Chapter I1

JAVADHU HILLS AND MALAYALI - A PROFILE

a In the pnrlio~ds chapter a h.rir discu.istorr crbout /he rosrqt $ Detelapnrent and the

p m e u $TibaI DeveIopment in India ore pnsettted TlJat rbopter oh0 inchdes a note on the

objtctiw and the me/hdo/qy /hcpre.ret// .r~~~dy,

Theprest~~t chapter dtah ultth the background oJ thtJieid area r.e Jcrrudh~d I-irUj. Thrs

chapter includes /be Ethrrqrtruphir delails bke Sonrz/ oqant;a/to/i, behef system, subsistence

pattern) life grle ceremonies, political organrqaf~on e/cl of the Mahyah' of Javadhu H i k

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY AREA

Javadhu TTills Block is situated in Thiruvannamalai disttict (Map.l)at an

elevation of 792 meters above Mean Sea-Level, The Head quarters of the block is

situated at Jamunamarathur. The geographical spread of the block from

Jamunamarathur is 42 Km to the south, 25 Iim to the west, 43 Km to the east, and

12 E;m tothe north. *

Jamdhu Block/panchayat union is dnlded into eleven panchayats (Map.:! and

Table 2.1).

In the Javadhu Block, there are thirty-eight villages with 272 habitations.

The total population of the block/ panchayat union is 62,067, of which, 46,984

are Scheduled Tribes (75.7°!i)).

Flora and Fauna

The Javadhu hills are known for herbal medicinal ivealth. The Reserve

Forest represents a mtxed dry dectduous forest. There are 319 species

representing 84 families such as shrubs, thorny bushes, trees, climbers and

creepers. The trees like Tamarind, teak m o d , r2nimals like bisons, varieties of

deer, hare, sambar, plgs, monkeys, fox, wdd dogs etc., are fourtd ill this area.

Different types of snakes and bnds such as cuckoo, myna, p a fowls, jungle fowls,

rrnnang knrrrli etc are seen in these hills (census of India ,1981).

The stream Thinpzdti &i runs across the Javadhu hills.

\ P ~ H O W I N G THE HABITATIONS IN THE STUDY AREA (JAWADHU HILLS]

R E F E R E N C E

,.. - ..- Toluk boundory

- - - ponchoyot Union boundor y 4s

-, - - - - -- Ponchoyot boundory

PULIYUR Ponchoyot nome

0 Villop, locotlon with nome M E L H T T U - - R o o d 1

i

Table 2.1: Panchayats and ST-population in Javadhu Hills Block

- -- MUL

Panchayat

1. Athrpathl

2. W a t h u r

3. Kanamalat

4. Kovllur

5 . Kuttakaral

6.Melsdambadi

7. Nammlyambamu

8. Veeragoundatlur

9 Palamarathur

10. Puliyur

11 .Veerappanur

Total

*Source 1 luman Rlghrh

Total

Population

872

1173

3456

747 1

2323

1973

4886

15 14

2108

1203

3657

30836

C,ornrn~\\lon Rrpo~t,

i

Scheduled Male

459

596

1798

3810

1170

1074

2454

794

1217

646

1864

15932

T h l r u ~ Aflfl,lmaldl,

Tribe population

Female

4 13

577

1658

363 1

1153

899

2432

720

107 1

557

1793

14904

3000

Rain Fall The Mnter starts from January and ends in March, which is followed by

summer from A p d to May.

* The South-West monsoon starts from June to S e p t e m b ~ and North-East

monsoon hum October to llcccmnber and the average totd rahifall received is

1736.00mm ~ I I a total of 75 rainy days.

Land Utilisation

In the Javadhu Hills there 1s 13,798 hectares of total land. Out of 13,798

hectares of land, only 7,496 hectares of land 1s culhvated and 518 hectares of land

is sown more than once. Out of 7,496 hectares of cultivated land, only 884 hect-

ares of land is irrigated. There are 11,324 cultmitors and 4,131 agncultutal labourers.

There are 789 open wells in this area. Only 175 farmers are using Oil engines for

drawingimgation water Fable 2.2).

Soil conditions

The underlying rock belongs to great gneissic series, chief component

being feldspar and hor~lblende. Soil IS loam with a good amount of humus.

Rwerine duvium is found along the stream banks.

Transport

Jamunamamtl~ur is well connected by road. The roads in Ja~acihu has branch

off into four directions, one from Chengam to ITellore, Vellore to Amrithi, from

Nangayam to Vellanmud~i. There are regular bus services from \'dore, Tirupathur

and Vaniyambah. There are private transport veh~cles (mi11i buses) to the villages

from Jamunamarathur. There are no proper roads to the interior villages. But to

the interior villages hkc hiclpattu therc arc buses up to Patharaikadu, which is twelvc

kilometers from Jamut~amarathur. From that village one has to walk twelve

kdometers to reach Melpattu vdlage. For a year one mini bus played in this route,

but due to the bad maintenance of roads they had withdrawn the buses. The forest

department o W s are not allowing to lay the panchapt roads because land comes

under the forest department control.

Table 2.2: Land-Utilisation pattern in Javadhu Hill.

Land Details Hectares

Forest

Uncultivable Land

799

1,529

Land put to Non agrtcultural use 5 50

Grazing lands

Cultivable waste

Net .Area sow11 7136

Area so\vn morc thatl once

Total Geographical Area 13,798 (hectares)

I

166

494

Current fallow

Other fallows

I I Source: ;-igr~culture department, T l ~ ~ t u ~ ; i n n , m ~ l a ~ , 2i )OO.

