Mr. Wigram as a so-called 'marriage' ceremony performed among the
Nayars in North Malabar. (See Nayar.)
Pudu Nattan (new country).--A sub-division of Idaiyan.
Pu Islam.--See Putiya Islam.
Pujari.--Pujari is an occupational title, meaning priest, or performer
of puja (worship). It is described by Mr. H. A. Stuart [113] as
"a name applied to a class of priests, who mostly preside in the
temples of the female deities--the Grama Devatas or Ur Ammas--and
not in those of Vishnu or Siva. They do not wear the sacred thread,
except on solemn occasions." Pujari has been recorded as a title of
Billavas as they officiate as priests at bhutasthanas (devil shrines),
and of Halepaiks, and Pujali as a title of some Irulas. Some families
of Kusavans (potters), who manufacture clay idols, are also known as
pujari. Puja occurs as a sub-division of the Gollas. Some criminal
Koravas travel in the guise of Pujaris, and style themselves Korava
Pujaris.
Pula.--A sub-division of Cheruman.
Pula (flowers).--An exogamous sept of Boya, Padma Sale and Yerukala.
Pulan.--Barbers of Tamil origin, who have settled in Travancore.
Pulavar.--A title of Occhan and Panisavan.
Pulayan.--See Cheruman and Thanda Pulayan.
Puli (tiger).--Recorded as an exogamous sept or gotra of Balija,
Golla, Kamma, and Medara. The equivalent Puliattanaya occurs as an
exogamous sept of Bant.
Puliakodan.--A class of carpenters in Malabar, whose traditional
occupation is to construct oil mills.
Puliasari.--A division of Malabar Kammalans, the members of which
do mason's work (puli, earth). Paravas who are engaged in a similar
calling are, in like manner, called Puli Kollan.
Pulikkal.--Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, 1901, as a
sub-division of Nayar.
Puliyan.--A sub-division of Nayar.
Puliyattu.--Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, 1901, as
synonymous with Pulikkappanikkan, a sub-division of Nayar.
Pullakura (pot-herbs).--An exogamous sept of Idiga.
Pulluvan.--The Pulluvans of Malabar are astrologers, medicine-men,
priests and singers in snake groves. The name is fancifully derived
from pullu, a hawk, because the Pulluvan is clever in curing the
disorders which pregnant women and babies suffer from through the evil
influence of these birds. The Pulluvans are sometimes called Vaidyans
(physicians).
As regards the origin of the caste, the following tradition is
narrated. [114] Agni, the fire god, had made several desperate but vain
efforts to destroy the great primeval forest of Gandava. The eight
serpents which had their home in the forest were the chosen friends
of Indra, who sent down a deluge, and destroyed, every time, the fire
which Agni kindled in order to burn down the forest. Eventually Agni
resorted to a stratagem, and, appearing before Arjunan in the guise
of a Brahman, contrived to exact a promise to do him any favour he
might desire. Agni then sought the help of Arjunan in destroying
the forest, and the latter created a wonderful bow and arrows, which
cut off every drop of rain sent by Indra for the preservation of the
forest. The birds, beasts, and other creatures which lived therein,
fled in terror, but most of them were overtaken by the flames, and
were burnt to cinders. Several of the serpents also were overtaken
and destroyed, but one of them was rescued by the maid-servant of a
Brahman, who secured the sacred reptile in a pot, which she deposited
in a jasmine bower. When the Brahman came to hear of this, he had
the serpent removed, and turned the maid-servant adrift, expelling
at the same time a man-servant, so that the woman might not be alone
and friendless. The two exiles prospered under the protection of the
serpent, which the woman had rescued from the flames, and became the
founders of the Pulluvans. According to another story, when the great
Gandava forest was in conflagration, the snakes therein were destroyed
in the flames. A large five-hooded snake, scorched and burnt by the
fire, flew away in agony, and alighted at Kuttanad, which is said to
have been on the site of the modern town of Alleppey. Two women were
at the time on their way to draw water from a well. The snake asked
them to pour seven potfuls of water over him, to alleviate his pain,
and to turn the pot sideways, so that he could get into it. His
request was complied with, and, having entered the pot, he would
not leave it. He then desired one of the women to take him home, and
place him in a room on the west side of the house. This she refused
to do for fear of the snake, and she was advised to cover the mouth
of the pot with a cloth. The room, in which the snake was placed,
was ordered to be closed for a week. The woman's husband, who did not
know what had occurred, tried to open the door, and only succeeded by
exerting all his strength. On entering the room, to his surprise he
found an ant-hill, and disturbed it. Thereon the snake issued forth
from it, and bit him. As the result of the bite, the man died, and
his widow was left without means of support. The snake consoled her,
and devised a plan, by which she could maintain herself. She was
to go from house to house, and cry out "Give me alms, and be saved
from snake poisoning." The inmates would give, and the snakes, which
were troubling their houses, would cease from annoying them. For this
reason, a Pulluvan and his wife, when they go with their pulluva kudam
(pot-drum) to a house, are asked to sing, and given money.
