Chapter 6

Paniyans making fire.Paniyans making fire.At Pudupādi an elephant mahout was jealously guarding a bit of bamboo stick with notches cut in it, each notch representing a day for which wages were due to him. The stick in question had six notches, representing six days’ wages.Average height 157.4 cm. Nasal index 95 (max. 108.6). The average distance from the tip of the middle finger to the top of the patella was 4.6 cm. relative to stature = 100, which approximates very closely to the recorded results of measurement of long-limbed African negroes.Panjai.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-division of Pāndya Vellāla. The name Panjai, indicating a poverty-stricken individual, is usually applied to mendicant Pandārams.Panjāram.—Panjāram or Panchāramkatti is the name of a sub-division of the Idaiyans, derived from the peculiar gold ornament, which the women wear. It is said that, in this division, widow marriage is commonly practiced, because Krishna used to place a similar ornament round the necks of Idaiyan widows of whom he became enamoured, and that this sub-division was the result of his amours with them.Panjukkāra(cotton-man).—An occupational name of a sub-division of Vellālas, who are not at the present day connected with the cotton trade. They call themselves Panjukkāra Chettis. The equivalent panjāri (pinjāri) or Panjukotti occurs as a Tamil synonym for Dūdēkula (Muhammadan cotton-cleaners).Pannādai(sheath of the cocoanut leaf).—A sub-division of Vēttuvan.Pannaiyān.—A title of Alavan.Pannara.—A sub-division of Māli.Pannendu Nāl(twelve days).—A name for those Pallis who, like Brāhmans, perform the final death ceremonies on the twelfth day.Pannirendām(twelfth) Chetti.—A section of the Chettis.Pāno.—In the Madras Census Report, 1891, the Pānos are described as “a caste of weavers found in the Ganjam district. This caste is no doubt identical with the Pāns, a weaving, basket-making, and servile caste of Orissa and Chota Nagpore. The Pānos occupy the same position among the Khonds of Ganjam as the Dombs hold among the inhabitants of the Vizagapatam hills, and the words Pāno and Dombo are generally regarded as synonyms [SeeDōmb]. The members of the Sitra sub-division are workers in metal.” It is further noted, in the Census Report, 1901, that the Pānos are “an extensive caste of hill weavers found chiefly in the Ganjam Agency. The Khond synonym for this word is Domboloko, which helps to confirm the connection between this caste and the Dombas of Vizagapatam. They speak Khond and Oriya.” In a note on the Pānos, I read that “their occupations are trading, weaving, and theft. They live on the ignorance and superstition of the Khonds as brokers, pedlars, sycophants, and cheats. In those parts where there are no Oriyas, they possess much influence, and are always consulted by the Khonds in questions of boundary disputes.” In a brief account of the Pānos, Mr. C. F. MacCartie writes47that “thePānos, also known by the title of Dombo or Sitra in some parts, are supposed to be Paraiya [Telugu Mala] emigrants from the low country. Their profession is weaving or brass work, the monotony of which they vary by petty trading in horns, skins and live cattle, and occasionally enliven by house-breaking and theft at the expense of the Khonds, who have an incautious trick of leaving their habitations utterly unguarded when they go off to the hills to cultivate. [In the Madras Census Report, 1901, the Sitras are said to be supposed to be the progeny of a Khond man and a Haddi woman, who manufacture the brass rings and bangles worn by the Khonds.] The Pānos are drunken, immoral, and dirty in their habits. The Khonds refuse to eat with them, but I do not find that this objection extends to drinking, at which both Khond and Pāno display surprising capabilities. Pānos are also the professional musicians of the country, and attend weddings, deaths and sacrifices in this character, for which they are recompensed with food, liquor, and cloths. The generality of Khond and Pāno houses are constructed of broad sâl (Shorea robusta) logs, hewn out with the axe and thatched with jungle grass, which is impervious to white-ants. In bamboo jungles, of course, bamboo is substituted for sâl. The Pānos generally affect a detached quarter, known as Dombo sai. Intermarriage between Khonds, Pānos, and Uriyas is not recognised, but cases do occur when a Pāno induces a Khond woman to go off with him. She may live with him as his wife, but no ceremony takes place. [A few years ago, a young Khond was betrothed to the daughter of another Khond, and, after a few years, managed to pay up the necessary number of gifts. He then applied to the girl’s father to name the day for the marriage. Before the wedding took place however, aPāno went to the girl’s father, and said that she was his daughter (she had been born before her parents were married), and that he was the man to whom the gifts should have been paid. The case was referred to a council, which decided in favour of the Pāno.] If a Pāno commits adultery with a Khond married woman, he has to pay a paronjo, or a fine of a buffalo to the husband (who retains his wife), and in addition a goat, a pig, a basket of paddy (rice), a rupee, and a load of pots. There is close communication between the Pānos and the Khonds, as the former act as the advisers of the latter in all cases of doubt or difficulty. The Uriyas live apart from both, and mix but little with either, except on the occasion of sacrifices or other solemn assemblages, when buffaloes are slaughtered for Pānos and Khonds, and goats or sheep for Uriya visitors. [It is noted, in the Ganjam Manual, in connection with Khond death ceremonies, that “if a man has been killed by a tiger, purification is made by the sacrifice of a pig, the head of which is cut off with a tangi (axe) by a Pāno, and passed between the legs of the men in the village, who stand in a line astraddle. It is a bad omen to him, if the head touches any man’s legs.] Among the products of the jungles may be included myrabolams (Terminaliafruits), tasar silk cocoons, and dammer, all of which are bartered by the finders to trading Pānos in small quantities, generally for salt.” In the Ganjam Māliahs, the jungles are said to be searched by Pānos for tasar cocoons, and, just across the border in Boad, the collection of these cocoons is a regular industry among them. Small portions of jungle are regularly reserved, and divided up into small allotments. Each of these is given to a Pāno for rent, and here he cultivates the silkworms, and collects thesilk, which is sent to Berhampur and Sambalpur for manufacture.The Pānos are divided into two distinct sections, viz., the Khonda Pānos who live amidst the Khonds, and the Dēsa Pānos of the plains. The former have adopted some of the customs of the Khonds, while the latter follow the customs of the Uriya castes which dwell in the lowland. The Khond Pānos are governed by the Molikos (headmen) of the Khonds. In some cases, the fines inflicted for breach of caste rules are rather severe. For example, in the neighbourhood of Baliguda, a man who is convicted of adultery has to pay two rupees, and give two buffaloes to the council which tries the case. Further south, for a similar offence twelve buffaloes are demanded, and the culprit has to pay twice the amount of the bride-price to the injured husband. The Dēsa Pānos conform to the standard Uriya type of caste council, and have a headman called Bēhara, who is assisted by a Nāyako, and caste servants entitled Bhollobaya or Gonjāri.The marriage ceremonies of the Dēsa Pānos are closely allied to those of the Dandāsis and Haddis, whereas those of the Khonda Pānos bear a close resemblance to the ceremonies of the Khonds. Like Khond girls, unmarried Khond Pāno girls sleep in quarters (dhangadi) specially set apart for them, and, as among the Khonds, wedding presents in the form of gontis are given. It is noted with reference to the Khonds, in the Ganjam Manual, that “the bride is looked upon as a commercial speculation, and is paid for in gontis. A gonti is one of anything, such as a buffalo, a pig, or a brass pot; for instance, a hundred gontis might consist of ten bullocks, ten buffaloes, ten sacks of corn, ten sets of brass, twenty sheep, ten pigs, and thirty fowls.” Ata Khond Pāno marriage, the fingers of the contracting couple are linked together, and an important item of the ceremonial, which adds dignity thereto, is placing in front of the house at which a marriage is being celebrated a big brass vessel containing water, with which the guests wash their feet.The Pānos pay reverence to ancestors, to whom, when a death occurs in a family, food is offered. In some Pāno villages, when a child is born, it is customary to consult a pūjāri (priest) as to whether the grandfather or great-grandfather is re-born in it. If the answer is in the affirmative, pigs are sacrificed to the ancestors. Some Pānos have adopted the worship of Tākurānis (village deities), to whom rice and turmeric are offered by placing them before the image in the form of a figure-of-eight. A fowl is sacrificed, and its blood allowed to flow on to one loop of the figure. In some places, Dharmadēvata and Gagnasuni are worshipped, a castrated goat being sacrificed annually to the former, and fowls and an entire goat to the latter.Pāno women, who live among the Khonds, tattoo their faces in like manner, and in other respects resemble Khond women.I am informed that, on more than one occasion, Pānos have been known to rifle the grave of a European, in the belief that buried treasure will be found.Panta(a crop).—A sub-division of Kāpu and Yānādi. In the Gazetteer of South Arcot, Pan Reddi is recorded as a caste of Telugu-speaking ryots (Kāpus).Pantala.—Recorded, in Travancore, as a sub-division of Sāmantan. The name is said to be derived from Bhandārattil, or belonging to the royal treasury.Pantāri.—Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, as synonymous with the Idacheri sub-divisionof Nāyar. Pantrantu Vītan is also there recorded as a sub-division of Nāyar.Pappadam.—People calling themselves Pappadam Chetti are largely found in Malabar, living by the manufacture and sale of cakes called pappadam, which are purchased by all classes, including Nambūtiri Brāhmans.Pappini.—A name for Brāhmanis, a class of Ambalavāsi.Pappu(split pulse).—An exogamous sept of Balija.Paradēsi.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a class of Malayālam beggars. The name indicates strangers (paradēsa, a foreign country), and is applied to the White Jews of Cochin, in connection with whom it occurs in Sirkar (State) accounts and royal writs granted to them.Paraiya Tāda.—Recorded, in the North Arcot Manual, as a name for those who are considered impure Valluvans. The name literally means Paraiya Tādan or Dāsari.Paraiyan.—The Paraiyans or, as they are commonly termed, Pariahs of the Tamil country number, according to recent census returns, over two million souls, and a large proportion of those who returned themselves as Native Christians are said also to belong to this class. For the following note I am mainly indebted to an account of the Paraiyans by the Rev. A. C. Clayton.48The late Bishop Caldwell derived the name Paraiyan from the Tamil word parai a drum, as certain Paraiyans act as drummers at marriages, funerals, village festivals, and on occasions when Government or commercial announcements are proclaimed. Mr. H. A. Stuart,however, seems to question this derivation, remarking49that “it is only one section of Paraiyans that act as drummers. Nor is the occupation confined to Paraiyans. It seems in the highest degree improbable that a large, and at one time powerful, community should owe its name to an occasional occupation, which one of its divisions shares with other castes. The word Paraiyan is not found in Divākaram, a Tamil dictionary of the eleventh century A.D., and the word Pulayan was then used to denote this section of the population, as it is still in Malayālam to this day.” In the legend of the Saivite saint, Nandan is, in the prose version of the Periya Purānam, called a Pulayan, though a native of Shōlamandalam, which was a distinctly Tamil kingdom. Mr. W. Francis writes50that “the old Tamil poems and works of the early centuries of the Christian era do not mention the name Paraiyan, but contain many descriptions of a tribe called the Eyinas, who seem to have been quite distinct from the rest of the population, and did not live in the villages, but in forts of their own. Ambūr and Vellore are mentioned as the sites of two of these. They may perhaps have been the ancestors of the Paraiyans of to-day.”In a note on the Paraiyans, Sonnerat, writing51in the eighteenth century, says that “they are prohibited from drawing water from the wells of other castes; but have particular wells of their own near their inhabitations, round which they place the bones of animals, that they may be known and avoided. When an Indian of any other caste permits a Paraiya to speak to him, this unfortunate being is obliged to hold his hand before his mouth, lest the Indian may be contaminated with hisbreath; and, if he is met on the highway, he must turn on one side to let the other pass. If any Indian whatever, even a Choutre, by accident touches a Paraiya, he is obliged to purify himself in a bath. The Brāhmans cannot behold them, and they are obliged to fly when they appear. Great care is taken not to eat anything dressed by a Paraiya, nor even to drink out of the vessel he has used; they dare not enter the house of an Indian of another caste; or, if they are employed in any work, a door is purposely made for them; but they must work with their eyes on the ground; for, if it is perceived they have glanced at the kitchen, all the utensils must be broken. The infamy of the Paraiyas is reflected on the Europeans: last are held in more detestation, because, setting aside the little respect they have for the cow, whose flesh they eat, the Indians reproach them with spitting in their houses, and even their temples: that when drinking they put the cup to their lips, and their fingers to their mouths in such a manner that they are defiled with the spittle.”Paraiyans are to be found throughout the Tamil districts from North Arcot to Tinnevelly, and in the southern extremity of the Native State of Travancore. In the Telugu country the Mālas and Mādigas and in the Canarese country the Holeyas take their place.Some of the most common names of Paraiyan males are—Kanni or Kanniyappan.Rāman or Rāmaswāmi.Rāju.Vēlu.Muttan.Māri.Kanagan.Subban.Nondi.Tambiran.Perumāl.Vīran.Sellan.Amāvāsi.Among females the most common names are Tai, Parpathi, Ammai, Kanni, Muttammāl, Rājammāl, Ammani, Selli, Gangammāl. In one village, where the Paraiyans were almost all Vaishnavas, by profession not by practice, Mr. Clayton found the inhabitants all named after heroes of the Mahābhārata, and dirty naked children answered to the names of Ikshvākan, Karnan, Bhīman, and Draupadi. It is usual to give the father’s name when distinguishing one Paraiyan from another,e.g., Tamburan, son of Kannan. In legal documents the prefix Para denotes a Paraiyan,e.g., Para Kanni, the Paraiyan Kanni, but this is a purely clerical formula. The Paraiyan delights in nicknames, and men sometimes grow so accustomed to these that they have almost forgotten their real names. The following nicknames are very common :—Nondi, lame.Kallan, thief.Kullan, dwarf.Vellei, white or light complexioned.Kannan, with eyes.Muthalai, crocodile.Kudiyan, drunkard.No name, indicating virtue or merit, is given, lest the wrath of malevolent spirits should be aroused.At the census, 1891, 348 sub-divisions were returned, of which the following were strongest in point of numbers :—Amma found chiefly in Tanjore and Madura; Katti in Salem and Trichinopoly; Kīzhakkatti (eastern) in Salem; Kōliyan (weavers) in Chingleput, Tanjore and Trichinopoly; Konga in Salem; Korava in Coimbatore; Kōttai (fort) in South Arcot; Morasu (drum) in Salem; Mottai in Madura; Pacchai (green) in Coimbatore; Sāmbān in South Arcot; Sangidum (sanku, conch, or chank shell) in Coimbatore; Sōzhia (natives of the Sōzha or Chōla country) in Tanjore and Madura;Tangalān in North and South Arcot, Chingleput, Salem, and Trichinopoly; and Valangamattu in South Arcot. The members of the various sub-divisions do not intermarry.Paraiyan.Paraiyan.It has been suggested to me that the Morasu Paraiyans, included in the above list, are Canarese Holeyas, who have settled in the Tamil country. In the south their women, like the Kallans, wear a horsehair thread round the neck. As additional sub-divisions, the following may be noted :—Aruththukattātha, or those who, having once cut the tāli-string, do not tie it a second time,i.e., those who do not permit remarriage of widows.Valai(a net).—Paraiyans who hunt.Sanku(conch-shell).—Those who act as conch-blowers at funerals.Thātha.—Thāthan is the name given to mendicants who profess Vaishnavism. Such Paraiyans are Vaishnavites, and some are beggars.In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis notes that the term Paraiyan “is now almost a generic one, and the caste is split up into many sub-divisions, which differ in manners and ways. For example, the Kōliyans, who are weavers, and the Valluvans, who are medicine men and priests and wear the sacred thread, will not intermarry or eat with the others, and are now practically distinct castes.” As occupational titles of Paraiyans Mr. Francis gives Urumikkāran and Pambaikkāran, or those who play on drums (urumi and pambai), and Podarayan or Podara Vannān, who are washermen. The title Valangamattān, or people of the right-hand division, is assumed by some Paraiyans.Mr. Clayton states that he knows of no legend or popular belief among the Paraiyans, indicating thatthey believe themselves to have come from any other part of the country than that where they now find themselves. There is, however, some evidence that the race has had a long past, and one in which they had independence, and possibly great importance in the peninsula. Mr. Stuart mentions52that the Valluvans were priests to the Pallava kings before the introduction of the Brāhmans, and even for some time after it. He quotes an unpublished Vatteluttu inscription, believed to be of the ninth century, in which it is noted that “Srī Valluvam Puvanavan, the Uvacchan (or temple ministrant), will employ six men daily, and do the temple service.” The inference is that the Valluvan was a man of recognised priestly rank, and of great influence. The prefix Srī is a notable honorific. By itself this inscription would prove little, but the whole legendary history of the greatest of all Tamil poets, Tiruvalluvar, “the holy Valluvan,” confirms all that can be deduced from it. His date can only be fixed approximately, but it is probable that he flourished not later than the tenth century A.D. It is safe to say that this extraordinary sage could not have attained the fame he did, or have received the honours that were bestowed upon him, had not the Valluvans, and therefore the Paraiyans, been in the circle of respectable society in his day. This conjecture is strengthened by the legend that he married a Vellāla girl. The same hypothesis is the only one that will account for the education and the vogue of the sister of the poet, the aphoristic poetess Avvei.In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis mentions an inscription of the Chōla King Rāja Rāja, dated about the eleventh century A.D., in which the Paraiyan caste iscalled by its own name. It had then two sub-divisions, the Nesavu or weavers, and Ulavu or ploughmen. The caste had even then its own hamlets, wells and burning-grounds.There are certain privileges possessed by Paraiyans, which they could never have gained for themselves from orthodox Hinduism. They seem to be survivals of a past, in which Paraiyans held a much higher position than they do now. It is noted by Mr. M. J. Walhouse53that “in the great festival of Siva at Trivalūr in Tanjore the headman of the Parēyars is mounted on the elephant with the god, and carries his chauri (yak-tail fly fan). In Madras, at the annual festival of Egatta, the goddess of the Black,54now George, Town, when a tāli is tied round the neck of the idol in the name of the entire community, a Parēyan is chosen to represent the bridegroom. At Mēlkotta in Mysore, the chief seat of the followers of Rāmānuja Achārya, and at the Brāhman temple at Bēlur, the Holēyas or Parēyars have the right of entering the temple on three days in the year specially set apart for them.” At Mēlkote, the Holeyas and Mādigas are said to have been granted the privilege of entering thesanctum sanctorumalong with Brāhmans and others on three days by Rāmānuja. In 1799, however, the right to enter the temple was stopped at the dhvajastambham, or consecrated monolithic column. At both Bēlur and Mēlkote, as soon as the festival is over, the temples are ceremonially purified. At Srīperumbudūr in the Chingleput district, the Paraiyans enjoy a similar privilege to those at Tiruvalūr, in return for having sheltered an image of the locally-worshippedincarnation of Vishnu during a Muhammadan raid. It is noted by Mr. Stuart that the lower village offices, the Vettiyan, Taliāri, Dandāsi or Bārike, and the Tōti, are, in the majority of Madras villages, held by persons of the Paraiyan caste. Paraiyans are allowed to take part in pulling the cars of the idols in the great festivals at Conjeeveram, Kumbakōnam, and Srīvilliputtūr. Their touch is not reckoned to defile the ropes used, so that other Hindus will pull with them. With this may be compared the fact that the Telugu Mālas are custodians of the goddess Gauri, the bull Nandi, and Ganēsa, the chief gods of the Saiva Kāpus and Balijas. It may also be noted that the Kōmatis, who claim to be Vaisyas, are bound to invite Mādigas to their marriages, though they take care that the latter do not hear the invitation. Mr. Clayton records that he has heard well-authenticated instances of Brāhman women worshipping at Paraiyan shrines in order to procure children, and states that he once saw a Paraiyan exorciser treating a Brāhman by uttering mantrams (consecrated formulæ), and waving a sickle up and down the sufferer’s back, as he stood in a threshing floor.In a note on the Paraiyans of the Trichinopoly district, Mr. F. R. Hemingway writes as follows. “They have a very exalted account of their lineage, saying that they are descended from the Brāhman priest Sāla Sāmbavan, who was employed in a Siva temple to worship the god with offerings of beef, but who incurred the anger of the god by one day concealing a portion of the meat, to give it to his pregnant wife, and was therefore turned into a Paraiyan. The god appointed his brother to do duty instead of him, and the Paraiyans say that Brāhman priests are their cousins. For this reason they wear a sacred thread at their marriages and funerals.At the festival of the village goddesses, they repeat an extravagant praise of their caste, which runs as follows. ‘The Paraiyans were the first creation, the first who wore the sacred thread, the uppermost in the social scale, the differentiators of castes, the winners of laurels. They have been seated on the white elephant, the Vīra Sāmbavans who beat the victorious drum.’ It is a curious fact that, at the feast of the village goddess, a Paraiyan is honoured by being invested with a sacred thread for the occasion by the pūjāri (priest) of the temple, by having a turmeric thread tied to his wrists, and being allowed to head the procession. This, the Paraiyans say, is owing to their exalted origin.”In times of drought some of the lower orders, instead of addressing their prayers to the rain god Varuna, try to induce a spirit or dēvata named Kodumpāvi (wicked one) to send her paramour Sukra to the affected area. The belief seems to be that Sukra goes away to his concubine for about six months, and, if he does not then return, drought ensues. The ceremony consists in making a huge figure of Kodumpāvi in clay, which is placed on a cart, and dragged through the streets for seven to ten days. On the last day, the final death ceremonies of the figure are celebrated. It is disfigured, especially in those parts which are usually concealed. Vettiyans (Paraiyan grave-diggers), who have been shaved, accompany the figure, and perform the funeral ceremonies. This procedure is believed to put Kodumpāvi to shame, and to get her to induce Sukra to return, and stay the drought. Paraiyans are said55to wail as though they were at a funeral, and to beat drums in the funeral time.The Paraiyans are said by Mr. Francis56to have a curious share in the ceremonies in connection with the annual buffalo sacrifice at the Kāli shrine at Mangalam in South Arcot. “Eight men of this community are chosen from eight adjoining villages, and one of them is selected as leader. His wife must not be with child at the’ time, and she is made to prove that she is above all suspicion by undergoing the ordeal of thrusting her hand into boiling gingelly (Sesamum) oil. On each of ten days for which the festival lasts, this Paraiyan has to go round some part of the boundaries of the eight villages, and he is fed gratis by the villagers during this time. On the day of the sacrifice itself, he marches in front of the priest as the latter kills the buffaloes. The Paraiyans of the eight villages have the right to the carcases of the slaughtered animals.”The Paraiyans know the village boundaries better than anyone else, and are very expert in this matter, unerringly pointing out where boundaries should run, even when the Government demarcation stones are completely overgrown by prickly-pear, or have been removed. Mr. Stuart records a custom which prevails in some parts of making a Paraiyan walk the boundaries of a field with a pot of water on his head, when there is any dispute about their exact position. He thinks that the only satisfactory explanation of this is that the connection of the Paraiyans with the soil is of much longer standing than that of other castes. The admitted proprietary right which Paraiyans have in the site known as chēri-nattam, on which their huts stand, is a confirmation of this. These sites are entered as such on the official village maps. They cannot be taken from theParaiyans, and date from time immemorial. Throughout the whole of the Tamil country it is usual to find that the land allotted for house-site (nattam) is in two portions in every village (Ūr). One part is known by the Sanskrit name grāmam (village), the inhabited place. The other is called by the Dravidian name chēri (gathering place).Sometimes the latter is called by the fuller title parachēri (Anglice parcheri, parcherry),i.e., the gathering place of the Paraiyans. In the grāmam live the Brāhmans, who sometimes dwell, in a quarter by themselves known as the agrahāra, and also other Hindus. In the parachēri live the Paraiyans. The parachēri and the grāmam are always separated, at least by a road or lane, and often by several fields. And not only is it usual thus to find that, in every village, the Paraiyans as a community possess a house-site, but there are many cases in which more than one chēri is attached to a grāmam. This seems to repudiate the suggestion that at some period or periods the higher castes relegated the Paraiyans to these chēris. Indeed, in some cases, the very names of the chēris suggest what appears to be the more correct view, viz., that the chēris had a distinct origin. For instance, the whole revenue village of Teiyar near Chingleput consists of one Sūdra grāmam and seven Paraiyan chēris, each with a name of its own, Periyapillēri, Komanchēri, etc. In other cases,e.g., Ideipālayam in the north of the district, and Varadarājapuram near Vandalūr, only Paraiyan hamlets exist; there is no grāmam. In South Arcot there are at least two villages, Govindanallūr and Andapet, inhabited only by Paraiyans, where even the Maniyakkāran (munsiff or village headman) is a Paraiyan. Other instances might be quoted in proof of the same opinion. And, when the ceremonialantipathy between Brāhman and Paraiyan is examined, it points in the same direction. It is well known that a Brāhman considers himself polluted by the touch, presence, or shadow of a Paraiyan, and will not allow him to enter his house, or even the street in which he lives, if it is an agrāhāra. But it is not so well known that the Paraiyans will not allow a Brāhman to enter the chēri. Should a Brāhman venture into the Paraiyan’s quarter, water with which cow-dung has been mixed is thrown on his head, and he is driven out. It is stated57by Captain J. S. F. Mackenzie that “Brāhmans in Mysore consider that great luck will await them if they can manage to pass through the Holeya quarter of a village unmolested, and that, should a Brāhman attempt to enter their quarters, they turn out in a body and slipper him, in former times it is said to death.” Some Brāhmans consider a forsaken parachēri an auspicious site for an agrāhāra. A very peculiar case is that of the grāmam founded for, and occupied by the clerks of the earliest Collectors (district magistrates) of the jagir of Karunguli from 1795 to 1825 A.D. These clerks were Brāhmans, and it was called the agrāhāram. It was deserted when the head-quarters of the Collector were removed to Conjeeveram. It is now occupied by Paraiyans, but is still called the agrāhāram.The facts, taken together, seem to show that the Paraiyan priests (Valluvans), and therefore the Paraiyans as a race, are very ancient, that ten centuries ago they were a respectable community, and that many were weavers. The privileges they enjoy are relics of an exceedingly long association with the land. The institution of the parachēri points to original independence,and even to possession of much of the land. If the account of the colonisation of Tondeimandalam by Vellālans in the eighth century A.D. is historic, then it is possible that at that time the Paraiyans lost the land, and that their degradation as a race began.The Paraiyans have long been a settled race. And, though a number of them emigrate to Ceylon, Mauritius, South Africa, the West Indies, the Straits Settlements, and even to Fiji, the vast majority live and die within a mile or two of the spot where they were born. The houses in which they live are not temporary erections, or intended for use during certain seasons of the year only. The rudest form is a hut made by tying a few leaves of the palmyra palm on to a framework of poles or bamboos. The better class of houses are a series of rooms with low mud walls and thatched roof, but generally without doors, surrounding a small courtyard, in which the family goats, buffaloes, and fowls have their homes. The cooking is done anywhere where it is convenient either indoors or out, as there is no fear of pollution from the glance or shadow of any passer-by. Very occasionally the walls of the house, especially those facing the street, are whitewashed, or decorated with variegated patterns or figures in red and white. Paraiya women, like higher caste women, are much given to tracing exceedingly intricate symmetrical designs (kōlam) with rice flour on the smooth space or pathway immediately before the doors of their houses, it is said, to prevent the entrance of evil spirits. Mr. S. P. Rice writes to me that the patterns on the floor or threshold are generally traced with white powder,e.g., chalk, as rice is too costly; and that the original object of the custom was not to drive away evil spirits, but to provide food for the lowest creatures of creation—ants, insects, etc.Admissions to the Paraiyan caste from higher castes sometimes occur. Mr. Clayton records having met an Aiyangar Brāhman who was working as a cooly with some Paraiyan labourers at Kodaikānal on the Palni hills. He had become infatuated with a Paraiya woman, and had consequently been excommunicated, and became a Paraiyan.In every Paraiya settlement a small number of the more important men are known as Panakkāran (money-man). The application of the term may, Mr. Clayton suggests, be due to their comparative opulence, or may have arisen from the custom of paying them a small sum (panam) for various services to the community. But Panikkar or Panakkar is usually said to be derived from pani, meaning work. They form a committee or council to decide ordinary quarrels, and to amerce the damages in cases of assault, seduction, rape, and adultery. They have power to dissolve marriages on account of the wife, or if the husband has deserted his wife. In these cases their authority is really based on the public opinion of the parachēri, and goes no further than that public opinion will enforce it. There is no headman in a Paraiya hamlet corresponding to the munsiff or village magistrate of the Hindu village (grāma). In modern practice the Paraiyans are, for police purposes, under the authority of the munsiff of the grāma, and there is a growing tendency on their part to refer all disputes and assaults to the munsiff, or even directly to the police. On the other hand, cases of a more domestic nature, such as disputes about betrothals, seduction, etc., are still dealt with, generally acutely and fairly, by the village council. It should be added that the rank of Panakkāran is hereditary, and is regarded as honourable.The Paraiyans, like all the other right-hand castes, come under the jurisdiction of the Dēsāyi Chettis, who have held a sort of censorship since the days of the Nawābs of Arcot over some twenty-four of these right-hand castes, chiefly in North Arcot. The Dēsāyi Chetti has nominal power to deal with all moral offences, and is supposed to have a representative in every village, who reports every offence. But, though his authority is great in North Arcot, and the fines levied there bring in an income of hundreds of rupees yearly, it is not so much dreaded in other districts. The punishment usually inflicted is a fine, but sometimes a delinquent Paraiyan will be made to crawl on his hands and knees on the ground between the legs of a Paraiya woman as a final humiliation. The punishment of excommunication,i.e., cutting off from fire and water, is sometimes the fate of the recalcitrant, either before the council or the Dēsāyi Chetti, but it is seldom effective for more than a short time. Mr. K. Rangachari adds that, in certain places, the Dēsāyi Chetti appoints the Panakkāran, who is subordinate to the Dēsāyi, and that a man called the Variyan or Shalavāthi is sometimes appointed as assistant to the Panakkāran. He also mentions some other punishments. The fine for adultery is from 7 pagodas 14 fanams to 11 pagodas, when the wronged woman is unmarried. If she is married, the amount ranges from 12 pagodas 14 fanams to 16 pagodas. The fine is said to be divided between the woman, her husband, the members of council, and the Panakkārans. Formerly an offender against the Paraiyan community was tied to a post at the beginning of his trial, and, if found guilty, was beaten. He might escape the flogging by paying a fine of two fanams per stripe. Sometimes a delinquent is paraded through the hamlet, carrying a rubbish basket,or is ordered to make a heap of rubbish at a certain spot. Or a cord is passed from one big toe over the bowed neck of the culprit, and tied to his other big toe, and then a stone is placed on his bent back. In some places, when an unmarried woman is convicted of adultery, she is publicly given a new cloth and a bit of straw or a twig, apparently in mockery. It is said that formerly, if the chastity of a bride was suspected, she had to pick some cakes out of boiling oil. This she had to do just after the tāli had been tied in the wedding ceremony. Her hair, nails, and clothes were examined, to see that she had no charm concealed. After lifting the cakes from the oil, she had to husk some rice with her bare hand. If she could do this, her virtue was established. In the South Arcot district, according to Mr. Francis,58the Paraiyans “have caste headmen called the Periya (big) Nattān and the Chinna (little) Nattān or Tangalān (our man), whose posts are usually hereditary. The Tangalān carries out the sentence of caste panchayats, administering a thrashing to the accused for example, if such be the order of the court. Of the fines inflicted by these assemblies, a fifth is usually handed over to the local Māriamma shrine, and the remaining four-fifths are laid out in drinks for the panchayatdars. Until recently, a part of the fine was in some cases, in these parts, paid to the local poligar.”Excommunicated Paraiyans are said to go to a mythical place called Vinnamangalam. In some documents signed by Paraiyans, the words “If I fail to fulfil the conditions of our agreement, I shall go to Vinnamangalam” are inserted. In all enquiries by thepolice, the council, or the Dēsāyi Chetti, the Paraiyan only tells what in his opinion it is expedient to tell. But evidence given after burning a piece of camphor is said to be reliable.The attainment of puberty by girls is a subject of greedy curiosity to most of the women in a Paraiya village. This has been said to be due to the fact that “the menstrual fluid is held in horror, dire consequences being supposed to result from not merely the contact, but even the very sight of it. Hence the isolation and purification of women during the menstrual period, and the extreme care and anxiety with which the first approach of puberty in a girl is watched.” The girl at once begins to wear a covering of some sort, even it be the most pathetic rag, over her left shoulder and breast. Till this time, a bit of cotton cloth round her waist has been considered sufficient. Among the Tangalān Paraiyans, when a girl attains puberty, she is kept apart either in the house or in a separate hut. Pollution is supposed to last eight days. On the ninth day, the girl is bathed, and seated in the courtyard. Ten small lamps of flour paste (called drishti māvu vilakku), to avert the evil eye, are put on a sieve, and waved before her three times. Then coloured water (ārati or alam) and burning camphor are waved before her. Some near female relatives then stand behind her, and strike her waist and sides with puttu (flour cake) tied in a cloth. This is believed to make her strong. At the same time other women strike the ground behind the girl with a rice-pestle. Then presents are given to the girl. In some places the girl is beaten within the house by her mother-in-law or paternal aunt. The latter repeatedly asks the girl to promise that her daughter shall marry her paternal aunt’s son.In marriages among the Paraiyans, difference in religion is of little moment. A Christian Paraiyan will marry a heathen girl, though it should be said that she is usually baptised at or about the time of the marriage. A Christian girl is sometimes married to a heathen Paraiyan. Mr. Clayton thinks that the fact that certain Paraiyans paint the nāmam of Vishnu on their foreheads, while others smear their foreheads with the ashes of Siva, prevents marriages between them.The bridegroom must be older than the bride. Subject to this condition, it is usual for a youth to marry his father’s sister’s daughter, or his mother’s brother’s daughter. A girl should be married to her mother’s brother’s son if he is old enough, but not, as among the Konga Vellālas and some Reddis, if he is a child. In short, Paraiyans follow the usual Tamil custom, but it is often neglected.Marriage contracts are sometimes made by parents while the parties most concerned are still infants, often while they are still children; in the majority of cases when the girl attains the marriageable age. The bridegroom may be many years older than the bride, especially when custom, as noted above, settles who shall be his bride. The bride has absolutely no choice in the matter; but, if the bridegroom is a man of some years or position, his preferences are consulted. The elder sister should be given in marriage before her younger sisters are married. The arrangements are more or less a bargain. Presents of clothes, paltry jewels, rice, vegetables, and perhaps a few rupees, are exchanged between the families of the bride and bridegroom. The household that seeks the marriage naturally gives the larger gifts. The actual marriage ceremony is very simple. The essential part is the tying of a small tokenor ornament (tāli), varying in value from a few annas to four or five rupees by a turmeric-stained string, round the neck of the bride. This is done by the bridegroom in the presence of a Valluvan, who mutters some kind of blessing on the marriage. A series of feasts, lasting over two or three days, is given to all the relatives of both parties by the parents of the newly-married couple. The bride and bridegroom do not live together immediately, even if the girl is old enough. The exact date at which their life together may begin is settled by the bride’s mother. The occasion, called soppana muhurtham, is celebrated by another feast and much merry-making, not always seemly.

