Part 14

The Tenkanchi Vellalas appear to have dwelt originally in the Tenkasi taluk of the Tinnevelly district, and to have emigrated, as the legend goes, on account of the demand of a Vaduka ruler for the hand of a member of their community in marriage. The Vadakkumkur Rajas were ruling over Todupuzha at the time of their migration, and afforded them a safe asylum. The Kumbakonam Vellalas believe that they emigrated to Travancore about the commencement of the Malabar era from Kumbakonam in the Tanjore district. Both divisions speak Malayalam, but there are clear indications in their speech that their mother-tongue was once Tamil, and they always use that language in their ceremonial writings. The Anjuttilkar women have adopted the dress and ornaments of the Nayars. Both sections wear the tuft of hair in front, but the Munnutilkar women do not tie the hair on the left side like the Nayars and Anjuttilkars, but behind like the Pandi Vellalas. Nor do the Anjuttilkar women wear a white dress like the Tenkanchis, but a coloured cloth, sixteen cubits in length, in orthodox Tamil fashion. Again, while the Tenkanchi women largely resort to the todu and other Nayar ornaments, the Kumbakonam women are more conservative, and wear only the pampadam and melidu, though they sometimes wear jewels, such as the nagapata tali for the neck. Both sections are Saivites, in the sense that they abstain from flesh and fish.

Their principal occupation is agriculture. They worship the two mountain deities Bhadrakali and Durga. In the Kirikkot muri of the Karikkod property there is a temple dedicated to Siva or Unnamalanathar, with a large amount of property attached to it. This belongs to the Tenkanchi Vellalas, and a Malayalam Brahman performs the priestly functions. The Kumbakonam Vellalas have their own temples, such as the Ankalamma koil, Annamala matam, Virabhadran koil, etc., and worship, besides the principal gods of the Hindu pantheon, such minor deities as Virabhadran, Karuppan, Bhairavan, Mariamman, and Muttaramman. The priests of both sections are East Coast Brahmans, who live in the Todupuzha taluk. As their profession is regarded by other Brahmans as degrading, they, especially in the case of the Kumbakonam Vellalas, perform their duties stealthily. The headman of the Kumbakonam section lives in the Periyakulam taluk of the Madura district, and, by his order, an image of Siva is worshipped at their homes.

Divorce is not permitted on any ground, and, in ancient days, widow remarriage was forbidden. There is a legend that a woman of this caste, who was a friend of the daughter of a certain Vadakkumkur Rajah, was so aggrieved at the news of her newly married husband's death that, at her intercession, the Rajah issued a proclamation permitting the remarriage of widows. If no husband has been found for a girl before she reaches puberty, certain propitiatory rites have to be performed, at which one of her female relations represents her. On the fourth day of the marriage ceremony, the bride and bridegroom, before they bathe, rub each other's bodies with oil, and, going to a large caldron containing water, throw a gold and silver ring into it, and pick them out three times. Inheritance of both sections is from father to son (makkathayam). A sambandham alliance does not confer any rite of inheritance.

The names of both sections are such as are unknown among Nayars, e.g., Sivalingam, Arunachalam, Chidambaram, Arumukham. The Tenkanchis are considered to be higher in the social scale than the Kumbakonam section, as they observe only twelve days' death pollution, whereas the latter are under pollution for sixteen days. The Tenkanchis may enter the temple, and, like Nayars, stand on the left side of the inner shrine, whereas the Kumbakonam Vellalas may proceed only as far as the balikkalpura, or out-house of the temple, and not enter the nalambalam. Again, butter-milk is freely received by Brahmans from the Tenkanchis, but not from members of the Kumbakonam section. While Pandi Vellalas will not receive food from the Tenkanchis, or give their daughters in marriage to them, the latter will not intermarry with the Nanchinad Vellalas.

