Part 7

It is noted in the Census Report, 1891, that as a token of divorce "a Kallan gives his wife a piece of straw in the presence of his caste people. In Tamil the expression 'to give a straw' means to divorce, and 'to take a straw' means to accept divorce."

In their marriage customs, some Kallans have adopted the Puranic form of rite owing to the influence of Brahman purohits, and, though adult marriage is the rule, some Brahmanised Kallans have introduced infant marriage. To this the Puramalai section has a strong objection, as, from the time of marriage, they have to give annually till the birth of the first child a present of fowls, rice, a goat, jaggery, plantains, betel, turmeric, and condiments. By adult marriage the time during which this present has to be made is shortened, and less expenditure thereon is incurred. In connection with the marriage ceremonies as carried out by some Kallans, I gather that the consent of the maternal uncle of a girl to her marriage is essential. For the betrothal ceremony, the father and maternal uncle of the future bridegroom proceed to the girl's house, where a feast is held, and the date fixed for the wedding written on two rolls of palm leaf dyed with turmeric or red paper, which are exchanged between the maternal uncles. On the wedding day, the sister of the bridegroom goes to the house of the bride, accompanied by women, some of whom carry flowers, cocoanuts, betel leaves, turmeric, leafy twigs of Sesbania grandiflora, paddy (unhusked rice), milk, and ghi (clarified butter). A basket containing a female cloth, and the tali string wrapped up in a red cloth borrowed from a washerman, is given to a sister of the bridegroom or to a woman belonging to his sept. On the way to the bride's house, two of the women blow chank shells (musical instrument). The bride's people question the bridegroom's party as to his sept, and they ought to say that he belongs to Indra kulam, Thalavala nadu, and Ahalya gotra. The bridegroom's sister, taking up the tali, passes it round to be touched by all present, and ties the string, which is decorated with flowers, tightly round the bride's neck amid the blowing of the conch shell. The bride is then conducted to the home of the bridegroom, whence they return to her house on the following day. The newly married couple sit on a plank, and coloured rice-balls or coloured water are waved, while women yell out "killa, illa, illa; killa, illa, illa." This ceremony is called kulavi idal, and is sometimes performed by Kallan women during the tali-tying.

The following details relating to the marriage ceremonies are recorded in the Gazetteer of the Tanjore district. "The arrival of the bridegroom has been described as being sometimes especially ceremonious. Mounted on a horse, and attended by his maternal uncle, he is met by a youth from the bride's house, also mounted, who conducts the visitors to the marriage booth. Here he is given betel leaves, areca nuts, and a rupee by the bride's father, and his feet are washed in milk and water, and adorned with toe-rings by the bride's mother. The tali is suspended from a necklet of gold or silver instead of cotton thread, but this is afterwards changed to cotton for fear of offending the god Karuppan. A lamp is often held by the bridegroom's sister, or some married woman, while the tali is being tied. This is left unlighted by the Kallans for fear it should go out, and thus cause an evil omen. The marriage tie is in some localities very loose. Even a woman who has borne her husband many children may leave him if she likes, to seek a second husband, on condition that she pays him her marriage expenses. In this case (as also when widows are remarried), the children are left in the late husband's house. The freedom of the Kallan women in these matters is noticed in the proverb that, "though there may be no thread in the spinning-rod, there will always be a (tali) thread on the neck of a Kallan woman," or that "though other threads fail, the thread of a Kallan woman will never do so."

By some Kallans pollution is, on the occasion of the first menstrual period, observed for seven or nine days. On the sixteenth day, the maternal uncle of the girl brings a sheep or goat, and rice. She is bathed and decorated, and sits on a plank while a vessel of water, coloured rice, and a measure filled with paddy with a style bearing a betel leaf struck on it, are waved before her. Her head, knees, and shoulders are touched with cakes, which are then thrown away. A woman, conducting the girl round the plank, pours water from a vessel on to a betel leaf held in her hand, so that it falls on the ground at the four cardinal points of the compass, which the girl salutes.

A ceremony is generally celebrated in the seventh month of pregnancy, for which the husband's sister prepares pongal (cooked rice). The pregnant woman sits on a plank, and the rice is waved before her. She then stands up, and bends down while her sister-in-law pours milk from a betel or pipal (Ficus religiosa) leaf on her back. A feast brings the ceremony to a close. Among the Vellur-nadu Kallans patterns are said [52] to be drawn on the back of the pregnant woman with rice-flour, and milk is poured over them. The husband's sister decorates a grindstone in the same way, invokes a blessing on the woman, and expresses a hope that she may have a male child as strong as a stone.