The Pulluvar females, Mr. T. K. Gopal Panikkar writes, [115] "take
a pretty large pitcher, and close its opening by means of a small
circular piece of thin leather, which is fastened on to the vessel
by means of strings strongly tied round its neck. Another string is
adjusted to the leather cover, which, when played on by means of the
fingers, produces a hoarse note, which is said to please the gods'
ears, pacify their anger, and lull them to sleep." In the Malabar
Gazetteer, this instrument is thus described. "It consists of an
earthenware chatty with its bottom removed, and entirely covered,
except the mouth, with leather. The portion of the leather which is
stretched over the bottom of the vessel thus forms a sort of drum, to
the centre of which a string is attached. The other end of the string
is fixed in the cleft of a stick. The performer sits cross-legged,
holding the chatty mouth downwards with his right hand, on his right
knee. The stick is held firmly under the right foot, resting on the
left leg. The performer strums on the string, which is thus stretched
tight, with a rude plectrum of horn, or other substance. The vibrations
communicated by the string to the tympanum produce a curious sonorous
note, the pitch of which can be varied by increasing or relaxing
the tension of the string." This musical instrument is carried from
house to house in the daytime by these Pulluvar females; and, placing
the vessel in a particular position on the ground, and sitting in
a particular fashion in relation to the vessel, they play on the
string, which then produces a very pleasant musical note. Then they
sing ballads to the accompaniment of these notes. After continuing
this for some time, they stop, and, getting their customary dues
from the family, go their own way. It is believed that the music, and
the ballads, are peculiarly pleasing to the serpent gods, who bless
those for whose sakes the music has been rendered." The Pulluvans also
play on a lute with snakes painted on the reptile skin, which is used
in lieu of parchment. The skin, in a specimen at the Madras Museum,
is apparently that of the big lizard Varanus bengalensis. The lute
is played with a bow, to which a metal bell is attached.
The dwelling-houses of the Pulluvans are like those of the Izhuvans
or Cherumas. They are generally mud huts, with thatched roof, and a
verandah in front.
When a girl attains maturity, she is placed apart in a room. On the
seventh day, she is anointed by seven young women, who give an offering
to the demons, if she is possessed by any. This consists of the bark
of a plantain tree made into the form of a triangle, on which small
bits of tender cocoanuts and little torches are fixed. This is waved
round the girl's head, and floated away on water. As regards marriage,
the Pulluvans observe both tali-kettu and sambandham. In the vicinity
of Palghat, members of the caste in the same village intermarry,
and have a prejudice against contracting alliances outside it. Thus,
the Pulluvans of Palghat do not intermarry with those of Mundur and
Kanghat, which are four and ten miles distant. It is said that, in
former days, intercourse between brother and sister was permitted. But,
when questioned on this point, the Pulluvans absolutely deny it. It
is, however, possible that something of the kind was once the case,
for, when a man belonging to another caste is suspected of incest,
it is said that he is like the Pulluvans. Should the parents of a
married woman have no objection to her being divorced, they give her
husband a piece of cloth called murikotukkuka. This signifies that
the cloth which he gave is returned, and divorce is effected.
The Pulluvans follow the makkathayam law of inheritance (from father
to son). But they seldom have any property to leave, except their hut
and a few earthen pots. They have their caste assemblies (parichas),
which adjudicate on adultery, theft, and other offences.