Paniyans making fire.Paniyans making fire.At Pudupādi an elephant mahout was jealously guarding a bit of bamboo stick with notches cut in it, each notch representing a day for which wages were due to him. The stick in question had six notches, representing six days’ wages.Average height 157.4 cm. Nasal index 95 (max. 108.6). The average distance from the tip of the middle finger to the top of the patella was 4.6 cm. relative to stature = 100, which approximates very closely to the recorded results of measurement of long-limbed African negroes.Panjai.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-division of Pāndya Vellāla. The name Panjai, indicating a poverty-stricken individual, is usually applied to mendicant Pandārams.Panjāram.—Panjāram or Panchāramkatti is the name of a sub-division of the Idaiyans, derived from the peculiar gold ornament, which the women wear. It is said that, in this division, widow marriage is commonly practiced, because Krishna used to place a similar ornament round the necks of Idaiyan widows of whom he became enamoured, and that this sub-division was the result of his amours with them.Panjukkāra(cotton-man).—An occupational name of a sub-division of Vellālas, who are not at the present day connected with the cotton trade. They call themselves Panjukkāra Chettis. The equivalent panjāri (pinjāri) or Panjukotti occurs as a Tamil synonym for Dūdēkula (Muhammadan cotton-cleaners).Pannādai(sheath of the cocoanut leaf).—A sub-division of Vēttuvan.Pannaiyān.—A title of Alavan.Pannara.—A sub-division of Māli.Pannendu Nāl(twelve days).—A name for those Pallis who, like Brāhmans, perform the final death ceremonies on the twelfth day.Pannirendām(twelfth) Chetti.—A section of the Chettis.Pāno.—In the Madras Census Report, 1891, the Pānos are described as “a caste of weavers found in the Ganjam district. This caste is no doubt identical with the Pāns, a weaving, basket-making, and servile caste of Orissa and Chota Nagpore. The Pānos occupy the same position among the Khonds of Ganjam as the Dombs hold among the inhabitants of the Vizagapatam hills, and the words Pāno and Dombo are generally regarded as synonyms [SeeDōmb]. The members of the Sitra sub-division are workers in metal.” It is further noted, in the Census Report, 1901, that the Pānos are “an extensive caste of hill weavers found chiefly in the Ganjam Agency. The Khond synonym for this word is Domboloko, which helps to confirm the connection between this caste and the Dombas of Vizagapatam. They speak Khond and Oriya.” In a note on the Pānos, I read that “their occupations are trading, weaving, and theft. They live on the ignorance and superstition of the Khonds as brokers, pedlars, sycophants, and cheats. In those parts where there are no Oriyas, they possess much influence, and are always consulted by the Khonds in questions of boundary disputes.” In a brief account of the Pānos, Mr. C. F. MacCartie writes47that “thePānos, also known by the title of Dombo or Sitra in some parts, are supposed to be Paraiya [Telugu Mala] emigrants from the low country. Their profession is weaving or brass work, the monotony of which they vary by petty trading in horns, skins and live cattle, and occasionally enliven by house-breaking and theft at the expense of the Khonds, who have an incautious trick of leaving their habitations utterly unguarded when they go off to the hills to cultivate. [In the Madras Census Report, 1901, the Sitras are said to be supposed to be the progeny of a Khond man and a Haddi woman, who manufacture the brass rings and bangles worn by the Khonds.] The Pānos are drunken, immoral, and dirty in their habits. The Khonds refuse to eat with them, but I do not find that this objection extends to drinking, at which both Khond and Pāno display surprising capabilities. Pānos are also the professional musicians of the country, and attend weddings, deaths and sacrifices in this character, for which they are recompensed with food, liquor, and cloths. The generality of Khond and Pāno houses are constructed of broad sâl (Shorea robusta) logs, hewn out with the axe and thatched with jungle grass, which is impervious to white-ants. In bamboo jungles, of course, bamboo is substituted for sâl. The Pānos generally affect a detached quarter, known as Dombo sai. Intermarriage between Khonds, Pānos, and Uriyas is not recognised, but cases do occur when a Pāno induces a Khond woman to go off with him. She may live with him as his wife, but no ceremony takes place. [A few years ago, a young Khond was betrothed to the daughter of another Khond, and, after a few years, managed to pay up the necessary number of gifts. He then applied to the girl’s father to name the day for the marriage. Before the wedding took place however, aPāno went to the girl’s father, and said that she was his daughter (she had been born before her parents were married), and that he was the man to whom the gifts should have been paid. The case was referred to a council, which decided in favour of the Pāno.] If a Pāno commits adultery with a Khond married woman, he has to pay a paronjo, or a fine of a buffalo to the husband (who retains his wife), and in addition a goat, a pig, a basket of paddy (rice), a rupee, and a load of pots. There is close communication between the Pānos and the Khonds, as the former act as the advisers of the latter in all cases of doubt or difficulty. The Uriyas live apart from both, and mix but little with either, except on the occasion of sacrifices or other solemn assemblages, when buffaloes are slaughtered for Pānos and Khonds, and goats or sheep for Uriya visitors. [It is noted, in the Ganjam Manual, in connection with Khond death ceremonies, that “if a man has been killed by a tiger, purification is made by the sacrifice of a pig, the head of which is cut off with a tangi (axe) by a Pāno, and passed between the legs of the men in the village, who stand in a line astraddle. It is a bad omen to him, if the head touches any man’s legs.] Among the products of the jungles may be included myrabolams (Terminaliafruits), tasar silk cocoons, and dammer, all of which are bartered by the finders to trading Pānos in small quantities, generally for salt.” In the Ganjam Māliahs, the jungles are said to be searched by Pānos for tasar cocoons, and, just across the border in Boad, the collection of these cocoons is a regular industry among them. Small portions of jungle are regularly reserved, and divided up into small allotments. Each of these is given to a Pāno for rent, and here he cultivates the silkworms, and collects thesilk, which is sent to Berhampur and Sambalpur for manufacture.The Pānos are divided into two distinct sections, viz., the Khonda Pānos who live amidst the Khonds, and the Dēsa Pānos of the plains. The former have adopted some of the customs of the Khonds, while the latter follow the customs of the Uriya castes which dwell in the lowland. The Khond Pānos are governed by the Molikos (headmen) of the Khonds. In some cases, the fines inflicted for breach of caste rules are rather severe. For example, in the neighbourhood of Baliguda, a man who is convicted of adultery has to pay two rupees, and give two buffaloes to the council which tries the case. Further south, for a similar offence twelve buffaloes are demanded, and the culprit has to pay twice the amount of the bride-price to the injured husband. The Dēsa Pānos conform to the standard Uriya type of caste council, and have a headman called Bēhara, who is assisted by a Nāyako, and caste servants entitled Bhollobaya or Gonjāri.The marriage ceremonies of the Dēsa Pānos are closely allied to those of the Dandāsis and Haddis, whereas those of the Khonda Pānos bear a close resemblance to the ceremonies of the Khonds. Like Khond girls, unmarried Khond Pāno girls sleep in quarters (dhangadi) specially set apart for them, and, as among the Khonds, wedding presents in the form of gontis are given. It is noted with reference to the Khonds, in the Ganjam Manual, that “the bride is looked upon as a commercial speculation, and is paid for in gontis. A gonti is one of anything, such as a buffalo, a pig, or a brass pot; for instance, a hundred gontis might consist of ten bullocks, ten buffaloes, ten sacks of corn, ten sets of brass, twenty sheep, ten pigs, and thirty fowls.” Ata Khond Pāno marriage, the fingers of the contracting couple are linked together, and an important item of the ceremonial, which adds dignity thereto, is placing in front of the house at which a marriage is being celebrated a big brass vessel containing water, with which the guests wash their feet.The Pānos pay reverence to ancestors, to whom, when a death occurs in a family, food is offered. In some Pāno villages, when a child is born, it is customary to consult a pūjāri (priest) as to whether the grandfather or great-grandfather is re-born in it. If the answer is in the affirmative, pigs are sacrificed to the ancestors. Some Pānos have adopted the worship of Tākurānis (village deities), to whom rice and turmeric are offered by placing them before the image in the form of a figure-of-eight. A fowl is sacrificed, and its blood allowed to flow on to one loop of the figure. In some places, Dharmadēvata and Gagnasuni are worshipped, a castrated goat being sacrificed annually to the former, and fowls and an entire goat to the latter.Pāno women, who live among the Khonds, tattoo their faces in like manner, and in other respects resemble Khond women.I am informed that, on more than one occasion, Pānos have been known to rifle the grave of a European, in the belief that buried treasure will be found.Panta(a crop).—A sub-division of Kāpu and Yānādi. In the Gazetteer of South Arcot, Pan Reddi is recorded as a caste of Telugu-speaking ryots (Kāpus).Pantala.—Recorded, in Travancore, as a sub-division of Sāmantan. The name is said to be derived from Bhandārattil, or belonging to the royal treasury.Pantāri.—Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, as synonymous with the Idacheri sub-divisionof Nāyar. Pantrantu Vītan is also there recorded as a sub-division of Nāyar.Pappadam.—People calling themselves Pappadam Chetti are largely found in Malabar, living by the manufacture and sale of cakes called pappadam, which are purchased by all classes, including Nambūtiri Brāhmans.Pappini.—A name for Brāhmanis, a class of Ambalavāsi.Pappu(split pulse).—An exogamous sept of Balija.Paradēsi.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a class of Malayālam beggars. The name indicates strangers (paradēsa, a foreign country), and is applied to the White Jews of Cochin, in connection with whom it occurs in Sirkar (State) accounts and royal writs granted to them.Paraiya Tāda.—Recorded, in the North Arcot Manual, as a name for those who are considered impure Valluvans. The name literally means Paraiya Tādan or Dāsari.Paraiyan.—The Paraiyans or, as they are commonly termed, Pariahs of the Tamil country number, according to recent census returns, over two million souls, and a large proportion of those who returned themselves as Native Christians are said also to belong to this class. For the following note I am mainly indebted to an account of the Paraiyans by the Rev. A. C. Clayton.48The late Bishop Caldwell derived the name Paraiyan from the Tamil word parai a drum, as certain Paraiyans act as drummers at marriages, funerals, village festivals, and on occasions when Government or commercial announcements are proclaimed. Mr. H. A. Stuart,however, seems to question this derivation, remarking49that “it is only one section of Paraiyans that act as drummers. Nor is the occupation confined to Paraiyans. It seems in the highest degree improbable that a large, and at one time powerful, community should owe its name to an occasional occupation, which one of its divisions shares with other castes. The word Paraiyan is not found in Divākaram, a Tamil dictionary of the eleventh century A.D., and the word Pulayan was then used to denote this section of the population, as it is still in Malayālam to this day.” In the legend of the Saivite saint, Nandan is, in the prose version of the Periya Purānam, called a Pulayan, though a native of Shōlamandalam, which was a distinctly Tamil kingdom. Mr. W. Francis writes50that “the old Tamil poems and works of the early centuries of the Christian era do not mention the name Paraiyan, but contain many descriptions of a tribe called the Eyinas, who seem to have been quite distinct from the rest of the population, and did not live in the villages, but in forts of their own. Ambūr and Vellore are mentioned as the sites of two of these. They may perhaps have been the ancestors of the Paraiyans of to-day.”In a note on the Paraiyans, Sonnerat, writing51in the eighteenth century, says that “they are prohibited from drawing water from the wells of other castes; but have particular wells of their own near their inhabitations, round which they place the bones of animals, that they may be known and avoided. When an Indian of any other caste permits a Paraiya to speak to him, this unfortunate being is obliged to hold his hand before his mouth, lest the Indian may be contaminated with hisbreath; and, if he is met on the highway, he must turn on one side to let the other pass. If any Indian whatever, even a Choutre, by accident touches a Paraiya, he is obliged to purify himself in a bath. The Brāhmans cannot behold them, and they are obliged to fly when they appear. Great care is taken not to eat anything dressed by a Paraiya, nor even to drink out of the vessel he has used; they dare not enter the house of an Indian of another caste; or, if they are employed in any work, a door is purposely made for them; but they must work with their eyes on the ground; for, if it is perceived they have glanced at the kitchen, all the utensils must be broken. The infamy of the Paraiyas is reflected on the Europeans: last are held in more detestation, because, setting aside the little respect they have for the cow, whose flesh they eat, the Indians reproach them with spitting in their houses, and even their temples: that when drinking they put the cup to their lips, and their fingers to their mouths in such a manner that they are defiled with the spittle.”Paraiyans are to be found throughout the Tamil districts from North Arcot to Tinnevelly, and in the southern extremity of the Native State of Travancore. In the Telugu country the Mālas and Mādigas and in the Canarese country the Holeyas take their place.Some of the most common names of Paraiyan males are—Kanni or Kanniyappan.Rāman or Rāmaswāmi.Rāju.Vēlu.Muttan.Māri.Kanagan.Subban.Nondi.Tambiran.Perumāl.Vīran.Sellan.Amāvāsi.Among females the most common names are Tai, Parpathi, Ammai, Kanni, Muttammāl, Rājammāl, Ammani, Selli, Gangammāl. In one village, where the Paraiyans were almost all Vaishnavas, by profession not by practice, Mr. Clayton found the inhabitants all named after heroes of the Mahābhārata, and dirty naked children answered to the names of Ikshvākan, Karnan, Bhīman, and Draupadi. It is usual to give the father’s name when distinguishing one Paraiyan from another,e.g., Tamburan, son of Kannan. In legal documents the prefix Para denotes a Paraiyan,e.g., Para Kanni, the Paraiyan Kanni, but this is a purely clerical formula. The Paraiyan delights in nicknames, and men sometimes grow so accustomed to these that they have almost forgotten their real names. The following nicknames are very common :—Nondi, lame.Kallan, thief.Kullan, dwarf.Vellei, white or light complexioned.Kannan, with eyes.Muthalai, crocodile.Kudiyan, drunkard.No name, indicating virtue or merit, is given, lest the wrath of malevolent spirits should be aroused.At the census, 1891, 348 sub-divisions were returned, of which the following were strongest in point of numbers :—Amma found chiefly in Tanjore and Madura; Katti in Salem and Trichinopoly; Kīzhakkatti (eastern) in Salem; Kōliyan (weavers) in Chingleput, Tanjore and Trichinopoly; Konga in Salem; Korava in Coimbatore; Kōttai (fort) in South Arcot; Morasu (drum) in Salem; Mottai in Madura; Pacchai (green) in Coimbatore; Sāmbān in South Arcot; Sangidum (sanku, conch, or chank shell) in Coimbatore; Sōzhia (natives of the Sōzha or Chōla country) in Tanjore and Madura;Tangalān in North and South Arcot, Chingleput, Salem, and Trichinopoly; and Valangamattu in South Arcot. The members of the various sub-divisions do not intermarry.Paraiyan.Paraiyan.It has been suggested to me that the Morasu Paraiyans, included in the above list, are Canarese Holeyas, who have settled in the Tamil country. In the south their women, like the Kallans, wear a horsehair thread round the neck. As additional sub-divisions, the following may be noted :—Aruththukattātha, or those who, having once cut the tāli-string, do not tie it a second time,i.e., those who do not permit remarriage of widows.Valai(a net).—Paraiyans who hunt.Sanku(conch-shell).—Those who act as conch-blowers at funerals.Thātha.—Thāthan is the name given to mendicants who profess Vaishnavism. Such Paraiyans are Vaishnavites, and some are beggars.In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis notes that the term Paraiyan “is now almost a generic one, and the caste is split up into many sub-divisions, which differ in manners and ways. For example, the Kōliyans, who are weavers, and the Valluvans, who are medicine men and priests and wear the sacred thread, will not intermarry or eat with the others, and are now practically distinct castes.” As occupational titles of Paraiyans Mr. Francis gives Urumikkāran and Pambaikkāran, or those who play on drums (urumi and pambai), and Podarayan or Podara Vannān, who are washermen. The title Valangamattān, or people of the right-hand division, is assumed by some Paraiyans.Mr. Clayton states that he knows of no legend or popular belief among the Paraiyans, indicating thatthey believe themselves to have come from any other part of the country than that where they now find themselves. There is, however, some evidence that the race has had a long past, and one in which they had independence, and possibly great importance in the peninsula. Mr. Stuart mentions52that the Valluvans were priests to the Pallava kings before the introduction of the Brāhmans, and even for some time after it. He quotes an unpublished Vatteluttu inscription, believed to be of the ninth century, in which it is noted that “Srī Valluvam Puvanavan, the Uvacchan (or temple ministrant), will employ six men daily, and do the temple service.” The inference is that the Valluvan was a man of recognised priestly rank, and of great influence. The prefix Srī is a notable honorific. By itself this inscription would prove little, but the whole legendary history of the greatest of all Tamil poets, Tiruvalluvar, “the holy Valluvan,” confirms all that can be deduced from it. His date can only be fixed approximately, but it is probable that he flourished not later than the tenth century A.D. It is safe to say that this extraordinary sage could not have attained the fame he did, or have received the honours that were bestowed upon him, had not the Valluvans, and therefore the Paraiyans, been in the circle of respectable society in his day. This conjecture is strengthened by the legend that he married a Vellāla girl. The same hypothesis is the only one that will account for the education and the vogue of the sister of the poet, the aphoristic poetess Avvei.In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis mentions an inscription of the Chōla King Rāja Rāja, dated about the eleventh century A.D., in which the Paraiyan caste iscalled by its own name. It had then two sub-divisions, the Nesavu or weavers, and Ulavu or ploughmen. The caste had even then its own hamlets, wells and burning-grounds.There are certain privileges possessed by Paraiyans, which they could never have gained for themselves from orthodox Hinduism. They seem to be survivals of a past, in which Paraiyans held a much higher position than they do now. It is noted by Mr. M. J. Walhouse53that “in the great festival of Siva at Trivalūr in Tanjore the headman of the Parēyars is mounted on the elephant with the god, and carries his chauri (yak-tail fly fan). In Madras, at the annual festival of Egatta, the goddess of the Black,54now George, Town, when a tāli is tied round the neck of the idol in the name of the entire community, a Parēyan is chosen to represent the bridegroom. At Mēlkotta in Mysore, the chief seat of the followers of Rāmānuja Achārya, and at the Brāhman temple at Bēlur, the Holēyas or Parēyars have the right of entering the temple on three days in the year specially set apart for them.” At Mēlkote, the Holeyas and Mādigas are said to have been granted the privilege of entering thesanctum sanctorumalong with Brāhmans and others on three days by Rāmānuja. In 1799, however, the right to enter the temple was stopped at the dhvajastambham, or consecrated monolithic column. At both Bēlur and Mēlkote, as soon as the festival is over, the temples are ceremonially purified. At Srīperumbudūr in the Chingleput district, the Paraiyans enjoy a similar privilege to those at Tiruvalūr, in return for having sheltered an image of the locally-worshippedincarnation of Vishnu during a Muhammadan raid. It is noted by Mr. Stuart that the lower village offices, the Vettiyan, Taliāri, Dandāsi or Bārike, and the Tōti, are, in the majority of Madras villages, held by persons of the Paraiyan caste. Paraiyans are allowed to take part in pulling the cars of the idols in the great festivals at Conjeeveram, Kumbakōnam, and Srīvilliputtūr. Their touch is not reckoned to defile the ropes used, so that other Hindus will pull with them. With this may be compared the fact that the Telugu Mālas are custodians of the goddess Gauri, the bull Nandi, and Ganēsa, the chief gods of the Saiva Kāpus and Balijas. It may also be noted that the Kōmatis, who claim to be Vaisyas, are bound to invite Mādigas to their marriages, though they take care that the latter do not hear the invitation. Mr. Clayton records that he has heard well-authenticated instances of Brāhman women worshipping at Paraiyan shrines in order to procure children, and states that he once saw a Paraiyan exorciser treating a Brāhman by uttering mantrams (consecrated formulæ), and waving a sickle up and down the sufferer’s back, as he stood in a threshing floor.In a note on the Paraiyans of the Trichinopoly district, Mr. F. R. Hemingway writes as follows. “They have a very exalted account of their lineage, saying that they are descended from the Brāhman priest Sāla Sāmbavan, who was employed in a Siva temple to worship the god with offerings of beef, but who incurred the anger of the god by one day concealing a portion of the meat, to give it to his pregnant wife, and was therefore turned into a Paraiyan. The god appointed his brother to do duty instead of him, and the Paraiyans say that Brāhman priests are their cousins. For this reason they wear a sacred thread at their marriages and funerals.At the festival of the village goddesses, they repeat an extravagant praise of their caste, which runs as follows. ‘The Paraiyans were the first creation, the first who wore the sacred thread, the uppermost in the social scale, the differentiators of castes, the winners of laurels. They have been seated on the white elephant, the Vīra Sāmbavans who beat the victorious drum.’ It is a curious fact that, at the feast of the village goddess, a Paraiyan is honoured by being invested with a sacred thread for the occasion by the pūjāri (priest) of the temple, by having a turmeric thread tied to his wrists, and being allowed to head the procession. This, the Paraiyans say, is owing to their exalted origin.”In times of drought some of the lower orders, instead of addressing their prayers to the rain god Varuna, try to induce a spirit or dēvata named Kodumpāvi (wicked one) to send her paramour Sukra to the affected area. The belief seems to be that Sukra goes away to his concubine for about six months, and, if he does not then return, drought ensues. The ceremony consists in making a huge figure of Kodumpāvi in clay, which is placed on a cart, and dragged through the streets for seven to ten days. On the last day, the final death ceremonies of the figure are celebrated. It is disfigured, especially in those parts which are usually concealed. Vettiyans (Paraiyan grave-diggers), who have been shaved, accompany the figure, and perform the funeral ceremonies. This procedure is believed to put Kodumpāvi to shame, and to get her to induce Sukra to return, and stay the drought. Paraiyans are said55to wail as though they were at a funeral, and to beat drums in the funeral time.The Paraiyans are said by Mr. Francis56to have a curious share in the ceremonies in connection with the annual buffalo sacrifice at the Kāli shrine at Mangalam in South Arcot. “Eight men of this community are chosen from eight adjoining villages, and one of them is selected as leader. His wife must not be with child at the’ time, and she is made to prove that she is above all suspicion by undergoing the ordeal of thrusting her hand into boiling gingelly (Sesamum) oil. On each of ten days for which the festival lasts, this Paraiyan has to go round some part of the boundaries of the eight villages, and he is fed gratis by the villagers during this time. On the day of the sacrifice itself, he marches in front of the priest as the latter kills the buffaloes. The Paraiyans of the eight villages have the right to the carcases of the slaughtered animals.”The Paraiyans know the village boundaries better than anyone else, and are very expert in this matter, unerringly pointing out where boundaries should run, even when the Government demarcation stones are completely overgrown by prickly-pear, or have been removed. Mr. Stuart records a custom which prevails in some parts of making a Paraiyan walk the boundaries of a field with a pot of water on his head, when there is any dispute about their exact position. He thinks that the only satisfactory explanation of this is that the connection of the Paraiyans with the soil is of much longer standing than that of other castes. The admitted proprietary right which Paraiyans have in the site known as chēri-nattam, on which their huts stand, is a confirmation of this. These sites are entered as such on the official village maps. They cannot be taken from theParaiyans, and date from time immemorial. Throughout the whole of the Tamil country it is usual to find that the land allotted for house-site (nattam) is in two portions in every village (Ūr). One part is known by the Sanskrit name grāmam (village), the inhabited place. The other is called by the Dravidian name chēri (gathering place).Sometimes the latter is called by the fuller title parachēri (Anglice parcheri, parcherry),i.e., the gathering place of the Paraiyans. In the grāmam live the Brāhmans, who sometimes dwell, in a quarter by themselves known as the agrahāra, and also other Hindus. In the parachēri live the Paraiyans. The parachēri and the grāmam are always separated, at least by a road or lane, and often by several fields. And not only is it usual thus to find that, in every village, the Paraiyans as a community possess a house-site, but there are many cases in which more than one chēri is attached to a grāmam. This seems to repudiate the suggestion that at some period or periods the higher castes relegated the Paraiyans to these chēris. Indeed, in some cases, the very names of the chēris suggest what appears to be the more correct view, viz., that the chēris had a distinct origin. For instance, the whole revenue village of Teiyar near Chingleput consists of one Sūdra grāmam and seven Paraiyan chēris, each with a name of its own, Periyapillēri, Komanchēri, etc. In other cases,e.g., Ideipālayam in the north of the district, and Varadarājapuram near Vandalūr, only Paraiyan hamlets exist; there is no grāmam. In South Arcot there are at least two villages, Govindanallūr and Andapet, inhabited only by Paraiyans, where even the Maniyakkāran (munsiff or village headman) is a Paraiyan. Other instances might be quoted in proof of the same opinion. And, when the ceremonialantipathy between Brāhman and Paraiyan is examined, it points in the same direction. It is well known that a Brāhman considers himself polluted by the touch, presence, or shadow of a Paraiyan, and will not allow him to enter his house, or even the street in which he lives, if it is an agrāhāra. But it is not so well known that the Paraiyans will not allow a Brāhman to enter the chēri. Should a Brāhman venture into the Paraiyan’s quarter, water with which cow-dung has been mixed is thrown on his head, and he is driven out. It is stated57by Captain J. S. F. Mackenzie that “Brāhmans in Mysore consider that great luck will await them if they can manage to pass through the Holeya quarter of a village unmolested, and that, should a Brāhman attempt to enter their quarters, they turn out in a body and slipper him, in former times it is said to death.” Some Brāhmans consider a forsaken parachēri an auspicious site for an agrāhāra. A very peculiar case is that of the grāmam founded for, and occupied by the clerks of the earliest Collectors (district magistrates) of the jagir of Karunguli from 1795 to 1825 A.D. These clerks were Brāhmans, and it was called the agrāhāram. It was deserted when the head-quarters of the Collector were removed to Conjeeveram. It is now occupied by Paraiyans, but is still called the agrāhāram.The facts, taken together, seem to show that the Paraiyan priests (Valluvans), and therefore the Paraiyans as a race, are very ancient, that ten centuries ago they were a respectable community, and that many were weavers. The privileges they enjoy are relics of an exceedingly long association with the land. The institution of the parachēri points to original independence,and even to possession of much of the land. If the account of the colonisation of Tondeimandalam by Vellālans in the eighth century A.D. is historic, then it is possible that at that time the Paraiyans lost the land, and that their degradation as a race began.The Paraiyans have long been a settled race. And, though a number of them emigrate to Ceylon, Mauritius, South Africa, the West Indies, the Straits Settlements, and even to Fiji, the vast majority live and die within a mile or two of the spot where they were born. The houses in which they live are not temporary erections, or intended for use during certain seasons of the year only. The rudest form is a hut made by tying a few leaves of the palmyra palm on to a framework of poles or bamboos. The better class of houses are a series of rooms with low mud walls and thatched roof, but generally without doors, surrounding a small courtyard, in which the family goats, buffaloes, and fowls have their homes. The cooking is done anywhere where it is convenient either indoors or out, as there is no fear of pollution from the glance or shadow of any passer-by. Very occasionally the walls of the house, especially those facing the street, are whitewashed, or decorated with variegated patterns or figures in red and white. Paraiya women, like higher caste women, are much given to tracing exceedingly intricate symmetrical designs (kōlam) with rice flour on the smooth space or pathway immediately before the doors of their houses, it is said, to prevent the entrance of evil spirits. Mr. S. P. Rice writes to me that the patterns on the floor or threshold are generally traced with white powder,e.g., chalk, as rice is too costly; and that the original object of the custom was not to drive away evil spirits, but to provide food for the lowest creatures of creation—ants, insects, etc.Admissions to the Paraiyan caste from higher castes sometimes occur. Mr. Clayton records having met an Aiyangar Brāhman who was working as a cooly with some Paraiyan labourers at Kodaikānal on the Palni hills. He had become infatuated with a Paraiya woman, and had consequently been excommunicated, and became a Paraiyan.In every Paraiya settlement a small number of the more important men are known as Panakkāran (money-man). The application of the term may, Mr. Clayton suggests, be due to their comparative opulence, or may have arisen from the custom of paying them a small sum (panam) for various services to the community. But Panikkar or Panakkar is usually said to be derived from pani, meaning work. They form a committee or council to decide ordinary quarrels, and to amerce the damages in cases of assault, seduction, rape, and adultery. They have power to dissolve marriages on account of the wife, or if the husband has deserted his wife. In these cases their authority is really based on the public opinion of the parachēri, and goes no further than that public opinion will enforce it. There is no headman in a Paraiya hamlet corresponding to the munsiff or village magistrate of the Hindu village (grāma). In modern practice the Paraiyans are, for police purposes, under the authority of the munsiff of the grāma, and there is a growing tendency on their part to refer all disputes and assaults to the munsiff, or even directly to the police. On the other hand, cases of a more domestic nature, such as disputes about betrothals, seduction, etc., are still dealt with, generally acutely and fairly, by the village council. It should be added that the rank of Panakkāran is hereditary, and is regarded as honourable.The Paraiyans, like all the other right-hand castes, come under the jurisdiction of the Dēsāyi Chettis, who have held a sort of censorship since the days of the Nawābs of Arcot over some twenty-four of these right-hand castes, chiefly in North Arcot. The Dēsāyi Chetti has nominal power to deal with all moral offences, and is supposed to have a representative in every village, who reports every offence. But, though his authority is great in North Arcot, and the fines levied there bring in an income of hundreds of rupees yearly, it is not so much dreaded in other districts. The punishment usually inflicted is a fine, but sometimes a delinquent Paraiyan will be made to crawl on his hands and knees on the ground between the legs of a Paraiya woman as a final humiliation. The punishment of excommunication,i.e., cutting off from fire and water, is sometimes the fate of the recalcitrant, either before the council or the Dēsāyi Chetti, but it is seldom effective for more than a short time. Mr. K. Rangachari adds that, in certain places, the Dēsāyi Chetti appoints the Panakkāran, who is subordinate to the Dēsāyi, and that a man called the Variyan or Shalavāthi is sometimes appointed as assistant to the Panakkāran. He also mentions some other punishments. The fine for adultery is from 7 pagodas 14 fanams to 11 pagodas, when the wronged woman is unmarried. If she is married, the amount ranges from 12 pagodas 14 fanams to 16 pagodas. The fine is said to be divided between the woman, her husband, the members of council, and the Panakkārans. Formerly an offender against the Paraiyan community was tied to a post at the beginning of his trial, and, if found guilty, was beaten. He might escape the flogging by paying a fine of two fanams per stripe. Sometimes a delinquent is paraded through the hamlet, carrying a rubbish basket,or is ordered to make a heap of rubbish at a certain spot. Or a cord is passed from one big toe over the bowed neck of the culprit, and tied to his other big toe, and then a stone is placed on his bent back. In some places, when an unmarried woman is convicted of adultery, she is publicly given a new cloth and a bit of straw or a twig, apparently in mockery. It is said that formerly, if the chastity of a bride was suspected, she had to pick some cakes out of boiling oil. This she had to do just after the tāli had been tied in the wedding ceremony. Her hair, nails, and clothes were examined, to see that she had no charm concealed. After lifting the cakes from the oil, she had to husk some rice with her bare hand. If she could do this, her virtue was established. In the South Arcot district, according to Mr. Francis,58the Paraiyans “have caste headmen called the Periya (big) Nattān and the Chinna (little) Nattān or Tangalān (our man), whose posts are usually hereditary. The Tangalān carries out the sentence of caste panchayats, administering a thrashing to the accused for example, if such be the order of the court. Of the fines inflicted by these assemblies, a fifth is usually handed over to the local Māriamma shrine, and the remaining four-fifths are laid out in drinks for the panchayatdars. Until recently, a part of the fine was in some cases, in these parts, paid to the local poligar.”Excommunicated Paraiyans are said to go to a mythical place called Vinnamangalam. In some documents signed by Paraiyans, the words “If I fail to fulfil the conditions of our agreement, I shall go to Vinnamangalam” are inserted. In all enquiries by thepolice, the council, or the Dēsāyi Chetti, the Paraiyan only tells what in his opinion it is expedient to tell. But evidence given after burning a piece of camphor is said to be reliable.The attainment of puberty by girls is a subject of greedy curiosity to most of the women in a Paraiya village. This has been said to be due to the fact that “the menstrual fluid is held in horror, dire consequences being supposed to result from not merely the contact, but even the very sight of it. Hence the isolation and purification of women during the menstrual period, and the extreme care and anxiety with which the first approach of puberty in a girl is watched.” The girl at once begins to wear a covering of some sort, even it be the most pathetic rag, over her left shoulder and breast. Till this time, a bit of cotton cloth round her waist has been considered sufficient. Among the Tangalān Paraiyans, when a girl attains puberty, she is kept apart either in the house or in a separate hut. Pollution is supposed to last eight days. On the ninth day, the girl is bathed, and seated in the courtyard. Ten small lamps of flour paste (called drishti māvu vilakku), to avert the evil eye, are put on a sieve, and waved before her three times. Then coloured water (ārati or alam) and burning camphor are waved before her. Some near female relatives then stand behind her, and strike her waist and sides with puttu (flour cake) tied in a cloth. This is believed to make her strong. At the same time other women strike the ground behind the girl with a rice-pestle. Then presents are given to the girl. In some places the girl is beaten within the house by her mother-in-law or paternal aunt. The latter repeatedly asks the girl to promise that her daughter shall marry her paternal aunt’s son.In marriages among the Paraiyans, difference in religion is of little moment. A Christian Paraiyan will marry a heathen girl, though it should be said that she is usually baptised at or about the time of the marriage. A Christian girl is sometimes married to a heathen Paraiyan. Mr. Clayton thinks that the fact that certain Paraiyans paint the nāmam of Vishnu on their foreheads, while others smear their foreheads with the ashes of Siva, prevents marriages between them.The bridegroom must be older than the bride. Subject to this condition, it is usual for a youth to marry his father’s sister’s daughter, or his mother’s brother’s daughter. A girl should be married to her mother’s brother’s son if he is old enough, but not, as among the Konga Vellālas and some Reddis, if he is a child. In short, Paraiyans follow the usual Tamil custom, but it is often neglected.Marriage contracts are sometimes made by parents while the parties most concerned are still infants, often while they are still children; in the majority of cases when the girl attains the marriageable age. The bridegroom may be many years older than the bride, especially when custom, as noted above, settles who shall be his bride. The bride has absolutely no choice in the matter; but, if the bridegroom is a man of some years or position, his preferences are consulted. The elder sister should be given in marriage before her younger sisters are married. The arrangements are more or less a bargain. Presents of clothes, paltry jewels, rice, vegetables, and perhaps a few rupees, are exchanged between the families of the bride and bridegroom. The household that seeks the marriage naturally gives the larger gifts. The actual marriage ceremony is very simple. The essential part is the tying of a small tokenor ornament (tāli), varying in value from a few annas to four or five rupees by a turmeric-stained string, round the neck of the bride. This is done by the bridegroom in the presence of a Valluvan, who mutters some kind of blessing on the marriage. A series of feasts, lasting over two or three days, is given to all the relatives of both parties by the parents of the newly-married couple. The bride and bridegroom do not live together immediately, even if the girl is old enough. The exact date at which their life together may begin is settled by the bride’s mother. The occasion, called soppana muhurtham, is celebrated by another feast and much merry-making, not always seemly.