Togata.--The Togatas are Telugu weavers, most numerous in the Cuddapah district, who manufacture the coarsest kind of cotton cloths, such as are worn by the poorer classes. They are generally Vaishnavites, wear the sacred thread, and have for their priests Vaishnava Brahmans or Satanis. They eat flesh, and their widows are allowed to remarry. Writing concerning the Togatas in 1807, Buchanan states [53] that "widows cannot marry again, but are not expected to kill themselves. The Panchanga, or village astrologer, attends at births, marriages, funerals, at the ceremonies performed in honour of their deceased parents, and at the building of a new house, and on each occasion gets a fee of one fanam, or eight pence. On other occasions, when a weaver wants to pray, he calls in a Satanana, who reads something in an unknown language, and gives the votary some holy water, which he consecrates by pouring it on the head of a small image that he carries about for the purpose."

As regards their origin, some Togatas claim to be sons of Chaudesvari, who threw some rice on to the fire, from which sprang a host of warriors, whose descendants they are. Others give Puppandaja Rishi as the name of their ancestor. Concerning Chaudesvari, Mr. Francis writes as follows. [54] "Connected with the margosa tree (Melia Azadirachta) is the worship of Chaudesvari, the goddess of the Togata caste of weavers. She is supposed to reside in margosa trees, and either the tree itself, or a stone representing the goddess and placed at its foot, is worshipped by the Togatas at certain seasons, such as the Telugu New Year Day. Apparently the other weaver castes take no share in the ceremonies. They consist largely of animal sacrifices. Nevertheless, a particular class of Brahmans, called Nandavarikula Brahmans, take a prominent part in the festival. This name Nandavarikula is derived from the village of Nandavaram in Kurnool, and doubtless many stories are prevalent there about this sub-division. The account given at Tadpatri, where they are fairly numerous, is as follows. Once upon a time, a king from Southern India went on a pilgrimage with his wife to Benares. While there, he unwittingly incurred a nameless but heinous pollution. Horrified, he applied to some Brahmans there to purify him, promising them half his kingdom in return. They asked for some tangible record of this promise, and the king called upon the goddess Chaudesvari, who had a temple near by, to witness his oath. The purification was effected, and he departed home. Later on the Brahmans came south, and asked for the fulfilment of his promise. The king declared that he could not remember having made any such undertaking. The Brahmans accordingly went to Benares, and asked Chaudesvari to come south, and bear witness to the king's oaths. She agreed, on the usual condition that they should go in front, and not look back at her as she came. As happens in other stories of the same kind, they are said to have broken the condition. At Nandavaram they looked back, and the goddess instantly stopped, and remained immoveable. A temple was built for her there, and the Brahmans remained in the south, and still take part in the worship of Chaudesvari which the Togatas inaugurate, even though she is not one of the Hindu pantheon, and delights in animal sacrifice. At Tadpatri other castes besides the Togatas help at the festival."

Though Chaudesvari is the patron god of the Togatas, they also worship Poleramma, Ellamma, Kotamma, and other minor deities.

The original occupation of the Togatas is said to have been dyeing, but, at the present day, owing to the depression in the hand-loom weaving industry, a large number have taken to cultivation.

Like many other Telugu castes, they have exogamous septs, of which the following are examples:--

Patha, old. Kambhapu, pillar. Nili, indigo. Madaka, plough. Bana, pot. Jilakara, cummin seed. Annam, food. Mékala, goat. Gopalam, alms. Samanthi, Chrysanthemum indicum. Gurram, horse. Perumal, a god. Bandari, treasurer? Gudditi.

Pujaris (priests) for temple worship are always elected from the Perumal sept, and caste messengers from the Bandari sept, if they are represented in a settlement. Torches are generally carried, at processions, by men of the Gudditi sept. Members of the Gurram sept are not allowed to ride on horseback.

The panchayat (village council) system is in vogue, but, in some places, a headman is selected, as occasion requires. In their marriage and funeral ceremonies, the Togatas closely follow the Telugu standard Puranic form of ceremonial. The dead are buried in a recumbent posture. On the last day of the death rites, the Satani gives arrack (liquor) to the Togatas, as to the Padma Sales, in lieu of holy water (thirtham).

Tohala.--Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a small class of Oriya hill cultivators and petty traders in the Ganjam Agency.