2,6 14

150

Health There are two Pmary 1 Iealth Cei~tcrs (PI 1Cs) a Jamdhu Block. They are

locatcd a t Jatnunatnnntl~ur and Nati\tntanll)xt~~. \ total of SCVCII I I c a l t l~ Sub

Centers (HSCr) undrr ]amui~atnaratl~~~r and nr I ISCs undcr \iammlampatb are

working. There is one Ambulance van and a jeep for jamunamanthur PHC and

one van for Nammiampa ttu PI I(:.

There is one Private hospital, ST.Thomas hospital and I~prosy center. The

center has mobile c h i c and the doctors go to the villages to extend help to the

patients who are not in a position to go to the hospital which is located in

Jamunamarathur. In few villages it is noted that the Private doctors are also

practicing In two villages a quack is posing as a doctor. 1-le has completed his B.Sc

chemistry.

Education

There are thray-four hchayat pnrnary schools, thrteen Government Tribal

Residential Pnmary schools, three Government Tribal Residential Middle schoo?s,

one Government Tribal Residential High school and one Government Tribal

Residenhal GirLs Hostel and two Private schools in Jamdhu Block. There are 1,007

boy-students and 529 gul-students attending various schools hl Javadhu block

(2001).

MALAYALI OF TAMIL NADU

Earlier studies

One of the twliesr refmlce to thc Malayali way of life was made by Shwrir~g

(1881). Sherring makes a comment that Malayalis are historically recent migrants

settled in different hill regtons of Tamil Nadu. They arc basically culti\rators. A

greatex detailed report had provided by Thurston (1909). He is the &st person to

who provides an at~throl~olog~cal account of tliis community. Jay Dev (1118) has

published extensionally on the social organization, belief systems and economy of

Malayalls.

As a part of the 1961 census a \illage sur~cy rnooc~p~,ll war cdited by Roy

Burman (1961). This monograph was based 011 the study of Tllenpura Nadu vil-

lage in hchamalai Hills. Although this m s in tile tradition of village studies, the

entire village in inhabitants by hlalayalis, the studs turns out to be one of single

community study. This m o n o ~ a l ~ h provides a dctailcd description of the

mvironmcnt and ;unbLl~lcc in \\~111cIl thls \fillagc situated. 111fact the conditions. both

physical and socio-ecotlomic, wli~ch obtained 111 1960's arc! 111 yuite contrast to

those of today.

In the district Gazetteer of Salem, Ramaswarn): (1966) gives a very concise

picture about the Malayalis of three different hill ranges in that district. But this

account emphasises more on the hlalayahs of Kolli I Ids. Vasantha Kumatat1(1983)

provides a broad picture of the agricultural systems followed by Malayahs as seen

through the presume of human ecology. Xavier Rai(1992) study is an effort to

understand the interface between culture, population and resources . He

concentrates on the aspect of demographic features and resources on the one hand,

the community and environment on the other. This study is based on the data

generated from the Malayahs of Javadhu Hills.

PanMurugan(l997) made a study of the economy and the development

among the Mala* of hchamalai Hdls thrs study provides some basic data about

the developmental programmes in Pachamalai hills, though it has not provide ally

linkage between the welfare programmes and the processes of development of

Malayah colntnulih. . Resides these important stu&es among the hialayalis, there are several brief

and short term studies conducted by the students of -4nthropology, University

of Madras.

'The followiig ;ue tllc dissertations about hlalayali:

In the year 1478 a study was conducted on the Malayalis of Elaffri I-lds:

Vasantha kurnar studied the Family organisation, Lalitha studied the institution of

mardage, Shekar on Economic organisation and Jaya has worked o n

Developmental programmes and their impact.

In the year 1979, Karunakarail had worked on Tribd Administration of

Malayalls of kdvarayan Hills of South .4rcot district.

In the year 1980 Nargts liad worked on Status of women of Malayah of

Shervaroyan Hills, Salem district.

In the ycar 1084, a study &as cc nduct~d on the 1 lalayah (1)Lri);unal;u G oux~dat~)

of Shervarayan Hills, Salem district, which include a study of Family and blarmgc

by Revathi, Economic organisation by Parithimal, Status of \Xiomell by Sumathi,

Child rearing and Socialisation by Padmini and belief system bv Louse.

MALAYALI OF JAVADHU HILLS - AN ETHNOGRAPHIC PROFILE

The Malayah is a Schedule Tribe community The iMuhiyab / Kuncheepuram

Goundcr/ Mahkkararrl M a h Nayakka~ arc synonymous. 'I'he commutlity prefers

to call itself J'ehh and male members suffix the termgo~jrider. Et)mologically, the

word Ma&h is derived from Mahi= hdls and nt= people. They live in the hills of

North Arcot, Thriruvannamalai, Salem, Thirucharapalli and Dharmapuri disticts

of Tamil Nadu.

According to the 1981 census, the Malayali population constitutes 2,09,033

(106,826 male and 102,214 female) and j4.1l0f '~ of thc total Scheduled 'Iiibe

population of 'Iamil Nadu.

.3iccordmg to Stephen Fuchs (19731, '"The 4falayali are supposed to have

belonged onginally to the 'Tamil 17tUoll caste who retreated to the hilly tracts rvheo

the Muslim rule bccatnc dolnjiiatlt in South Iildia". Otl~crs claim that thcy arc tllc

descendants of unions of Vellala men with Vedan women.

The Jawdhu Hills block is predomu~ately occupied by Malayali and Irula.

The Malayah speak Tamil among themselves and with other communities. Theyuse

Tamil scnpt.

Mythical origin C

Thurston (1908) says that, "thc hlalayali mbe cont;ists of Vellala caste of

cultivators, and emigrated kotn the sacred city of Conleeveram to the hills about

ten generations ago, when Muhammadan rule was dominant in Southern India".