When a child is born in a family, the entire family observes pollution for thirty days, during which entrance into a temple is forbidden. Among the Nattar Kallans, children are said to be named at any time after they are a month old. But, among the Puramalai Kallans, a first-born female child is named on the seventh day, after the ear-boring ceremony has been performed. "All Kallans," Mr. Francis writes, [52] "put on sacred ashes, the usual mark of a Saivite, on festive occasions, but they are nevertheless generally Vaishnavites. The dead are usually buried, and it is said that, at funerals, cheroots are handed round, which those present smoke while the ceremony proceeds." Some Kallans are said, [53] when a death occurs in a family, to put a pot filled with dung or water, a broomstick, and a fire-brand at some place where three roads meet, or in front of the house, in order to prevent the ghost from returning.

It is recorded, in the Gazetteer of the Madura district, that "the Kilnad Kallans usually bury their dead. Lamps are periodically lighted on the tomb, and it is whitewashed annually. The Piramalainad division usually burn the dead. If a woman dies when with child, the baby is taken out, and placed alongside her on the pyre. This, it may be noted, is the rule with most castes in this district, and, in some communities, the relations afterwards put up a stone burden-rest by the side of a road, the idea being that the woman died with her burden, and so her spirit rejoices to see others lightened of theirs. Tradition says that the caste came originally from the north. The dead are buried with their faces laid in that direction; and, when puja is done to Karuppanaswami, the caste god, the worshippers turn to the north."

According to Mr. H. A. Stuart [54] "the Kallans are nominally Saivites, but in reality the essence of their religious belief is devil-worship. Their chief deity is Alagarswami, the god of the great Alagar Kovil twelve miles to the north of the town of Madura. To this temple they make large offerings, and the Swami, called Kalla Alagar, has always been regarded as their own peculiar deity." The Kallans are said by Mr. Mullaly to observe omens, and consult their household gods before starting on depredations. "Two flowers, the one red and the other white, are placed before the idol, a symbol of their god Kalla Alagar. The white flower is the emblem of success. A child of tender years is told to pluck a petal of one of the two flowers, and the undertaking rests upon the choice made by the child." In like manner, when a marriage is contemplated among the Idaiyans, the parents of the prospective bride and bridegroom go to the temple, and throw before the idol a red and white flower, each wrapped in a betel leaf. A small child is then told to pick up one of the leaves. If the one selected contains the white flower, it is considered auspicious, and the marriage will take place.

In connection with the Alagar Kovil, I gather [55] that, when oaths are to be taken, the person who is to swear is asked to worship Kallar Alagar, and, with a parivattam (cloth worn as a mark of respect in the presence of the god) on his head, and a garland round his neck, should stand on the eighteenth step of the eighteen steps of Karuppanaswami, and say: "I swear before Kallar Alagar and Karuppannaswami that I have acted rightly, and so on. If the person swears falsely, he dies on the third day; if truly the other person meets with the same fate."

It was noted by Mr. M. J. Walhouse, [56] that "at the bull games (jellikattu) at Dindigul, the Kallans can alone officiate as priests, and consult the presiding deity. On this occasion they hold quite a Saturnalia of lordship and arrogance over the Brahmans." It is recorded, in the Gazetteer of the Madura district, that "the keenness of the more virile sections of the community (especially the Kallans), in this game, is extraordinary, and, in many villages, cattle are bred and reared specially for it. The best jallikats are to be seen in the Kallan country in Tirumangalam, and next come those in Melur and Madura taluks." (See also Maravan.)

It is recorded, in the Gazetteer of the Madura district, that Karuppan is "essentially the god of the Kallans, especially of the Kallans of the Melur side. In those parts, his shrine is usually the Kallans' chavadi (assembly place). His priests are usually Kallans or Kusavans. Alagarswami (the beautiful god) is held in special veneration by the Kallans, and is often popularly called the Kallar Alagar. The men of this caste have the right to drag his car at the car festival, and, when he goes (from Alagar Kovil) on his visit to Madura, he is dressed as a Kallan, exhibits the long ears characteristic of that caste, and carries the boomerang and club, which were of their old favourite weapons. It is whispered that Kallan dacoits invoke his aid when they are setting out on marauding expeditions, and, if they are successful therein, put part of their ill-gotten gains into the offertory (undial) box, which is kept at his shrine."