Tolagari.--Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-caste of Mutracha. In the North Arcot Manual the Tolagaris are described as a small cultivating caste, who were formerly hunters, like the Palayakkarans.

Tolar (Wolf).--An exogamous sept of Halepaik. The equivalent Tolana occurs as a sept of Moger.

Tolkollan.--The Tolkollans or Tolans (skin people) are summed up in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as "leather workers and dyers, and also gymnasts and teachers of gymnastics. They are also called Vatti Kurup, Chaya Kurup, and Vil Kurup. Their title is Kurup." The Tolkollans are stated [55] to be "blacksmiths by caste, who abandoned their hereditary trade for leather work, and they are chiefly employed by Mappillas. One peculiar custom in this caste is that two or more brothers may have one wife in common. Only those in good circumstances indulge in the luxury of a private wife. The following information furnished by Mr. S. Vaidyanadha Aiyar, the headmaster of the School of Commerce, Calicut, gives some information regarding leather work in Malabar:--

(a) Boots and shoes of country make and English pattern.

(b) Harness making.

(c) Native shoes (ceruppu). These are of the special pattern peculiar to Malabar, and are largely used by all classes of the Hindu and Mappilla communities. The Arabs who visit this coast once a year purchase a considerable number to take back with them. The price of a pair varies from Rs. 1-8-0 to Rs. 5. Those with ornamental gold lace work cost from Rs. 10 to Rs. 50. These shoes are generally used by well-to-do Mappillas. White of egg is used to give a creaking sound to the shoes. This work is mainly done by Tholperunkollans and Mappillas, and the latter show more skill in finish and ornamental work.

(d) Knife sheaths. Almost every Nayar, Tiyan and Mappilla carries a knife about a foot in length, and there is a demand for leather sheaths. These are made by Panans as well as by Tholperunkollans and Mappillas.

(e) Leather baskets are also made, and are largely used as receptacles for carrying pepper, paddy (rice), and other grain.

(f) Winnowing fans are made of leather, and are used in pepper and paddy yards, etc.

(g) Muttu ceruppu (clogs) are leather shoes with wooden soles. These are largely used during the rainy season."

Tollakkadan (one with a big hole in the lobes of his ears).--Taken, at the census, 1901, as a sub-caste of Shanan, as those returning the name, who are vendors of husked rice in Madras, used the Shanan title Nadan. The equivalent Tollakadu was returned as a sub-division of Konga Vellala.

Tol Mestri.--A sub-division of Semman.

Tondaman.--It is stated, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, that the Tondamans are "also called Sunnambukkaran (q.v.), a Tamil caste of lime (chunam) burners found only in the Tinnevelly district. They are said to be a branch of the Kallans who migrated to Tinnevelly from Pudukkottai, or the Tondaman's country. Its members are now drummers and pipers as well as lime-burners. Brahmans are their purohits, but they are not allowed to go into Hindu temples. They will eat in the houses of Maravans. Their title is Solagan." It is noted, in the same report, that the Semman caste "has two sub-divisions, Tondaman and Tol-mestri, and men of the former take wives from the latter, but men of the latter may not marry girls of the former." Tondaman is the family name of the Raja of Pudukkottai, a Native State surrounded by the British districts of Tanjore, Madura, and Trichinopoly. The Raja is the head of the Kallan caste. Copper coins, called amman kasu, are current only within the State, and their greatest distribution is during Navaratri or Dusserah, when they are issued to the people with a dole of rice every day during the nine days of the festival. They bear on one side the word "Vijaya," meaning victory, or more probably having reference to our faithful ally Vijaya Ragunatha Tondaman, in whose reign they were first struck, it is said in 1761, after the surrender of Pondicherry to the British.

Tondamandalam.--The name of a sub-division of Vellala, derived from Tondanadu, the ancient Pallava country.

