NAMPOOHIRIS 16
41 YAJURVEDAM AND SAAMAVEDAMCENTRES.
The Namboothiris are probably unique to have a sub-caste of Brahmananswho are
excluded from Vedams. They are called "Othillatha Namboothiris"(Namboothiris
without Othu). "Othu" is the colloquial word for Vedam.
These include Chaathira Namboothiris (who were engaged only in
militaryexercises, in the form of games like Panemkali), Adukkala Namboothiris
(whospecialised in large-scale cooking), and, interestingly, some
keezh-santhiNamboothiris (temple priests).
The Astavaidyans, eight familiesof hereditary physicians, except Vaidyamadham,
are Othillatha Namboothiris. AllOthillatha Namboothiris study Samhitha (Vedic
text) but not the remainingportions like Brahmanam, Aaranayakam and Upanishad.
Also, they do not performany Vedic Sroutha ritual, nor teach or practice Vedam
recitation.
Among the original 32 Namboothiri Graamams (villages), Sukapuram(Chovaram),
Perumanam and Irinjalakuda were the Vedic strongholds.Perinchelloor
(Thaliparamba) Graamam has had a strong Vedic base in 9th and10th century.
In Sukapuram, there wereoriginally only Rigvedis ofKaushitakan recension and
Samavedis. Aaswalaayana-Rigvedam was added later whenseveral Namboothiri
families of Panniyoor Graamam joined Sukapuram.
In Irinjalakuda, thereis no Rigvedam. The Yajurvedic Namboothiris there are
mostly of Baudhayanan recension and rarely Badhoolakan. InPerumanam, the
Rigvedam is Aaswalaayanan and Yajurvedam, Baudhaayanan.
Vedic Teaching andRecitation: Namboothiris, who areentitled to recite Vedams,
have evolved a rich and diversified culture of Vedamrecitation. Theirrecitation
is quite different from traditional vedam recitations in other partsof India.
This is due to a variety of features, such as the pronunciation ofSanskrit in
Kerala. An Important feature is nasalization, a feature ofMalayalam in general
which seems to be relatively ancient.
Another reason may be that a much larger percentage of Malayalam words isof
Sanskrit origin than is the case with Tamil.
It may also be connected with the isolated development of the
Namboothiritradition, which was not exposed to contact with other traditions.
And lastly,though there have been many Namboothirischolars of Sanskrit, there
has not been a tendency to bring existing practicein line with the norms
established in the past. Rather, the living traditionhas been left to prevail
and develop freely.
The first four to six years of traditional education among theNamboothiris,
(between Upanayanam and Samaavarthanam) is spent on thememorisation of the
Vedam. Each boy memorises, of his own Vedam, most or all ofthe "Samhitas"
(Vedic texts). This may be followed by more advancedrecitations...
In both Rigvedam and Yajurvedam recitation, the Vedic accents Udaatha,Anudaatha
and Svarita, are taught in a special manner: the teacher keeps thepupil's head
straight for the Udaatha, bends it down for the Anudaatha andbends it to the
right for Svaritha. When the accents have been properly learnedand memorised,
the head should no longer be moved. There are also special handgestures
("Mudra") that accompany special features of Vedamrecitation. The Namboothiri
Saamavedis use different movements.
While all Vedic recitations are taught at home, there are two specialschools
for the teaching of Rigvedam, one at Thrissur and the other at Thirunaavaaya,
inMalappuram district. The Thirunaavaaya School was formed by a Namboothiri
ofPuthillath Mana supported by several other Namboothiris and financed
bySaamoothiri Raja (King Zamorin) of Malabar. The Thrissur school was
supportedby the Raja of Cochin. There are differences in the style of
recitation of thetwo Rigvedi schools. The Thrissur school (Brahmaswam Madhom)
has a few studentseven now, while the Thirunaavaaya school is not
functioning.The Thrissur schoolrecently started admitting children of families,
which originally followedThirunaavaaya style.
There was an idea to form a school to teach Yajurvedam, in recent years,but it
has not been successful yet. In the Yajurvedam, there are also twotraditions
that differ slightly in style of recitation, one following thePeruvanam Graamam
and the other Irinjalakuda. The Yajurvedam and Saamavedam arebeing taught in
homes.
The Saamavedam tradition is the feeblest (with only 21 families) and
willperhaps be the first to disappear. Out of these 21, 20 have Othu (Vedam)
whileKaambram Mana, due to its affiliation to Panniyur Graamam, is excluded
fromOthu. All the five Paanjal-basedfamilies along with Pakaraavoor
andMangalatheri have the right to perform Yaagam.
Extensive studies were conducted on the Namboothiri style of recitationof
Vedams by Frits Staal, (1961), Gray (1959) and Howard (1977).
Conclusion: A time spanof about two millennia separatesthe Vedic Indians from
the Namboothiris, the Malayalam-speaking Brahmanans."The difference in life
style, practices and beliefs between Vedic nomadsand Namboothiri Brahmanans is
almost total", says Frits Staal in his book"Agni".