Paniyans making fire.Paniyans making fire.At Pudupādi an elephant mahout was jealously guarding a bit of bamboo stick with notches cut in it, each notch representing a day for which wages were due to him. The stick in question had six notches, representing six days’ wages.Average height 157.4 cm. Nasal index 95 (max. 108.6). The average distance from the tip of the middle finger to the top of the patella was 4.6 cm. relative to stature = 100, which approximates very closely to the recorded results of measurement of long-limbed African negroes.Panjai.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-division of Pāndya Vellāla. The name Panjai, indicating a poverty-stricken individual, is usually applied to mendicant Pandārams.Panjāram.—Panjāram or Panchāramkatti is the name of a sub-division of the Idaiyans, derived from the peculiar gold ornament, which the women wear. It is said that, in this division, widow marriage is commonly practiced, because Krishna used to place a similar ornament round the necks of Idaiyan widows of whom he became enamoured, and that this sub-division was the result of his amours with them.Panjukkāra(cotton-man).—An occupational name of a sub-division of Vellālas, who are not at the present day connected with the cotton trade. They call themselves Panjukkāra Chettis. The equivalent panjāri (pinjāri) or Panjukotti occurs as a Tamil synonym for Dūdēkula (Muhammadan cotton-cleaners).Pannādai(sheath of the cocoanut leaf).—A sub-division of Vēttuvan.Pannaiyān.—A title of Alavan.Pannara.—A sub-division of Māli.Pannendu Nāl(twelve days).—A name for those Pallis who, like Brāhmans, perform the final death ceremonies on the twelfth day.Pannirendām(twelfth) Chetti.—A section of the Chettis.Pāno.—In the Madras Census Report, 1891, the Pānos are described as “a caste of weavers found in the Ganjam district. This caste is no doubt identical with the Pāns, a weaving, basket-making, and servile caste of Orissa and Chota Nagpore. The Pānos occupy the same position among the Khonds of Ganjam as the Dombs hold among the inhabitants of the Vizagapatam hills, and the words Pāno and Dombo are generally regarded as synonyms [SeeDōmb]. The members of the Sitra sub-division are workers in metal.” It is further noted, in the Census Report, 1901, that the Pānos are “an extensive caste of hill weavers found chiefly in the Ganjam Agency. The Khond synonym for this word is Domboloko, which helps to confirm the connection between this caste and the Dombas of Vizagapatam. They speak Khond and Oriya.” In a note on the Pānos, I read that “their occupations are trading, weaving, and theft. They live on the ignorance and superstition of the Khonds as brokers, pedlars, sycophants, and cheats. In those parts where there are no Oriyas, they possess much influence, and are always consulted by the Khonds in questions of boundary disputes.” In a brief account of the Pānos, Mr. C. F. MacCartie writes47that “thePānos, also known by the title of Dombo or Sitra in some parts, are supposed to be Paraiya [Telugu Mala] emigrants from the low country. Their profession is weaving or brass work, the monotony of which they vary by petty trading in horns, skins and live cattle, and occasionally enliven by house-breaking and theft at the expense of the Khonds, who have an incautious trick of leaving their habitations utterly unguarded when they go off to the hills to cultivate. [In the Madras Census Report, 1901, the Sitras are said to be supposed to be the progeny of a Khond man and a Haddi woman, who manufacture the brass rings and bangles worn by the Khonds.] The Pānos are drunken, immoral, and dirty in their habits. The Khonds refuse to eat with them, but I do not find that this objection extends to drinking, at which both Khond and Pāno display surprising capabilities. Pānos are also the professional musicians of the country, and attend weddings, deaths and sacrifices in this character, for which they are recompensed with food, liquor, and cloths. The generality of Khond and Pāno houses are constructed of broad sâl (Shorea robusta) logs, hewn out with the axe and thatched with jungle grass, which is impervious to white-ants. In bamboo jungles, of course, bamboo is substituted for sâl. The Pānos generally affect a detached quarter, known as Dombo sai. Intermarriage between Khonds, Pānos, and Uriyas is not recognised, but cases do occur when a Pāno induces a Khond woman to go off with him. She may live with him as his wife, but no ceremony takes place. [A few years ago, a young Khond was betrothed to the daughter of another Khond, and, after a few years, managed to pay up the necessary number of gifts. He then applied to the girl’s father to name the day for the marriage. Before the wedding took place however, aPāno went to the girl’s father, and said that she was his daughter (she had been born before her parents were married), and that he was the man to whom the gifts should have been paid. The case was referred to a council, which decided in favour of the Pāno.] If a Pāno commits adultery with a Khond married woman, he has to pay a paronjo, or a fine of a buffalo to the husband (who retains his wife), and in addition a goat, a pig, a basket of paddy (rice), a rupee, and a load of pots. There is close communication between the Pānos and the Khonds, as the former act as the advisers of the latter in all cases of doubt or difficulty. The Uriyas live apart from both, and mix but little with either, except on the occasion of sacrifices or other solemn assemblages, when buffaloes are slaughtered for Pānos and Khonds, and goats or sheep for Uriya visitors. [It is noted, in the Ganjam Manual, in connection with Khond death ceremonies, that “if a man has been killed by a tiger, purification is made by the sacrifice of a pig, the head of which is cut off with a tangi (axe) by a Pāno, and passed between the legs of the men in the village, who stand in a line astraddle. It is a bad omen to him, if the head touches any man’s legs.] Among the products of the jungles may be included myrabolams (Terminaliafruits), tasar silk cocoons, and dammer, all of which are bartered by the finders to trading Pānos in small quantities, generally for salt.” In the Ganjam Māliahs, the jungles are said to be searched by Pānos for tasar cocoons, and, just across the border in Boad, the collection of these cocoons is a regular industry among them. Small portions of jungle are regularly reserved, and divided up into small allotments. Each of these is given to a Pāno for rent, and here he cultivates the silkworms, and collects thesilk, which is sent to Berhampur and Sambalpur for manufacture.The Pānos are divided into two distinct sections, viz., the Khonda Pānos who live amidst the Khonds, and the Dēsa Pānos of the plains. The former have adopted some of the customs of the Khonds, while the latter follow the customs of the Uriya castes which dwell in the lowland. The Khond Pānos are governed by the Molikos (headmen) of the Khonds. In some cases, the fines inflicted for breach of caste rules are rather severe. For example, in the neighbourhood of Baliguda, a man who is convicted of adultery has to pay two rupees, and give two buffaloes to the council which tries the case. Further south, for a similar offence twelve buffaloes are demanded, and the culprit has to pay twice the amount of the bride-price to the injured husband. The Dēsa Pānos conform to the standard Uriya type of caste council, and have a headman called Bēhara, who is assisted by a Nāyako, and caste servants entitled Bhollobaya or Gonjāri.The marriage ceremonies of the Dēsa Pānos are closely allied to those of the Dandāsis and Haddis, whereas those of the Khonda Pānos bear a close resemblance to the ceremonies of the Khonds. Like Khond girls, unmarried Khond Pāno girls sleep in quarters (dhangadi) specially set apart for them, and, as among the Khonds, wedding presents in the form of gontis are given. It is noted with reference to the Khonds, in the Ganjam Manual, that “the bride is looked upon as a commercial speculation, and is paid for in gontis. A gonti is one of anything, such as a buffalo, a pig, or a brass pot; for instance, a hundred gontis might consist of ten bullocks, ten buffaloes, ten sacks of corn, ten sets of brass, twenty sheep, ten pigs, and thirty fowls.” Ata Khond Pāno marriage, the fingers of the contracting couple are linked together, and an important item of the ceremonial, which adds dignity thereto, is placing in front of the house at which a marriage is being celebrated a big brass vessel containing water, with which the guests wash their feet.The Pānos pay reverence to ancestors, to whom, when a death occurs in a family, food is offered. In some Pāno villages, when a child is born, it is customary to consult a pūjāri (priest) as to whether the grandfather or great-grandfather is re-born in it. If the answer is in the affirmative, pigs are sacrificed to the ancestors. Some Pānos have adopted the worship of Tākurānis (village deities), to whom rice and turmeric are offered by placing them before the image in the form of a figure-of-eight. A fowl is sacrificed, and its blood allowed to flow on to one loop of the figure. In some places, Dharmadēvata and Gagnasuni are worshipped, a castrated goat being sacrificed annually to the former, and fowls and an entire goat to the latter.Pāno women, who live among the Khonds, tattoo their faces in like manner, and in other respects resemble Khond women.I am informed that, on more than one occasion, Pānos have been known to rifle the grave of a European, in the belief that buried treasure will be found.Panta(a crop).—A sub-division of Kāpu and Yānādi. In the Gazetteer of South Arcot, Pan Reddi is recorded as a caste of Telugu-speaking ryots (Kāpus).Pantala.—Recorded, in Travancore, as a sub-division of Sāmantan. The name is said to be derived from Bhandārattil, or belonging to the royal treasury.Pantāri.—Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, as synonymous with the Idacheri sub-divisionof Nāyar. Pantrantu Vītan is also there recorded as a sub-division of Nāyar.Pappadam.—People calling themselves Pappadam Chetti are largely found in Malabar, living by the manufacture and sale of cakes called pappadam, which are purchased by all classes, including Nambūtiri Brāhmans.Pappini.—A name for Brāhmanis, a class of Ambalavāsi.Pappu(split pulse).—An exogamous sept of Balija.Paradēsi.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a class of Malayālam beggars. The name indicates strangers (paradēsa, a foreign country), and is applied to the White Jews of Cochin, in connection with whom it occurs in Sirkar (State) accounts and royal writs granted to them.Paraiya Tāda.—Recorded, in the North Arcot Manual, as a name for those who are considered impure Valluvans. The name literally means Paraiya Tādan or Dāsari.Paraiyan.—The Paraiyans or, as they are commonly termed, Pariahs of the Tamil country number, according to recent census returns, over two million souls, and a large proportion of those who returned themselves as Native Christians are said also to belong to this class. For the following note I am mainly indebted to an account of the Paraiyans by the Rev. A. C. Clayton.48The late Bishop Caldwell derived the name Paraiyan from the Tamil word parai a drum, as certain Paraiyans act as drummers at marriages, funerals, village festivals, and on occasions when Government or commercial announcements are proclaimed. Mr. H. A. Stuart,however, seems to question this derivation, remarking49that “it is only one section of Paraiyans that act as drummers. Nor is the occupation confined to Paraiyans. It seems in the highest degree improbable that a large, and at one time powerful, community should owe its name to an occasional occupation, which one of its divisions shares with other castes. The word Paraiyan is not found in Divākaram, a Tamil dictionary of the eleventh century A.D., and the word Pulayan was then used to denote this section of the population, as it is still in Malayālam to this day.” In the legend of the Saivite saint, Nandan is, in the prose version of the Periya Purānam, called a Pulayan, though a native of Shōlamandalam, which was a distinctly Tamil kingdom. Mr. W. Francis writes50that “the old Tamil poems and works of the early centuries of the Christian era do not mention the name Paraiyan, but contain many descriptions of a tribe called the Eyinas, who seem to have been quite distinct from the rest of the population, and did not live in the villages, but in forts of their own. Ambūr and Vellore are mentioned as the sites of two of these. They may perhaps have been the ancestors of the Paraiyans of to-day.”In a note on the Paraiyans, Sonnerat, writing51in the eighteenth century, says that “they are prohibited from drawing water from the wells of other castes; but have particular wells of their own near their inhabitations, round which they place the bones of animals, that they may be known and avoided. When an Indian of any other caste permits a Paraiya to speak to him, this unfortunate being is obliged to hold his hand before his mouth, lest the Indian may be contaminated with hisbreath; and, if he is met on the highway, he must turn on one side to let the other pass. If any Indian whatever, even a Choutre, by accident touches a Paraiya, he is obliged to purify himself in a bath. The Brāhmans cannot behold them, and they are obliged to fly when they appear. Great care is taken not to eat anything dressed by a Paraiya, nor even to drink out of the vessel he has used; they dare not enter the house of an Indian of another caste; or, if they are employed in any work, a door is purposely made for them; but they must work with their eyes on the ground; for, if it is perceived they have glanced at the kitchen, all the utensils must be broken. The infamy of the Paraiyas is reflected on the Europeans: last are held in more detestation, because, setting aside the little respect they have for the cow, whose flesh they eat, the Indians reproach them with spitting in their houses, and even their temples: that when drinking they put the cup to their lips, and their fingers to their mouths in such a manner that they are defiled with the spittle.”Paraiyans are to be found throughout the Tamil districts from North Arcot to Tinnevelly, and in the southern extremity of the Native State of Travancore. In the Telugu country the Mālas and Mādigas and in the Canarese country the Holeyas take their place.Some of the most common names of Paraiyan males are—Kanni or Kanniyappan.Rāman or Rāmaswāmi.Rāju.Vēlu.Muttan.Māri.Kanagan.Subban.Nondi.Tambiran.Perumāl.Vīran.Sellan.Amāvāsi.Among females the most common names are Tai, Parpathi, Ammai, Kanni, Muttammāl, Rājammāl, Ammani, Selli, Gangammāl. In one village, where the Paraiyans were almost all Vaishnavas, by profession not by practice, Mr. Clayton found the inhabitants all named after heroes of the Mahābhārata, and dirty naked children answered to the names of Ikshvākan, Karnan, Bhīman, and Draupadi. It is usual to give the father’s name when distinguishing one Paraiyan from another,e.g., Tamburan, son of Kannan. In legal documents the prefix Para denotes a Paraiyan,e.g., Para Kanni, the Paraiyan Kanni, but this is a purely clerical formula. The Paraiyan delights in nicknames, and men sometimes grow so accustomed to these that they have almost forgotten their real names. The following nicknames are very common :—Nondi, lame.Kallan, thief.Kullan, dwarf.Vellei, white or light complexioned.Kannan, with eyes.Muthalai, crocodile.Kudiyan, drunkard.No name, indicating virtue or merit, is given, lest the wrath of malevolent spirits should be aroused.At the census, 1891, 348 sub-divisions were returned, of which the following were strongest in point of numbers :—Amma found chiefly in Tanjore and Madura; Katti in Salem and Trichinopoly; Kīzhakkatti (eastern) in Salem; Kōliyan (weavers) in Chingleput, Tanjore and Trichinopoly; Konga in Salem; Korava in Coimbatore; Kōttai (fort) in South Arcot; Morasu (drum) in Salem; Mottai in Madura; Pacchai (green) in Coimbatore; Sāmbān in South Arcot; Sangidum (sanku, conch, or chank shell) in Coimbatore; Sōzhia (natives of the Sōzha or Chōla country) in Tanjore and Madura;Tangalān in North and South Arcot, Chingleput, Salem, and Trichinopoly; and Valangamattu in South Arcot. The members of the various sub-divisions do not intermarry.Paraiyan.Paraiyan.It has been suggested to me that the Morasu Paraiyans, included in the above list, are Canarese Holeyas, who have settled in the Tamil country. In the south their women, like the Kallans, wear a horsehair thread round the neck. As additional sub-divisions, the following may be noted :—Aruththukattātha, or those who, having once cut the tāli-string, do not tie it a second time,i.e., those who do not permit remarriage of widows.Valai(a net).—Paraiyans who hunt.Sanku(conch-shell).—Those who act as conch-blowers at funerals.Thātha.—Thāthan is the name given to mendicants who profess Vaishnavism. Such Paraiyans are Vaishnavites, and some are beggars.In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis notes that the term Paraiyan “is now almost a generic one, and the caste is split up into many sub-divisions, which differ in manners and ways. For example, the Kōliyans, who are weavers, and the Valluvans, who are medicine men and priests and wear the sacred thread, will not intermarry or eat with the others, and are now practically distinct castes.” As occupational titles of Paraiyans Mr. Francis gives Urumikkāran and Pambaikkāran, or those who play on drums (urumi and pambai), and Podarayan or Podara Vannān, who are washermen. The title Valangamattān, or people of the right-hand division, is assumed by some Paraiyans.Mr. Clayton states that he knows of no legend or popular belief among the Paraiyans, indicating thatthey believe themselves to have come from any other part of the country than that where they now find themselves. There is, however, some evidence that the race has had a long past, and one in which they had independence, and possibly great importance in the peninsula. Mr. Stuart mentions52that the Valluvans were priests to the Pallava kings before the introduction of the Brāhmans, and even for some time after it. He quotes an unpublished Vatteluttu inscription, believed to be of the ninth century, in which it is noted that “Srī Valluvam Puvanavan, the Uvacchan (or temple ministrant), will employ six men daily, and do the temple service.” The inference is that the Valluvan was a man of recognised priestly rank, and of great influence. The prefix Srī is a notable honorific. By itself this inscription would prove little, but the whole legendary history of the greatest of all Tamil poets, Tiruvalluvar, “the holy Valluvan,” confirms all that can be deduced from it. His date can only be fixed approximately, but it is probable that he flourished not later than the tenth century A.D. It is safe to say that this extraordinary sage could not have attained the fame he did, or have received the honours that were bestowed upon him, had not the Valluvans, and therefore the Paraiyans, been in the circle of respectable society in his day. This conjecture is strengthened by the legend that he married a Vellāla girl. The same hypothesis is the only one that will account for the education and the vogue of the sister of the poet, the aphoristic poetess Avvei.In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis mentions an inscription of the Chōla King Rāja Rāja, dated about the eleventh century A.D., in which the Paraiyan caste iscalled by its own name. It had then two sub-divisions, the Nesavu or weavers, and Ulavu or ploughmen. The caste had even then its own hamlets, wells and burning-grounds.There are certain privileges possessed by Paraiyans, which they could never have gained for themselves from orthodox Hinduism. They seem to be survivals of a past, in which Paraiyans held a much higher position than they do now. It is noted by Mr. M. J. Walhouse53that “in the great festival of Siva at Trivalūr in Tanjore the headman of the Parēyars is mounted on the elephant with the god, and carries his chauri (yak-tail fly fan). In Madras, at the annual festival of Egatta, the goddess of the Black,54now George, Town, when a tāli is tied round the neck of the idol in the name of the entire community, a Parēyan is chosen to represent the bridegroom. At Mēlkotta in Mysore, the chief seat of the followers of Rāmānuja Achārya, and at the Brāhman temple at Bēlur, the Holēyas or Parēyars have the right of entering the temple on three days in the year specially set apart for them.” At Mēlkote, the Holeyas and Mādigas are said to have been granted the privilege of entering thesanctum sanctorumalong with Brāhmans and others on three days by Rāmānuja. In 1799, however, the right to enter the temple was stopped at the dhvajastambham, or consecrated monolithic column. At both Bēlur and Mēlkote, as soon as the festival is over, the temples are ceremonially purified. At Srīperumbudūr in the Chingleput district, the Paraiyans enjoy a similar privilege to those at Tiruvalūr, in return for having sheltered an image of the locally-worshippedincarnation of Vishnu during a Muhammadan raid. It is noted by Mr. Stuart that the lower village offices, the Vettiyan, Taliāri, Dandāsi or Bārike, and the Tōti, are, in the majority of Madras villages, held by persons of the Paraiyan caste. Paraiyans are allowed to take part in pulling the cars of the idols in the great festivals at Conjeeveram, Kumbakōnam, and Srīvilliputtūr. Their touch is not reckoned to defile the ropes used, so that other Hindus will pull with them. With this may be compared the fact that the Telugu Mālas are custodians of the goddess Gauri, the bull Nandi, and Ganēsa, the chief gods of the Saiva Kāpus and Balijas. It may also be noted that the Kōmatis, who claim to be Vaisyas, are bound to invite Mādigas to their marriages, though they take care that the latter do not hear the invitation. Mr. Clayton records that he has heard well-authenticated instances of Brāhman women worshipping at Paraiyan shrines in order to procure children, and states that he once saw a Paraiyan exorciser treating a Brāhman by uttering mantrams (consecrated formulæ), and waving a sickle up and down the sufferer’s back, as he stood in a threshing floor.In a note on the Paraiyans of the Trichinopoly district, Mr. F. R. Hemingway writes as follows. “They have a very exalted account of their lineage, saying that they are descended from the Brāhman priest Sāla Sāmbavan, who was employed in a Siva temple to worship the god with offerings of beef, but who incurred the anger of the god by one day concealing a portion of the meat, to give it to his pregnant wife, and was therefore turned into a Paraiyan. The god appointed his brother to do duty instead of him, and the Paraiyans say that Brāhman priests are their cousins. For this reason they wear a sacred thread at their marriages and funerals.At the festival of the village goddesses, they repeat an extravagant praise of their caste, which runs as follows. ‘The Paraiyans were the first creation, the first who wore the sacred thread, the uppermost in the social scale, the differentiators of castes, the winners of laurels. They have been seated on the white elephant, the Vīra Sāmbavans who beat the victorious drum.’ It is a curious fact that, at the feast of the village goddess, a Paraiyan is honoured by being invested with a sacred thread for the occasion by the pūjāri (priest) of the temple, by having a turmeric thread tied to his wrists, and being allowed to head the procession. This, the Paraiyans say, is owing to their exalted origin.”In times of drought some of the lower orders, instead of addressing their prayers to the rain god Varuna, try to induce a spirit or dēvata named Kodumpāvi (wicked one) to send her paramour Sukra to the affected area. The belief seems to be that Sukra goes away to his concubine for about six months, and, if he does not then return, drought ensues. The ceremony consists in making a huge figure of Kodumpāvi in clay, which is placed on a cart, and dragged through the streets for seven to ten days. On the last day, the final death ceremonies of the figure are celebrated. It is disfigured, especially in those parts which are usually concealed. Vettiyans (Paraiyan grave-diggers), who have been shaved, accompany the figure, and perform the funeral ceremonies. This procedure is believed to put Kodumpāvi to shame, and to get her to induce Sukra to return, and stay the drought. Paraiyans are said55to wail as though they were at a funeral, and to beat drums in the funeral time.The Paraiyans are said by Mr. Francis56to have a curious share in the ceremonies in connection with the annual buffalo sacrifice at the Kāli shrine at Mangalam in South Arcot. “Eight men of this community are chosen from eight adjoining villages, and one of them is selected as leader. His wife must not be with child at the’ time, and she is made to prove that she is above all suspicion by undergoing the ordeal of thrusting her hand into boiling gingelly (Sesamum) oil. On each of ten days for which the festival lasts, this Paraiyan has to go round some part of the boundaries of the eight villages, and he is fed gratis by the villagers during this time. On the day of the sacrifice itself, he marches in front of the priest as the latter kills the buffaloes. The Paraiyans of the eight villages have the right to the carcases of the slaughtered animals.”The Paraiyans know the village boundaries better than anyone else, and are very expert in this matter, unerringly pointing out where boundaries should run, even when the Government demarcation stones are completely overgrown by prickly-pear, or have been removed. Mr. Stuart records a custom which prevails in some parts of making a Paraiyan walk the boundaries of a field with a pot of water on his head, when there is any dispute about their exact position. He thinks that the only satisfactory explanation of this is that the connection of the Paraiyans with the soil is of much longer standing than that of other castes. The admitted proprietary right which Paraiyans have in the site known as chēri-nattam, on which their huts stand, is a confirmation of this. These sites are entered as such on the official village maps. They cannot be taken from theParaiyans, and date from time immemorial. Throughout the whole of the Tamil country it is usual to find that the land allotted for house-site (nattam) is in two portions in every village (Ūr). One part is known by the Sanskrit name grāmam (village), the inhabited place. The other is called by the Dravidian name chēri (gathering place).Sometimes the latter is called by the fuller title parachēri (Anglice parcheri, parcherry),i.e., the gathering place of the Paraiyans. In the grāmam live the Brāhmans, who sometimes dwell, in a quarter by themselves known as the agrahāra, and also other Hindus. In the parachēri live the Paraiyans. The parachēri and the grāmam are always separated, at least by a road or lane, and often by several fields. And not only is it usual thus to find that, in every village, the Paraiyans as a community possess a house-site, but there are many cases in which more than one chēri is attached to a grāmam. This seems to repudiate the suggestion that at some period or periods the higher castes relegated the Paraiyans to these chēris. Indeed, in some cases, the very names of the chēris suggest what appears to be the more correct view, viz., that the chēris had a distinct origin. For instance, the whole revenue village of Teiyar near Chingleput consists of one Sūdra grāmam and seven Paraiyan chēris, each with a name of its own, Periyapillēri, Komanchēri, etc. In other cases,e.g., Ideipālayam in the north of the district, and Varadarājapuram near Vandalūr, only Paraiyan hamlets exist; there is no grāmam. In South Arcot there are at least two villages, Govindanallūr and Andapet, inhabited only by Paraiyans, where even the Maniyakkāran (munsiff or village headman) is a Paraiyan. Other instances might be quoted in proof of the same opinion. And, when the ceremonialantipathy between Brāhman and Paraiyan is examined, it points in the same direction. It is well known that a Brāhman considers himself polluted by the touch, presence, or shadow of a Paraiyan, and will not allow him to enter his house, or even the street in which he lives, if it is an agrāhāra. But it is not so well known that the Paraiyans will not allow a Brāhman to enter the chēri. Should a Brāhman venture into the Paraiyan’s quarter, water with which cow-dung has been mixed is thrown on his head, and he is driven out. It is stated57by Captain J. S. F. Mackenzie that “Brāhmans in Mysore consider that great luck will await them if they can manage to pass through the Holeya quarter of a village unmolested, and that, should a Brāhman attempt to enter their quarters, they turn out in a body and slipper him, in former times it is said to death.” Some Brāhmans consider a forsaken parachēri an auspicious site for an agrāhāra. A very peculiar case is that of the grāmam founded for, and occupied by the clerks of the earliest Collectors (district magistrates) of the jagir of Karunguli from 1795 to 1825 A.D. These clerks were Brāhmans, and it was called the agrāhāram. It was deserted when the head-quarters of the Collector were removed to Conjeeveram. It is now occupied by Paraiyans, but is still called the agrāhāram.The facts, taken together, seem to show that the Paraiyan priests (Valluvans), and therefore the Paraiyans as a race, are very ancient, that ten centuries ago they were a respectable community, and that many were weavers. The privileges they enjoy are relics of an exceedingly long association with the land. The institution of the parachēri points to original independence,and even to possession of much of the land. If the account of the colonisation of Tondeimandalam by Vellālans in the eighth century A.D. is historic, then it is possible that at that time the Paraiyans lost the land, and that their degradation as a race began.The Paraiyans have long been a settled race. And, though a number of them emigrate to Ceylon, Mauritius, South Africa, the West Indies, the Straits Settlements, and even to Fiji, the vast majority live and die within a mile or two of the spot where they were born. The houses in which they live are not temporary erections, or intended for use during certain seasons of the year only. The rudest form is a hut made by tying a few leaves of the palmyra palm on to a framework of poles or bamboos. The better class of houses are a series of rooms with low mud walls and thatched roof, but generally without doors, surrounding a small courtyard, in which the family goats, buffaloes, and fowls have their homes. The cooking is done anywhere where it is convenient either indoors or out, as there is no fear of pollution from the glance or shadow of any passer-by. Very occasionally the walls of the house, especially those facing the street, are whitewashed, or decorated with variegated patterns or figures in red and white. Paraiya women, like higher caste women, are much given to tracing exceedingly intricate symmetrical designs (kōlam) with rice flour on the smooth space or pathway immediately before the doors of their houses, it is said, to prevent the entrance of evil spirits. Mr. S. P. Rice writes to me that the patterns on the floor or threshold are generally traced with white powder,e.g., chalk, as rice is too costly; and that the original object of the custom was not to drive away evil spirits, but to provide food for the lowest creatures of creation—ants, insects, etc.Admissions to the Paraiyan caste from higher castes sometimes occur. Mr. Clayton records having met an Aiyangar Brāhman who was working as a cooly with some Paraiyan labourers at Kodaikānal on the Palni hills. He had become infatuated with a Paraiya woman, and had consequently been excommunicated, and became a Paraiyan.In every Paraiya settlement a small number of the more important men are known as Panakkāran (money-man). The application of the term may, Mr. Clayton suggests, be due to their comparative opulence, or may have arisen from the custom of paying them a small sum (panam) for various services to the community. But Panikkar or Panakkar is usually said to be derived from pani, meaning work. They form a committee or council to decide ordinary quarrels, and to amerce the damages in cases of assault, seduction, rape, and adultery. They have power to dissolve marriages on account of the wife, or if the husband has deserted his wife. In these cases their authority is really based on the public opinion of the parachēri, and goes no further than that public opinion will enforce it. There is no headman in a Paraiya hamlet corresponding to the munsiff or village magistrate of the Hindu village (grāma). In modern practice the Paraiyans are, for police purposes, under the authority of the munsiff of the grāma, and there is a growing tendency on their part to refer all disputes and assaults to the munsiff, or even directly to the police. On the other hand, cases of a more domestic nature, such as disputes about betrothals, seduction, etc., are still dealt with, generally acutely and fairly, by the village council. It should be added that the rank of Panakkāran is hereditary, and is regarded as honourable.The Paraiyans, like all the other right-hand castes, come under the jurisdiction of the Dēsāyi Chettis, who have held a sort of censorship since the days of the Nawābs of Arcot over some twenty-four of these right-hand castes, chiefly in North Arcot. The Dēsāyi Chetti has nominal power to deal with all moral offences, and is supposed to have a representative in every village, who reports every offence. But, though his authority is great in North Arcot, and the fines levied there bring in an income of hundreds of rupees yearly, it is not so much dreaded in other districts. The punishment usually inflicted is a fine, but sometimes a delinquent Paraiyan will be made to crawl on his hands and knees on the ground between the legs of a Paraiya woman as a final humiliation. The punishment of excommunication,i.e., cutting off from fire and water, is sometimes the fate of the recalcitrant, either before the council or the Dēsāyi Chetti, but it is seldom effective for more than a short time. Mr. K. Rangachari adds that, in certain places, the Dēsāyi Chetti appoints the Panakkāran, who is subordinate to the Dēsāyi, and that a man called the Variyan or Shalavāthi is sometimes appointed as assistant to the Panakkāran. He also mentions some other punishments. The fine for adultery is from 7 pagodas 14 fanams to 11 pagodas, when the wronged woman is unmarried. If she is married, the amount ranges from 12 pagodas 14 fanams to 16 pagodas. The fine is said to be divided between the woman, her husband, the members of council, and the Panakkārans. Formerly an offender against the Paraiyan community was tied to a post at the beginning of his trial, and, if found guilty, was beaten. He might escape the flogging by paying a fine of two fanams per stripe. Sometimes a delinquent is paraded through the hamlet, carrying a rubbish basket,or is ordered to make a heap of rubbish at a certain spot. Or a cord is passed from one big toe over the bowed neck of the culprit, and tied to his other big toe, and then a stone is placed on his bent back. In some places, when an unmarried woman is convicted of adultery, she is publicly given a new cloth and a bit of straw or a twig, apparently in mockery. It is said that formerly, if the chastity of a bride was suspected, she had to pick some cakes out of boiling oil. This she had to do just after the tāli had been tied in the wedding ceremony. Her hair, nails, and clothes were examined, to see that she had no charm concealed. After lifting the cakes from the oil, she had to husk some rice with her bare hand. If she could do this, her virtue was established. In the South Arcot district, according to Mr. Francis,58the Paraiyans “have caste headmen called the Periya (big) Nattān and the Chinna (little) Nattān or Tangalān (our man), whose posts are usually hereditary. The Tangalān carries out the sentence of caste panchayats, administering a thrashing to the accused for example, if such be the order of the court. Of the fines inflicted by these assemblies, a fifth is usually handed over to the local Māriamma shrine, and the remaining four-fifths are laid out in drinks for the panchayatdars. Until recently, a part of the fine was in some cases, in these parts, paid to the local poligar.”Excommunicated Paraiyans are said to go to a mythical place called Vinnamangalam. In some documents signed by Paraiyans, the words “If I fail to fulfil the conditions of our agreement, I shall go to Vinnamangalam” are inserted. In all enquiries by thepolice, the council, or the Dēsāyi Chetti, the Paraiyan only tells what in his opinion it is expedient to tell. But evidence given after burning a piece of camphor is said to be reliable.The attainment of puberty by girls is a subject of greedy curiosity to most of the women in a Paraiya village. This has been said to be due to the fact that “the menstrual fluid is held in horror, dire consequences being supposed to result from not merely the contact, but even the very sight of it. Hence the isolation and purification of women during the menstrual period, and the extreme care and anxiety with which the first approach of puberty in a girl is watched.” The girl at once begins to wear a covering of some sort, even it be the most pathetic rag, over her left shoulder and breast. Till this time, a bit of cotton cloth round her waist has been considered sufficient. Among the Tangalān Paraiyans, when a girl attains puberty, she is kept apart either in the house or in a separate hut. Pollution is supposed to last eight days. On the ninth day, the girl is bathed, and seated in the courtyard. Ten small lamps of flour paste (called drishti māvu vilakku), to avert the evil eye, are put on a sieve, and waved before her three times. Then coloured water (ārati or alam) and burning camphor are waved before her. Some near female relatives then stand behind her, and strike her waist and sides with puttu (flour cake) tied in a cloth. This is believed to make her strong. At the same time other women strike the ground behind the girl with a rice-pestle. Then presents are given to the girl. In some places the girl is beaten within the house by her mother-in-law or paternal aunt. The latter repeatedly asks the girl to promise that her daughter shall marry her paternal aunt’s son.In marriages among the Paraiyans, difference in religion is of little moment. A Christian Paraiyan will marry a heathen girl, though it should be said that she is usually baptised at or about the time of the marriage. A Christian girl is sometimes married to a heathen Paraiyan. Mr. Clayton thinks that the fact that certain Paraiyans paint the nāmam of Vishnu on their foreheads, while others smear their foreheads with the ashes of Siva, prevents marriages between them.The bridegroom must be older than the bride. Subject to this condition, it is usual for a youth to marry his father’s sister’s daughter, or his mother’s brother’s daughter. A girl should be married to her mother’s brother’s son if he is old enough, but not, as among the Konga Vellālas and some Reddis, if he is a child. In short, Paraiyans follow the usual Tamil custom, but it is often neglected.Marriage contracts are sometimes made by parents while the parties most concerned are still infants, often while they are still children; in the majority of cases when the girl attains the marriageable age. The bridegroom may be many years older than the bride, especially when custom, as noted above, settles who shall be his bride. The bride has absolutely no choice in the matter; but, if the bridegroom is a man of some years or position, his preferences are consulted. The elder sister should be given in marriage before her younger sisters are married. The arrangements are more or less a bargain. Presents of clothes, paltry jewels, rice, vegetables, and perhaps a few rupees, are exchanged between the families of the bride and bridegroom. The household that seeks the marriage naturally gives the larger gifts. The actual marriage ceremony is very simple. The essential part is the tying of a small tokenor ornament (tāli), varying in value from a few annas to four or five rupees by a turmeric-stained string, round the neck of the bride. This is done by the bridegroom in the presence of a Valluvan, who mutters some kind of blessing on the marriage. A series of feasts, lasting over two or three days, is given to all the relatives of both parties by the parents of the newly-married couple. The bride and bridegroom do not live together immediately, even if the girl is old enough. The exact date at which their life together may begin is settled by the bride’s mother. The occasion, called soppana muhurtham, is celebrated by another feast and much merry-making, not always seemly.

