nambi is a title of Brahmans, and val means a
sword. The tradition is that the name arose from the ancestors of
the caste having lost some of the privileges of the Vedic Brahmans
owing to their having served as soldiers when Malabar was ruled by
the Brahmans prior to the days of the Perumals."
Valuvadi.--The Valuvadis are returned, in the Madras Census Report,
1901, as cultivators in the Pudukottai State. I am informed that the
Valuvadis are a section of the Valaiyan caste, to which the Zamindar
of Nagaram belongs. The name Valuvadi was originally a title of
respect, appended to the name of the Nagaram Zamindars. The name
of the present Zamindar is Balasubramanya Valuvadiar. Thirty years
ago there is said to have been no Valuvadi caste. Some Valaiyans
in prosperous circumstances, and others who became relatives of the
Nagaram Zamindar by marriage, have changed their caste name, to show
that they are superior in social status to the rest of the community.
Vamme.--A gotra of Janappans, the members of which abstain from eating
the fish called bombadai, because, when some of their ancestors went
to fetch water in the marriage pot, they found a number of this fish
in the water contained in the pot.
Vana Palli.--A name, meaning forest Palli, assumed by some Irulas in
South Arcot.
Vandikkaran.--An occupational name for Nayars who work as cartmen
(vandi, cart) for carrying fuel.
Vandula or Vandi Raja.--A sub-division of Bhatrazu, named after one
Vandi, who is said to have been a herald at the marriage of Siva.
Vangu (cave).--A sub-division of Irula.
Vani.--"The Vanis or Bandekars," Mr. H. A. Stuart writes, [107] "have
been wrongly classified in the census returns (1891) as oil-pressers;
they are in reality traders. They are said to have come from Goa,
and they speak Konkani. Their spiritual guru is the head of the
Kumbakonam math." In the Census Report, 1901, it is noted that Vani,
meaning literally a trader, is a Konkani-speaking trading caste, of
which Bandekara is a synonym. "They ape the Brahmanical customs, and
call themselves by the curious hybrid name of Vaisya Brahmans." Hari
Chetti has been returned as a further synonym.
Vaniyan.--The Vaniyans are, Mr. Francis writes, [108] "oil-pressers
among the Tamils, corresponding to the Telugu Gandlas, Canarese
Ganigas, Malabar Chakkans, and Oriya Tellis. For some obscure reason,
Manu classed oil-pressing as a base occupation, and all followers
of the calling are held in small esteem, and, in Tinnevelly, they
are not allowed to enter the temples. In consequence, however, of
their services in lighting the temples (in token of which all of them,
except the Malabar Vaniyans and Chakkans, wear the sacred thread), they
are earning a high position, and some of them use the sonorous title
of Joti Nagarattar (dwellers in the city of light) and Tiru-vilakku
Nagarattar (dwellers in the city of holy lamps). They employ Brahmans
as priests, practice infant marriage, and prohibit widow marriage,
usually burn their dead, and decline to eat in the houses of any
caste below Brahmans. However, even the washermen decline to eat with
them. Like the Gandlas they have two sub-divisions, Ottai-sekkan and
Irattai-sekkan, who use respectively one bullock and two bullocks in
their mills. Oddly enough, the former belong to the right-hand faction,
and the latter to the left. Their usual title is Chetti. The name
Vanuvan has been assumed by Vaniyans, who have left their traditional
occupation, and taken to the grain and other trades."
"The word Vanijyam," Mr. H. A. Stuart informs us, [109] "signifies
trade, and trade in oil, as well as its manufacture, is the usual
employment of this caste, who assert that they are Vaisyas, and
claim the Vaisya-Apuranam as their holy book. They are said to have
assumed the thread only within the last fifty or sixty years, and are
reputed to be the result of a yagam (sacrifice by fire) performed by a
saint called Vakkuna Maharishi. The caste contains four sub-divisions
called Kamakshiamma, Visalakshiamma, Ac'chu-tali, and Toppa-tali, the
two first referring to the goddesses principally worshipped by each,
and the two last to the peculiar kinds of talis, or marriage tokens,
worn by their women. They have the same customs as the Beri Chettis,
but are not particular in observing the rule which forbids the eating
of flesh. A bastard branch of the Vaniyas is called the Pillai Kuttam,
which is said to have sprung from the concubine of a Vaniyan, who
lived many years ago. The members of this class are never found except
where Vaniyans live, and are supposed to have a right to be fed and
clothed by them. Should this be refused, they utter the most terrible
curse, and, in this manner, eventually intimidate the uncharitable
into giving them alms." In the Census Report, 1891, Mr. Stuart writes
further that the Vaniyans "were formerly called Sekkan (oil-mill man),
and it is curious that the oil-mongers alone came to be called Vaniyan
or trader. They have returned 126 sub-divisions, of which only one,
Ilai Vaniyan, is numerically important. One sub-division is Iranderudu,
or two bullocks, which refers to the use of two bullocks in working
the mill. This separation of those who use two bullocks from those
who employ only one is found in nearly every oil-pressing caste in
India. The Vaniyans of Malabar resemble the Nayars in their customs
and habits, and neither wear the sacred thread, nor employ Brahmans
as priests. In North Malabar, Nayars are polluted by their touch, but
in the south, where they are called Vattakadans, they have succeeded
in forcing themselves into the ranks of the Nayar community. A large
number of them returned Nayar as their main caste." In this connection,
Mr. Francis states [110] that followers of the calling of oil-pressers
(Chakkans) are "known as Vattakadans in South Malabar, and as Vaniyans
in North Malabar; but the former are the higher in social status, the
Nayars being polluted by the touch of the Vaniyans and Chakkans but
not by that of the Vattakadans. Chakkans and Vaniyans may not enter
Brahman temples. Their customs and manners are similar to those of
the Nayars, who will not, however, marry their women."
