Where abusing an erotica loving goddess, is the tradition
Kodungallur is home to a Bhagawathy temple (Kurumba Kavu),
where devotees throng every summer in a macabre celebration termed ‘Bharani’ when
they sing songs filled with the choicest erotica and used to conduct unique sacrifices.
Also noteworthy is the fact that at a time when lower castes were not allowed
into other temples, this temple allowed all castes to throng in, and pollute
the temple – for the Kavu Theendal. The idol is considered by some to be a manifestation
of the famous Kannagi of Madurai and the temple supposedly has a sealed secret chamber
in the Eastern side of the sanctum sanctorum, housing her remains. Kannagi, as
you may recall, was a woman of virtue who brought havoc to the town of Madurai
when a Pandyan king unjustly had her husband sent to the gallows. What
connections can we dig out from the myths, fables, and legends around the
temples and this erotic festival?
Kodungallur, Muziris, Vanchi, Tiruvanchikulam, Cranganore, are all names connected with a region (near today's Kochi) where Romans, Greeks,
Thebans, and Arabs, eons ago, intermingled with the locals, in pursuit of free
trade. It was also the capital town of the Chera dynasty, reigning over the
kingdom of Malayala, or Cheranad. This was the locale where many asylees
fleeing persecution from the west, as well as missionaries seeking to grow
their folk arrived, such as the Syrian Christians, Jews, Moslems, and so on.
Mixing with traders, they thrived for a period and interacted, amidst a tradition
of peace and cosmopolitism.
The Cheras had incidentally displaced Buddhist and Jainist traditions in the region and Brahmanism was on the rise during the Sangam age (2nd – 3rd century CE). Fair-skinned brahmins from the North were coming in, creating a new feudal culture together with armies of warring Nairs. Chola and Pandya invasions followed and the Perumals of Makkotai took over Chernad in the 9th Century. After its decline by the end of the 12th century, individual kingdoms and suzerains came into existence and the well-known swaroopams or minor dynasties came into existence. The twin pillars of Vaishnavism and Saivism were soon to follow. Nevertheless, this legend takes you to a period just before the Hindu culture replaced Jainist and Buddhist traditions and ended up either destroying or converting their many viharas, into Hindu temples. But the departing Jains and Buddhists left behind remnants of their culture and the Bhagavati cult in today’s Kerala is considered one such.
Gananath Obeyesekere explains the transition in the 8th-13th
centuries - First, Buddhists were pushed out of South India and settled on
Sri Lanka’s west coast. Second, in South India itself the original Pattini cult
was absorbed into the popular Hindu cults of Kali, Durga or Bhagavati. Third,
another group of immigrants from Kerala settled on the east coast of Sri Lanka
and were Hinduized. Their version of the goddess is that of a Hindu deity, but,
unlike the situation in South India, the goddess is kept separate from the Kali
cult and retains much of the quality of a folk deity, as in the Sinhala areas.
The story of Kannagi also dates back to the Sagam period and
the heroine is intimately connected to the festival, so it is important to
recap her sad tale. Kannagi, a virtuous woman residing at the port city of
Puhar (North of Nagapatinam) in the Chola empire, is the central character of the
epic Silapathikaram. She is a chaste
woman who remains with her husband despite his extramarital relationship with a
courtesan Madhavi, and the beautifully narrated epic takes you through her
travails and the attempts at reunification after Kovalan has a lover’s tiff
with Madhavai. Kannagi and Kovalan then leave Puhar for the Pandyan ruled
Madurai and here a ‘not so well off’ Kovalan is falsely framed (by a local
goldsmith, of having robbed the queen’s anklet, when in reality, the one Kovalan
was trying to sell, was one of Kannagi’s own anklets) for theft and sent to the
gallows by an unjust Pandyan king. Kannagi, sad and furious at the gross
injustice done, produces the second matching anklet to prove her husband’s
innocence, then rips off her left breast and throws it at the city with an
angry curse, setting it alight and destroying it. The Pandyan king dies in
shock and the lamenting single-breasted (Ottamulachi) Kannagi then drifts on towards
western ghats to Cheranad, towards the banks of the Vaigai river, and to the
location called Chengunnu where she teams up with the celestial Kovalan and flies
away to the heavens. The hill tribes witnessing the glorious sight, report this
to their Chera emperor named Chenkuttavan. Deciding to honor her, he brings a
memorial stone from the Himalayas and consecrates it at the temple in Tiruvanchikulam.