Paniyans making fire.Paniyans making fire.At Pudupādi an elephant mahout was jealously guarding a bit of bamboo stick with notches cut in it, each notch representing a day for which wages were due to him. The stick in question had six notches, representing six days’ wages.Average height 157.4 cm. Nasal index 95 (max. 108.6). The average distance from the tip of the middle finger to the top of the patella was 4.6 cm. relative to stature = 100, which approximates very closely to the recorded results of measurement of long-limbed African negroes.Panjai.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-division of Pāndya Vellāla. The name Panjai, indicating a poverty-stricken individual, is usually applied to mendicant Pandārams.Panjāram.—Panjāram or Panchāramkatti is the name of a sub-division of the Idaiyans, derived from the peculiar gold ornament, which the women wear. It is said that, in this division, widow marriage is commonly practiced, because Krishna used to place a similar ornament round the necks of Idaiyan widows of whom he became enamoured, and that this sub-division was the result of his amours with them.Panjukkāra(cotton-man).—An occupational name of a sub-division of Vellālas, who are not at the present day connected with the cotton trade. They call themselves Panjukkāra Chettis. The equivalent panjāri (pinjāri) or Panjukotti occurs as a Tamil synonym for Dūdēkula (Muhammadan cotton-cleaners).Pannādai(sheath of the cocoanut leaf).—A sub-division of Vēttuvan.Pannaiyān.—A title of Alavan.Pannara.—A sub-division of Māli.Pannendu Nāl(twelve days).—A name for those Pallis who, like Brāhmans, perform the final death ceremonies on the twelfth day.Pannirendām(twelfth) Chetti.—A section of the Chettis.Pāno.—In the Madras Census Report, 1891, the Pānos are described as “a caste of weavers found in the Ganjam district. This caste is no doubt identical with the Pāns, a weaving, basket-making, and servile caste of Orissa and Chota Nagpore. The Pānos occupy the same position among the Khonds of Ganjam as the Dombs hold among the inhabitants of the Vizagapatam hills, and the words Pāno and Dombo are generally regarded as synonyms [SeeDōmb]. The members of the Sitra sub-division are workers in metal.” It is further noted, in the Census Report, 1901, that the Pānos are “an extensive caste of hill weavers found chiefly in the Ganjam Agency. The Khond synonym for this word is Domboloko, which helps to confirm the connection between this caste and the Dombas of Vizagapatam. They speak Khond and Oriya.” In a note on the Pānos, I read that “their occupations are trading, weaving, and theft. They live on the ignorance and superstition of the Khonds as brokers, pedlars, sycophants, and cheats. In those parts where there are no Oriyas, they possess much influence, and are always consulted by the Khonds in questions of boundary disputes.” In a brief account of the Pānos, Mr. C. F. MacCartie writes47that “thePānos, also known by the title of Dombo or Sitra in some parts, are supposed to be Paraiya [Telugu Mala] emigrants from the low country. Their profession is weaving or brass work, the monotony of which they vary by petty trading in horns, skins and live cattle, and occasionally enliven by house-breaking and theft at the expense of the Khonds, who have an incautious trick of leaving their habitations utterly unguarded when they go off to the hills to cultivate. [In the Madras Census Report, 1901, the Sitras are said to be supposed to be the progeny of a Khond man and a Haddi woman, who manufacture the brass rings and bangles worn by the Khonds.] The Pānos are drunken, immoral, and dirty in their habits. The Khonds refuse to eat with them, but I do not find that this objection extends to drinking, at which both Khond and Pāno display surprising capabilities. Pānos are also the professional musicians of the country, and attend weddings, deaths and sacrifices in this character, for which they are recompensed with food, liquor, and cloths. The generality of Khond and Pāno houses are constructed of broad sâl (Shorea robusta) logs, hewn out with the axe and thatched with jungle grass, which is impervious to white-ants. In bamboo jungles, of course, bamboo is substituted for sâl. The Pānos generally affect a detached quarter, known as Dombo sai. Intermarriage between Khonds, Pānos, and Uriyas is not recognised, but cases do occur when a Pāno induces a Khond woman to go off with him. She may live with him as his wife, but no ceremony takes place. [A few years ago, a young Khond was betrothed to the daughter of another Khond, and, after a few years, managed to pay up the necessary number of gifts. He then applied to the girl’s father to name the day for the marriage. Before the wedding took place however, aPāno went to the girl’s father, and said that she was his daughter (she had been born before her parents were married), and that he was the man to whom the gifts should have been paid. The case was referred to a council, which decided in favour of the Pāno.] If a Pāno commits adultery with a Khond married woman, he has to pay a paronjo, or a fine of a buffalo to the husband (who retains his wife), and in addition a goat, a pig, a basket of paddy (rice), a rupee, and a load of pots. There is close communication between the Pānos and the Khonds, as the former act as the advisers of the latter in all cases of doubt or difficulty. The Uriyas live apart from both, and mix but little with either, except on the occasion of sacrifices or other solemn assemblages, when buffaloes are slaughtered for Pānos and Khonds, and goats or sheep for Uriya visitors. [It is noted, in the Ganjam Manual, in connection with Khond death ceremonies, that “if a man has been killed by a tiger, purification is made by the sacrifice of a pig, the head of which is cut off with a tangi (axe) by a Pāno, and passed between the legs of the men in the village, who stand in a line astraddle. It is a bad omen to him, if the head touches any man’s legs.] Among the products of the jungles may be included myrabolams (Terminaliafruits), tasar silk cocoons, and dammer, all of which are bartered by the finders to trading Pānos in small quantities, generally for salt.” In the Ganjam Māliahs, the jungles are said to be searched by Pānos for tasar cocoons, and, just across the border in Boad, the collection of these cocoons is a regular industry among them. Small portions of jungle are regularly reserved, and divided up into small allotments. Each of these is given to a Pāno for rent, and here he cultivates the silkworms, and collects thesilk, which is sent to Berhampur and Sambalpur for manufacture.The Pānos are divided into two distinct sections, viz., the Khonda Pānos who live amidst the Khonds, and the Dēsa Pānos of the plains. The former have adopted some of the customs of the Khonds, while the latter follow the customs of the Uriya castes which dwell in the lowland. The Khond Pānos are governed by the Molikos (headmen) of the Khonds. In some cases, the fines inflicted for breach of caste rules are rather severe. For example, in the neighbourhood of Baliguda, a man who is convicted of adultery has to pay two rupees, and give two buffaloes to the council which tries the case. Further south, for a similar offence twelve buffaloes are demanded, and the culprit has to pay twice the amount of the bride-price to the injured husband. The Dēsa Pānos conform to the standard Uriya type of caste council, and have a headman called Bēhara, who is assisted by a Nāyako, and caste servants entitled Bhollobaya or Gonjāri.The marriage ceremonies of the Dēsa Pānos are closely allied to those of the Dandāsis and Haddis, whereas those of the Khonda Pānos bear a close resemblance to the ceremonies of the Khonds. Like Khond girls, unmarried Khond Pāno girls sleep in quarters (dhangadi) specially set apart for them, and, as among the Khonds, wedding presents in the form of gontis are given. It is noted with reference to the Khonds, in the Ganjam Manual, that “the bride is looked upon as a commercial speculation, and is paid for in gontis. A gonti is one of anything, such as a buffalo, a pig, or a brass pot; for instance, a hundred gontis might consist of ten bullocks, ten buffaloes, ten sacks of corn, ten sets of brass, twenty sheep, ten pigs, and thirty fowls.” Ata Khond Pāno marriage, the fingers of the contracting couple are linked together, and an important item of the ceremonial, which adds dignity thereto, is placing in front of the house at which a marriage is being celebrated a big brass vessel containing water, with which the guests wash their feet.The Pānos pay reverence to ancestors, to whom, when a death occurs in a family, food is offered. In some Pāno villages, when a child is born, it is customary to consult a pūjāri (priest) as to whether the grandfather or great-grandfather is re-born in it. If the answer is in the affirmative, pigs are sacrificed to the ancestors. Some Pānos have adopted the worship of Tākurānis (village deities), to whom rice and turmeric are offered by placing them before the image in the form of a figure-of-eight. A fowl is sacrificed, and its blood allowed to flow on to one loop of the figure. In some places, Dharmadēvata and Gagnasuni are worshipped, a castrated goat being sacrificed annually to the former, and fowls and an entire goat to the latter.Pāno women, who live among the Khonds, tattoo their faces in like manner, and in other respects resemble Khond women.I am informed that, on more than one occasion, Pānos have been known to rifle the grave of a European, in the belief that buried treasure will be found.Panta(a crop).—A sub-division of Kāpu and Yānādi. In the Gazetteer of South Arcot, Pan Reddi is recorded as a caste of Telugu-speaking ryots (Kāpus).Pantala.—Recorded, in Travancore, as a sub-division of Sāmantan. The name is said to be derived from Bhandārattil, or belonging to the royal treasury.Pantāri.—Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, as synonymous with the Idacheri sub-divisionof Nāyar. Pantrantu Vītan is also there recorded as a sub-division of Nāyar.Pappadam.—People calling themselves Pappadam Chetti are largely found in Malabar, living by the manufacture and sale of cakes called pappadam, which are purchased by all classes, including Nambūtiri Brāhmans.Pappini.—A name for Brāhmanis, a class of Ambalavāsi.Pappu(split pulse).—An exogamous sept of Balija.Paradēsi.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a class of Malayālam beggars. The name indicates strangers (paradēsa, a foreign country), and is applied to the White Jews of Cochin, in connection with whom it occurs in Sirkar (State) accounts and royal writs granted to them.Paraiya Tāda.—Recorded, in the North Arcot Manual, as a name for those who are considered impure Valluvans. The name literally means Paraiya Tādan or Dāsari.Paraiyan.—The Paraiyans or, as they are commonly termed, Pariahs of the Tamil country number, according to recent census returns, over two million souls, and a large proportion of those who returned themselves as Native Christians are said also to belong to this class. For the following note I am mainly indebted to an account of the Paraiyans by the Rev. A. C. Clayton.48The late Bishop Caldwell derived the name Paraiyan from the Tamil word parai a drum, as certain Paraiyans act as drummers at marriages, funerals, village festivals, and on occasions when Government or commercial announcements are proclaimed. Mr. H. A. Stuart,however, seems to question this derivation, remarking49that “it is only one section of Paraiyans that act as drummers. Nor is the occupation confined to Paraiyans. It seems in the highest degree improbable that a large, and at one time powerful, community should owe its name to an occasional occupation, which one of its divisions shares with other castes. The word Paraiyan is not found in Divākaram, a Tamil dictionary of the eleventh century A.D., and the word Pulayan was then used to denote this section of the population, as it is still in Malayālam to this day.” In the legend of the Saivite saint, Nandan is, in the prose version of the Periya Purānam, called a Pulayan, though a native of Shōlamandalam, which was a distinctly Tamil kingdom. Mr. W. Francis writes50that “the old Tamil poems and works of the early centuries of the Christian era do not mention the name Paraiyan, but contain many descriptions of a tribe called the Eyinas, who seem to have been quite distinct from the rest of the population, and did not live in the villages, but in forts of their own. Ambūr and Vellore are mentioned as the sites of two of these. They may perhaps have been the ancestors of the Paraiyans of to-day.”In a note on the Paraiyans, Sonnerat, writing51in the eighteenth century, says that “they are prohibited from drawing water from the wells of other castes; but have particular wells of their own near their inhabitations, round which they place the bones of animals, that they may be known and avoided. When an Indian of any other caste permits a Paraiya to speak to him, this unfortunate being is obliged to hold his hand before his mouth, lest the Indian may be contaminated with hisbreath; and, if he is met on the highway, he must turn on one side to let the other pass. If any Indian whatever, even a Choutre, by accident touches a Paraiya, he is obliged to purify himself in a bath. The Brāhmans cannot behold them, and they are obliged to fly when they appear. Great care is taken not to eat anything dressed by a Paraiya, nor even to drink out of the vessel he has used; they dare not enter the house of an Indian of another caste; or, if they are employed in any work, a door is purposely made for them; but they must work with their eyes on the ground; for, if it is perceived they have glanced at the kitchen, all the utensils must be broken. The infamy of the Paraiyas is reflected on the Europeans: last are held in more detestation, because, setting aside the little respect they have for the cow, whose flesh they eat, the Indians reproach them with spitting in their houses, and even their temples: that when drinking they put the cup to their lips, and their fingers to their mouths in such a manner that they are defiled with the spittle.”Paraiyans are to be found throughout the Tamil districts from North Arcot to Tinnevelly, and in the southern extremity of the Native State of Travancore. In the Telugu country the Mālas and Mādigas and in the Canarese country the Holeyas take their place.Some of the most common names of Paraiyan males are—Kanni or Kanniyappan.Rāman or Rāmaswāmi.Rāju.Vēlu.Muttan.Māri.Kanagan.Subban.Nondi.Tambiran.Perumāl.Vīran.Sellan.Amāvāsi.Among females the most common names are Tai, Parpathi, Ammai, Kanni, Muttammāl, Rājammāl, Ammani, Selli, Gangammāl. In one village, where the Paraiyans were almost all Vaishnavas, by profession not by practice, Mr. Clayton found the inhabitants all named after heroes of the Mahābhārata, and dirty naked children answered to the names of Ikshvākan, Karnan, Bhīman, and Draupadi. It is usual to give the father’s name when distinguishing one Paraiyan from another,e.g., Tamburan, son of Kannan. In legal documents the prefix Para denotes a Paraiyan,e.g., Para Kanni, the Paraiyan Kanni, but this is a purely clerical formula. The Paraiyan delights in nicknames, and men sometimes grow so accustomed to these that they have almost forgotten their real names. The following nicknames are very common :—Nondi, lame.Kallan, thief.Kullan, dwarf.Vellei, white or light complexioned.Kannan, with eyes.Muthalai, crocodile.Kudiyan, drunkard.No name, indicating virtue or merit, is given, lest the wrath of malevolent spirits should be aroused.At the census, 1891, 348 sub-divisions were returned, of which the following were strongest in point of numbers :—Amma found chiefly in Tanjore and Madura; Katti in Salem and Trichinopoly; Kīzhakkatti (eastern) in Salem; Kōliyan (weavers) in Chingleput, Tanjore and Trichinopoly; Konga in Salem; Korava in Coimbatore; Kōttai (fort) in South Arcot; Morasu (drum) in Salem; Mottai in Madura; Pacchai (green) in Coimbatore; Sāmbān in South Arcot; Sangidum (sanku, conch, or chank shell) in Coimbatore; Sōzhia (natives of the Sōzha or Chōla country) in Tanjore and Madura;Tangalān in North and South Arcot, Chingleput, Salem, and Trichinopoly; and Valangamattu in South Arcot. The members of the various sub-divisions do not intermarry.Paraiyan.Paraiyan.It has been suggested to me that the Morasu Paraiyans, included in the above list, are Canarese Holeyas, who have settled in the Tamil country. In the south their women, like the Kallans, wear a horsehair thread round the neck. As additional sub-divisions, the following may be noted :—Aruththukattātha, or those who, having once cut the tāli-string, do not tie it a second time,i.e., those who do not permit remarriage of widows.Valai(a net).—Paraiyans who hunt.Sanku(conch-shell).—Those who act as conch-blowers at funerals.Thātha.—Thāthan is the name given to mendicants who profess Vaishnavism. Such Paraiyans are Vaishnavites, and some are beggars.In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis notes that the term Paraiyan “is now almost a generic one, and the caste is split up into many sub-divisions, which differ in manners and ways. For example, the Kōliyans, who are weavers, and the Valluvans, who are medicine men and priests and wear the sacred thread, will not intermarry or eat with the others, and are now practically distinct castes.” As occupational titles of Paraiyans Mr. Francis gives Urumikkāran and Pambaikkāran, or those who play on drums (urumi and pambai), and Podarayan or Podara Vannān, who are washermen. The title Valangamattān, or people of the right-hand division, is assumed by some Paraiyans.Mr. Clayton states that he knows of no legend or popular belief among the Paraiyans, indicating thatthey believe themselves to have come from any other part of the country than that where they now find themselves. There is, however, some evidence that the race has had a long past, and one in which they had independence, and possibly great importance in the peninsula. Mr. Stuart mentions52that the Valluvans were priests to the Pallava kings before the introduction of the Brāhmans, and even for some time after it. He quotes an unpublished Vatteluttu inscription, believed to be of the ninth century, in which it is noted that “Srī Valluvam Puvanavan, the Uvacchan (or temple ministrant), will employ six men daily, and do the temple service.” The inference is that the Valluvan was a man of recognised priestly rank, and of great influence. The prefix Srī is a notable honorific. By itself this inscription would prove little, but the whole legendary history of the greatest of all Tamil poets, Tiruvalluvar, “the holy Valluvan,” confirms all that can be deduced from it. His date can only be fixed approximately, but it is probable that he flourished not later than the tenth century A.D. It is safe to say that this extraordinary sage could not have attained the fame he did, or have received the honours that were bestowed upon him, had not the Valluvans, and therefore the Paraiyans, been in the circle of respectable society in his day. This conjecture is strengthened by the legend that he married a Vellāla girl. The same hypothesis is the only one that will account for the education and the vogue of the sister of the poet, the aphoristic poetess Avvei.In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis mentions an inscription of the Chōla King Rāja Rāja, dated about the eleventh century A.D., in which the Paraiyan caste iscalled by its own name. It had then two sub-divisions, the Nesavu or weavers, and Ulavu or ploughmen. The caste had even then its own hamlets, wells and burning-grounds.There are certain privileges possessed by Paraiyans, which they could never have gained for themselves from orthodox Hinduism. They seem to be survivals of a past, in which Paraiyans held a much higher position than they do now. It is noted by Mr. M. J. Walhouse53that “in the great festival of Siva at Trivalūr in Tanjore the headman of the Parēyars is mounted on the elephant with the god, and carries his chauri (yak-tail fly fan). In Madras, at the annual festival of Egatta, the goddess of the Black,54now George, Town, when a tāli is tied round the neck of the idol in the name of the entire community, a Parēyan is chosen to represent the bridegroom. At Mēlkotta in Mysore, the chief seat of the followers of Rāmānuja Achārya, and at the Brāhman temple at Bēlur, the Holēyas or Parēyars have the right of entering the temple on three days in the year specially set apart for them.” At Mēlkote, the Holeyas and Mādigas are said to have been granted the privilege of entering thesanctum sanctorumalong with Brāhmans and others on three days by Rāmānuja. In 1799, however, the right to enter the temple was stopped at the dhvajastambham, or consecrated monolithic column. At both Bēlur and Mēlkote, as soon as the festival is over, the temples are ceremonially purified. At Srīperumbudūr in the Chingleput district, the Paraiyans enjoy a similar privilege to those at Tiruvalūr, in return for having sheltered an image of the locally-worshippedincarnation of Vishnu during a Muhammadan raid. It is noted by Mr. Stuart that the lower village offices, the Vettiyan, Taliāri, Dandāsi or Bārike, and the Tōti, are, in the majority of Madras villages, held by persons of the Paraiyan caste. Paraiyans are allowed to take part in pulling the cars of the idols in the great festivals at Conjeeveram, Kumbakōnam, and Srīvilliputtūr. Their touch is not reckoned to defile the ropes used, so that other Hindus will pull with them. With this may be compared the fact that the Telugu Mālas are custodians of the goddess Gauri, the bull Nandi, and Ganēsa, the chief gods of the Saiva Kāpus and Balijas. It may also be noted that the Kōmatis, who claim to be Vaisyas, are bound to invite Mādigas to their marriages, though they take care that the latter do not hear the invitation. Mr. Clayton records that he has heard well-authenticated instances of Brāhman women worshipping at Paraiyan shrines in order to procure children, and states that he once saw a Paraiyan exorciser treating a Brāhman by uttering mantrams (consecrated formulæ), and waving a sickle up and down the sufferer’s back, as he stood in a threshing floor.In a note on the Paraiyans of the Trichinopoly district, Mr. F. R. Hemingway writes as follows. “They have a very exalted account of their lineage, saying that they are descended from the Brāhman priest Sāla Sāmbavan, who was employed in a Siva temple to worship the god with offerings of beef, but who incurred the anger of the god by one day concealing a portion of the meat, to give it to his pregnant wife, and was therefore turned into a Paraiyan. The god appointed his brother to do duty instead of him, and the Paraiyans say that Brāhman priests are their cousins. For this reason they wear a sacred thread at their marriages and funerals.At the festival of the village goddesses, they repeat an extravagant praise of their caste, which runs as follows. ‘The Paraiyans were the first creation, the first who wore the sacred thread, the uppermost in the social scale, the differentiators of castes, the winners of laurels. They have been seated on the white elephant, the Vīra Sāmbavans who beat the victorious drum.’ It is a curious fact that, at the feast of the village goddess, a Paraiyan is honoured by being invested with a sacred thread for the occasion by the pūjāri (priest) of the temple, by having a turmeric thread tied to his wrists, and being allowed to head the procession. This, the Paraiyans say, is owing to their exalted origin.”In times of drought some of the lower orders, instead of addressing their prayers to the rain god Varuna, try to induce a spirit or dēvata named Kodumpāvi (wicked one) to send her paramour Sukra to the affected area. The belief seems to be that Sukra goes away to his concubine for about six months, and, if he does not then return, drought ensues. The ceremony consists in making a huge figure of Kodumpāvi in clay, which is placed on a cart, and dragged through the streets for seven to ten days. On the last day, the final death ceremonies of the figure are celebrated. It is disfigured, especially in those parts which are usually concealed. Vettiyans (Paraiyan grave-diggers), who have been shaved, accompany the figure, and perform the funeral ceremonies. This procedure is believed to put Kodumpāvi to shame, and to get her to induce Sukra to return, and stay the drought. Paraiyans are said55to wail as though they were at a funeral, and to beat drums in the funeral time.The Paraiyans are said by Mr. Francis56to have a curious share in the ceremonies in connection with the annual buffalo sacrifice at the Kāli shrine at Mangalam in South Arcot. “Eight men of this community are chosen from eight adjoining villages, and one of them is selected as leader. His wife must not be with child at the’ time, and she is made to prove that she is above all suspicion by undergoing the ordeal of thrusting her hand into boiling gingelly (Sesamum) oil. On each of ten days for which the festival lasts, this Paraiyan has to go round some part of the boundaries of the eight villages, and he is fed gratis by the villagers during this time. On the day of the sacrifice itself, he marches in front of the priest as the latter kills the buffaloes. The Paraiyans of the eight villages have the right to the carcases of the slaughtered animals.”The Paraiyans know the village boundaries better than anyone else, and are very expert in this matter, unerringly pointing out where boundaries should run, even when the Government demarcation stones are completely overgrown by prickly-pear, or have been removed. Mr. Stuart records a custom which prevails in some parts of making a Paraiyan walk the boundaries of a field with a pot of water on his head, when there is any dispute about their exact position. He thinks that the only satisfactory explanation of this is that the connection of the Paraiyans with the soil is of much longer standing than that of other castes. The admitted proprietary right which Paraiyans have in the site known as chēri-nattam, on which their huts stand, is a confirmation of this. These sites are entered as such on the official village maps. They cannot be taken from theParaiyans, and date from time immemorial. Throughout the whole of the Tamil country it is usual to find that the land allotted for house-site (nattam) is in two portions in every village (Ūr). One part is known by the Sanskrit name grāmam (village), the inhabited place. The other is called by the Dravidian name chēri (gathering place).Sometimes the latter is called by the fuller title parachēri (Anglice parcheri, parcherry),i.e., the gathering place of the Paraiyans. In the grāmam live the Brāhmans, who sometimes dwell, in a quarter by themselves known as the agrahāra, and also other Hindus. In the parachēri live the Paraiyans. The parachēri and the grāmam are always separated, at least by a road or lane, and often by several fields. And not only is it usual thus to find that, in every village, the Paraiyans as a community possess a house-site, but there are many cases in which more than one chēri is attached to a grāmam. This seems to repudiate the suggestion that at some period or periods the higher castes relegated the Paraiyans to these chēris. Indeed, in some cases, the very names of the chēris suggest what appears to be the more correct view, viz., that the chēris had a distinct origin. For instance, the whole revenue village of Teiyar near Chingleput consists of one Sūdra grāmam and seven Paraiyan chēris, each with a name of its own, Periyapillēri, Komanchēri, etc. In other cases,e.g., Ideipālayam in the north of the district, and Varadarājapuram near Vandalūr, only Paraiyan hamlets exist; there is no grāmam. In South Arcot there are at least two villages, Govindanallūr and Andapet, inhabited only by Paraiyans, where even the Maniyakkāran (munsiff or village headman) is a Paraiyan. Other instances might be quoted in proof of the same opinion. And, when the ceremonialantipathy between Brāhman and Paraiyan is examined, it points in the same direction. It is well known that a Brāhman considers himself polluted by the touch, presence, or shadow of a Paraiyan, and will not allow him to enter his house, or even the street in which he lives, if it is an agrāhāra. But it is not so well known that the Paraiyans will not allow a Brāhman to enter the chēri. Should a Brāhman venture into the Paraiyan’s quarter, water with which cow-dung has been mixed is thrown on his head, and he is driven out. It is stated57by Captain J. S. F. Mackenzie that “Brāhmans in Mysore consider that great luck will await them if they can manage to pass through the Holeya quarter of a village unmolested, and that, should a Brāhman attempt to enter their quarters, they turn out in a body and slipper him, in former times it is said to death.” Some Brāhmans consider a forsaken parachēri an auspicious site for an agrāhāra. A very peculiar case is that of the grāmam founded for, and occupied by the clerks of the earliest Collectors (district magistrates) of the jagir of Karunguli from 1795 to 1825 A.D. These clerks were Brāhmans, and it was called the agrāhāram. It was deserted when the head-quarters of the Collector were removed to Conjeeveram. It is now occupied by Paraiyans, but is still called the agrāhāram.The facts, taken together, seem to show that the Paraiyan priests (Valluvans), and therefore the Paraiyans as a race, are very ancient, that ten centuries ago they were a respectable community, and that many were weavers. The privileges they enjoy are relics of an exceedingly long association with the land. The institution of the parachēri points to original independence,and even to possession of much of the land. If the account of the colonisation of Tondeimandalam by Vellālans in the eighth century A.D. is historic, then it is possible that at that time the Paraiyans lost the land, and that their degradation as a race began.The Paraiyans have long been a settled race. And, though a number of them emigrate to Ceylon, Mauritius, South Africa, the West Indies, the Straits Settlements, and even to Fiji, the vast majority live and die within a mile or two of the spot where they were born. The houses in which they live are not temporary erections, or intended for use during certain seasons of the year only. The rudest form is a hut made by tying a few leaves of the palmyra palm on to a framework of poles or bamboos. The better class of houses are a series of rooms with low mud walls and thatched roof, but generally without doors, surrounding a small courtyard, in which the family goats, buffaloes, and fowls have their homes. The cooking is done anywhere where it is convenient either indoors or out, as there is no fear of pollution from the glance or shadow of any passer-by. Very occasionally the walls of the house, especially those facing the street, are whitewashed, or decorated with variegated patterns or figures in red and white. Paraiya women, like higher caste women, are much given to tracing exceedingly intricate symmetrical designs (kōlam) with rice flour on the smooth space or pathway immediately before the doors of their houses, it is said, to prevent the entrance of evil spirits. Mr. S. P. Rice writes to me that the patterns on the floor or threshold are generally traced with white powder,e.g., chalk, as rice is too costly; and that the original object of the custom was not to drive away evil spirits, but to provide food for the lowest creatures of creation—ants, insects, etc.Admissions to the Paraiyan caste from higher castes sometimes occur. Mr. Clayton records having met an Aiyangar Brāhman who was working as a cooly with some Paraiyan labourers at Kodaikānal on the Palni hills. He had become infatuated with a Paraiya woman, and had consequently been excommunicated, and became a Paraiyan.In every Paraiya settlement a small number of the more important men are known as Panakkāran (money-man). The application of the term may, Mr. Clayton suggests, be due to their comparative opulence, or may have arisen from the custom of paying them a small sum (panam) for various services to the community. But Panikkar or Panakkar is usually said to be derived from pani, meaning work. They form a committee or council to decide ordinary quarrels, and to amerce the damages in cases of assault, seduction, rape, and adultery. They have power to dissolve marriages on account of the wife, or if the husband has deserted his wife. In these cases their authority is really based on the public opinion of the parachēri, and goes no further than that public opinion will enforce it. There is no headman in a Paraiya hamlet corresponding to the munsiff or village magistrate of the Hindu village (grāma). In modern practice the Paraiyans are, for police purposes, under the authority of the munsiff of the grāma, and there is a growing tendency on their part to refer all disputes and assaults to the munsiff, or even directly to the police. On the other hand, cases of a more domestic nature, such as disputes about betrothals, seduction, etc., are still dealt with, generally acutely and fairly, by the village council. It should be added that the rank of Panakkāran is hereditary, and is regarded as honourable.The Paraiyans, like all the other right-hand castes, come under the jurisdiction of the Dēsāyi Chettis, who have held a sort of censorship since the days of the Nawābs of Arcot over some twenty-four of these right-hand castes, chiefly in North Arcot. The Dēsāyi Chetti has nominal power to deal with all moral offences, and is supposed to have a representative in every village, who reports every offence. But, though his authority is great in North Arcot, and the fines levied there bring in an income of hundreds of rupees yearly, it is not so much dreaded in other districts. The punishment usually inflicted is a fine, but sometimes a delinquent Paraiyan will be made to crawl on his hands and knees on the ground between the legs of a Paraiya woman as a final humiliation. The punishment of excommunication,i.e., cutting off from fire and water, is sometimes the fate of the recalcitrant, either before the council or the Dēsāyi Chetti, but it is seldom effective for more than a short time. Mr. K. Rangachari adds that, in certain places, the Dēsāyi Chetti appoints the Panakkāran, who is subordinate to the Dēsāyi, and that a man called the Variyan or Shalavāthi is sometimes appointed as assistant to the Panakkāran. He also mentions some other punishments. The fine for adultery is from 7 pagodas 14 fanams to 11 pagodas, when the wronged woman is unmarried. If she is married, the amount ranges from 12 pagodas 14 fanams to 16 pagodas. The fine is said to be divided between the woman, her husband, the members of council, and the Panakkārans. Formerly an offender against the Paraiyan community was tied to a post at the beginning of his trial, and, if found guilty, was beaten. He might escape the flogging by paying a fine of two fanams per stripe. Sometimes a delinquent is paraded through the hamlet, carrying a rubbish basket,or is ordered to make a heap of rubbish at a certain spot. Or a cord is passed from one big toe over the bowed neck of the culprit, and tied to his other big toe, and then a stone is placed on his bent back. In some places, when an unmarried woman is convicted of adultery, she is publicly given a new cloth and a bit of straw or a twig, apparently in mockery. It is said that formerly, if the chastity of a bride was suspected, she had to pick some cakes out of boiling oil. This she had to do just after the tāli had been tied in the wedding ceremony. Her hair, nails, and clothes were examined, to see that she had no charm concealed. After lifting the cakes from the oil, she had to husk some rice with her bare hand. If she could do this, her virtue was established. In the South Arcot district, according to Mr. Francis,58the Paraiyans “have caste headmen called the Periya (big) Nattān and the Chinna (little) Nattān or Tangalān (our man), whose posts are usually hereditary. The Tangalān carries out the sentence of caste panchayats, administering a thrashing to the accused for example, if such be the order of the court. Of the fines inflicted by these assemblies, a fifth is usually handed over to the local Māriamma shrine, and the remaining four-fifths are laid out in drinks for the panchayatdars. Until recently, a part of the fine was in some cases, in these parts, paid to the local poligar.”Excommunicated Paraiyans are said to go to a mythical place called Vinnamangalam. In some documents signed by Paraiyans, the words “If I fail to fulfil the conditions of our agreement, I shall go to Vinnamangalam” are inserted. In all enquiries by thepolice, the council, or the Dēsāyi Chetti, the Paraiyan only tells what in his opinion it is expedient to tell. But evidence given after burning a piece of camphor is said to be reliable.The attainment of puberty by girls is a subject of greedy curiosity to most of the women in a Paraiya village. This has been said to be due to the fact that “the menstrual fluid is held in horror, dire consequences being supposed to result from not merely the contact, but even the very sight of it. Hence the isolation and purification of women during the menstrual period, and the extreme care and anxiety with which the first approach of puberty in a girl is watched.” The girl at once begins to wear a covering of some sort, even it be the most pathetic rag, over her left shoulder and breast. Till this time, a bit of cotton cloth round her waist has been considered sufficient. Among the Tangalān Paraiyans, when a girl attains puberty, she is kept apart either in the house or in a separate hut. Pollution is supposed to last eight days. On the ninth day, the girl is bathed, and seated in the courtyard. Ten small lamps of flour paste (called drishti māvu vilakku), to avert the evil eye, are put on a sieve, and waved before her three times. Then coloured water (ārati or alam) and burning camphor are waved before her. Some near female relatives then stand behind her, and strike her waist and sides with puttu (flour cake) tied in a cloth. This is believed to make her strong. At the same time other women strike the ground behind the girl with a rice-pestle. Then presents are given to the girl. In some places the girl is beaten within the house by her mother-in-law or paternal aunt. The latter repeatedly asks the girl to promise that her daughter shall marry her paternal aunt’s son.In marriages among the Paraiyans, difference in religion is of little moment. A Christian Paraiyan will marry a heathen girl, though it should be said that she is usually baptised at or about the time of the marriage. A Christian girl is sometimes married to a heathen Paraiyan. Mr. Clayton thinks that the fact that certain Paraiyans paint the nāmam of Vishnu on their foreheads, while others smear their foreheads with the ashes of Siva, prevents marriages between them.The bridegroom must be older than the bride. Subject to this condition, it is usual for a youth to marry his father’s sister’s daughter, or his mother’s brother’s daughter. A girl should be married to her mother’s brother’s son if he is old enough, but not, as among the Konga Vellālas and some Reddis, if he is a child. In short, Paraiyans follow the usual Tamil custom, but it is often neglected.Marriage contracts are sometimes made by parents while the parties most concerned are still infants, often while they are still children; in the majority of cases when the girl attains the marriageable age. The bridegroom may be many years older than the bride, especially when custom, as noted above, settles who shall be his bride. The bride has absolutely no choice in the matter; but, if the bridegroom is a man of some years or position, his preferences are consulted. The elder sister should be given in marriage before her younger sisters are married. The arrangements are more or less a bargain. Presents of clothes, paltry jewels, rice, vegetables, and perhaps a few rupees, are exchanged between the families of the bride and bridegroom. The household that seeks the marriage naturally gives the larger gifts. The actual marriage ceremony is very simple. The essential part is the tying of a small tokenor ornament (tāli), varying in value from a few annas to four or five rupees by a turmeric-stained string, round the neck of the bride. This is done by the bridegroom in the presence of a Valluvan, who mutters some kind of blessing on the marriage. A series of feasts, lasting over two or three days, is given to all the relatives of both parties by the parents of the newly-married couple. The bride and bridegroom do not live together immediately, even if the girl is old enough. The exact date at which their life together may begin is settled by the bride’s mother. The occasion, called soppana muhurtham, is celebrated by another feast and much merry-making, not always seemly.

