8 (b). Temple Records on Expiatory Rites

Many historical records referring the expiatory rituals performed in Kerala help to bring out the cultural past. Kollam Rāmeśarattu Kovil inscription (CE 1102) proved that expiatory rites were also performed in the early medieval age in Kerala.^[1] This inscription recorded King Rāmavarma’s gifts to the temple as an act of expiating his sin of offending the Brāhmaṇas.^[2]

M.G.S. Narayanan has brought out this historical situation as:

“[….] Rāma Kulaśekhara Cakravarttikal, was made to offer Prāyaścitta (atonement) at Kollam, in the grand assembly of his ministers, retinue and feudatories for having offended the Āriyar (Kerala Brahmins as different from Tamil Brahmins) proves the oppressive might of the organized Brahmin community and the relative weakness of the Perumāḷ.”^[3]

This incident of expiation shows the power of Brahmin oligarchy and it points out how the expiation is used by the Brahmins as a tool for perpetuating their divine authority and power. Also the study of M.G.S. has noticeably explains the historical background of this act of expiation as the temple authorities are closely related to the ruling class.

He says thus:

“There was a code of conduct governing the relations between the Ūrāḷar (proprietor of the village) the Kārāḷar (tenants of the village) and the Paṇi (workers), that was being followed in several Grāmas from Kolattunāṭu to Āyanāṭu. This was known as the Mūḷikkaḷam Kaccam, after one of the four Grāmas around the capital city of Makotai. It is interesting to note that four Grāmas around the capital, belonging to the Kerala Brahmins or Namputiris were the leaders of the thirty two Mūlagrāmas (original settlements) of Brahmans in the Kerala. Each of them owned a temple called Taḷi in the capital. The Managers of these four temples were known as TaḷI Adhikāris or Taḷiyātiris. They constituted the permanent council of ministers for the Perumāḷs. Contemporary inscriptions prove that they accompanied the Perumāḷs in all his official tour programs.”^[4]

Another evidence of expiation is the action of Bālamārttāṇḍa Varma of Travancore, who performed a Dāna in Eṟṟumanūr temple as the expiation for removing the effects of his sinful acts.^[5] These historical incidents have shown that the relation between temple, religion and politics.^[6] The concept of Prāyaścitta is also used for the perpetuation of the political and religious authority of Brahmanism. In early medieval age the expiatory rites were used as an agency for new way for attaining the wealth and properties. And it accelerated the formation and preservation of Brahmin centered caste society.

The Matilakam records of Sri Padmanābhasvāmi temple, Tiruvalla Paṟampūrillam records, and Tiruppuliyūr records have clearly shown that the expiatory rituals were also performed in early medieval Kerala temples. In addition, Brahmins utilized the concept and practice of expiatory rituals for acquiring money, land and other valuable things. The Kings of Travancore and Zamorins of Calicut have also performed these Prāyaścittas for retaining their power and authority. Moreover, the Brahmin priests used these expiatory rituals intended for the bodily purity and the divinity of landlordism.

The Matilakam is the earliest name of Padmanābhasvāmi temple. This record dealt mainly with the political and temple related subjects. Initially Ullūr S. Paramesvarayyar classified and sorted out these records. This Matilakam records convey the performance of expiatory rituals and the causes leading to them. According to this, various impurities have lead to expiation. The causes of impurities referred in these records are: allowing an entry of an outcast in temple courtyard, death, spreading of fire, presence of impure subjects like blood etc., omission of worship and stealing of temple substances. The Matilakam Palm leaf (Curuṇa 94, leaf 131) in CE 1505 has exposed the impurity affected in Padamanabha temple connected to the entering and touching of a carpenter in temple premises. The other two leaves of Matilakam in CE 1607 and 1609 reveal the outbreak of fire as an impurity affected in the temple.^[7] After the burning of the temple, Mārttāṇḍa Varma of Travancore has performed the expiatory acts for averting the impurities and infirmities of temple. The Matilakam records give numerous evidences of this expiation.^[8]