The Malayali of Javadhu Hills g~vc their ongn as follou~s:

In SS 1055 (1 132 A.D.) some of die Vcd;us of ~ I L ' U I I ~ I ; \ s k i hilt \ \ V I \ Z ~ sl~ould h grven t hm by d ~ e h1m'k:kd 1 'el& of (inli.c\.c~clnl. 'llw!. \\)Y~I.C scomhdly rrfilstul, i111ci 111 anger kidnapped sewn p)img I 'PLU rmudcrs, \vIiom d~cy c;ul.ied ;WI~ m hp~ct. To recorn dxm, srvm I ihhmm set our w1d1 s c ~ ~ o l d o g , It:n~mng unsmlctitn~s \\tidl dleiru.lves that , if dle dogs ~ttumed dtne they should consider dnt d~cy l~d prislled, and sllould

d~ hned CCEIYIC~~S tu be preformed. esbivhg at h e Palar, they found h e hter in flood, and crossed it wih dhiiculty, but theu dogs7 a f k swimming half way, turned back and returned to Con~ewaram. The men, however, continued their journey, and Mled the Vedarswhohad t a l r e n a w a y h m a & m 7 a f t e r ~ dxywntbackt~d&-homes,but fwnd hat they had been given up as lost, their wives had become widows, tfiar funeral ceremonies performed, and they were in consequences outcastes. Under these drcumsmces, they contra& nmmages sifh some Vedlar women, and returned to the Java&, whetr: dxy mk to cultivation, and become the ancestols of the Malayah caste". Another version 'The Malayali deity Kanrarnan finding himself uncomfomble at fGmhqwm m k u p a new abode. ?hoee o h followers,named Pe+mq Nadwanan, and Chinnanan (dx eldest, dx middle-man, and the youngest) stdltad with their fatrd~es to MOW him Erom Kandu, ad came tu Salem &strict, where they took different rrmtes, Pmjmaqmgto d r S h a t o y s , N d ~ \ m ~ to d r Padlaunali and .liurhllls,nld (3unwm to M a n j a d ' ~urston,1909:407,~).

'The Malayali settlements in the Javadhu 1-Iills arc separated into 18

temtorial divisions (rtadrl), each headed by a t~~tlrrti. Each settlement comprising of

nadu headed by an Oornti, is helped by an LTdheri and a gu)m.rati. The top most

position is the 1bahmai tat la^ orgrdrlc, the chief of the communiq.

Residential Pattern

Each village has a Alrntidil~rli (npcr~ ground in thc rnitfdlc of t11c villabw)

where all the marriages, festivals, Oor Kr/ttolm (~dlage gatherings) wdl be held.

Dwelling unit

The roof is thatched wth nlat~rbl, a wdd grass which grows to eight feet in

h q h t and available during the uylter season. A typical Mala$ hut is rectangle in

shape. In front t h m is a th,nnoi blatform) and with the entrance in the middle.

~auhvrubr is the central portion where the rituals are performed.

Type of House

It is seen that most houses are thatched and a few are tiled and fewer are

concrete houses.

MATERIAL CULTURE

Materials that are used by the \lala!;tl~ 111 their even day life are as follows: , .

C

This is used for the storing the grains. It is round in shape and the top can

be raised and fill the grains. Another type is kodahi/kahnjiam, which is

smaller than Dmba.

This is used for mashing the greens in the vessels. It is made up of

nonamaram. The wood is yellow in colour.

Pu&

This is used for measuring the grains. One Putti is equal to forty maraca.

One maraca is equal to 3 I(gs.

This is a wooden vessel boat-shaped, and used for feedmg the pig.

'This is to prevent the cows from grazing UI the fields. -She I ' q u f t ~ i s tied of

the cows mouth.

Vellu ondu:

, T h is a bow, which is used to nd the birds from the tields. This is also used

for hunting small pme .

SOCIAL ORGANISATION

.4 T ' eeh is thc Fundamet~tal social u~llt. 'r'l1c.r~ arc scveral I iutlr/ such as

perlyakathi, rhitrrtakntht, ~~cl/iknfh!y(~tt, kal/oi~{//ar~, yrlcr,t//,~z~~~//~~r/j. Thesc T ilr+d14 form

the basis for idenhh the Ktfh nc'lttzn~ and for the other ccrcmomcs.

Several [ ' e e h togctl~cr constitute a f i~I~~t l lp~rut~r . There are 23 kuI(uns

ldenafied,(Xavier,l992:27) which arc:

I) Armmrrllan/ 2) E h ~ f h ~ ~ ~ e t a t ~ i

3) K a n i r n i ~ ~ a ~ 3) Pa~,arnnllrttnr

5) Sarakk~n~rf//rrr~i 6) P(~kk~n~ad~~yit t~~ee/~(inf

7) Km~tn' rleefurw 8) Nodamrrtlcmr

9) KII t~~l / i~~e~/anf 10) kr4ny~lo/r/lllrni

1 I ) l 'urahyutt nmffarij 12) kolhkodnyntt muftaw

13) Patfuruyaa tl~ftlan/ 13) Tha~trku~uf~un~

15) SingnaaC?t~an 16) film bomuftanf

1 7) Sarahn11{tt(zr14 1 8) M t/lharnr~~r~z~~nz~iflan~ 19) A jarnuttan/ 20) Athzpttum~~tfaw

2 1) Sangadil~eetanf 22) Pahnrlam~~t~unr

23) Pwyannd~zt~(~m

'4 fihnt is exogamous in llahlre. 'Thc h h m is basically used as t l~c basis for marital

exchange.

List of Kof / j~ and the Constituetlt Kr~lrm/.r are given below (Savicr,1932:27):

Kothu Names Constituent (kdam)

Family

Nuclear family is the preferred type among the Malnvali of Javadhu Hills.

