India history and geography

Source: Yale Journal of Music & Religion: Ritual Music in Contemporary Brahmanical Tantric Temples of Kerala

Śīvēli refers to a temple ritual consisting of “offering food to the members of the retinue (of the deity)”.—Daily pūjā in Kerala includes several phases. [...] Once food has been offered to the main deity, it is also offered to the members of his/her retinue in a ritual known as śīvēli. It includes two sections, the first performed in the inner enclosure, the second in the fourth enclosure. No one except priests and Mārār musicians has the right to perform the first section. The ritual begins when a Mārār plays a timila pāṇi to invite the gods. The priest, accompanied by a small ensemble of musicians, moves around the śrīkōvil (“shrine”), stopping at each point marked by the stones where the various deities are supposed to reside to offer them different substances that symbolically represent the five elements. This is one of the most important rituals, and each of its sections is supported by specific drum patterns associated with the different deities.

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The history of India traces the identification of countries, villages, towns and other regions of India, as well as mythology, zoology, royal dynasties, rulers, tribes, local festivities and traditions and regional languages. Ancient India enjoyed religious freedom and encourages the path of Dharma, a concept common to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism.

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Full-text: Utsava.

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