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Malabar Village Life

The village life of Malabar is delightfully charming and simple. It is rapidly passing of under the influences of western civilization; and as such it is only right and proper to attempt to preserve a lasting account of it at this important epoch of transition. I begin with our village education. There are two kinds of village teacher viz, those that are maintained by leading families on small monthly allowances and meals; and those who maintain village schools on their own account and live upon the income derived there from. These teachers are usually called Ezhuthachans and the school themselves, Ezhuthupallis. The education of our youths commences at early period of their lives. On auspicious day and at some auspicious moment the commencement is maid. Oftentimes this is done on the Vidhyarambamday in the month of Kanni of Tulam. A fairly well- educated man is first selected to give the boy his first lesion. A quantity of raw rice is kept in a bell-mental vessel, and a lamp is kept burning in front of it. Two measures consisting of rice and paddy respectively are also placed each on either side of this vessel. The boy scarcely four or five years old is seated in front of the vessel, and the Guru spoken of before takes a gold Fanom and writes on the boy’s tongue the divine invocation viz, Hari-Sri-Ga-Na-Pa-Ta-Ye-Nama. He then catches hold of the boy’s index finger and makes him to write the same thing on the rice also and now the ignition initiation is complete. Then a gift of a small sum of money together with betel lives and arecanuts is maid to the Guru; and then all together partake of the eatables prepared for the occasion; and the man goes his way. Thenceforth the boy is put in change of a village teacher who first teaches him to write currectly on sand spread on the floor on the fifty-one letters of our alphabet, and pronounce them correctly. This might occupy some months. This is preparatory to his being promoted to the stage of writing on cadjans; which process is called Olayil Kuttal. After passing through the said preparatory stage the boy begins to write on cadjans instead of on sand as hitherto. After the becomes versed in writing on cadjans, small slokas and other poetical pieces are given to him which he easily commits to memory without understanding their meaning or their significance. When the advanced stages are passed the education is practically complete. But a little before that he is maid to acquaint himself with reading our Puransa chiefly the Ramayana.

Elements of arithmetic are also thought by the teacher. Then if the guardians are so minded they place their boys for tuitions under the care of some advanced teachers and give them higher instruction in Sanskrit and Mathematics ; which later may come even up to the calculations of the position of he planets and the casting of horoscopes. Little girls are also taught elementary music preliminary to their receiving advanced training in it.

The village school are of the rudest models, being small sheds erected with roofing of coconut leaves and pillars and beams of bamboo or coconut materials, and a slightly raised floor. Every morning the boys gather there about 7’o’clock when the teacher also attends. He site sown amidst the boys listing to their deafening recitations of things which he has give them to get by heart; and entrusted to him, the teacher ask him to
repeat to heart. If the teacher is satisfied he gives the boy another piece. So runs the process. He thus goes on with the work till about ten in the morning; and then the class is dissolved and the teacher and his boys all depart home to take their meals. About one or two ‘o’ clock in the evening this gather again in the school and the same process of instruction of continued. But the reading of the Ramayana or other Puranas is an essential feature of this evening instruction. Till 5 or 5.30 in the evening they go on and then the school closes for the day. But before so closing the boys are made to repeat with one voice some Mathematical formula.

No seats are supplied in the school. But students have to carry their own small mats with them for seats if they like. The Astami day which comes round twice every month is invariable and general holiday. On this particular day imparting of instruction is strictly prohibited. The again from the Devadasi day up to the Pradibadam day the boys are given a short vacation. Since that day practically come round twice a month, there are two short vacations of five days each for every village school; so that altogether including the Ashtami holidays twelve days are holidays every month for all village school.Of course the onam,Vishu and other important occasions are necessarily holidays.

Twice a month on the Dwadasi day ie; the beginning of the holidays,the village teacher is remunerated with fees by the boys;which oftentimes vary from one pie to half an anna or so.Many boys right skillfully evade even this paltry payment by absenting themselves on these days.During the Onam and Vishu days the teacher takes care to go round to the houses of the rich amongst his pupils and receives presents of a rupee or below together with two pieces of cloth from the guridians or parents of his pupils.These constitute the main perquisites of his office;and if he be one specially retained by some family he, of course,gets his pay and meals thereform.During the short vacations allowed to the boys they are usually asked to bring on the re-opening day,as home exercises,a number of cadjans carefully written by them.

The ferule or the common birch is freely made use of by the teacher.He is the centre of the admiration and respect and awe of his pupils.His word is law to them;and he is invested with a singular importance in their eyes.His income is extremely meager;and yet contentment is his lot;and we may well enough say with Oilver Goldsmith.

“A man he is to all the country dear,
And passing rich with few rupees a year”.

Our books are called Grandhams and are exclusively made of palm leaves written on with an iron stile called an Ezhuttani or Narayam.But the introduction of printed books has considerably helped to supplement them.Memory plays the chief role in our village education which is mainly consists in the initiation into the three R’s.Now village schools after western models are springing up amidst us with marvellous rapidity; and those of the simple indigenous type are gradually disappearing.So much for our village education.