Out of the seventy four households surveyed in this study, forty five families are

nuclear families. In two families the head of the household has nvo wives and his

unmamed children and his wife's relatives live together under a single roof

(Supplemented Polygj~~ous family). The other ten are lineall joint family where

the head of the household and his married children are living together (Lineal joint

family). The average size of the household is 4.9/ persons (Table 2.3).

Age at marriage

The general age at marriage for a bop is fifteen years and in the case of a

girl immediately after the puberty. 'This pattern is followed even today.

Marriage

Among the Malayah there are four basic ways of getting/selecting a spouse.

They arc

I ) Ke~~upantra K c ~ b u t i u ~ (arranged ma*)

2) Kunitu Vantbv Panno Ka3anatll @Is are brought to bride grooms house

before mamage)

Table 2.3: Type of family of the Respondent Households

S.No

l6 I Supplemented lineal joint farmly 1 3 (4.05O/o)

1

2

3

4

5 I

Lineal-Collateral Jolnt family 2 (2.70'0)

Supplemented CollateralJoint family 2 (2.70°0)

Supplemented I'olygy~lous

Type of Family No. of families

(percentage)

Nuclear family

Sub Nuclear family

Supplemented Sub nuclear farmly

Single person Household

Lined l ok t hmily

45 (60.81Yo)

3 (4.OS0/o)

6 (8. 10°o)

1 (1.35°/~)

10 (13.5"/0)

Total 74 (100 YO)

3) Odipoi Panna Ka&~tnm (Marriage by elopement)

4) Pannahulo Put~nurn~hu (involving least exp penscs) .

The economic coil side ratio^^ 1s the tnalrl cntcnotl for the cxistencc of the

last three typrs of rnarnagcs.

I'/~trn+/t (I)i\rorcc) I \ al lo\~c,cl :1111011g tlic. \lalalall. W hell a widow/ separated person wants to remany they perform the sunple mamage ceremony

called Nadn t)uefu Ka&rram. Natfan is the m e who offiaates the mamage. As usual,

the ma#et thamukku (drum) would announce the arnval of Nalt(ui. Salt and nce

would be exchanged between the hands of bnde and bridegroom. Then the

bridegroom would ae the ~hah around the bnde's neck.

'When a grl runs away with a boy bclongng to another ~adu, the parents of

the gd have to pay compensation to the hamlet from where tllc girl is from. Tlis

is known asponnuponnathukku thnndanai (punishment for letting the girl go). The

bride's parents give a feast using Samai (Little millet) and Pork to the nattan, oomns

and those in the village. Natratl inturn removes the pollution arising out of the

running away of the gul by the ceremony called Tuttalrr Podt4rthu (Purification

ritual).

LIFE CYCLE CEREMONIES

Delivery and Birth

When a baby is delivered, word is sent to the !hin~cmmu~/ (mother's brother)

and he ties the arunakairrl around the waist of the baby, which is made out of

anthimarrdanaru. The baby is fed first with ~aLhkunat (castor oil) by the elders.

Naming ceremony

If a women does not conceive immediately after the marriage they take a

vow and if the vow 1s fulfilled they givc thc child the name of that goddess.

Immediately after the birth of thc child they start calling by that name or if they

have decided to c d by the elders' name they call by that name.

. . 1 he word of attailli~lg puberty is sent fust to ~ ~ U ; L Y U ~ I , . 'I'h~~im~tm~trt w d

b d d a rmpagagud.rei (seclusioti but) 111 the ~rera~dall. whdl r. m d e up of fh~~mam,~

(Coconut leaves), teak knres. 1 Ie the11 presents her a new dress. On the fourth day

she takes a head bath and criters the housr.

Marriage ceremony

M a q e is preferred between the sister's daughter or mother's brother. To

fix the marriage formally the parents of the boysidc go along with elders to the

girl's place. With them they wd carry 'kvd(1 soul' (basket full of cooked rice) and

also kondi koh (serxltlg spoon made of bamboo). Taking the A1ud1 ..COV~ to the girl's

place is called mcldh2c1. When the kondi koh is gvcn to the girl's side and it indicates

that the boy hkes the p l . If the girl's side accept this prop, lsd, t h e y d keep the

kondihh with them. If they don't like the offer they will return the koh back to the

boy's side. The visit of the boy's side to the girl's house is called ponH tjeedupaka

poran. Once the marriage is fixed, the elders from both the sides visit each other.

-4fter this ritual, both the boy and dle p l start living together. After living toghther

for few months, they arc free eithcr to separate or continue their relation. If they

wanted to conntlue, they inform their parents and recluest them to orpnise

another ritual cr)nfirmulg their marriage. I f the? don't likc to continue the

relationship they can separate by paying thc pcnalh. Tllc elders of the village tvill

decide the pellalt): Dul-itlg the inter-ngnutn period between thc initiation of mar-

tiage process and the final confirmation if the girl hecc.)mes preglant, the baby

born will be with the father.

The h a 1 corlfirmatiorl ritual is celebrated for three days. Usually the ritual

takes place in the bride's place. I f the boy and a grl started living together before

the confirmation the11 the ritual will take place in the bridegrooms place. Now-a-

days the grl's parents think this is the best, as the expenses wdl be borne by the

boy's side there by reducing the expenditure during their daughter's weddmg. On

this occasion, all the relatives dl be g v a l sarec and a dhoti. ~ l o w e v a , if the

mmage akes place at the bride's place both the sides d bear the expenses equally.

'Three before l e manuge thc clders from pc)oms' side dl go m the blide's place and offer a aid nrcnt) mnnrca of rr//~, (paddy).On the first evening the boy and the girl will be smearrd wlth the paste of n~~Ih!ptr thah ulth pi& ( p ~ s ) .