Of the Vaniyans of Cochin, it is stated in the Cochin Census Report,
1901, that "they are Vaisyas, and wear the sacred thread. In regard
to marriage, inheritance, ceremonies, dress, ornaments, etc., there
is practically no difference between them and the Konkanis. But, as
they do not altogether abstain from meat and spirituous liquors, they
are not allowed free access to the houses of Konkanis, nor are they
permitted to touch their tanks and wells. They are Saivites. They
have their own priests, who are called Panditars. They observe
birth and death pollution for ten days, and are like Brahmans in
this respect. They are mostly petty merchants and shop-keepers. Some
can read and write Malayalam, but they are very backward in English
education."
The oils expressed by the Vaniyans are said to be "gingelly (Sesamum
indicum), cocoanut, iluppei (Bassia longifolia), pinnei (Calophyllum
inophyllum), and ground-nut (Arachis hypogæa). According to the
sastras the crushing of gingelly seeds, and the sale of gingelly oil,
are sinful acts, and no one, who does not belong to the Vaniyan class,
will either express or sell gingelly oil." [111]
When a Vaniyan dies a bachelor, a post-mortem mock ceremony is
performed as by the Ganigas, and the corpse is married to the arka
plant (Calotropis gigantea), and decorated with a wreath made of the
flowers thereof.
Vankayala (brinjal or egg plant: Solanum Melongena).--An exogamous sept
of Golla. The fruit is eaten by Natives, and, stuffed with minced meat,
is a common article of Anglo-Indian dietary.
Vanki (armlet).--A gotra of Kurni.
Vannan.--The Vannans are washermen in the Tamil and Malayalam
countries. The name Vannan is, Mr. H. A. Stuart writes, [112]
"derived from vannam, beauty. There is a tradition that they are
descendants of the mythological hero Virabadra, who was ordered
by Siva to wash the clothes of all men, as an expiation of the sin
of putting many people to death in Daksha's Yaga. Hence the Tamil
washermen are frequently called Virabadran. Having to purify all
the filthy linen of the villagers, they are naturally regarded as
a low, unclean class of Sudras, and are always poor. They add to
their income by hiring out the clothes of their customers to funeral
parties, who lay them on the ground before the pall-bearers, so that
these may not step upon the ground, and by letting them out on the
sly to persons wishing to use them without having to purchase for
themselves. In social standing the Vannans are placed next below the
barbers. They profess to be Saivites in the southern districts, and
Vaishnavites in the north. The marriage of girls generally takes place
after puberty. Widow remarriage is permitted among some, if not all,
sub-divisions. Divorce may be obtained by either party at pleasure on
payment of double the bride-price, which is usually Rs. 10-8-0. They
are flesh-eaters, and drink liquor. The dead are either burned or
buried. The Pothara (or Podora) Vannans are of inferior status, because
they wash only for Paraiyans, Pallans, and other inferior castes."
It is noted, in the Madura Manual, that those who have seen the
abominable substances, which it is the lot of the Vannans to make
clean, cannot feel any surprise at the contempt with which their
occupation is regarded. In the Tanjore Manual, it is recorded that,
in the rural parts of the district, the Vannans are not allowed to
enter the house of a Brahman or a Vellala; clothes washed by them
not being worn or mixed up with other clothes in the house until they
have undergone another wash by a caste man.