A special type of expiatory ritual performed in Padmanabhasvami temple is Karuvakeṭṭa. This expiation was performed for averting the infirmity and impurities of killing of temple labourers and other feudatories. The evidence of Karuvakeṭṭa leads to the historical and economical past of temples of Travancore. During the time, the kings of Travancore spent a lot of money and valuable things for the expiation of Karuvakeṭṭa. The Matilakam record number 290-295 gives the detailed description of Karuvakeṭṭa and the nature of its expenditure.^[9] Moreover it reveals the original nature of spending money and other precious things. According to this record, it can be seen that, the kings of Travancore have used elephants, silver pots, land etc. in that expiation as gift to temple and Brahmin priests.^[10] Besides, the Matilakam minutes explain that Dāna, Muṟajapa (recitation of Vedic hymns), Kalaśa, Dahanaprāyaścitta, Godāna (gift of cow), Puṇyāha, Brahmin feast (for omission of worship),^[11] Pañcaka, Navakakalaśa^[12] and Brahmakalaśa etc. were performed as expiation. It is an important fact that this record gives the priceless evidence of Utsavaprāyaścitta. The Pre-dates Tantrasamuccaya manuals in Kerala do not give the details of Utsavaprāyaścitta. But in the 16^th century CE, Toḻānūr Nārāyaṇa in his work, Tantraprāyaścitta, fully devoted to expiatory rites, gives complete details of this expiation. A comparison of expiation seen in Tantra manuals of Kerala and Matilakam records reveals that most of the expiatory rituals recommended in Tantra texts are significantly seen performed in Matilakam records. But it seems that Karuvakeṭṭa is a special rite described in Matilakam minutes. This ritual is not seen in the Tantra texts of Kerala. Most of the expiations referred to in the Tantra manuals of Kerala mainly recommended for the avoidance of the impurities. In fact Karuvakeṭṭa is the only expiation performed for removing the sin for killing and other sinful acts of the Travancore kings.^[13]

The Tiruvalla Paṟampūrillam record (CE 1555-1911) is an income and expenditure document of Paṟampūr Tantrins of Tiruvalla.^[14] It gives more information about expiatory rituals. The document number two to seven says that the expiatory rituals were performed in temples of Tiruvalla and nearby places. It is an interesting information that, in Kollam era 740, the Paṟampūr Tantrins performed expiation in Īśvaramaṅgalam temple for the falling of a Nair’s blood in the temple courtyard. The causes of impurities referred in these records are: outbreak of fire, falling of blood, urine in temple courtyard, stealing of temple properties as well as the entry of woman and outcastes.

Besides, this record points out that the expiations like Kalaśa, Pañcagavya, Śāntihoma, Nāndīmukha expiation, Bimbaśuddhi, Puṇyāha, Dhārā, Catuśśuddhi, Pañcagvya, Tattvahoma, Saptaśuddhi, Dāna, Dakṣiṇā, Godāna (gift of cow), Nirmālyaprāyaścitta and Prāsādaśuddhi were performed in later medieval age.^[15] Similarly the Tiruppuliyūr document (CE 1456 -CE 1895) gives the details of large amount of land gained in the way of expiation.^[16] The causes referred to in this document are murder inside the temple, falling of blood in temple premises, torment against the temple servants etc.^[17]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

irāmar tirivaṭi koyilatikārikaḷāyina śrī kulacekarccakkiravarttikaḷ kurakkeṇi-kkollattu panaiṇkāvil koyilakattirunnaruḷa āriyroṭu vanna virotattinu prāyaścitta ttinu putten araiyāl patināḻikkoḷḷum paṟaiyāl niyatam oro paṟaicceytu nel. Travancore Archeological Series, Vol. V, No.13, pp. 44. Also see Appendix V (A).

[2]:

Rajan Gurukkal, op.cit., p. 4.

[3]:

Narayanan, M.G.S., “The State in The Era of Perumāḷs of Kerala”, State and Society in Pre-Modern South India, ed. Champakalakshmi, R., p.115.

[4]:

Idem.

[5]:

aruḷicceyat kaliyabdaṃ 1711numel cellāninta kumbhaśśani karkkaṭaka vyāḻam cenna kollaṃ 964āmāṇḍu iṭavamāsam 12nu veḷḷiyāḻcayuṃ aśvatiyum aparapa-kṣattil trayodaśiyum soubhāgyayogavuṃ ānakkaraṇavuṃ peṭṭa nāḷāl eḻutiya prāyaścitta olakkaraṇamāvitu. śrīpatmanābhadāsa kīlpperu śrīvīravañcipāla bālamārttāṇḍavarmma kulaśekarapperumāḷ, bāla rāmavarma kulaśekarapperu-māḷ tṛppāppūru mūttavarāya nāṃ mun vaṭakkuṃkūṟil paṭakeṟiyatinte śeṣaṃ tiruveṟṟumānūr mahādevaruṭe vaka mādhavappaḷḷiyuḷpeṭṭa deśaṅṅaḷil kaṭanna āḷukaḷude dośaṃ koṇḍu saṃketahāni varikayāl atinte dośaṃ tīruvānāyiṭṭu āṟṟuṅṅal āṟṟinu tekku oru deśavuṃ veccāl saṃketa hāni varuttiyatinte piḻa tīrumenna eṟṟumanūr devaruṭe naṭayil vaccu …⁺⁺⁺⁺ …⁺⁺⁺ ponnukoṇḍu eṭṭumāṟṟil koṭṭāṟan kaḻaññu 7143 arkkālil āna uru eḻarayuṃ ti māṭṭil 96 1/2 Kaḻaññu ponnu koṇḍu paḻukkākkula onnum ī māṟṟil eḻukaḻañjukoṇḍu toṭṭiyum vaḷaṟuṃ kūṭe kūṭṭaṃ eṭṭuṃ tiruveṟṟumānūr mahādevaṟ sannidhiyil prāyaścittavuṃ ceytu eḻuti veccukoṭutta deśamāvitu…..āke taṭi 205 nilaṃ 168 paṟayuṃ purayiṭaṃ 23 1/2 yum maṭhavuṃ karakkāṭukaḷuṃ tiruveṟṟumānūr devarkku prāyaścittamāyi eḻuticcu koṭuttāruśrī patmanābhadāsa kīlpperu śrīvīravañcipāla bālamārttāṇḍavarmma…..mutalā ya....tirunāmam tiruveṟṟumānūr devasvaṃ vakayāyi vaccu…kollumā ṟuṃ kalppiccu eḻutiya prāyaścitta olakkarṇaṃ eḻutiya meleḻuttu kaṇakku piṟavipperumāḷ mātevanpiḷḷa eḻuttu. Natuvattam Gopalakrishnan, Saṃskāramudrakaḷ, Maluben Publications, Tiruvantapuram, 2009, p. 183. Also see, Sreedhara Menon, A., Keraḷasaṃskāraṃ, D.C Books, 2015, p. 48.