This is the myth and legend associated with the Silappathikaram (Broken anklet).
This mythical poem penned by the Jainist Ilango Adikal, brother of the ruling Perumal Chenkuttavan (drawing from previous similar tales written by others- Ilango Adigal based his work on an earlier tale, a popular ballad called Kovalan Katai (The story of Kovalan)), had quite a following, so much so that and a cult named Kannagi or Pattini spread soon after in South Kerala and Lanka. Somehow it merged with the Kali or Bhagavathy goddess traditions prevalent in the region. There are many related arguments between historians, such as the dating of Chilappadhikaram itself - whether it belonged to the 2nd-century Sangam era, or the Kulashekaras of the 7th century when the Jains were evicted. There are many more areas of dispute such as the fact that early Bhagavathy kavu worship was already existent. Detractors of the Kannagi myth state that the idol at the temple has eight arms and is not mutilated, and that other Pattini idols possess both breasts. Many more questions arise, why situate a memorial of Kannagi in a temple? How can Hindus tolerate mortal remains in a temple? For that matter, was it a Hindu temple? Then again, was the chamber sealed after this Buddhist or Jainist shrine became a Hindu temple?
Let’s take a look at the rituals and festivals now
associated with this goddess, be it Kali or a manifestation of Kannagi. It occurs
in the Malayalam month of Meenam (about March or April). Starting with the act
of Kavu Theendal, a man of the goldsmith caste (thattan) goes around the temple
7 times on the Bharani asterism, in the month of Kumbham, and rings the temple
bell, signifying the start of the pollution at the sacred premises. After flags
are hung on the tress, the temple doors are thrown open to all and sundry, and
celebrations start.
As Gopala Panikkar states succinctly - Rice, salt,
chillies, curry-stuffs, betel leaves and nuts, a little turmeric powder and
pepper, and, above all, a number of cocks form an almost complete paraphernalia
of the pilgrimage. These are all gathered and preserved in separate bundles
inside a large bag. When the appointed hour comes, they throw this bag on their
shoulders, conceal their money in their girdles, and, with a native-fashioned
umbrella in the one hand and a walking-stick in the other, they start, each
from his own house, to meet the brother pilgrims at the rendezvous.
Cock sacrifices start approximately a week earlier when the Nairs from the North and the South of Kodungallur arrive and many cock heads are slit and their blood split on two stones situated outside the temple. One should take note of the fact that the ceremony commences with the sacrifice of two cocks brought in from the families of the Tatcholi Othenan (you can read my article on him here) the renowned fighter (17th century) and Karampilly Kurup in North Malabar. This is later followed by cock sacrifices by other castes such as the Tiyyas, Izhavas, and the Pulayars.
The Adigal priests now take over, and the Kodungallur Raja
comes to witness the celebrations. Crowds throng the temple, both locals and hill
tribes. Led by the velichappad or oracle, they surge in and pollute the temple
enmasse. Sweet molasses payasam is served to the worshippers while the cock
sacrifices continue, and pepper and turmeric is thrown around the premises. In
addition, the Palakkal Velan is also invited to pollute the premises, and all
types of devotees throw their offerings over the walls, while a lamp is lit at
the North door to represent Bhadrakali’s victory over Daruka. So much for the
Kavu Theendal.