It is on record that, on one occasion, a party of Europeans, when out
shooting, met a funeral procession on its way to the burial-ground. The
bier was draped in many folds of clean cloth, which one of the party
recognised by the initials as one of his bed-sheets. Another identified
as his sheet the cloth on which the corpse was lying. He cut off the
corner with the initials, and a few days later the sheet was returned
by the washerman, who pretended ignorance of the mutilation, and gave
as an explanation that it must have been done, in his absence, by one
of his assistants. On another occasion, a European met an Eurasian,
in a village not far from his bungalow, wearing a suit of clothes
exactly similar to his own, and, on close examination, found they
were his. They had been newly washed and dressed.
The most important divisions numerically returned by Vannans at times
of census are Pandiyan, Peru (big), Tamil, and Vaduga (northerner). It
is recorded, in the Gazetteer of the Madura district, that Vannan "is
rather an occupational term than a caste title, and, besides the Pandya
Vannans or Vannans proper, includes the Vaduga Vannans or Tsakalas
of the Telugu country, and the Palla, Pudara, and Tulukka Vannans,
who wash for the Pallans, Paraiyans, and Musalmans respectively. The
Pandya Vannans have a headman called the Periya Manishan (big man). A
man can claim the hand of his paternal aunt's daughter. At weddings,
the bridegroom's sister ties the tali (marriage badge). Nambis
officiate. Divorce is freely allowed to either party on payment
of twice the bride-price, and divorcées may marry again. The caste
god is Gurunathan, in whose temples the pujari (priest) is usually
a Vannan. The dead are generally burnt, and, on the sixteenth day,
the house is purified from pollution by a Nambi."
Some Vannans have assumed the name Irkuli Vellala, and Rajakan
and Kattavaraya vamsam have also been recorded as synonyms of the
caste name.
The Vannans of Malabar are also called Mannan or Bannan. They are,
Mr. Francis writes, [113] "a low class of Malabar washermen, who wash
only for the polluting castes, and for the higher castes when they
are under pollution following births, deaths, etc. It is believed
by the higher castes that such pollution can only be removed by
wearing clothes washed by Mannans, though at other times these cause
pollution to them. The washing is generally done by the women, and the
men are exorcists, devil-dancers and physicians, even to the higher
castes. Their women are midwives, like those of the Velakkatalavan
and Velan castes. This caste should not be confused with the Mannan
hill tribe of Travancore."
It is recorded, in the Gazetteer of Malabar, that "the Mannans,
a makkattayam caste of South Malabar, apparently identical with the
marumakkattayam Vannans of the north, are a caste of washermen; and
their services are indispensable to the higher castes in certain
purificatory ceremonies when they have to present clean cloths
(mattu). They are also devil-dancers and tailors. They practice
fraternal polyandry in the south. Mannans are divided into two
endogamous classes, Peru-mannans (peru, great), and Tinda-mannans
(tinda, pollution); and, in Walavanad, into four endogamous classes
called Choppan, Peru-mannan, Punnekadan, and Puliyakkodam. The
Tinda-mannan and Puliyakkodam divisions perform the purificatory
sprinklings for the others."
The services of the Mannan, Mr. T. K. Gopal Panikkar writes, [114]
"are in requisition at the Nayar Thirandukalianam ceremonies on the
attainment of puberty by a girl, when they sing ballads, and have
to bring, for the girl's use, the mattu or sacred dress. Then,
on occasions of death pollution, they have a similar duty to
perform. Among the Nayars, on the fourth, or rarely the third day
after the menses, the woman has to use, during her bath, clothes
supplied by Mannan females. The same duty they have to perform
during the confinement of Nayar females. All the dirty cloths and
bed sheets used, these Mannan females have to wash." Mr. S. Appadorai
Iyer informs us that those Mannans who are employed by the Kammalan,
or artisan class, as barbers, are not admitted into the Mannan caste,
which follows the more honourable profession of washing clothes. The
Mannans perform certain ceremonies in connection with Mundian,
the deity who is responsible for the weal or woe of cattle; and,
at Puram festivals, carry the vengida koda or prosperity umbrella,
composed of many tiers of red, green, orange, black and white cloth,
supported on a long bamboo pole, before the goddess.
