Theyyam

Kerala, the land of charity, is rich in folk-culture, visual arts and festivals. Different religions, groups and communities in their historical evolution have subscribed to the growth of a dreamlike panorama of dance and visual art forms in this region.

Some of them are religious, highly ritualistic, but incorporate dance and music and colours and light. Even the geographical isolation of Kerala had not denied her the chance of inheritance of a common cultural heritage of India. As such the major developments in the cultural history of India had significant impact on the formation of organization of Kerala society. Although it is a compact cultural linguistic area, it was exposed to external influence both from land and the sea. The Aryan culture and the Sanskrit language nourished the indigenous tribal culture and language, defined and categorized by the scholars as Dravidian. The Buddhists, the Jains and the Brahmins had liberally contributed to the religious and social life of the country. Therefore the so-called Hinduism, the religion of the land, was characterized by much synthesis. This particular aspect could be traced in the traditional culture of Kerala.

The Theyyam or Theyyattam is a popular ritual dance of North Kerala, particularly now found in the traditional Kolathunadu, of the present Kannur and Kasargode districts. As a living cult with centuries old traditions, ritual and custom, it embraces almost all castes and classes of Hindu religion in this region. The term Theyyam is a corrupt form of daivam or God. It is a rare combination of dance and music and reflects important features of a tribal culture.
The indigenous Theyyam cult under the influence of the great classical Indian tradition incorporated new ideas and legends. However its form and content did not change very much. The earliest Brahminic settlements like Payyanur and Perimchellur (Thaliparamba) in Kolathunadu where the Brahminic religion was propagated through the institutions of temples largely influenced the popular folk religion based on Theyyam and other tribal cults. According to the legendary Keralolpathi, Parasurama sanctioned the festivals like Kaliyattam, Puravela and Deivattam or Theyyattam to the people of Kerala. He assigned the responsibility of Theyyam dance to the indigenous communities like Panan, Velan and Vannan. These traditions explain how the indigenous cults like Theyyam were incorporated and metamorphosed under the religious supremacy of the Brahmanism. In the long historical process a social system evolved in Kerala in which the little culture like Theyyam belonged to the depressed castes and classes where as the temple oriented culture belonged to the dominant castes and classes. There were no violent confrontations between these two cultures as there was no total destruction of the indigenous culture. “There can be no doubt”, say Bridget and Raymond Alchin, ‘that a very large part of this modern folk religion is extremely ancient and contains traits which originated ruing the earliest periods of Neolithic , Chalcolithic settlement and expression (The Birth of Indian Civilization 1968 p.3039)
Velan, on of the communities of Theyyam dancers, is referred to in the Tamil Sangam literature. According to Sangam tradition he was employed by the mothers of the love-lorn girls to exercise the malignant spirits from their daughters. He propitiated God Murukan to drive away the evils spirits by sacrificing a goat before a Kalam or Square made for this occasion. At the end of the ceremony he conducted a
dance known as Velan Veriyatal with a spear in his hand and prophesied the future happiness of the girl. The works like Tirumurukattuppatai, give descriptions of Velan’s Kalam, offering of chekki and oleander flowers with sacrificial blood, locations of performance like Manram, Podiyil, estuary (thuruthu), groves, forest, riverbanks and Kadamba tree. The main characteristics of such performances are traced in the contemporary Theyyam cult. Now all such rituals as described in some of the Sangam works and their commentaries are being observed by Velan and other dancing communities in the cult of Theyyam. Now the Velan community is divided into two groups known as Anjutton and Munnutton in Kolathunadu. According to tradition this division is based on the character of their offerings to the deity. The Munnutton section committed only three offenses (such offerings are offences to Brahmins) namely killing of cock, goat and buffalo, and the Anjutton (five offences) namely killing of cock, goat, buffalo, elephant and human being. Some of the Theyyam ritual songs describe that earlier the priest or the dancer had even sacrifices human beings in favour of the deity.
Ezhimala described in the Sangam literature and ruled by Udayan Venman Nannan is situated in Kolathunadu, near Payyanur. Therefore the Tamil Sangam culture with variations still continues in this region. The dance of Velan had taken new forms and developed into the present day cult of Theyyam over a period of 1500 years. This uninterrupted continuity of the Sangam tradition makes Theyyam a prominent religious system of north Kerala. As a religious and social institution it has significant place in the cultural history of region.