They believe firmly in magic and sorcery, and every kind of sickness
is attributed to the influence of some demon. Abortion, death of a
new-born baby, prolonged labour, or the death of the woman, fever,
want of milk in the breasts, and other misfortunes, are attributed
to malignant influences. When pregnant women, or even children,
walk out alone at midday, they are possessed by them, and may fall
in convulsions. Any slight dereliction, or indifference with regard
to the offering of sacrifices, is attended by domestic calamities,
and sacrifices of goats and fowls are requisite. More sacrifices
are promised, if the demons will help them in the achievement of an
object, or in the destruction of an enemy. In some cases the village
astrologer is consulted, and he, by means of his calculations, divines
the cause of an illness, and suggests that a particular disease or
calamity is due to the provocation of the family or other god, to whom
sacrifices or offerings have not been made. Under these circumstances,
a Velichapad, or oracle, is consulted. After bathing, and dressing
himself in a new mundu (cloth), he enters on the scene with a sword
in his hand, and his legs girt with small bells. Standing in front
of the deity in pious meditation, he advances with slow steps and
rolling eyes, and makes a few frantic cuts on his forehead. He is
already in convulsive shivers, and works himself up to a state of
frenzied possession, and utters certain disconnected sentences, which
are believed to be the utterances of the gods. Believing them to be the
means of cure or relief from calamity, those affected reverentially bow
before the Velichapad, and obey his commands. Sometimes they resort to
a curious method of calculating beforehand the result of a project,
in which they are engaged, by placing before the god two bouquets of
flowers, one red, the other white, of which a child picks out one with
its eyes closed. Selection of the white bouquet predicts auspicious
results, of the red the reverse. A man, who wishes to bring a demon
under his control, must bathe in the early morning for forty-one days,
and cook his own meals. He should have no association with his wife,
and be free from all pollution. Every night, after 10 o'clock, he
should bathe in a tank (pond) or river, and stand naked up to the loins
in the water, while praying to the god, whom he wishes to propitiate,
in the words "I offer thee my prayers, so that thou mayst bless me
with what I want." These, with his thoughts concentrated on the deity,
he should utter 101, 1,001, and 100,001 times during the period. Should
he do this, in spite of all obstacles and intimidation by the demons,
the god will grant his desires. It is said to be best for a man to be
trained and guided by a guru (preceptor), as, if proper precautions
are not adopted, the result of his labours will be that he goes mad.
A Pulluvan and his wife preside at the ceremony called Pamban Tullal
to propitiate the snake gods of the nagattan kavus, or serpent
shrines. For this, a pandal (booth) is erected by driving four posts
into the ground, and putting over them a silk or cotton canopy. A
hideous figure of a huge snake is made on the floor with powders of
five colours. Five colours are essential, as they are visible on
the necks of snakes. Rice is scattered over the floor. Worship is
performed to Ganesa, and cocoanuts and rice are offered. Incense is
burnt, and a lamp placed on a plate. The members of the family go
round the booth, and the woman, from whom the devil has to be cast
out, bathes, and takes her seat on the western side, holding a bunch
of palm flowers. The Pulluvan and his wife begin the music, vocal and
instrumental, the woman keeping time with the pot-drum by striking
on a metal vessel. As they sing songs in honour of the snake deity,
the young female members of the family, who have been purified by a
bath, and are seated, begin to quiver, sway their heads to and fro in
time with the music, and the tresses of their hair are let loose. In
their state of excitement, they beat upon the floor, and rub out the
figure of the snake with palm flowers. This done, they proceed to
the snake-grove, and prostrate themselves before the stone images
of snakes, and recover consciousness. They take milk, water from a
tender cocoanut, and plantains. The Pulluvan stops singing, and the
ceremony is over. "Sometimes," Mr. Gopal Panikkar writes, "the gods
appear in the bodies of all these females, and sometimes only in those
of a select few, or none at all. The refusal of the gods to enter into
such persons is symbolical of some want of cleanliness in them: which
contingency is looked upon as a source of anxiety to the individual.
It may also suggest the displeasure of these gods towards the family,
in respect of which the ceremony is performed. In either case,
such refusal on the part of the gods is an index of their ill-will
or dissatisfaction. In cases where the gods refuse to appear in any
one of those seated for the purpose, the ceremony is prolonged until
the gods are so properly propitiated as to constrain them to manifest
themselves. Then, after the lapse of the number of days fixed for the
ceremony, and, after the will of the serpent gods is duly expressed,
the ceremonies close." Sometimes, it is said, it may be considered
necessary to rub away the figure as many as 101 times, in which case
the ceremony is prolonged over several weeks. Each time that the
snake design is destroyed, one or two men, with torches in their
hands, perform a dance, keeping step to the Pulluvan's music. The
family may eventually erect a small platform or shrine in a corner of
their grounds, and worship at it annually. The snake deity will not,
it is believed, manifest himself if any of the persons, or articles
required for the ceremony, are impure, e.g., if the pot-drum has been
polluted by the touch of a menstruating female. The Pulluvan, from
whom a drum was purchased for the Madras Museum, was very reluctant
to part with it, lest it should be touched by an impure woman.