For the following note I am indebted to the Rev. J. Sharrock. "The chief temple of the Kallans is about ten miles west of Madura, and is dedicated to Alagarswami, said to be an incarnation of Vishnu, but also said to be the brother of Minatchi (the fish-eyed or beautiful daughter of the Pandya king of Madura). Now Minatchi has been married by the Brahmans to Siva, and so we see Hinduism wedded to Dravidianism, and the spirit of compromise, the chief method of conversion adopted by the Brahmans, carried to its utmost limit. At the great annual festival, the idol of Alagarswami is carried, in the month of Chittra (April-May), to the temple of Minatchi, and the banks of the river Vaiga swarm with two to three lakhs [57] of worshippers, a large proportion of whom are Kallans. At this festival, the Kallans have the right of dragging with a rope the car of Alagarswami, though other people may join in later on. As Alagarswami is a vegetarian, no blood sacrifice is offered to him. This is probably due to the influence of Brahmanism, for, in their ordinary ceremonies, the Kallans invariably slaughter sheep as sacrifices to propitiate their deities. True to their bold and thievish instincts, the Kallans do not hesitate to steal a god, if they think he will be of use to them in their predatory excursions, [58] and are not afraid to dig up the coins or jewels that are generally buried under an idol. Though they entertain little dread of their own village gods, they are often afraid of others that they meet far from home, or in the jungles when they are engaged in one of their stealing expeditions. As regards their own village gods, there is a sort of understanding that, if they help them in their thefts, they are to have a fair share of the spoil, and, on the principle of honesty among thieves, the bargain is always kept. At the annual festival for the village deities, each family sacrifices a sheep, and the head of the victim is given to the pujari (priest), while the body is taken home by the donor, and partaken of as a communion feast. Two at least of the elements of totem worship appear here: there is the shedding of the sacrificial blood of an innocent victim to appease the wrath of the totem god, and the common feasting together which follows it. The Brahmans sometimes join in these sacrifices, but of course take no part of the victim, the whole being the perquisite of the pujari, and there is no common participation in the meal. When strange deities are met with by the Kallans on their thieving expeditions, it is usual to make a vow that, if the adventure turns out well, part of the spoil shall next day be left at the shrine of the god, or be handed over to the pujari of that particular deity. They are afraid that, if this precaution be not taken, the god may make them blind, or cause them to be discovered, or may go so far as to knock them down, and leave them to bleed to death. If they have seen the deity, or been particularly frightened or otherwise specially affected by these unknown gods, instead of leaving a part of the body, they adopt a more thorough method of satisfying the same. After a few days they return at midnight to make a special sacrifice, which of course is conducted by the particular pujari, whose god is to be appeased. They bring a sheep with rice, curry-stuffs and liquors, and, after the sacrifice, give a considerable share of these dainties, together with the animal's head, to the pujari, as well as a sum of money for making the puja (worship) for them. Some of the ceremonies are worth recording. First the idol is washed in water, and a sandal spot is put on the forehead in the case of male deities, and a kunkuma spot in the case of females. Garlands are placed round the neck, and the bell is rung, while lamps are lighted all about. Then the deity's name is repeatedly invoked, accompanied by beating on the udukku. This is a small drum which tapers to a narrow waist in the middle, and is held in the left hand of the pujari with one end close to his left ear, while he taps on it with the fingers of his right hand. Not only is this primitive music pleasing to the ears of his barbarous audience, but, what is more important, it conveys the oracular communications of the god himself. By means of the end of the drum placed close to his ear, the pujari is enabled to hear what the god has to say of the predatory excursion which has taken place, and the pujari (who, like a clever gypsy, has taken care previously to get as much information of what has happened as possible) retails all that has occurred during the exploit to his wondering devotees. In case his information is incomplete, he is easily able to find out, by a few leading questions and a little cross-examination of these ignorant people, all that he needs to impress them with the idea that the god knows all about their transactions, having been present at their plundering bout. At all such sacrifices, it is a common custom to pour a little water over the sheep, to see if it will shake itself, this being invariably a sign of the deity's acceptance of the animal offered. In some sacrifices, if the sheep does not shake itself, it is rejected, and another substituted for it; and, in some cases (be it whispered, when the pujari thinks the sheep too thin and scraggy), he pours over it only a little water, and so demands another animal. If, however, the pujari, as the god's representative, is satisfied, he goes on pouring more and more water till the half-drenched animal has to shake itself, and so signs its own death-warrant. All who have ventured forth in the night to take part in the sacrifice then join together in the communal meal. An illustration of the value of sacrifices may here be quoted, to show how little value may be attached to an oath made in the presence of a god. Some pannaikarans (servants) of a Kallan land-owner one day stole a sheep, for which they were brought up before the village munsif. When they denied the theft, the munsif took them to their village god, Karuppan (the black brother), and made them swear in its presence. They perjured themselves again, and were let off. Their master quietly questioned them afterwards, asking them how they dared swear so falsely before their own god, and to this they replied 'While we were swearing, we were mentally offering a sacrifice to him of a sheep' (which they subsequently carried out), to pacify him for the double crime of stealing and perjury."