Under the impact of Aryan religions, the cult of Theyyam had changed substantially incorporating new trends and sub cults along with its tribal character.
In a different way, it can be stated that all prominent characteristics of a primitive tribal religious worship had widened the stream of Theyyam cult and made it a deep rooted folk religion of the millions. For instance, the cult of Mother Goddesses had an important place in Theyyam. Besides this, the practice like spirit-worship, hero-worship, masathi-worship, tree-worship, ancestor-worship, animal worship, serpent-worship, worship of the goddesses of disease and gramaadevata-worship are included in the main stream of Theyyam cult. Under the influence of Aryan myths and legends, a large number of Brahminical gods and goddesses had infiltrated as separate cults into Theyyam. Along with these gods and goddesses there exist innumerable folk gods and goddesses. Most of these goddesses are known as Bhagavathis as a matter of sanskritisation.
Different branches of Brahminical religion such as Saktism, Vaishnavism and Saivism now dominate the cult of Theyyam. However the forms of propitiation and other rituals are continuation of a historical past. In several cult-centers, blood offering is forbidden under the influence of Buddhism, Jainism and Brahmanism. In such centres separate places outside the outer wall of the shrine are selected for blood offering and preparation of the traditional kalam known as vatakkanvathil. The Theyyam deities propitiated through cock-sacrifice will not enter inside such shrines walls. This is a good example of a long-standing cultural synthesis of ‘little’ and ‘great’ cultures.
On account of the later origin of Vaishnavism in Kerala, it has no wide-spread influence on Theyyam cult. Only a few deities are available under this category. This may probably be due to the lesser influence of Vishnu on the village folk who had an uninterrupted tradition of the worship of Mother goddess for fertility and the god Siva and his son Murukan for protection and security even during the Sangam age. Two major Theyyam deities of Vaishnavism are Vishnumoorthi and Daivathar. Vaishnavism was very popular in Tuluva country during the 13th century under Vishnuvardhana of Hoysalas. He was a great champion of Vaishnavism. Most probably he was deified as Vishnumoorthi and propitiated in the Bhoota cult of Tuluva and then propitiated as a prominent folk deity in the Theyyam also. The legend of Vishnumoorthi is identified the God’s migration from Mangalore to Kolathunadu.
All other categories of Theyyam deities can be incorporated in Saivism and Saktism. Even ancestors, heroes, animals etc are deified and included in those categories. In brief Theyyam provides a good example for the religious evolution and its different stages in Hinduism.
The dance or invocation is generally performed in front of the village shrines. It is also performed in the houses as ancestor worship with elaborate rite and rituals
There is no stage or curtain and other arrangements for the performance. The devotees would be standing or some of them would be sitting on a sacred tree in front of the shrine. In brief it is an open theatre. A performance of a particular deity according to its significance and hierarchy in the shrine continues for 12 to 24 hours with intervals. The chief dancer who propitiates the central deity of the shrine has to reside in the rituals. This may be an impact of Jainism and Buddhism. Further after sun set this particular dancer would not eat anything as legacy of Jainism. His make-up is done by specialists and other dancers. First part of the performance is usually known as vellattam or thottam. It is performed without proper make-up or decorative costume. Only a small red headdress is worn on this occasion.
The dancer along with drummers recites the particular ritual song, which describes the myths and legends of the particular ritual song, which describes the myths, and legends of the particular deity of the shrine or the folk deity to be propitiated. This is accompanied by the playing of folk musical instruments. After finishing this primary ritualistic part of the invocation the dancer returns to the green room. Again after a short interval he appears with proper make-up and costumes. There are different patterns of face-painting. Some of these patterns are called vairadelam, kattaram, kozhipuspam, kotumpurikam, and prakkezhuthu. Mostly primary and secondary colours are applied with contrast for face painting. It had effected certain stylization also. Then the dancer comes in front of the shrine and gradually “metamorphosises” as the particular deity of the shrine. He, after observation of certain rituals places the head-dress on his head and dances. In the background folk musical instruments like chenda, tuti, kuzhal and veekni are played with rhythm. All dancers take a shield and kadthala (sword) in their hands as continuation of the cult of weapon. Then the dancer circumambulates the shrine, runs in the courtyard dances. The Theyyam dance has different steps known as kalaasams. Each kalaasam is repeated systematically from first to eight step of footwork. A performance is a combination of playing of musical instruments, vocal recitation, dance and strange makeup and costumes. The stage-practices of Theyyam and its ritualistic observations make it one of the fascinating theatrical arts of India.