The Pulluvans worship the gods of the Brahmanical temples, from a
distance, and believe in spirits of all sorts and conditions. They
worship Velayuthan, Ayyappa, Rahu, Muni, Chathan, Mukkan, Karinkutti,
Parakutti, and others. Muni is a well-disposed deity, to whom,
once a year, rice, plantains, and cocoanuts are offered. To Mukkan,
Karinkutti, and others, sheep and fowls are offered. A floral device
(padmam) is drawn on the floor with nine divisions in rice-flour,
on each of which a piece of tender cocoanut leaf, and a lighted wick
dipped in cocoanut oil, are placed. Parched rice, boiled beans, jaggery
(crude sugar), cakes, plantains, and toddy are offered, and camphor
and incense burnt. If a sheep has to be sacrificed, boiled rice is
offered, and water sprinkled over the head of the sheep before it is
killed. If it shakes itself, so that it frees itself from the water,
it is considered as a favourable omen. On every new-moon day, offerings
of mutton, fowls, rice-balls, toddy, and other things, served up on a
plantain leaf, are made to the souls of the departed. The celebrants,
who have bathed and cooked their own food on the previous day,
prostrate themselves, and say "Ye dead ancestors, we offer what we
can afford. May you take the gifts, and be pleased to protect us."
The Pulluvans bury their dead. The place of burial is near a river,
or in a secluded spot near the dwelling of the deceased. The corpse
is covered with a cloth, and a cocoanut placed with it. Offerings of
rice-balls are made by the son daily for fifteen days, when pollution
ceases, and a feast is held.
At the present day, some Pulluvans work at various forms of labour,
such as sowing, ploughing, reaping, fencing, and cutting timber, for
which they are paid in money or kind. They are, in fact, day-labourers,
living in huts built on the waste land of some landlord, for which they
pay a nominal ground-rent. They will take food prepared by Brahmans,
Nayars, Kammalans, and Izhuvas, but not that prepared by a Mannan
or Kaniyan. Carpenters and Izhuvas bathe when a Pulluvan has touched
them. But the Pulluvans are polluted by Cherumas, Pulayas, Paraiyans,
Ulladans, and others. The women wear the kacha, like Izhuva women,
folded twice, and worn round the loins, and are seldom seen with an
upper body-cloth. [116]
Puluvan.--The Puluvans have been described [117] as "a small tribe
of cultivators found in the district of Coimbatore. Puluvans are
the learned men among the Coimbatore Vellalas, and are supposed
to be the depositaries of the poet Kamban's works. One authority
from Coimbatore writes that the traditional occupation of this
caste is military service, and derives the word from bhu, earth,
and valavan, a ruler; while another thinks that the correct word
is Puruvan, aborigines. Their girls are married usually after they
attain maturity. In the disposal of the dead, both cremation and
burial are in vogue, the tendency being towards the former. They
are flesh-eaters. Their customs generally resemble those of the
Konga Vellalas."
The Puluvans call themselves Puluva Vellalas.
Punamalli.--The name of a division of Vellalas derived from
Poonamallee, an old military station near Madras.
Puni.--A sub-division of Golla.
Punjala (cock, or male).--An exogamous sept of Devanga.
Puppalli.--See Unni.
Puragiri Kshatriya.--A name assumed by some Perikes.
Puramalai, Puramalainadu or Piramalainadu.--A territorial sub-division
of Kallan.
Puranadi.--Barbers and priests of the Velans of Travancore, who are
also called Velakkuruppu.
Purattu Charna.--A sub-division of Nayar.
Purusha.--See Jogi Purusha.
Pusa (beads).--A sub-division of Balija. A sub-division of the
Yerukalas is known as Pusalavadu, or sellers of glass beads.
Pusali.--A title of Occhans, or pujaris (priests) at temples of Grama
Devatas (village deities).
Pusapati.--The family name of the Maharajahs of Vizianagram. From the
Kshatriyas in Rajputana people of four gotrams are said to have come
to the Northern Circars several centuries ago, having the Pusapati
family at their head. [118] The name of the present Maharaja is Mirza
Rajah Sri Pusapati Viziarama Gajapati Raj Manya Sultan Bahadur Garu.