Secondly there is the village astrologer called the Kanisan whose services are of hourly utility in all our social concerns. He has to find out lucky and unlucky days and moments for the commencement of all important business, to not the exact moment of a child’s birth for the purpose of casting its horoscope afterwards. He has to bring to leading families on the Onam and Vishu occasions a cadjan chit predicting the consequences arising to the country at large on account of those festivals falling on the particular days of the year; to find out the proper physicians for the treatment of diseases; and to find out days and moments for starting on journeys and for many other things such as marriage, tonsure, sowing seeds at seed time ect. His profession is now largely encroached upon astrologers from other castes as well. But he is the recognized claimant for the purpose enumerated.

The next claimant is the village carpenter, who has to do every thing connected with our architecture; such as fixing poles or wickets at the exact spot where building are to be erected to clear newly erected buildings of all devils and demons that may be hunting them. This he does by means of poojas performed after the completion of the buildings. But people have now began to break through the village traditions and to entrust architectural work to competent hands when the village carpenter is found incompetent for the same.

The village goldsmith has to make ornaments of gold and silver to be puton by our infants for their rice-giving ceremonies and thereafter. The village magician or conjurer goes by different names in different places, such as Panans Malayans & c. His work consist in casting out petty devils from the bodies of persons possessed and to write charms for them to wear; to remove the pernicious effects of evil eyes and so on.
The village washerman has to do all the washing work in his village. He is required to furnish new-washed clothes for use on festive occasions in temples.

The village barber has likewise his place in our village economy. He has to shave children for he first time in there lives; and to shave males on the day they begin to take part in the sacrificial offering to the departed soul in our families; and also on the last day of our Deeksha ceremonies on the forth-first day or at the end of the first year. All these are attended with solemn ceremonials. Barbers from stranger villages are not on any account to poach upon the work. The barber women are in some part our village midwives and accouchers whose services are in requisition during child birth. There are some experts amongst them who can skillfully manage midwifery. In other place the Velans or Malayans etc. , are the professional class for such work.

Then there are the Village Mannans or Vannans who come in for their share of our village duties. Their services are in requisition amongst as during our Thirandukallianam ceremonies when they have to bring for the girls use their mattu or sacred dress. Then on occasions of death- pollution, they have a similar duty to perforin. Amongst us on the fourth or rarely on the third after menses, our women have to use during their batch clothes supplied by these Mannan females. Failure to purity their persons with then on the part of our women will be sufficient for out casting them. The same duty these Mannan females have to perform during the confinement period of our females. All the dirty clothes and bed sheet used during such periods, these Mannan females have to wash and bring punctually and regulary.

These all are called Desa avakasikal or Jemmis or Cheru Jenmakkar ie., birth right-holders. Mr. Logan speaks of these in his Manual of Malabar as follows- “This organization is to a certain extent preserved and most probably the Kanisan’s profession will survive all other relics of the Hindu constitution as his service are still considered of essential importance in all matters of every day life. Village pastimes Of our dramatic performances, the kathakali and Krisnattam are the two foremost ones. Patthavom Parayal is an allied institution. Principally on important festival occasions, inside the temple walls and outside the buildings and in front of the god some Brahmin well versed in Puranic lore dresses himself up to the cloths and a turban, smears his body with ashes and sandal and begins the piece along there repeating in a solemn and dignified fashion some interesting masterpieces from the Sanskrit literature and explain their meaning to the assembled spectators.

The Koottu or more properly Chakyar koottu is a similar institution from immemorial times. The Chakkiars are a peculiar sect of people. They are said to be the off spring of Brahmin parents begotten as the result of intercourse during means. Hence they are a socially fallen caste. On important utsavam and atjer occasion in koottu is performed inside the buildings attaché to temple and specially set apart from the purpose. The actor dresses up in a quaint style with brummagem bracelets on the forearms and the feet. Around his waist he ties a peculiar cloth with a ridiculous profusion of folds all round and reaching barely up to the knee. He were a head dress also; and with ashes and sandal smeared all over the body comes in to perform his koottu. Chakkiar women are known as Nangiars, one of whom is always present by the side of the Chakkiar when engaged in his performance. A tom- tom is beaten by one called Nambiar in the interval between the recitation of the slokas and the explanation of their meanings. The Koottu consist in the recitation by the Chakkiar of certain Puranic slokas and his comments on them; which he does in very funny and pointed ways.

The Chakkiars are formidable critics of men and things. They always possess the requisite cleverness to apply the context of a recited sloka in an extremely amusing fashion to particular person amongst the assembled spectators and making the whole company of them enjoy a hearty laugh over it. The received etiquette is that no one is to take offence at jocks cracked by Chakkiars nor even laugh loudly at them; any infraction of the etiquette will sufficiently justify their suddenly stopping the performance. They are of course remunerated by the temple authorities.