It is d e d 'kehngu t1et(iucedu': 1'bc same custom is repated on the second day On h e

third day, this procrss will takc place wl~erevcr thc marriage is celebrated. 'She

.rwakara~/ @'ooms assistant) uiU carry ar(~.w~ti which collsists of pots, flowers,

natmkutu (stool) etc., in thc k/dh/ (basket). 'l'llc ulnbrclla. krr/h, urill bc carried by

the sumakarun . Rcforc the confirmation ritual, thc g o o m 1s taken to the nmndaiub

(common place in the middle of the village) and thc moopr acts as a priest and

chant the mantras and put the dhamakrfk: podardhr, (sounds of drums) with mucha

kaiM (rope made of grass). They do surigpam (ritual) to get rid of the evrl eye or

theta/. This is called as thaniuerunthu. All the village people will participate in this

function.

Mamage takes place in the nights. On the arrival of the groom the brides'

side wrll offerpanakkam (juice), which is made of aehm (Jaggery), and flowers to

all the guests who attend the ceremony. The girl is carried by the thai mamnrt to the

pan&L The guel is made to sit on tile right side of the bridegroom. The kathz(sword)

is placed on both bride and bridegrooms lap. Both of them are made to sit facing

the k f h a k k ~ (eastern) direction. They exchange rice and pan@" (cereals). After

tymg the tali the bride is tnadc to feed the groom with srrdh(rm (cooked rice). This is

called bhodhaknlj.ronr. The couple is made to sit 011 the cot and the relatives lift the

cot and aathr/r~a)tgo (swing it) ,011 the same day after the marriage the bride is take11

to the groom's place. After entering the house, she is made to worship the k14.h

detlata (family deity)). Y u p d take place it1 thc grooms place. On the third day again the

couple will go to the bride's place uith tlle k~~i'l~i (sword) to remove thep~tth! It is called

&nahIperikardh~/, If the bridegroom forgcts to carry the karh~ he is made to pay the

penalty, which will be decided by the elders. The A& is returned back as a gift to the

groom. After the marriage, the): keep the 1~;ntndhu (feast) to the rdativcs. They

will pe h e laves to all h e pests who have to stitch the laves into a plate to have

a md. First fiq sen7e the rice and pieces of /hok(oknri (blood of the pig is h e d

and sambm. The pork pieces in the janbur WLU be distributed sepantely. First the

men, and then the women will sit and eat. They keep the chetti (vessel) and

5 1

k u h (basket) so that they are also filled and are they are taken home. 'This custom is continuit~g still. 111 tbr third batch all tllr ddrrs nil1 ear rogcthcr, this is

called nadu bh111ythJ. Nowadays bityinoi is also part of tile feast. In addition,

vcgetmian food is also srr\lcd to thosr who won't '>at pork.

Death

The message about the death of a pcrsorl is &st informed to the ooran.

Oman inturn wdl passes on the message to the relatives who are living in other

villages. Immediately after the death they fre in the air with the cc~unny-made gun

to alert the ~ d a g e r s about the death. This is called edtkolam. Only then they send

the message. Thaimaman brings the thancerkodam (pot with water) as thcu'se~tixrnam.

Bebre performing the final nghts, the kuli @it) is dug and the platform is

erected. They keep the body on the platform and pour water. The water is boiled

in the pot, and they apply turmeric and arapuptbd (tbtlrangileaves) paste and the oil

mixed with coco~lut oil, tluhyentlu, vellukuye~r~iu on the head and then they pour

water. Afterwards, pot is kept upsidc down.

The elder son wdl perfor~n the last rrglits. They hght the pyre near the head

wtth mrlngalhtta (Bamboo sack), they call it moksbo 131hk1f. ,411 the rdatives/pangah

(coparcenary heirs) go rou~id the body with that lamp. They break the coconut

near the head, and place tllc kt~ntk~nl and put the garland. 'I'hcy ac the toes and the

hands. They kccp thc bod\. facmg the cntrancc. They crcct thcprrr~d[duutside the

house.

I11 the case uf death of a boy or a grl, the /I)rr/~/rrmil~r puts- yr17/k~mln/p14 trruhtt

on the dead body, Ti the boy dies without car piercing. the car ~ 1 1 1 be picrcd wlt11

t ~ e h befvre perfvr~l~rtlg the firvi right>.

They bury the d a d . But it1 the case uf su~cide t h y bun1 the body. I'he facc

is kept facing thc r)utIl direction a l~d the lebv fa&g thc northcrn direction.

5 2 They perform a ritual to mark thc HI(! of / , l r / i~ (pollutite puiod). Usudly

the end of pollunon period is obscrved on a11 odd day IIuhg tllese days, they

don't anelld ally full~ti~lls. I11 cast uf some fUIIC~ol ls to mkC,, phce immedhtcly a f t ~ a ( h t h . milk is offcred to rbr dead pprsoll in the burial pUd

the very next day and otllcr rituals pcrforincd later i!suallg 0,, rcvellrh day they

call all the relatives for r,in411dlnr (fcastj. ' I I I ~ ~ offci piur,lmro/ ([)ffeyinl: to the

ancestors). 'l'hey mahpvt/g(~i(Ricc cookcil wtll jag"!) alal cook pork and k c .

They keep twopadhuchal separately, one for the ancestors and the other for the

dead person. The priest performs sut~$um (ritual). 1,ater they join the nwpdhachl

together symbolizing the joining of the dead person with the ancestors. Each bow

(kurnkum) on the wall wdl represent the number of persons dead in the fdmily.