Tonti.--The Tontis are said to be cotton-weavers of Bengal, who have settled in Ganjam. [56] The name denotes threadmen, and the weaving of rough white cloths is the traditional occupation of the caste. All Tontis belong to a single gotra named after Kasyapa, one of the seven important rishis, and the priest of Parasurama. Various bamsams or exogamous septs, the names of some of which occur also as titles, exist, e.g., Biswalo, Dasso, Palo, Bono, Chondo, Parimaniko, Korono, Behara, and Mahapatro. The marriage and death ceremonies conform to the standard Oriya type. On the fourth day of the marriage rites, a Bhondari (barber) is presented with some beaten rice and sugar-candy in a new earthen pot. These are sold to those who have assembled, and the proceeds go to the Bhondari. The corpse of a dead person is washed at the burning ground, instead of, in accordance with the common custom among other castes, at the house.

Toppa Tali.--A name applied to certain Vaniyans in the North Arcot district, owing to the peculiar tali (marriage badge) which married women wear.

Torai.--A title of various Oriya castes.

Toreya.--The Toreyas are a Canarese class, living chiefly in the Tamil districts of Coimbatore and Salem. They are said to have been originally fishermen and palanquin bearers, and the name is derived from turai, a river ghat. Most of them are now cultivators, especially of the betel vine (Piper betle). Those whom I examined at Coimbatore were earning their living as betel and sugar-cane cultivators, vendors of tobacco, bakers, cloth merchants, contractors, petty traders, and police constables.

By the Coimbatore Toreyas, the following endogamous divisions were returned:--

Elai, leaf. Betel cultivators. Chunam, lime. Lime burners. Gazul, glass bangle. The Toreya caste is said to have originated from the bangles of Machyagandhi or Gandhavati, the daughter of a fisherman on the Jumna. She was married to king Shantanu of Hastinapur, who was one of the ancestors of the heroes of the Mahabharata.

Many exogamous septs exist among the Toreyas, of which the following are examples:--

Belli, silver. May not wear silver toe-rings. Naga, snake. The members of the sept, at times of marriage, worship ant-hills, which are the home of snakes. Alwar or Garuda. Chinnam, gold. Kansugaje, small bronze bells, tied to the legs when dancing. Urukathi, a kind of knife. Vajjira, diamond. Vasishta, a Hindu saint. Mogila, clouds.

Onne (Pterocarpus Marsupium). Do not mark their foreheads with the juice from the trunk of this tree.

Kuzhal, the flute played by shepherd boys and snake charmers. If the sound thereof is heard during a meal, what remains of the food should be thrown away.

Rakshasa, a giant. Do not celebrate the Dipavali festival in honour of the victory over, and death of, a rakshasa.

Erumai, buffalo.

The headman of the caste is called Ejaman, who has under him an officer entitled Dalavayi. The caste messenger bears the name of Kondikar. These three offices are hereditary. The Ejaman presides at council meetings which are held at the temple of the caste. The eldest member of each family is entitled to a seat on the council. Those who come late to a meeting thereof prostrate themselves before the assembly. Witnesses before the council have to take an oath, which is administered by the Kondikar. He makes the witness stand within a circle drawn on the ground, and makes him repeat the formula "Before God and the elders assembled, with the sky above and the earth beneath, I will state only the truth." The Kondikar then takes up a pinch of earth, and puts it on the head of the witness. For merely threatening to beat a person with shoes, the offender has to feed twenty-five castemen. If he takes the shoes in his hands he must feed fifty, and, if he actually resorts to beating with them, he has to feed a hundred men. In addition, the culprit has to pay a small fine, and both parties have to be purified at the temple. A similar punishment is enforced for beating, or threatening to beat with a broom. For adultery the guilty person is excommunicated, and is admitted back into the caste only after the death of one of the

## parties concerned. He then has to feed a large number of castemen,

or pay a money fine, and, prostrating himself before the assembly, he is beaten with a tamarind switch. He further makes obeisance to the Ejaman, and washes his feet. The Ejaman then purifies him by a small piece of burning camphor in his mouth.

When a married girl reaches puberty, she is taken to her father's house, and her husband constructs a hut with branches of Ficus glomerata. On the last day of her confinement therein, the hut is pulled down, and the girl sets fire to it. The house is purified, and the female relations go to the houses of the Ejaman and caste people, and invite them to be present at a ceremonial. A small quantity of turmeric paste is stuck on the doors of the houses of all who are invited. The relations and members of the caste carry betel, and other articles, on trays in procession through the streets. The girl is seated on a plank, and the trays are placed in front of her. Rice flour, fruits, betel, etc., are tied in her cloth, and she is taken into the house. In the case of an unmarried girl, the hut is built by her maternal uncle.