Checking now for Kannagi connections, on can directly
identify the villain in the celebrations, which is the goldsmith, who is called
upon first, to pollute the temple. Interestingly the Pandyan king had in the
original tale, tried to appease Kannagi, by killing some 1,000 goldsmiths of
Madurai, perhaps this is what the cock sacrifice signifies. Others mention that
blood sacrifices are all part of Kali worship. The priestly classes attached to it are not Brahmins, but a peculiar sect called Adigals, of whom there are but three families in the whole
of Malabar. If you recall, Ilango was an adiga, thus indicating the Jain link. Also,
Kavundi Adiga in the Siliappdhikaram was a Jain nun. Unlike every other Kerala
temple where Nambuthiri’s (and Tulu Moosads) are the sole priests, here we come
across Adiga’s. As they got involved in these forbidden rituals, they were
degraded, caste-wise. There is a Lankan connection as well, signifying a Buddhist
link, for it is mentioned that Gajabahu, the Lankan king was present during the
Kannagi consecration, and we can also note that Manimekhalai, the daughter of
Kovalan and Kannagi, is believed to have come to Vanchi to become an ascetic. Take
note here that the Kannagi connections are more popular with the masses between
Cochin and Travancore, not necessarily in Malabar, for some reason, according
to C Achuytha Menon (Kali worship in Kerala).
The devotees
during their pilgrimage march and upon arrival sing obscene songs (their pattu).
These songs typically describe the
sexual organs of the male and female and narrate sexual acts in the most graphic
fashion you can imagine, all raw and in crude words. They are sung along the
way and even in the temple premises, though not inside the sanctum (sreekovil).
Both men and women sing these songs, though the numbers of women partaking are
somewhat lower. No orgies or vulgar acts take place though suggestive actions
are exhibited by the singers, nor are any women in the throng subjected to any
groping or other acts (These days it is a bit different – A researcher
attending the festival says her bottom was pinched).
Why all this is
done is not very well explained, though some opine that it depicts orgies
conducted at Pukar during an event called the “chandolsavam” or the moon
festival, mentioned in the epic. The imbibing of liquor during the march shows
an apparent connection to Indra, as at some time agriculture perished,
famines occurred and so Indra had to be appeased for rains. This was signified
even when Chenkuttavan was consecrating the idol, for he consumed Madhu,
symbolically.
Some others however opine that the always angry Bhagavati
goddess being an unmarried virgin, likes to hear such songs and fantasize, and so
they sing to calm her lust this way. This is also needed to calm the rage
within the goddess and appease her since she controls the land, its produce
and the onset of any sickness. Some scholars opine that the Bharanippattu (theripattu
– lewd songs) began when lower castes were instigated by the Namboothiris to
sing lewd songs in order to drive out the Buddhist or Jain monks away from
Kodungallur. Researchers ask us to note that upper castes had set a moral
standard for male-female relations or sex and that these songs are simply about
human organs, lust and desire, nevertheless sung in public and in devotion to
the goddess.
There is yet another story related to the singing. It appears that Kannangi was
propositioned by an amorous Nalachan while Kovalan was alive and sleeping.
Legend has it that she asked him to come to Vanchi for a tryst at a later date.
After all the events, the burning of Madurai and so on, and Kannagi’s arrival
at Vanchi, it appears that Nalachan came to Vanchi, only to be turned into a
stone by the angry Kannagi. But she remembered her promise to satiate him and
it is for this reason that devotees were encouraged to sing these songs in
order to satisfy Nalachan’s desire.
A tantric angle
is also offered by Shweta, a researcher – She explains that the Kodungalloor
temple is believed to follow an amalgamation of Samayacharam and Kavalcharam
traditions of worship. One
of the most important systems of pooja within these two traditions is the
Panchamakaram pooja. Under this, there must be five offerings for every worship
- malsyam, mamsam, maithunam, mudra and madyam (fish, meat, sex, grain and
alcohol, respectively). Most of these offerings are represented symbolically
and the theripaatu is the symbolic representation of maithunam - the offering
of sex. Her explanation for
the theripaatu was that, talking about sex, simulating it, often tricks the
body into setting up an energy flow. Talking about it and chanting it in a
rhythmic way, in a collective, helps the body release the same energy.