It is recorded by Bishop Whitehead [115] that, in various places in
Malabar, there are temples in honour of Bhagavati, at which the pujaris
(priests) are of the Vannan caste. "There is an annual feast called
gurusi tarpanam (giving to the guru) about March, when the hot weather
begins, and the people are at leisure. Its object is to appease the
wrath of the goddess. During the festival, the pujari sits in the
courtyard outside the temple, thickly garlanded with red flowers,
and with red kunkuma marks on his forehead. Goats and fowls are then
brought to him by the devotees, and he kills them with one blow of
the large sacrificial sword or chopper. It is thought auspicious for
the head to be severed at one blow, and, apparently, pujaris who are
skilful in decapitation are much in request. When the head is cut
off, the pujari takes the carcase, and holds it over a large copper
vessel partly filled with water, turmeric, kunkuma, and a little rice,
and lets the blood flow into it. When all the animals are killed, the
pujari bails out the blood and water on the ground, uttering mantrams
(sacred lines or verses) the while. The people stand a little way
off. When the vessel is nearly empty, the pujari turns it upside
down as a sign that the ceremony is ended. During these proceedings,
a number of Vannans, dressed in fantastic costumes, dance three times
round the temple. During the festival, processions are held round the
various houses, and special swords with a curved hook at the end,
called palli val (great or honourable sword), are carried by the
worshippers. These swords are worshipped during the Dusserah festival
in October, and, in some shrines, they form the only emblem of the
deity. The Tiyans have small shrines in their own gardens sacred
to the family deity, which may be Bhagavati, or some demon, or the
spirit of an ancestor. Once a year, Vannans come dressed in fancy
costume, with crowns on their heads, and dance round the courtyard
to the sound of music and tom-toms, while a Tiyan priest presents the
family offerings, uncooked rice and young cocoanuts, with camphor and
incense, and then rice fried with sugar and ghi (clarified butter)."
In an account of the Tiyans, Mr. Logan writes [116] that "this
caste is much given to devil-charming, or devil-driving as it is
often called. The washermen (Vannan) are the high priests of this
superstition, and with chants, ringing cymbals, magic figures, and
waving lights, they drive out evil spirits from their votaries of
this caste at certain epochs in their married lives. One ceremony
in particular, called teyyattam--a corrupt form of Deva and attam,
that is, playing at gods--takes place occasionally in the fifth month
of pregnancy. A leafy arbour is constructed, and in front of it is
placed a terrible figure of Chamundi, the queen of the demons, made
of rice flour, turmeric powder, and charcoal powder. A party of not
less than eighteen washermen is organized to represent the demons and
furies--Kuttichattan (a mischievous imp), and many others. On being
invoked, these demons bound on to the stage in pairs, dance, caper,
jump, roar, fight, and drench each other with saffron (turmeric)
water. Their capers and exertions gradually work up their excitement,
until they are veritably possessed of the devil. At this juncture,
fowls and animals are sometimes thrown to them, to appease their
fury. These they attack with their teeth, and kill and tear as
a tiger does his prey. After about twenty minutes the convulsions
cease, the demon or spirit declares its pleasure, and, much fatigued,
retires to give place to others; and thus the whole night is spent,
with much tom-tomming and noise and shouting, making it impossible,
for Europeans at least, to sleep within earshot of the din."
Vannattan.--A synonym of Veluttedan, the caste of washermen, who wash
for Nayars and higher castes.
Vanni Kula Kshatriya.--A synonym of the Pallis, who claim to belong
to the fire race of Kshatriyas.
Vanniyan.--A synonym of Palli. The name further occurs as a
sub-division of Ambalakaran and Valaiyan. Some Maravans also are
known as Vanniyan or Vannikutti. Ten (honey) Vanniyan is the name
adopted by some Irulas in the South Arcot district.
Vantari.--See Telaga.
Vanuvan.--A name assumed by Vaniyans who have abandoned their
hereditary occupation of oil-pressing, and taken to trade in grain
and other articles.
Varakurup.--Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a title
of Malayalam Paravans.
Varige (millet).--An exogamous sept of Kapu.
Variyar.--For the following note on the Variyar section of the
Ambalavasis, I am indebted to Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar. The name is
believed to be derived from Parasava, which, according to Yajnavalkya
and other law-givers, is the name given to the son of a Brahman
begotten on a Sudra woman, and suggests the fact that the Variyar
is no Brahman, though the blood of the latter may course through
his veins, and though such marriages were regarded as sacraments
in early days. This is the derivation given by Pachumuttalu in
his Keralaviseshamahatmya, who adds that the chief occupation
of the Variyars is to sweep the floor of the temples. In some of
the Asauchavidhis (works on pollution) of Kerala, the commentator
explains the word Parasava as Variya. Many Variyars add the title
Parasava to their name, when writing in Sanskrit. Some derive the
word from varija or one born of water, in accordance with a tradition
that Parasurama created from water a class of persons for special
service in temples, and to take the place of Sudras, who, being
meat-eaters, were ineligible for the same. Others again, like the
late Professor Sundaram Pillay, would take Variyar as being derived
from varuka, to sweep. Recently, some ingenuity has been displayed
in splitting the word into two words, giving it a meaning equivalent
to pseudo-Aryan. The title Asan, or teacher, is possessed by certain
families, whose members have held the hereditary position of tutors in
noblemen's houses. In mediæval times, many Variyar families received
royal edicts, conferring upon them the privileges of being tutors
and astrologers. These special rights are even now possessed by them.