[6]:

Kesavan Veluthat has pointed out that in the case of Brahmanical temples of the country side, at another level, the temple stood as the synonym of the state. It functioned as an organ of state in many cases and arrogated its role. Thus the identity of the jargon becomes relevant here as well, if in a different way. On the whole, we see that a detailed study of the temple in early medieval south India can throw much light on the character of the state in that society. “The Temple and the State: Religion and Politics in Early Medieval South India”, State and Society in Pre-Modern South India, ed. Champakalakshmi, R., p. 107.

[7]:

See Curuṇa 2602, Leaf 16 (CE 1607), Curuṇa 1673, Leaf 131 (CE 1609).

[8]:

Matilakam Curuṇa 2 (A), Leaf 37.

[9]:

Matilakam Record 290-295: “śri vīra mārttānda varmarāya tṛppāppūr mūtta tiruvaṭi irunnaruḷiyedattin bhaṇḍārattil ninnum manuṣyatte oḻiccadinum pala-vakakkūde prāyaścittam ceyta vaka śri vīra mārttānda varmarāya tṛppāppūr mūtta tiruvaḍi pala deśattum manuśyam muṟiccadinum deṇḍappeṭṭa veḷḷikkuḍam māttūrum ciṟayante kīḻum kaiyyaṇḍatinu karuvakkeṭu keṭṭivaccapaṇam 5000 talpariyāram 2. mūnnāl 520-āṇḍu mithuna ñāyaṟu 32 cenna kunninmel śri vīrakerala varma tiruvaṭi deśikale veṭṭikonnatinu nadekkāvil nālu kalkkaḻukum etticcu iḷaveḷḷanāṭṭu nilamayum kuṟakkoṭṭu nilamayuam viṭṭu mūnnaṟa cuṟṟil 157-vittu virappāḍu nīlamayum viṭṭu tannu karuvakkeṭṭinu keṭṭinu keṭṭivecca kiḻi 3-nāl paṇam 300000. 644-āṇḍu kanni ñāyaṟu 31nu deśaṅṅanāṭṭu śri vīra mārttānda varmarāya śri kulaśekarapperumāḷ deśaṅṅanāṭṭu ninnum manuṣyatte konnatinu āna uru 1nu keṭṭivecca paṇam 1000, muṟiccatinu per 4kku deṇḍapeṭṭa veḷḷikuṭam 4 viṟṟūṇinu paṇam 360.”

[10]:

Vide Sasibhooshan, M. G., & Raja, R. P., Caritram Kuricha Padmanābha Svāmi Kṣetram, D.C.Books, Kottayam, 2011, pp. 154-160.

[11]:

Ibid., 145-147.

[12]:

Ibid., p. 148-151.

[13]:

See Appendix V(B).

[14]:

According to Rajan Gurukkal the composing period of this record is in between CE1555-1911. See Unnikrishnan Nair, P., ed. Tiruvalla Granthavari, Vol. II, School of Social Science, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, 1999, p. 5.

[15]:

Ibid., pp.13-22, 32, 33, 41, 86, 87, 88, 90 & 91. Also see Appendix V (C).

[16]:

Vide Tiruppuliyūr Granthavari, ed. Unnikrishnan Nair, P., Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, 2002, pp. 58-60. This document also is an income and expenditure natured document of Tiruppuliyūr temple, situated near Chengannur in Alappuzha district, Kerala. See Appendix V (D).

[17]:

Ibid., pp. 47-51 and 57-60.