A rough
translation of one of these profane songs follows – Tanaro tannaro taka, Tanaro
tannaro, If you have to f$%k Kodungallur Amma, (the goddess), one has to have a
co$k like a flagpost, Tanaro tannaro taka, Tanaro tannaro… Now, as I don’t have
a co$k like a flag post, I had to borrow one from Bhima, the giant ….There
are many more, just head over to youtube for samples..
Now, this was how
it was once upon a time; I am not so sure how it is regulated these days! As
far as the cock sacrifice is concerned, the popular idea is that the greater
the number of cocks sacrificed, the greater is the efficacy of the pilgrimage. So,
groups of devotees use to vie with one another in the number of cocks that they
carry on the journey, and in the procession are many oracles both male and female,
brandishing their curved swords.
Gopala Panikkar
explains how it was once, for it is banned these days- The sacrifice is
begun, and then there takes place a regular scramble for the sanctified spot
reserved for this butchering ceremony. One man holds a cock by the trunk,
and another pulls out its neck by the head, and, in the twinkling of an eye, by
the intervention of a sharpened knife, the head is severed from the trunk. The
blood then gushes forth in forceful and continuous jets, and is poured on a
piece of granite specially reserved. Then another is similarly slaughtered, and
then as many as each of the pilgrims can bring. In no length of time, the whole
of the temple yard is converted into one horrible expanse of blood, rendering
it too slippery to be safely walked over. The piteous cries and death throes of
the poor devoted creatures greatly intensify the horror of the scene. The
stench emanating from the blood mixing with the nauseating smell of arrack
renders the occasion all the more revolting.
As the Bharani
festival day draws to a close, the devotees start their trek back home. The
temple doors are shut and for the next seven days, the agitated goddess rests.
The temple is cleaned and as the
belief goes, according to Panikkar - For the next seven days, the whole
place is given over to the worst depredations of the countless demons over whom
this blood-thirsty goddess holds sway. No human beings can safely remain there,
lest they might become prey to these ravenous demons. In short, the
Bharani day inaugurates a reign of terror in the locality, lasting for these
seven days. Afterwards, all the dirt is removed. The temple is cleansed and
sanctified, and again left open to public worship.
After the
festival, the devotees go home, distribute the prasadam and go about their
normal activities, calmer now that much of the pent-up frustrations have been
vented. As one can imagine, there are other connections also mentioned,
such as the similarity of the Pattini cult to the goddess Isis of Egypt. They
find parallels between the story of Isis and Osiris to the Kannagi story, the
14-day lunar cycle between the time Kannagi saw the celestial Kovalan compared
to the 14 pieces of Osiris and the fact that he was the lunar god.
But as Induchudan explains, the temple is not just a Kannaki
temple. The main kavu is for the Bhagavati with normal rituals, while the
Kannagi remains are in the secret chamber which connects to the main temple
through a secret tunnel. During the Bharani Festival, a red cloth, one of the
goddess's symbols worn by devotees and given in offering to the goddess, separates
the chamber between the tomb and the Kali sanctum. One should not cross this
limit, and if they do it, they go blind. When the Pattini cult was extant
according to Induchudan, new members were initiated and reborn after passing
through this tunnel, and Atikals performed the services. The Kavu thindal is
performed for the Kannagi and the oracle or the velichapadu always carries the
sword and wears an anklet, the chilambu.
An interesting aside to all this is that the Zamorin once
went to watch the Bharani at Kodungallur, and it was during
this event that the Dutch attack took place and the famed Cheraman sword
was partially destroyed.
The Secret Chamber – V T Induchudan
Re-reading Caste and Gender: A Study of the rituals of Kodungallaur Sri Kurumba Bhagavathy Temple of Kerala- S Sudheesh & Athira Prakash (IJTSRD 2018)
Scandalizing the Goddess at Kodungallur - M. J. Gentes
Malabar & its folk – TK Gopala Panikkar
Sanitizing the profane – Shweta Radhakrishnan
Religion, Ritual and Liminality: A Study of the Kavu Theendal Festival at Kodungallur – Dr Seetha Vijayakumar