This process is performed when a person expires inside the house. If a person is

dead in the field or some other place they perform anotlicr ceremony calledpadhu

kakahrthu. They believe that the souls of persons who expire outside the house

d not reach the house. They perform this satlgyan-, a year later. They callpoqan'

and he sacrifices the goat and chants mantras so that the m i (sprit) possesses a dose

relative of the dead. Thepyan'keeps the rhambu (vessel) on the head of the possesed

and he goes round the village to capture the aui and bring it home. This they

believe a v i d enable to join the ancestors. If an unmarried gd dies, a green tree is

selected and they call itpwttadakari and offer a goat and a new saree. On the k a y m

day they take the lamp to the burial ground with head closcd wit11 piece of cloth in

order to protect the light from the wind. -4fter all formalities are over, thepatgah

will be taken to the thani i'~~/hurayedI~(~m pathing area) by the mrkuru?~ (krillafie people)

and apply a mkture of three oils (cocoout, nrILiye//(i, rii/l?k~~yrnn) and they take

bath there. This marks the end of pollubon period. l'hey believe that during the

pollution pied the .irifl/, (joddcss) will 11ot clltcr t h ~ \,ills@.

Economic Organization

' ' h e Malaj.ali arc mostly depc~ldci~t 011 apia~lturc for their livelihood.

Agriculture is the principal occupation for a majority of the Malayali (Table 2.4).

Sericulture, honey collection, cattle and pig reanng are their subsidiary

occupations.

Table 2.4: Occupation of members of the Respondent household

--

,

Occupation

Cultivation

Casual Labourer

Cultivation & Casual Labourer

Business

Government Job

Private

Total

&

?

Total

149(40.93°/~)

14(3.84?/0)

12(3. 29'10)

8(2.19O/)

7(1.92O/o)

1 (0.27?/0)

191 (10O0/~)

No.of Persons

Male

70

7

7

5

6

1

96

Female

7 9

7

5

3

1

0

95

Seasonal Migration

Many landless persons worhlg as a p c u l m d labourrrs in others' b d ,

and Some of the m a r p a l farmers who do not have apcuJfure work mlgnfe to

the nearby cities like ])angal( )rc. (:l~cnnai for c( )~ l s tractlo~l \vorkr. road lay*lg etc.,

d w l g 1 ~l&(lJftnOllth. \ k l l tarn a!)( )ut Rs.70-80 and \v, )men Rs. j0-(lo, 'l'hc)~ \vOrk

for six days a week. 'l'llry haw about thrcc months of work ill a year.

The main crops are Ke/l)'aragu (Finger millet), Srvnai, Tinai (ox-tail millet),

K o h (Horsegram), c / ~ o . h (sorghum), and j e l l u (Gingelly) . Along the stream o n

both the sides paddy is cultivated in a srnall area. 'I'hc different varieties of crops

that are cultimted are given in the table.2.5. In thc ]avadhu I Iills Block, thetotal

area under cultivatiorl is 1208 acres which includcs both dry arld wet land. 'The

crops that are cultivated are paddy (878 acres), maize (50 acrcs),ragi (35 acres) and

others lrke kollu, tjerkadrllrr (Groundnut), etc, (245 acres). The holding pattern of

the respondent household is given in thc gjven in the table 2.6.

In Javadhu hills the well serves as a main source of d r i n h g water and

migation. Streams and lakes, besides well is used for irrigation.

The Malayali use three l u ~ ~ d s of water lift mechallisms to irrigate the land.

They are manual Iitrm, driven by the animals K~fwlo;, and p m p sets powered

by the diesel. Only few families are using electricity.

D m l g the ..igncultural season the hlalaynli who have less cultrvable larld

work m the~r own fields witl~out hlnng the labourcrs Out of 361 from the 7-1

households studlcd,l-C!, mcmbcrs arc worlung m their owl fields. Iluwlg the

mnsplananm, wrrciulg, harv~stni~g and thrashing sea<( 111 landowners who have

more land hrre the labourers on dally wxgcs. They pay Rs 30 per day to a women

and Rs 50 for a mcri

The produce is m a d s meant for subsistence and very little for marketing.

The reason is that the cultivable plots 111 Javadhu llills have been subject to

fragmentation for generations. During each generatio11 d ~ e land is divided among

5 5

Table 25: Crops cultivated by the Malayali

land) times

*source: ,&vier, 1992.

Table 2.6: Land Holding pattern of Respondent Households

1 Land

Landless

No of H.H

C l acre

1-2 acres

2-3

3-4

4-5

5-6

6-7

7 & above

1

8 (10.8O/0)

2 (2.8*/0)

15 (20.3'/0)

1 5 (20.3910)

8(10.9°/o)

5 (6.8'/0)

8(10.9O/o)

7(9.5!/0)

6 (8.3Ol0)

Total

4

74 (100%)

C

5 7 The surplus of the produce is sold ui the .Y~r~dhoj (weekly market) at

Jannmammthu Wednesday), and Namm\ampam @Iondays), h h y traders from

iilangayam, IreUore and Tllirupattur come to thcsc ~ ~ d h ; .

Forcet Resources

.4nimals use lakes strcatns atld wntc.rI~oIcs it, t l l c forc.st. \l.ood is a11

important resource obtai~lcd from thr forctst. . \ ~ . ~ l d ga.~. /l/(l,,rhi, pows to 8ft i.11

height, and is available during the winter season, is used for the thatchi~~g of the

roof. They cut the logs from the forest and carr), them as head-loads to sell them as

fire-wood for Ks.20-25 in thc plain arcas.

Huntuig and the I-lotley collection is an hnpc)rtant acti\ity colltleaed to the

forest.

Hunting

They hunt small birds, squirrel,pl~ra, mryl, with ka~runlr Aallu, arid with bow

and arrow.

Honey collection

'Honey is a d b l e m the forest for three months l.e,. December, March and

August. One family can collect about 10 Kg of honey tn a week. O n the whole

about 100 Kg can be collected from the forest m one season. 'They get Rs.45 per

one Kg of honey. They sell tt it1 the soacty Soaets for Rural 1)evclopmctlt (SFRD).