Paniyans making fire.Paniyans making fire.

Paniyans making fire.

At Pudupādi an elephant mahout was jealously guarding a bit of bamboo stick with notches cut in it, each notch representing a day for which wages were due to him. The stick in question had six notches, representing six days’ wages.

Average height 157.4 cm. Nasal index 95 (max. 108.6). The average distance from the tip of the middle finger to the top of the patella was 4.6 cm. relative to stature = 100, which approximates very closely to the recorded results of measurement of long-limbed African negroes.

Panjai.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-division of Pāndya Vellāla. The name Panjai, indicating a poverty-stricken individual, is usually applied to mendicant Pandārams.

Panjāram.—Panjāram or Panchāramkatti is the name of a sub-division of the Idaiyans, derived from the peculiar gold ornament, which the women wear. It is said that, in this division, widow marriage is commonly practiced, because Krishna used to place a similar ornament round the necks of Idaiyan widows of whom he became enamoured, and that this sub-division was the result of his amours with them.

Panjukkāra(cotton-man).—An occupational name of a sub-division of Vellālas, who are not at the present day connected with the cotton trade. They call themselves Panjukkāra Chettis. The equivalent panjāri (pinjāri) or Panjukotti occurs as a Tamil synonym for Dūdēkula (Muhammadan cotton-cleaners).

Pannādai(sheath of the cocoanut leaf).—A sub-division of Vēttuvan.

Pannaiyān.—A title of Alavan.

Pannara.—A sub-division of Māli.

Pannendu Nāl(twelve days).—A name for those Pallis who, like Brāhmans, perform the final death ceremonies on the twelfth day.

Pannirendām(twelfth) Chetti.—A section of the Chettis.

Pāno.—In the Madras Census Report, 1891, the Pānos are described as “a caste of weavers found in the Ganjam district. This caste is no doubt identical with the Pāns, a weaving, basket-making, and servile caste of Orissa and Chota Nagpore. The Pānos occupy the same position among the Khonds of Ganjam as the Dombs hold among the inhabitants of the Vizagapatam hills, and the words Pāno and Dombo are generally regarded as synonyms [SeeDōmb]. The members of the Sitra sub-division are workers in metal.” It is further noted, in the Census Report, 1901, that the Pānos are “an extensive caste of hill weavers found chiefly in the Ganjam Agency. The Khond synonym for this word is Domboloko, which helps to confirm the connection between this caste and the Dombas of Vizagapatam. They speak Khond and Oriya.” In a note on the Pānos, I read that “their occupations are trading, weaving, and theft. They live on the ignorance and superstition of the Khonds as brokers, pedlars, sycophants, and cheats. In those parts where there are no Oriyas, they possess much influence, and are always consulted by the Khonds in questions of boundary disputes.” In a brief account of the Pānos, Mr. C. F. MacCartie writes47that “thePānos, also known by the title of Dombo or Sitra in some parts, are supposed to be Paraiya [Telugu Mala] emigrants from the low country. Their profession is weaving or brass work, the monotony of which they vary by petty trading in horns, skins and live cattle, and occasionally enliven by house-breaking and theft at the expense of the Khonds, who have an incautious trick of leaving their habitations utterly unguarded when they go off to the hills to cultivate. [In the Madras Census Report, 1901, the Sitras are said to be supposed to be the progeny of a Khond man and a Haddi woman, who manufacture the brass rings and bangles worn by the Khonds.] The Pānos are drunken, immoral, and dirty in their habits. The Khonds refuse to eat with them, but I do not find that this objection extends to drinking, at which both Khond and Pāno display surprising capabilities. Pānos are also the professional musicians of the country, and attend weddings, deaths and sacrifices in this character, for which they are recompensed with food, liquor, and cloths. The generality of Khond and Pāno houses are constructed of broad sâl (Shorea robusta) logs, hewn out with the axe and thatched with jungle grass, which is impervious to white-ants. In bamboo jungles, of course, bamboo is substituted for sâl. The Pānos generally affect a detached quarter, known as Dombo sai. Intermarriage between Khonds, Pānos, and Uriyas is not recognised, but cases do occur when a Pāno induces a Khond woman to go off with him. She may live with him as his wife, but no ceremony takes place. [A few years ago, a young Khond was betrothed to the daughter of another Khond, and, after a few years, managed to pay up the necessary number of gifts. He then applied to the girl’s father to name the day for the marriage. Before the wedding took place however, aPāno went to the girl’s father, and said that she was his daughter (she had been born before her parents were married), and that he was the man to whom the gifts should have been paid. The case was referred to a council, which decided in favour of the Pāno.] If a Pāno commits adultery with a Khond married woman, he has to pay a paronjo, or a fine of a buffalo to the husband (who retains his wife), and in addition a goat, a pig, a basket of paddy (rice), a rupee, and a load of pots. There is close communication between the Pānos and the Khonds, as the former act as the advisers of the latter in all cases of doubt or difficulty. The Uriyas live apart from both, and mix but little with either, except on the occasion of sacrifices or other solemn assemblages, when buffaloes are slaughtered for Pānos and Khonds, and goats or sheep for Uriya visitors. [It is noted, in the Ganjam Manual, in connection with Khond death ceremonies, that “if a man has been killed by a tiger, purification is made by the sacrifice of a pig, the head of which is cut off with a tangi (axe) by a Pāno, and passed between the legs of the men in the village, who stand in a line astraddle. It is a bad omen to him, if the head touches any man’s legs.] Among the products of the jungles may be included myrabolams (Terminaliafruits), tasar silk cocoons, and dammer, all of which are bartered by the finders to trading Pānos in small quantities, generally for salt.” In the Ganjam Māliahs, the jungles are said to be searched by Pānos for tasar cocoons, and, just across the border in Boad, the collection of these cocoons is a regular industry among them. Small portions of jungle are regularly reserved, and divided up into small allotments. Each of these is given to a Pāno for rent, and here he cultivates the silkworms, and collects thesilk, which is sent to Berhampur and Sambalpur for manufacture.

The Pānos are divided into two distinct sections, viz., the Khonda Pānos who live amidst the Khonds, and the Dēsa Pānos of the plains. The former have adopted some of the customs of the Khonds, while the latter follow the customs of the Uriya castes which dwell in the lowland. The Khond Pānos are governed by the Molikos (headmen) of the Khonds. In some cases, the fines inflicted for breach of caste rules are rather severe. For example, in the neighbourhood of Baliguda, a man who is convicted of adultery has to pay two rupees, and give two buffaloes to the council which tries the case. Further south, for a similar offence twelve buffaloes are demanded, and the culprit has to pay twice the amount of the bride-price to the injured husband. The Dēsa Pānos conform to the standard Uriya type of caste council, and have a headman called Bēhara, who is assisted by a Nāyako, and caste servants entitled Bhollobaya or Gonjāri.

The marriage ceremonies of the Dēsa Pānos are closely allied to those of the Dandāsis and Haddis, whereas those of the Khonda Pānos bear a close resemblance to the ceremonies of the Khonds. Like Khond girls, unmarried Khond Pāno girls sleep in quarters (dhangadi) specially set apart for them, and, as among the Khonds, wedding presents in the form of gontis are given. It is noted with reference to the Khonds, in the Ganjam Manual, that “the bride is looked upon as a commercial speculation, and is paid for in gontis. A gonti is one of anything, such as a buffalo, a pig, or a brass pot; for instance, a hundred gontis might consist of ten bullocks, ten buffaloes, ten sacks of corn, ten sets of brass, twenty sheep, ten pigs, and thirty fowls.” Ata Khond Pāno marriage, the fingers of the contracting couple are linked together, and an important item of the ceremonial, which adds dignity thereto, is placing in front of the house at which a marriage is being celebrated a big brass vessel containing water, with which the guests wash their feet.

The Pānos pay reverence to ancestors, to whom, when a death occurs in a family, food is offered. In some Pāno villages, when a child is born, it is customary to consult a pūjāri (priest) as to whether the grandfather or great-grandfather is re-born in it. If the answer is in the affirmative, pigs are sacrificed to the ancestors. Some Pānos have adopted the worship of Tākurānis (village deities), to whom rice and turmeric are offered by placing them before the image in the form of a figure-of-eight. A fowl is sacrificed, and its blood allowed to flow on to one loop of the figure. In some places, Dharmadēvata and Gagnasuni are worshipped, a castrated goat being sacrificed annually to the former, and fowls and an entire goat to the latter.

Pāno women, who live among the Khonds, tattoo their faces in like manner, and in other respects resemble Khond women.

I am informed that, on more than one occasion, Pānos have been known to rifle the grave of a European, in the belief that buried treasure will be found.

Panta(a crop).—A sub-division of Kāpu and Yānādi. In the Gazetteer of South Arcot, Pan Reddi is recorded as a caste of Telugu-speaking ryots (Kāpus).

Pantala.—Recorded, in Travancore, as a sub-division of Sāmantan. The name is said to be derived from Bhandārattil, or belonging to the royal treasury.

Pantāri.—Recorded, in the Travancore Census Report, as synonymous with the Idacheri sub-divisionof Nāyar. Pantrantu Vītan is also there recorded as a sub-division of Nāyar.

Pappadam.—People calling themselves Pappadam Chetti are largely found in Malabar, living by the manufacture and sale of cakes called pappadam, which are purchased by all classes, including Nambūtiri Brāhmans.

Pappini.—A name for Brāhmanis, a class of Ambalavāsi.

Pappu(split pulse).—An exogamous sept of Balija.

Paradēsi.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a class of Malayālam beggars. The name indicates strangers (paradēsa, a foreign country), and is applied to the White Jews of Cochin, in connection with whom it occurs in Sirkar (State) accounts and royal writs granted to them.

Paraiya Tāda.—Recorded, in the North Arcot Manual, as a name for those who are considered impure Valluvans. The name literally means Paraiya Tādan or Dāsari.

Paraiyan.—The Paraiyans or, as they are commonly termed, Pariahs of the Tamil country number, according to recent census returns, over two million souls, and a large proportion of those who returned themselves as Native Christians are said also to belong to this class. For the following note I am mainly indebted to an account of the Paraiyans by the Rev. A. C. Clayton.48

The late Bishop Caldwell derived the name Paraiyan from the Tamil word parai a drum, as certain Paraiyans act as drummers at marriages, funerals, village festivals, and on occasions when Government or commercial announcements are proclaimed. Mr. H. A. Stuart,however, seems to question this derivation, remarking49that “it is only one section of Paraiyans that act as drummers. Nor is the occupation confined to Paraiyans. It seems in the highest degree improbable that a large, and at one time powerful, community should owe its name to an occasional occupation, which one of its divisions shares with other castes. The word Paraiyan is not found in Divākaram, a Tamil dictionary of the eleventh century A.D., and the word Pulayan was then used to denote this section of the population, as it is still in Malayālam to this day.” In the legend of the Saivite saint, Nandan is, in the prose version of the Periya Purānam, called a Pulayan, though a native of Shōlamandalam, which was a distinctly Tamil kingdom. Mr. W. Francis writes50that “the old Tamil poems and works of the early centuries of the Christian era do not mention the name Paraiyan, but contain many descriptions of a tribe called the Eyinas, who seem to have been quite distinct from the rest of the population, and did not live in the villages, but in forts of their own. Ambūr and Vellore are mentioned as the sites of two of these. They may perhaps have been the ancestors of the Paraiyans of to-day.”

In a note on the Paraiyans, Sonnerat, writing51in the eighteenth century, says that “they are prohibited from drawing water from the wells of other castes; but have particular wells of their own near their inhabitations, round which they place the bones of animals, that they may be known and avoided. When an Indian of any other caste permits a Paraiya to speak to him, this unfortunate being is obliged to hold his hand before his mouth, lest the Indian may be contaminated with hisbreath; and, if he is met on the highway, he must turn on one side to let the other pass. If any Indian whatever, even a Choutre, by accident touches a Paraiya, he is obliged to purify himself in a bath. The Brāhmans cannot behold them, and they are obliged to fly when they appear. Great care is taken not to eat anything dressed by a Paraiya, nor even to drink out of the vessel he has used; they dare not enter the house of an Indian of another caste; or, if they are employed in any work, a door is purposely made for them; but they must work with their eyes on the ground; for, if it is perceived they have glanced at the kitchen, all the utensils must be broken. The infamy of the Paraiyas is reflected on the Europeans: last are held in more detestation, because, setting aside the little respect they have for the cow, whose flesh they eat, the Indians reproach them with spitting in their houses, and even their temples: that when drinking they put the cup to their lips, and their fingers to their mouths in such a manner that they are defiled with the spittle.”

Paraiyans are to be found throughout the Tamil districts from North Arcot to Tinnevelly, and in the southern extremity of the Native State of Travancore. In the Telugu country the Mālas and Mādigas and in the Canarese country the Holeyas take their place.