As a typical example of devil worship, the practice of the Valaiyans and Kallans of Orattanadu in the Tanjore district is described by Mr. F. R. Hemingway. [59] "Valaiyan houses have generally an odiyan (Odina Wodier) tree in the backyard, wherein the devils are believed to live, and among Kallans every street has a tree for their accommodation. They are propitiated at least once a year, the more virulent under the tree itself, and the rest in the house, generally on a Friday or Monday. Kallans attach importance to Friday in Adi (July and August), the cattle Pongal day in Tai (January and February), and Kartigai day in the month Kartigai (November and December). A man, with his mouth covered with a cloth to indicate silence and purity, cooks rice in the backyard, and pours it out in front of the tree, mixed with milk and jaggery (crude sugar). Cocoanuts and toddy are also placed there. These are offered to the devils, represented in the form of bricks or mud images placed at the foot of the tree, and camphor is set alight. A sheep is then brought and slaughtered, and the devils are supposed to spring one after another from the tree into one of the bystanders. This man then becomes filled with the divine afflatus, works himself up into a kind of frenzy, becomes the mouthpiece of the spirits, pronounces their satisfaction or the reverse at the offerings, and gives utterance to cryptic phrases, which are held to foretell good or evil fortune to those in answer to whom they are made. When all the devils in turn have spoken and vanished, the man recovers his senses. The devils are worshipped in the same way in the houses, except that no blood is shed. All alike are propitiated by animal sacrifices."

The Kallans are stated by Mr. Hemingway to be very fond of bull-baiting. This is of two kinds. The first resembles the game played by other castes, except that the Kallans train their animals for the sport, and have regular meetings, at which all the villagers congregate. These begin at Pongal, and go on till the end of May. The sport is called tolu madu (byre bull). The best animals for it are the Pulikkolam bulls from the Madura district. The other game is called pachal madu (leaping bull). In this, the animals are tethered to a long rope, and the object of the competition is to throw the animal, and keep it down. A bull which is good at the game, and difficult to throw, fetches a very high price.

It is noted in the Gazetteer of the Tanjore district, that "the Kallans have village caste panchayats (councils) of the usual kind, but in some places they are discontinuing these in imitation of the Vellalans. According to the account given at Orattanadu, the members of Ambalakaran families sit by hereditary right as Karyastans or advisers to the headman in each village. One of these households is considered superior to the others, and one of its members is the headman (Ambalakaran) proper. The headmen of the panchayats of villages which adjoin meet to form a further panchayat to decide on matters common to them generally. In Kallan villages, the Kallan headman often decides disputes between members of other lower castes, and inflicts fines on the party at fault."

In the Gazetteer, of the Madura district, it is recorded that "the organization of the Kilnad Kallans differs from that of their brethren beyond the hills. Among the former, an hereditary headman, called the Ambalakaran, rules in almost every village. He receives small fees at domestic ceremonies, is entitled to the first betel and nut, and settles caste disputes. Fines inflicted are credited to the caste fund. The western Kallans are under a more monarchial rule, an hereditary headman called Tirumala Pinnai Tevan deciding most caste matters. He is said to get this hereditary name from the fact that his ancestor was appointed (with three co-adjutors) by King Tirumala Nayakkan, and given many insignia of office including a state palanquin. If any one declines to abide by his decision, excommunication is pronounced by the ceremony of 'placing the thorn,' which consists in laying a thorny branch across the threshold of the recalcitrant party's house, to signify that, for his contumacy, his property will go to ruin and be overrun with jungle. The removal of the thorn, and the restitution of the sinner to Kallan society can only be procured by abject apologies to Pinnai Tevan."

The usual title of the Kallans is Ambalakaran (president of an assembly), but some, like the Maravans and Agamudaiyans, style themselves Tevan (god) or Servaikkaran (commander). [60]

Kallankanadoru (stone).--A sub-division of Komati, said to be descended from those who sat on the stone (kallu) mantapa outside the Penukonda Kanyakamma temple, when the question whether to enter the fire-pits or not was being discussed by the caste elders.

Kallan Muppan.--In the Madras Census Report, 1901, Kallan Muppan is returned as "a sub-caste of the Malabar Kammalans, the members of which are stone-workers." A correspondent writes to me that, "while the Kammalans are a polluting and polyandrous class, the Kallan Muppans are allowed to enter the outside enclosure of temples. They do not remarry their widows, and are strictly monogamous. Their purohits are Tamil barbers, who officiate at their marriages. The barber shaves the bridegroom before the wedding ceremony. The purohit has also to blow the conch-shell all the way from the bridegroom's house to that of the bride."

The names Kallan and Kalkotti are also those by which the Malabar stone-masons are known.

Kallangi.--Kallangi and Kallaveli (Kallan's fence) are fanciful names, returned by Pallis at times of census.

Kallasari (stone-workers).--The occupational name of a sub-division of Malayalam Kammalans.