The society, 111 turn, sells tllc proccahcrt Iiotlc! for lOO/Kg. I'hc pcoplc wllv

are d in\~ol\~~.cd m the collecholl of honcy from the forest have formed a society

called Rural Ttlbal Somrala Shangam. . i t present t h r q two people are members

~1 tlls Shangam.

Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP)

The ~ ~ a l a y a l i arc employed by thc contractors to collect the forest

produce The NTFP they collect are Aaduka~ (Rail nut), mat~dhkehng~, mongiI

(bamboo) ,yethjku (syzwum) ,P,,,gakkuta (pungam). m(1)y(1mp1rIlr4 to cover the mof

of the house, honey, herbals, re& b n L t t , g d andpuli (tamahd) .

58 Tamarind trees a n an important source of ulcomc. The pludw~g of the

fmts starts horn the months January to March. Malayali are employed by the

contMCtors who obtain the yearly lease !?om the forest Depamnent for Tamarind.

For deseeciling the tamarind frult tllc contractor pays them Rs.25 pa day.

The pasons who are employed by tlir contractors for collecting the N p from the forests pay them according to tllr proclucc. '1'1~1~1Iriku [l'ermi~alai) Rs.5

for one muracrr and for (Clflrrki Kt;. 10 atid for . Y L Y ~ ~ N (gooseberr).) Rs. 13 for ntut~pqp

(soapnut) Rs.5 per one kg andyethtka Rs 3 per Kg. During the season one person

can collect about 10 to 15 mamkrr of Thandrika or h h k a per day and three mamca

of Nefiku per day. During the season the work will be for about ten days.

The thatching of the roof is under taken immediately after the tamarind

pludung season. Pangurti (middle of March) to the end of Aani or the first week of

Aad (middle of July) is utilized for repairing the roof. For minor repairs neuklpilu

(Paddy stalks) are used. They have the local shandy which they sell there produce

like paddy, samai, Ragi etc,. to the contractors. From the money, which they get,

buy the essential items from the shandy.

Livestock

Cattle is ail important absct for many houscliolds. Cows arc kept by the

households for breedmg and also utdued as draught an~mal. They arc mainly used

forploughmg, llftiilgwater for Irngahotl and thraslluig. Some of the \lalayall sells

milk to the m~lk-cooperati\ve SoCleh a t Rs.8 to 9 per litre Out of seventy-four

households, thirty-ot~c households possess on an average of 3.6 cattle per house-

hold.

Goats are used for rebous sacrifices. SLvtecn families are liavi~ig 108 goats/

s h e . They sell each goat for Rs. 600-700.

The Malaya do nut allow the pgs to breed. But they buy piglets (about F are fed on the husk and Rs.bOO/-) from the weekly market and rear them. The plg.

food items left ova. When the plglets are mature they are sold immediately for Rs.

'2000-2500 per a pig.

Table 2.7: Live stock Possession among the Respondent households

Live stock

Cattle

Goat

Poultry

Pig

Total

No.of families

3 1

16

28

10

Total

112

108

1.50

74

444

61 This literally m a n s mixkg of new grains. *rill they perform th nrual, the indi-

~ i d d s in a households would not speak to others (x give u.nter or grains. Resides,

hh deity is worshkped at the h e of pofchhot pod~,r(~fh,, (thanks giving ritual)

ancestral worsllip and othcr import~llt social 2nd rrligious i)ccasio~a.

' l ' h r p a ~ ~ l ~ n I I ~ nicludr. g r : ~ t tr;alita )II ilnht** llkr I'tu,~m//, I'/l(,yo~; J ~ ~ N I Y ~ ~ ~

and Kan/crfrh(1n1/7/(ll 2nd also tllc Itttlc rrnd~t~ol~al ctcsitirc I~kr .\ lrr~-lytmn~mt~n, hill/,

KMnannnnor, Mununr and so (MI. There are a few dunes erc1usn.c to Jamdhu Hills hlalaydi

ltke Vettai Tilambrrran, l'attoznr~~a and 1 'e/hmi(pal~.

They believe that when a person 1s going out and sees an empty pot, the

work for which helshe is going will not be successful.

When a calf is born, they don't offer water or food to any outsider until the

milk.becomcs clear. With the dear milk they makepayus(mlm (a sweet meal) and offer

it to the god and from the next day they give milk or any item to the outsiders.

During the menses period the girls are not supposed to take any milk or

any item made out of it.

Festivals

Chithirill' masam (hlarch-..\pril) k ~ d i dei/,lzn/- FC~hlirmjlrntl~l B'hen this festival is

celebrated no outsider is allowed to be in the village. They announce the date of

the festival and alert the outsiders to leave the village on that day. They say that

nebrungo iin~A14hm nrdpolnnhngopalh~n~. 'This is not possible in Jamunamarathur.

However, in the interior villages this is practiced. '\ day before fe~c~Ik(~lnn/(~i

(Monday) they will go t)~cplnri (rock) outsidc the village arid t h y takcpr~ldd (paddy)

with them and p l d it to rice. Thep~ga/i .~ bring ricc whal they come to participate

in the festival. The nest day sri~iknh~mnli (Tuesday) morning the dhati (pot) is

decorated. And in the m n m samkl4dc~f (basket) il; filled with marl? (beads), cocotlut,

both, Chatha (clothes), Sa,tgu, which is made up ofyenlm(~ madu komdu (buffalo honl). l l l c , r y l f l t k()cj(jcsc) p()sir\rrr OII onr of tllc pcrsoll \vbo wisher to do

padanai (Prayer).