Marriage is always celebrated at the house of the bridegroom, as there is a legend that a Rajah belonging to the Toreya caste had a son, who was taken to the house of his bride elect, and there murdered. The bridegroom's father and relations go to the house of the bride, and make presents of money, cloths, ornaments, etc. They also have to make obeisance to, and feed five married women sumptuously. Pandals (booths) are constructed at the houses of both the bride and bridegroom. Five married women go, on behalf of each of the contracting parties, to their houses, and pound rice there. On the second day, five such women fetch water from a tank, and bathe the bride and bridegroom respectively. The ten women then go to the potter's house, and bring five decorated pots. Three of these are taken to a tank, and filled with water. On the following day, the bridegroom and his sister take the two remaining pots to the tank, and fill them with water. The five pots are placed in the pandal, and represent the household gods. The relations of the bridegroom take twelve kinds of ornaments, a new cloth, flowers, etc., to the house of the Ejaman, and go with him to the bride's house. She is then bathed, and decked with finery. A Brahman does puja (worship) and ties on her forehead a mandaikettu or bashingham (chaplet) made of gold leaf or tinsel. She is then carried in procession to the house of the bridegroom. Meanwhile, the Brahman ties a mandaikettu on the forehead of the bridegroom, who puts on the sacred thread, and sits within the pandal, holding a katar (dagger) in his hand, and closed in by a screen. The bride goes thrice round this screen, and the Brahman does puja and gives advice (upadesam) to the couple. The screen is then lowered slightly, and the bride and bridegroom garland each other. The bride's parents place a few gingelly (Sesamum) seeds in the hand of the bridegroom, and pour water thereon, saying that their daughter belongs to him, and telling him to take care of her. The tali, after being blessed by those assembled, is given by the Brahman to the bridegroom, who ties it on the bride's neck. The screen is then removed, and the couple sit side by side. The sacred fire is lighted, their hands are linked together, and the ends of their cloths tied together. They then leave the pandal, and, placing their feet on a grindstone, look at the pole-star (Arundati). Entering the pandal once more, they sit therein, and the elders bless them by throwing rice coloured with turmeric over their heads. On the fourth day, they again sit within the pandal, and cooked rice, coloured white, red, yellow, green, and black, on five trays, and nine lighted wicks on a tray are waved before them. Five married men and women, holding a string, stand round them in a circle, within which is the bride's brother with a twig of pipal (Ficus religiosa). The bridegroom places his hands together, and small rice cakes are placed on the head, shoulders, bend of the elbows and knees, and between the fingers of the couple. They are then bathed, and, taking betel in their hands, bow to the four corners of the earth. The bridegroom makes a namam (Vaishnavite sect mark), or places vibhuti (sacred ashes) on the twelve posts of the pandal, and the bride places a little cooked rice and water before each post, to which camphor is burnt, and puja done. They then start for the bride's house, but the bride's sister meets them at the entrance thereto, and will not allow them to go in until she has extracted a promise that their child shall marry hers. The bride proceeds to a tank, sowing some paddy (rice) on the way thither, and brings back a pot of water, with which she washes her husband's hands and feet. Husband and wife then feed each other with a small quantity of rice and milk. Their hands are then cleaned, and the bride's brother puts a gold ring on the finger of the bridegroom. A tray with betel leaves and areca nuts is brought, and the bridegroom ties three handfuls thereof in his cloth. The newly married couple then worship at the temple. On the fifth day, they carry the earthen pots to a river, and, on their return, five married women are worshipped and fed. Five men have to come forward as sureties for the good behaviour of the couple, and declare before those assembled that they will hold themselves responsible for it. In the evening the pair go to the bride's house, and rub oil over each other's head before bathing in turmeric water. On the following day they repair to the house of the bridegroom.