In terms of caste and religious observances, the Namboothiri has
remainedorthodox until the beginning of the 20th century.
Devoted to their rituals, Tanthric as well as Vedic, from which outsidersare
excluded, they were relatively unaffected by modern "English"education. "Most
Namboothiris have been settled as peaceful villagers,country aristocrats, small
land owners, connoisseurs of literature and thetraditional arts (like
Kathakali), scholars and gentlemen", observesStaal. According to Ananthakrishna
Iyer in his paper on "The Cochin Tribesand Castes II " (Madras-London, 1912),
"...the most conspicuouscharacteristics of Namboothiris are simplicity and
exclusiveness, obviously theformer predicate does not extend to their rituals".
Article edited by P. VinodBhattathiripad Ref: "Agni" byFrits Staal, Asian
Humanities Press, Berkeley, 1983.
42 SUDDASUDDAM-(Purity andImpurity)
Article prepared by Prof. V.M.N.Nambudiripad and K.D.Nambudripad.
Namboothiris were traditionally very fastidious about cleanliness -Sudham and
Asudham, almost to a level of obsession, so much so the concept ofcleanliness
got absorbed and strictly codified into their daily routine andintegrated into
the overall caste system. Although, as time progressed, thisproduced adverse
feeling among the lower castes, the Namboothiris themselvesalso suffered and
often viewed it with awe since they had to be vigilant allthe time.
In the modernage, of course, the prescribed codes are quite difficult to be
followed, as isthe case with other traditional observances and rituals.
The discussions given here are only to document the traditionalprescriptions on
the subject of Sudham/Asudham.
Sudham means cleanlinessand Asudham, pollution or defilement.Ayitham is the
colloquial form of the Sanskrit word Asudham. If one getsAyitham or polluted,
bathing is necessary to return to Sudham.
Depending on the environment or reason for Asudham, the degree ofpollution
varies. Accordingly, the remedial exercise also vary. Some of theseveral
Asudhams are:
1.Sraadha Sudham: Thehighest rank of Sudham is the onethat has to be observed
while performing rituals connected with deathanniversaries, which is known as
Sraadha Sudham or colloquially Chaatha Sudham.For this function, clothes, which
are washed and dried the previous day, arenot permitted to be worn.
Forperforming these rituals, one should bathe twice, the first onefollows
Sandhyaavandanam and then the second. Participants dip clothes in waterduring
the first bath and spread them on the floor for drying before proceedingto
Sandhyaavandanam.
Only these clothes (evenif only partly dried) are allowed during the ritual.
My note- For Brahmins also ladiesshould wear such half dried clotheswhile
cooking for srardha. Men should wear the previous day washed and driedclothes.
Two times bath is not told. (as per srardha niyama)
2.Oupaasana Sudham: Asgiven in "Shodasakriyakal", Oupaasanam is anotherritual
done by married Namboothiris, daily. Oupaasanam refers to the fire inthe
presence of which Namboothiri marriages are held, and kept burning by
himthroughout his lifetime. During this, only pure (Sudhamaaya) clothes should
beworn. Unlike Sraadha Sudham, clothes washed and dried the previous day may
beused for this ritual; but dipping in water and drying should be done
withouttouching anybody.
Since a similar one hasto be observed by priests in temples, it is also known
as Saanthi Sudham.
3.Embraan Sudham: TuluBrahmanans are known asEmbraanthiris (or Embraans in
short) in Kerala. If a Namboothiri happens totouch or comes in physical contact
with an Embraanthiri, he gets the EmbraanSudham, which is supposed to be one
step lower in rank among various types ofpurity of Namboothiris.
Widows and boys (before Upanayanam) should avoid this Asudham. It istaboo for
Brahmachaaris (boys between Upanayanam and Samaavarthanam). But it isnot
compulsory that an adult male Namboothiri should bathe before
performing"sandhyaavandanam" if he is polluted due to "Embraansudham".
4.Eda Sudham: This isthe Asudham resulting from contactwith Tamil Brahmanans
(Iyer, Pattar, Iyengar). Namboothiri women (and not men)are not permitted to
eat if they become Eda Sudham. For doing Sandhyaavandanam,Namboothiris should
take bath if they are polluted with Eda Sudham.
5.Kuliyaasudham: Thefirst thing a Namboothiri does in theearly morning is to
take bath. For some reason, say sickness, if a Namboothiriis unable to take
bath, he is in Ayitham mode, which is better known as Kuliyaasudham. This
istransmitted to others by contact. The mattress, mat, pillow, bedspread,
etc.have also this impurity.
Therefore, in Namboothiri Illams, such items are usually kept in aseparate room
or at least in a corner of a room. Brahmachaaris and widowsshould never take
food with this Asudham. Male members may take food, butdefinitely should bathe
before performing Sandhyaavandanam.