They mdepo!&~Lwith two maraca of rice. 111 the te~nple they d e one ped~ of ~0nga.l and mh togetha with otherpotgaland make it into rou~,d ba. Wit11 the

k e £lour they make ma~u vjfZ~ku (light made of nce paste). Whal the pots we b d

they the sound like kokorako kokanko to bring the goddesses on them.

hkartwhilr in the mandavalli the tirc IS litnl and thc pr7ro1,s wla, wa~lts to do the

ammatt work will roll 111 the fire and takc the rcicik~{ 'They select the nee as scrmt

rnramand the first person who a carryng the watrr spm! the water on the tree m d

h e second person will throw tllc iu(I/Jun~ tw~cc and ~t tnuq not fall dowv11.

Next day thcy worshlp thc vinayakar, thcy go thc temple and offer the

pardhana. The very next day for kanniamma worship they select the young boys

and they must not eat for the whole day until they finish worshipping.

hdimasam (July- August) Tlicy worship rnuriun~rn(r~~ on I:nday and seuaikulamalrri

(Tuesday). First day they go to the temple and worship the goddess. Next day they

worship the goddess in the mnnduljcli. They cook .sudh~m, and put curd, ~lellanz,

coconut and onion. They take this by placing the neern leaves underneath the ves-

sel. In the mandaveli the four sticks are placed and make as a panhl with neem

leaves. All the people place the s(z(ll,~m under thepat/dlrl, and those who offer k14h

is collected in a big vessel. They collect donations and with that money, they buy

k a h i (goat). The n z q n sprays water on the goat and if it nods the head it means it

has accepted the offerings, if it remains silent it rncans something has gone wrong

and they ask for the forgiveness. The meat is shared between themselves. After

eating, the remaining things are made into five parts. Three widows are selected

and they make the sdhnm, Again thcy d l call the other ~kidows and take the other

part of radhonr andpatti (neem leaves). They do the kwpodhurad~ (sounds), and ask

the mahmma to leave thc place, and the widows take the remaining part of the

sad ha^ and without seeing they run towards a m (stream) and put all the remailing

offeting in the water, and without 1ook111g back they go home.

K ~ f t w m a s m (Nov-Drcrmbc~) 1)ulnlg thr reco~~d weck of this month they

worship lmtbu deham - annamala~ deitjam . No outsider is allowed to see whcn they

w h i p the ancestors. They offer the hen,pon& coconut, €nuts and keep the + (lamp). T h i mz&zj (first leaf) d be shared only by the pangah ( copwcenaty

heirs). e

f i famsi f n a a m (Dec-Jalluary) During this mrrlth the people who belong to

~ada rmota r , vishnu gotnm (clan) will not eat every Sawday for the whole month.

on third week of the month tlley cook pp(is(~/rl and vegetables and they all the

relatives and have the feast. \Y'hoIe of this montll tlley abstau~ from takmg

non-vegetarian.

Ipasimasm (Oct-Sotr) Ileepavali

T h d m a m - (Jan-Feb)Po@ Bqiis celebrated on thuteen of this month. They

buy new clothes. O n thepongaIday they clean the house and put maraca of nehin

one corner and decorate with different vartehes of flowers. Tn the night around

3 am the women goes to the ncar by well to fetch new water. \Y'l~ile coming thc

women sings thegtmiput114 (songs) a~ld make the sounds kokorukocalled as kqbatlu.

Masimasm.-(Feb-March) On the sitiardthti day they cook the macrachoLzm, vuhwi

kotha and offer it to the god szljaperunlan.

PmgumNmasam (March-.4prd) Telugu tnr.shc'pirr7prt thcy call it as tigallhi, A day

before the festival they makeyeIl~tpo~~t~di. It is made up of rag they make roti first

when it is hot they put it it1 the voral @~der) meanwhile they fry the kadal kothai

and make it powder and keep it rcadp. LY'hcn the roti is hot they put in the t)oruland

mix with the powder and add I~P / / ( I~ (laggery) to it. l'he\t also prepare ~urofhi with

keIt)an/g~d and put tvI/r~n~ and p n d it and make into balls.

Next day tell to hVt!tlty peoplc udl togctllrr be) the pig and sharc among

thcmselves and cook in tha t houscs and offer to thc kr~liihe~~*am and cat. They haw

the belief that if they lvnk on this day they \\ill work A)r the whole year.

There is a sa~ulg that Ah-,~u(irr e h i i ~urtiilh a ~ d /gli(/Ijt itoirrib~pog~~nr T h t

means the festivals end with ugadhi.

Food habits

They are non-vegetarians but abstam from caruig beet Pork consmption

is higher than any othn meat. Pork is catrn on all the occasions like mamiage,

S O C ~ gatl~criap, f~rtl\~als, csprcl:dly dunt~g I jiulit, l)lK I* rcarrd and butchcrcti

and distributed amolv tllr famics wllm coatributed for b u ~ g the piglet.

, , I lwir staple foot1 coi~sis ts ofrabq, tic(!, si1111:1i (:I i~~illtct), jo\~ls, I I O ~ ~ ~ - ~ T ~ I I ~

aild groundnut. 'l'hcy c%t thrice in a day.

Samai 'I'hey will make Uppama out of samai.

Kulr : They take k h w h e n they are worlung in the field Kubr can be prepared f;om sohm, h b u , makkachohm and ragi.

Nellu Sow (cooked rice)

Sambas: They make samba with Irir~Ullr ~rkonru/ koll~~kottrli, uiwui (field bean), m d a i

(lab lab beans), tharat~i, karamat~i (cowpea), kaIyapt/ci~tikui @ u m p h ) , sumhi @o ttle

guard), patlakko (bitter guard), /on?oto, kaknnii{.fjkjroi (ninainkoli) (solanum),

pannakirai (pannalurai), googukjrai (hemp).

Vegetable: The). prepare vegetable separately w i t h p i ~ ~ k , nijraka, karamanl.