Some of the most common names of Paraiyan males are—

Among females the most common names are Tai, Parpathi, Ammai, Kanni, Muttammāl, Rājammāl, Ammani, Selli, Gangammāl. In one village, where the Paraiyans were almost all Vaishnavas, by profession not by practice, Mr. Clayton found the inhabitants all named after heroes of the Mahābhārata, and dirty naked children answered to the names of Ikshvākan, Karnan, Bhīman, and Draupadi. It is usual to give the father’s name when distinguishing one Paraiyan from another,e.g., Tamburan, son of Kannan. In legal documents the prefix Para denotes a Paraiyan,e.g., Para Kanni, the Paraiyan Kanni, but this is a purely clerical formula. The Paraiyan delights in nicknames, and men sometimes grow so accustomed to these that they have almost forgotten their real names. The following nicknames are very common :—

No name, indicating virtue or merit, is given, lest the wrath of malevolent spirits should be aroused.

At the census, 1891, 348 sub-divisions were returned, of which the following were strongest in point of numbers :—Amma found chiefly in Tanjore and Madura; Katti in Salem and Trichinopoly; Kīzhakkatti (eastern) in Salem; Kōliyan (weavers) in Chingleput, Tanjore and Trichinopoly; Konga in Salem; Korava in Coimbatore; Kōttai (fort) in South Arcot; Morasu (drum) in Salem; Mottai in Madura; Pacchai (green) in Coimbatore; Sāmbān in South Arcot; Sangidum (sanku, conch, or chank shell) in Coimbatore; Sōzhia (natives of the Sōzha or Chōla country) in Tanjore and Madura;Tangalān in North and South Arcot, Chingleput, Salem, and Trichinopoly; and Valangamattu in South Arcot. The members of the various sub-divisions do not intermarry.

Paraiyan.Paraiyan.

Paraiyan.

It has been suggested to me that the Morasu Paraiyans, included in the above list, are Canarese Holeyas, who have settled in the Tamil country. In the south their women, like the Kallans, wear a horsehair thread round the neck. As additional sub-divisions, the following may be noted :—

Aruththukattātha, or those who, having once cut the tāli-string, do not tie it a second time,i.e., those who do not permit remarriage of widows.

Valai(a net).—Paraiyans who hunt.

Sanku(conch-shell).—Those who act as conch-blowers at funerals.

Thātha.—Thāthan is the name given to mendicants who profess Vaishnavism. Such Paraiyans are Vaishnavites, and some are beggars.

In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis notes that the term Paraiyan “is now almost a generic one, and the caste is split up into many sub-divisions, which differ in manners and ways. For example, the Kōliyans, who are weavers, and the Valluvans, who are medicine men and priests and wear the sacred thread, will not intermarry or eat with the others, and are now practically distinct castes.” As occupational titles of Paraiyans Mr. Francis gives Urumikkāran and Pambaikkāran, or those who play on drums (urumi and pambai), and Podarayan or Podara Vannān, who are washermen. The title Valangamattān, or people of the right-hand division, is assumed by some Paraiyans.

Mr. Clayton states that he knows of no legend or popular belief among the Paraiyans, indicating thatthey believe themselves to have come from any other part of the country than that where they now find themselves. There is, however, some evidence that the race has had a long past, and one in which they had independence, and possibly great importance in the peninsula. Mr. Stuart mentions52that the Valluvans were priests to the Pallava kings before the introduction of the Brāhmans, and even for some time after it. He quotes an unpublished Vatteluttu inscription, believed to be of the ninth century, in which it is noted that “Srī Valluvam Puvanavan, the Uvacchan (or temple ministrant), will employ six men daily, and do the temple service.” The inference is that the Valluvan was a man of recognised priestly rank, and of great influence. The prefix Srī is a notable honorific. By itself this inscription would prove little, but the whole legendary history of the greatest of all Tamil poets, Tiruvalluvar, “the holy Valluvan,” confirms all that can be deduced from it. His date can only be fixed approximately, but it is probable that he flourished not later than the tenth century A.D. It is safe to say that this extraordinary sage could not have attained the fame he did, or have received the honours that were bestowed upon him, had not the Valluvans, and therefore the Paraiyans, been in the circle of respectable society in his day. This conjecture is strengthened by the legend that he married a Vellāla girl. The same hypothesis is the only one that will account for the education and the vogue of the sister of the poet, the aphoristic poetess Avvei.

In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. Francis mentions an inscription of the Chōla King Rāja Rāja, dated about the eleventh century A.D., in which the Paraiyan caste iscalled by its own name. It had then two sub-divisions, the Nesavu or weavers, and Ulavu or ploughmen. The caste had even then its own hamlets, wells and burning-grounds.

There are certain privileges possessed by Paraiyans, which they could never have gained for themselves from orthodox Hinduism. They seem to be survivals of a past, in which Paraiyans held a much higher position than they do now. It is noted by Mr. M. J. Walhouse53that “in the great festival of Siva at Trivalūr in Tanjore the headman of the Parēyars is mounted on the elephant with the god, and carries his chauri (yak-tail fly fan). In Madras, at the annual festival of Egatta, the goddess of the Black,54now George, Town, when a tāli is tied round the neck of the idol in the name of the entire community, a Parēyan is chosen to represent the bridegroom. At Mēlkotta in Mysore, the chief seat of the followers of Rāmānuja Achārya, and at the Brāhman temple at Bēlur, the Holēyas or Parēyars have the right of entering the temple on three days in the year specially set apart for them.” At Mēlkote, the Holeyas and Mādigas are said to have been granted the privilege of entering thesanctum sanctorumalong with Brāhmans and others on three days by Rāmānuja. In 1799, however, the right to enter the temple was stopped at the dhvajastambham, or consecrated monolithic column. At both Bēlur and Mēlkote, as soon as the festival is over, the temples are ceremonially purified. At Srīperumbudūr in the Chingleput district, the Paraiyans enjoy a similar privilege to those at Tiruvalūr, in return for having sheltered an image of the locally-worshippedincarnation of Vishnu during a Muhammadan raid. It is noted by Mr. Stuart that the lower village offices, the Vettiyan, Taliāri, Dandāsi or Bārike, and the Tōti, are, in the majority of Madras villages, held by persons of the Paraiyan caste. Paraiyans are allowed to take part in pulling the cars of the idols in the great festivals at Conjeeveram, Kumbakōnam, and Srīvilliputtūr. Their touch is not reckoned to defile the ropes used, so that other Hindus will pull with them. With this may be compared the fact that the Telugu Mālas are custodians of the goddess Gauri, the bull Nandi, and Ganēsa, the chief gods of the Saiva Kāpus and Balijas. It may also be noted that the Kōmatis, who claim to be Vaisyas, are bound to invite Mādigas to their marriages, though they take care that the latter do not hear the invitation. Mr. Clayton records that he has heard well-authenticated instances of Brāhman women worshipping at Paraiyan shrines in order to procure children, and states that he once saw a Paraiyan exorciser treating a Brāhman by uttering mantrams (consecrated formulæ), and waving a sickle up and down the sufferer’s back, as he stood in a threshing floor.

In a note on the Paraiyans of the Trichinopoly district, Mr. F. R. Hemingway writes as follows. “They have a very exalted account of their lineage, saying that they are descended from the Brāhman priest Sāla Sāmbavan, who was employed in a Siva temple to worship the god with offerings of beef, but who incurred the anger of the god by one day concealing a portion of the meat, to give it to his pregnant wife, and was therefore turned into a Paraiyan. The god appointed his brother to do duty instead of him, and the Paraiyans say that Brāhman priests are their cousins. For this reason they wear a sacred thread at their marriages and funerals.At the festival of the village goddesses, they repeat an extravagant praise of their caste, which runs as follows. ‘The Paraiyans were the first creation, the first who wore the sacred thread, the uppermost in the social scale, the differentiators of castes, the winners of laurels. They have been seated on the white elephant, the Vīra Sāmbavans who beat the victorious drum.’ It is a curious fact that, at the feast of the village goddess, a Paraiyan is honoured by being invested with a sacred thread for the occasion by the pūjāri (priest) of the temple, by having a turmeric thread tied to his wrists, and being allowed to head the procession. This, the Paraiyans say, is owing to their exalted origin.”

In times of drought some of the lower orders, instead of addressing their prayers to the rain god Varuna, try to induce a spirit or dēvata named Kodumpāvi (wicked one) to send her paramour Sukra to the affected area. The belief seems to be that Sukra goes away to his concubine for about six months, and, if he does not then return, drought ensues. The ceremony consists in making a huge figure of Kodumpāvi in clay, which is placed on a cart, and dragged through the streets for seven to ten days. On the last day, the final death ceremonies of the figure are celebrated. It is disfigured, especially in those parts which are usually concealed. Vettiyans (Paraiyan grave-diggers), who have been shaved, accompany the figure, and perform the funeral ceremonies. This procedure is believed to put Kodumpāvi to shame, and to get her to induce Sukra to return, and stay the drought. Paraiyans are said55to wail as though they were at a funeral, and to beat drums in the funeral time.

The Paraiyans are said by Mr. Francis56to have a curious share in the ceremonies in connection with the annual buffalo sacrifice at the Kāli shrine at Mangalam in South Arcot. “Eight men of this community are chosen from eight adjoining villages, and one of them is selected as leader. His wife must not be with child at the’ time, and she is made to prove that she is above all suspicion by undergoing the ordeal of thrusting her hand into boiling gingelly (Sesamum) oil. On each of ten days for which the festival lasts, this Paraiyan has to go round some part of the boundaries of the eight villages, and he is fed gratis by the villagers during this time. On the day of the sacrifice itself, he marches in front of the priest as the latter kills the buffaloes. The Paraiyans of the eight villages have the right to the carcases of the slaughtered animals.”

The Paraiyans know the village boundaries better than anyone else, and are very expert in this matter, unerringly pointing out where boundaries should run, even when the Government demarcation stones are completely overgrown by prickly-pear, or have been removed. Mr. Stuart records a custom which prevails in some parts of making a Paraiyan walk the boundaries of a field with a pot of water on his head, when there is any dispute about their exact position. He thinks that the only satisfactory explanation of this is that the connection of the Paraiyans with the soil is of much longer standing than that of other castes. The admitted proprietary right which Paraiyans have in the site known as chēri-nattam, on which their huts stand, is a confirmation of this. These sites are entered as such on the official village maps. They cannot be taken from theParaiyans, and date from time immemorial. Throughout the whole of the Tamil country it is usual to find that the land allotted for house-site (nattam) is in two portions in every village (Ūr). One part is known by the Sanskrit name grāmam (village), the inhabited place. The other is called by the Dravidian name chēri (gathering place).

Sometimes the latter is called by the fuller title parachēri (Anglice parcheri, parcherry),i.e., the gathering place of the Paraiyans. In the grāmam live the Brāhmans, who sometimes dwell, in a quarter by themselves known as the agrahāra, and also other Hindus. In the parachēri live the Paraiyans. The parachēri and the grāmam are always separated, at least by a road or lane, and often by several fields. And not only is it usual thus to find that, in every village, the Paraiyans as a community possess a house-site, but there are many cases in which more than one chēri is attached to a grāmam. This seems to repudiate the suggestion that at some period or periods the higher castes relegated the Paraiyans to these chēris. Indeed, in some cases, the very names of the chēris suggest what appears to be the more correct view, viz., that the chēris had a distinct origin. For instance, the whole revenue village of Teiyar near Chingleput consists of one Sūdra grāmam and seven Paraiyan chēris, each with a name of its own, Periyapillēri, Komanchēri, etc. In other cases,e.g., Ideipālayam in the north of the district, and Varadarājapuram near Vandalūr, only Paraiyan hamlets exist; there is no grāmam. In South Arcot there are at least two villages, Govindanallūr and Andapet, inhabited only by Paraiyans, where even the Maniyakkāran (munsiff or village headman) is a Paraiyan. Other instances might be quoted in proof of the same opinion. And, when the ceremonialantipathy between Brāhman and Paraiyan is examined, it points in the same direction. It is well known that a Brāhman considers himself polluted by the touch, presence, or shadow of a Paraiyan, and will not allow him to enter his house, or even the street in which he lives, if it is an agrāhāra. But it is not so well known that the Paraiyans will not allow a Brāhman to enter the chēri. Should a Brāhman venture into the Paraiyan’s quarter, water with which cow-dung has been mixed is thrown on his head, and he is driven out. It is stated57by Captain J. S. F. Mackenzie that “Brāhmans in Mysore consider that great luck will await them if they can manage to pass through the Holeya quarter of a village unmolested, and that, should a Brāhman attempt to enter their quarters, they turn out in a body and slipper him, in former times it is said to death.” Some Brāhmans consider a forsaken parachēri an auspicious site for an agrāhāra. A very peculiar case is that of the grāmam founded for, and occupied by the clerks of the earliest Collectors (district magistrates) of the jagir of Karunguli from 1795 to 1825 A.D. These clerks were Brāhmans, and it was called the agrāhāram. It was deserted when the head-quarters of the Collector were removed to Conjeeveram. It is now occupied by Paraiyans, but is still called the agrāhāram.

The facts, taken together, seem to show that the Paraiyan priests (Valluvans), and therefore the Paraiyans as a race, are very ancient, that ten centuries ago they were a respectable community, and that many were weavers. The privileges they enjoy are relics of an exceedingly long association with the land. The institution of the parachēri points to original independence,and even to possession of much of the land. If the account of the colonisation of Tondeimandalam by Vellālans in the eighth century A.D. is historic, then it is possible that at that time the Paraiyans lost the land, and that their degradation as a race began.

The Paraiyans have long been a settled race. And, though a number of them emigrate to Ceylon, Mauritius, South Africa, the West Indies, the Straits Settlements, and even to Fiji, the vast majority live and die within a mile or two of the spot where they were born. The houses in which they live are not temporary erections, or intended for use during certain seasons of the year only. The rudest form is a hut made by tying a few leaves of the palmyra palm on to a framework of poles or bamboos. The better class of houses are a series of rooms with low mud walls and thatched roof, but generally without doors, surrounding a small courtyard, in which the family goats, buffaloes, and fowls have their homes. The cooking is done anywhere where it is convenient either indoors or out, as there is no fear of pollution from the glance or shadow of any passer-by. Very occasionally the walls of the house, especially those facing the street, are whitewashed, or decorated with variegated patterns or figures in red and white. Paraiya women, like higher caste women, are much given to tracing exceedingly intricate symmetrical designs (kōlam) with rice flour on the smooth space or pathway immediately before the doors of their houses, it is said, to prevent the entrance of evil spirits. Mr. S. P. Rice writes to me that the patterns on the floor or threshold are generally traced with white powder,e.g., chalk, as rice is too costly; and that the original object of the custom was not to drive away evil spirits, but to provide food for the lowest creatures of creation—ants, insects, etc.

Admissions to the Paraiyan caste from higher castes sometimes occur. Mr. Clayton records having met an Aiyangar Brāhman who was working as a cooly with some Paraiyan labourers at Kodaikānal on the Palni hills. He had become infatuated with a Paraiya woman, and had consequently been excommunicated, and became a Paraiyan.

In every Paraiya settlement a small number of the more important men are known as Panakkāran (money-man). The application of the term may, Mr. Clayton suggests, be due to their comparative opulence, or may have arisen from the custom of paying them a small sum (panam) for various services to the community. But Panikkar or Panakkar is usually said to be derived from pani, meaning work. They form a committee or council to decide ordinary quarrels, and to amerce the damages in cases of assault, seduction, rape, and adultery. They have power to dissolve marriages on account of the wife, or if the husband has deserted his wife. In these cases their authority is really based on the public opinion of the parachēri, and goes no further than that public opinion will enforce it. There is no headman in a Paraiya hamlet corresponding to the munsiff or village magistrate of the Hindu village (grāma). In modern practice the Paraiyans are, for police purposes, under the authority of the munsiff of the grāma, and there is a growing tendency on their part to refer all disputes and assaults to the munsiff, or even directly to the police. On the other hand, cases of a more domestic nature, such as disputes about betrothals, seduction, etc., are still dealt with, generally acutely and fairly, by the village council. It should be added that the rank of Panakkāran is hereditary, and is regarded as honourable.

The Paraiyans, like all the other right-hand castes, come under the jurisdiction of the Dēsāyi Chettis, who have held a sort of censorship since the days of the Nawābs of Arcot over some twenty-four of these right-hand castes, chiefly in North Arcot. The Dēsāyi Chetti has nominal power to deal with all moral offences, and is supposed to have a representative in every village, who reports every offence. But, though his authority is great in North Arcot, and the fines levied there bring in an income of hundreds of rupees yearly, it is not so much dreaded in other districts. The punishment usually inflicted is a fine, but sometimes a delinquent Paraiyan will be made to crawl on his hands and knees on the ground between the legs of a Paraiya woman as a final humiliation. The punishment of excommunication,i.e., cutting off from fire and water, is sometimes the fate of the recalcitrant, either before the council or the Dēsāyi Chetti, but it is seldom effective for more than a short time. Mr. K. Rangachari adds that, in certain places, the Dēsāyi Chetti appoints the Panakkāran, who is subordinate to the Dēsāyi, and that a man called the Variyan or Shalavāthi is sometimes appointed as assistant to the Panakkāran. He also mentions some other punishments. The fine for adultery is from 7 pagodas 14 fanams to 11 pagodas, when the wronged woman is unmarried. If she is married, the amount ranges from 12 pagodas 14 fanams to 16 pagodas. The fine is said to be divided between the woman, her husband, the members of council, and the Panakkārans. Formerly an offender against the Paraiyan community was tied to a post at the beginning of his trial, and, if found guilty, was beaten. He might escape the flogging by paying a fine of two fanams per stripe. Sometimes a delinquent is paraded through the hamlet, carrying a rubbish basket,or is ordered to make a heap of rubbish at a certain spot. Or a cord is passed from one big toe over the bowed neck of the culprit, and tied to his other big toe, and then a stone is placed on his bent back. In some places, when an unmarried woman is convicted of adultery, she is publicly given a new cloth and a bit of straw or a twig, apparently in mockery. It is said that formerly, if the chastity of a bride was suspected, she had to pick some cakes out of boiling oil. This she had to do just after the tāli had been tied in the wedding ceremony. Her hair, nails, and clothes were examined, to see that she had no charm concealed. After lifting the cakes from the oil, she had to husk some rice with her bare hand. If she could do this, her virtue was established. In the South Arcot district, according to Mr. Francis,58the Paraiyans “have caste headmen called the Periya (big) Nattān and the Chinna (little) Nattān or Tangalān (our man), whose posts are usually hereditary. The Tangalān carries out the sentence of caste panchayats, administering a thrashing to the accused for example, if such be the order of the court. Of the fines inflicted by these assemblies, a fifth is usually handed over to the local Māriamma shrine, and the remaining four-fifths are laid out in drinks for the panchayatdars. Until recently, a part of the fine was in some cases, in these parts, paid to the local poligar.”

Excommunicated Paraiyans are said to go to a mythical place called Vinnamangalam. In some documents signed by Paraiyans, the words “If I fail to fulfil the conditions of our agreement, I shall go to Vinnamangalam” are inserted. In all enquiries by thepolice, the council, or the Dēsāyi Chetti, the Paraiyan only tells what in his opinion it is expedient to tell. But evidence given after burning a piece of camphor is said to be reliable.

The attainment of puberty by girls is a subject of greedy curiosity to most of the women in a Paraiya village. This has been said to be due to the fact that “the menstrual fluid is held in horror, dire consequences being supposed to result from not merely the contact, but even the very sight of it. Hence the isolation and purification of women during the menstrual period, and the extreme care and anxiety with which the first approach of puberty in a girl is watched.” The girl at once begins to wear a covering of some sort, even it be the most pathetic rag, over her left shoulder and breast. Till this time, a bit of cotton cloth round her waist has been considered sufficient. Among the Tangalān Paraiyans, when a girl attains puberty, she is kept apart either in the house or in a separate hut. Pollution is supposed to last eight days. On the ninth day, the girl is bathed, and seated in the courtyard. Ten small lamps of flour paste (called drishti māvu vilakku), to avert the evil eye, are put on a sieve, and waved before her three times. Then coloured water (ārati or alam) and burning camphor are waved before her. Some near female relatives then stand behind her, and strike her waist and sides with puttu (flour cake) tied in a cloth. This is believed to make her strong. At the same time other women strike the ground behind the girl with a rice-pestle. Then presents are given to the girl. In some places the girl is beaten within the house by her mother-in-law or paternal aunt. The latter repeatedly asks the girl to promise that her daughter shall marry her paternal aunt’s son.

In marriages among the Paraiyans, difference in religion is of little moment. A Christian Paraiyan will marry a heathen girl, though it should be said that she is usually baptised at or about the time of the marriage. A Christian girl is sometimes married to a heathen Paraiyan. Mr. Clayton thinks that the fact that certain Paraiyans paint the nāmam of Vishnu on their foreheads, while others smear their foreheads with the ashes of Siva, prevents marriages between them.

The bridegroom must be older than the bride. Subject to this condition, it is usual for a youth to marry his father’s sister’s daughter, or his mother’s brother’s daughter. A girl should be married to her mother’s brother’s son if he is old enough, but not, as among the Konga Vellālas and some Reddis, if he is a child. In short, Paraiyans follow the usual Tamil custom, but it is often neglected.

Marriage contracts are sometimes made by parents while the parties most concerned are still infants, often while they are still children; in the majority of cases when the girl attains the marriageable age. The bridegroom may be many years older than the bride, especially when custom, as noted above, settles who shall be his bride. The bride has absolutely no choice in the matter; but, if the bridegroom is a man of some years or position, his preferences are consulted. The elder sister should be given in marriage before her younger sisters are married. The arrangements are more or less a bargain. Presents of clothes, paltry jewels, rice, vegetables, and perhaps a few rupees, are exchanged between the families of the bride and bridegroom. The household that seeks the marriage naturally gives the larger gifts. The actual marriage ceremony is very simple. The essential part is the tying of a small tokenor ornament (tāli), varying in value from a few annas to four or five rupees by a turmeric-stained string, round the neck of the bride. This is done by the bridegroom in the presence of a Valluvan, who mutters some kind of blessing on the marriage. A series of feasts, lasting over two or three days, is given to all the relatives of both parties by the parents of the newly-married couple. The bride and bridegroom do not live together immediately, even if the girl is old enough. The exact date at which their life together may begin is settled by the bride’s mother. The occasion, called soppana muhurtham, is celebrated by another feast and much merry-making, not always seemly.

Back to IndexNext