Pushpakan.--A class of Ambalavasis in Malabar and Travancore. "As
their name (pushpam, a flower) implies, they are employed in bringing
flowers and garlands to the temples." [119] See Unni.
Puthukka Nattar (people of the new country).--A sub-division of
Idaiyan.
Putiya Islam.--Pu Islam or Putiya Islam is the name returned mostly
by Mukkuvans, in reference to their new conversion to the Muhammadan
faith.
Putta (ant-hill).--An exogamous sept of Kamma, Kuruba, Mala, Medara,
and Padma Sale. 'White-ant' (Termites) hills are frequently worshipped
as being the abode of snakes.
Puttiya.--A sub-division of Rona.
Puttur.--Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, 1901, as a
sub-division of Nayar.
Puzhi Tacchan (sand carpenter).--The name of a small section of
Malabar Kammalans.
R
Racha (= Raja).--Racha or Rachu, signifying regal, occurs as the
title of various Telugu classes, for example, Balija, Golla, Kapu,
Konda Dora, Koya, Majjulu, and Velama. Some Perikes, who claim to be
Kshatriyas, call themselves Racha Perikes. Racha is further given as
an abbreviated form of Mutracha.
Rachevar.--It is noted, in the Mysore Census Report, 1901, that "there
are three broad distinctions founded on the traditional occupation,
but there are two main exclusive divisions of Telugu and Kannada
Rachevars. One set, called Ranagare, are military, and most of them
are found employed in His Highness the Maharaja's Rachevar and Bale
forces. The second, consisting of the Chitragaras or Bannagaras, make
good paintings, decorations, and lacquered ware and toys. The last
consists of the Sarige, or gold lace makers. These people claim to
be Kshatriyas--a pretension not generally acquiesced in by the other
castes. They trace their origin to a passage in Brahmanda Purana,
wherein it is said that, for an injury done to a Brahman, they were
condemned to follow mechanical occupations." In connection with recent
Dasara festivities at Mysore, I read that there were wrestling matches,
acrobatic feats, dumb-bell and figure exercises by Rachevars.
In the Tanjore Manual it is noted that the Rachevars are "descendants
of immigrants from the Telugu country, who apparently followed the
Nayak viceroys of the Vijayanagar empire in the sixteenth century. They
are more or less jealous of the purity of their caste. Their language
is Telugu. They wear the sacred thread."
In the city of Madras, and in other places in Tamil country, the
Rachevars are called Razus or Mucchis, who must not be confused with
the Mucchis of Mysore and the Ceded districts, who are shoe-makers,
and speak Marathi. In the Telugu country, there are two distinct
sections of Rachevars, viz., Saivite and Vaishnavite. The Saivite
Rachevars in the Kistna district style themselves Arya Kshatriyalu,
but they are commonly called Nakash-vandlu, which is a Hindustani
synonym of Chitrakara or Jinigiri-vandlu. The Vaishnavites are known
as Jinigiri-vandlu, and are said not to intermarry with the Saivites.
Rafizi.--A term, meaning a forsaker, used by Sunni Muhammadans for
any sect of Shiahs. The name appears, in the Madras Census Report,
1901, as Rabjee.
Ragala (ragi: Eleusine Coracana).--An exogamous sept of Chembadi,
Korava and Madiga. The equivalent Ragithannaya occurs as an exogamous
sept of Bant. Ragi grain constitutes the staple diet of the poorer
classes, who cannot afford rice, and of prisoners in jails, for
whom it is ground into flour, and boiled into a pudding about the
consistency of blanc-mange. The name is derived from raga, red,
in reference to the red colour of the grain.
Raghindala (pipal: Ficus religiosa).--A gotra of Gollas, the members
of which are not allowed to use the leaves of this tree as food-plates.
Rajakan.--A Sanskrit equivalent of Vannan (washerman).
Rajamahendram.--The name, in reference to the town of Rajahmundry in
the Godavari district, of a sub-division of Balija.
Rajamakan.--A Tamil synonym for the Telugu Razu.
Rajavasal.--The name, denoting those who are servants of Rajas,
of a sub-division of Agamudaiyans, which has been transformed
into Rajavamsu, meaning those of kingly parentage. The equivalent
Rajavamsam is recorded, in the Census Report, 1901, as being returned
by some Maravans in Madura and Kurumbans in Trichinopoly. Rajakulam,
Rajabasha, or Rajaboga occurs as a sub-division of Agamudaiyan.
Rajpinde.--See Arasu.