Mohiniyattam is a institution much akin to the Sasyattam of the east coast. A leader obtained the services of two or three young girls of low birth and trains then in the obscene technicalities of the profession. This leader is called the Nettuvan. He takes these girls from house to house and gets a paltry allowance for each days performance and thus they make a living. It is performed usually at nights. When the girls are robed in the finest attire and the dance begins led, of course, by the Nettuvan. All sorts of obscene practices are resorted to during the posses. This institution is an extremely abominable one. This females who are thus rented out are looked upon in civilized circles with the utmost contempt; and it may be said that they exist as a separate isolated class with little or no community of social interest with other classes. It is some satisfaction to find that the institution is gradually daying a silent and natural death.

The Tullals are another class of pastime amongst us. They may be divided into three distinct varieties such us Ottan, Seetankan and Parayan; of which the two latter are of the most primitive type. But Ottan is little more advanced one which the actor assumes the form of one of our dramatic actor. Usually only one of these will be acting at a time. The Thullals are a singular variety of poetic composition with a peculiar kind of metre , rhyme and rhythm. The actor repeats these stanza and illustrate the same with significant and suitable gestures. Drums are beaten during the process.

Cheruppinutoli is a pastime gradually dying out too. It is almost indigenous to the south. Two trained bullocks, belonging to different persons are yoked to the same plough, and both are driven together by some one from behind with the utmost possible speed with in the limits of small area of rice-field after harvest. After the bullocks have gone two rounds or three the issue is declared in favour of the owner of that bullock which continues to run however slightly in advanced of the other without slackening speed or showing signs of fatigue. Then these bullocks are changed and another two are similarly yoked and the process is continued for sometime.

Rope dancing or acrobatic performances constitute another of these enjoymens. Football matches Attakkalam and Kayyankali and dancing by female called Kayyikottikali Cock-fighting is an interesting pastime. Cocks are specially reared and trained to take part in fights. The Month of Karkatakam This is an important month of Malabar though the nature of agriculture here and constant failure of our mansoons our other causes of a like nature render the period one of the poverty, distress and disease. It is one of cleanliness and piety all round. On the first day of the month what is called Veliyum Panalun Kuttal is observed. Clods of earth with growing grass and plants on are deposited one on each corner of the thatching of the house. Member of family bath early in the mornings, were the cast marks, dress neatly and begin to read the Puranas, mainly the Ramayana. This of course continued up to the close of the month. The whole work is read at least once in the month; but there some who finished it many times during the period. But reading the secret puranas however little, is of essential religious importance at this season of the year.

After the bath is over what is called Sreebhagavathikku Vekkal comes on every day on the morning. This consist in placing in a secluded corner of the house, a lighted lamp is in front of a small wooden plank on which are also arranged some flowers, a casket of ashes a granda or old book made of palmyra leaves, and a new washed cloth and two measure of rice. In the night time on some day in the month after the inmates have all gone to sleep, some Puranas dress themselves in a peculiar style and come to the gates of all houses singing certain ballads; which wakes up the inmates from slumber. Its significance appear to be it out cast out devils from these houses. This institution is called Thukil Ynarttal.

Then again during the month we have ceremony called Nara and Puttari. This period is one of our harvest seasons. Before the harvest is over and when the ears of corn are still full ripe, the Nara ceremony is performed. Stalks of certain plants and creepers together with some ears of paddy are all kept inside a basket at the gate house. Now certain figures circular, horizontal and prependicular are drawn in the outer and inner courtyard of the house and on the floor of the house in the prominent places. Then some one who has batched early takes the basket in hand and repeatedly muttering in an audibletone Nara Nara, Illam Nara Pattayom , Nara, Vetti Nara, Kotta Nara, and c. keeps the same in the inner yard where some raw rice already prepared from that particular years, paddy is cooked and sweetened with sugar; and all the inmates then partake of the preparation. The consumption of new rice is strictly prohibited before going through his ceremony. For both Nara and Puttari auspicious moments have to the selected. Both this may be performed on one and the same day or they may be on different days according to the turning up of the auspicious nature or otherwise of the first guest or animal or thing that finds its way to the house immediately after the Nara ceremony ; and the prosperous career of the family for the whole of he ensuring year depends upon the nature of the forst-corner.

Then again on the last day of the month the ceremony called Jeshtayekalayal has to be performed. About six in the evening a broken earthen pot or a torn sieve is taken and inside it are gathered some old pieces of broomsticks, bits of human hare and nails and some arrowroot plants. Some one then takes this along with a lighted torch and carries it to every nook and corner of the house.This is then handed over outside to some menial servant to be carried away to some distant three- cornered road or path way to the thrown off there . On his way thither the servant is subjected to all kind of vileabuse. This drives of the Jeshta or unclean diety from the house making it wholly pure and clean.

Nothing more appears necessary to be said on the subject. Of course there are more things of lesser importance and interest that I may, with propriety, dwell upon in this connection. But in an attempt of this nature it is hardly necessary or possible to enter into such minute details.