6.Impurities related tobirth/death: A Namboothiriattributes highest degree of
impurity to menstruation, child delivery andcorpse. If someone becomes defiled
by any one of these, he or she should changethe dress (after bath) with one
washed or purified by a special caste of Hindusknown as Mannaan (females
Mannaathi). This cloth is known as"Maattu". Then the Namboothiri (men or women)
gives his or herclothes to the "Mannaan/Mannaathi" who washes it. Here washing
meansjust dipping in a container of water in which some ash is sprinkled.
Afterchanging his/her own clothes, the person has to be purified by
Punyaaham(sprinkling sacred water after chanting "Manthrams"). For more
onPunyaaham, Click here.
7.Menstruation: If a girlor woman menstruates, she shouldremain in complete
isolation for three days and on the fourth day, a specialfunction or
purification has to be performed. This is called Thulli NeeruVeezhthal (pouring
a drop of water in the traditional manner). After completingbath, the servant
symbolically cleans her up with a drop of water, and thenwith a paste prepared
by grinding fresh turmeric and castor seeds. Earliermentioned Maattu is
applicable here too.
8.Desom Maaral:Namboothiris will be treated impure ifthey go from one Desom
(sub-division of a village) to another. This is calledDesom Maaral.
Brahmachaaris should take bath if they go from one Desom toanother; they should
hold a stick (about 35 cm long) of the plant Plaasu (flameof the forest; Bot.
Name Butea frondosa) as also a towel. For adultNamboothiris, even though there
is no Ayitham,there is a slight degree ofimpurity. This is known an Vazhi
Sudham (road impurity). As in many othercases, Brahmachaaris and widows should
not eat with this type of Sudham. In anycase, taking bath after such a trip is
a must, before Sandhyaavandanam.
9.Soucham: Namboothirisand other high caste Hindus used to cleanthe excretory
pores with water after urination. This is known as Soucham. Evenmothers suckle
a urinated baby only after cleansing (insisted only from 11thday of delivery
onwards).
10.Vattu, Echil andNirmaalyam:
10.1 Vattu: The terms Vattu and Echil have been assignedmeanings different
from the usual ones, by Namboothiris. The literal meaning of Vattu isgrains of
boiled rice. According to Namboothiri customs, boiled rice has a
slightimpurity. Therefore, one has to wash the hands if he/she touches boiled
rice;else the pollution transmits to other items on contact.
10.2 Echil: In normal circumstances, Echil refers to the left-over of eaten
food items. But Namboothiris use this term alsofor plates and plantain leaves
in which food is normally served. The inside of the mouth also has theimpurity
called Echil, for example, teeth, tongue inside of lips, etc.Therefore, if you
touch your tongue with your finger, the finger also becomesEchil. Washing hands
with water is a must in order to make it pure.
Hence, generally,Namboothiris do not hold or cut threads or sticks with lips or
teeth.
The Echil has greater degree of impurity than Vattu. Things that becomeEchil
has to be dipped in fresh water pond. It is not enough to pour water overit to
wash. Another person will not eat the left-over food items of one
person.Moreover, while drinking water, coffee or tea from a glass or other
containers,Namboothiris do not sip.They pour it straight into the mouth without
touching the lips. This is thedegree of cleanliness and hygiene practised by
Namboothiris.
The above two Asudhams are practised not only by Namboothiris, but alsopeople
of other communities in Kerala, such as the royal families, templeemployees,
Nairs, etc., who are closely associated with Namboothiris. Other South
IndianBrahmanans also follow this custom.
10.3 Nirmaalyam: Aslight impurity is attributed to the Nirmaalyam, which is
the set of flowers,sandalwood paste, water used for anointing (Theertham),
etc., offered to godsin temples or in a Namboothiri houses. Like Vattu and
Echil, all items thathave come in contact with Nirmaalyam should also be washed
with water to removeimpurity. But thisimpurity is of a minor nature and
therefore, need be observed strictly only forPooja materials. Rice, flowers,
oil, etc. if become impure by contactwith Nirmaalyam should not be used for
Pooja purposes.
New unbleached clothes have no impurity. Such clothes worn while goingoutside
the house, may be used while visiting temples also. But if it is soakedor
washed, the case is different. Clothes washed by washerman or
washerwoman(Veluthedan or Veluthedathol) has no impurity. Clothes washed
byVeluthedath Nairs, if touched by other Nairs, are not impure. But if touched
bya person below the rank in the hierarchies of caste system, it becomes
impure.
A Namboothiri should not talk to a Nair or anybody below that rank,before or
during Sraadham, Oupaasanam or Pooja. If he does, he should performKaalkazhukal
and Aachamanam, as stipulated in Vedic rules, before continuingsuch rituals.
Thus goes the story of Sudham and Asudham. Taking all these intoconsideration,
one has to accept that by practising Sudham and Asudham, it wasthe Namboothiris
of Kerala who suffered more than any other castes.
Ref: "EnteSmaranakal"-Vol-1 by Kanippayyur Sankaran Nambudiripad, Panchangam
Publishers, Kunnamkulam.
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