Main teachings of Ayya Vaikundar
Encyclopedia
The Ayyavazhi
includes a corpus of teachings of its initiator Ayya Vaikundar
in the
form of instructions and slogans found in the religious book Akilattirattu
.
. It is said in Akilattirattu that people, even while listening to the teachings of Ayya Vaikundar, 'realised' that the evil of Kali was gradually being withdrawn from the world and that Dharmam was being established in its stead. Transposed to the social plane, this principle of Dharmam was considered as the mission of "protecting or salvaging the lowly, the oppressed." As a practical activity, Dharmam meant charity and almsgiving. This was taught to be the way to seek God. People were specially exhorted to undertake charity by means of material goods, and do it without discriminating among the beneficiaries.
would destroy itself" is another oft-repeated verse from Akilattirattu. The importance of this instruction comes to light when considering that the destruction of Kali is projected in Akilattirattu as one of the chief motives of the mission of Ayya Vaikundar. The book, through various other narratives, underscores the point that the people are to live in dignity. For example, the narrative on the origin of the Santror Makkal as the children of Narayana
endowed the people with a divine pedigree, and it was a powerful story to drive home the message that the people were a dignified humanity. Some of the rituals that emerged in the life of Ayyavazhi were aimed at indoctrinating the message of human dignity. Wearing a piece of headgear during worship is an example of one of these rituals.
for dividing the people on the basis of caste. It speaks of a future when Ayya Vaikundar will rule all the people with equality.
Other verses from Akilattirattu, such as
point to the fact of a considerable indoctrination against the inequalities of castes.
king as Kalineesan, the representative of the evil force, and of the British as Venneesan
(the wicked white). Kalineesan was projected to be the main oppressor who perpetrated the rule of Kali by exploiting the labour of the people through the systems of oozhiyam and levies, and by imposing the discriminatory caste system. Akilattirattu indicts the king as the cause of oppression and issues admonitions to him to revoke the exploitative measures.
A slogan having political overtones seems to have been heard repeatedly in the gatherings of Ayyavazhi. It came as a declaration from Ayya Vaikundar that he was going to dethrone the king and rule the country under a Single Umbrella. Among the many accusations raised against Ayya Vaikundar, the one that he would overthrow the rule of kings was among the most serious.
squeezed out the labour and its produce from the Santror."
There are also certain verses found in Akilattirattu and Arul Nool
which are in the form of instructions. A verse in Akilattirattu says, "Whoever makes an earning, let him rule over it and no one need be lightened of another." Another verse proclaims, "Tell that there is no Sevies to be paid anymore." There are also verses that call for revolutionary actions from the followers. For example, a section in Arul Nool goes as follows:
The people had their own folk practices, such as peikkuk kotuttal (offering to demons) or cetikkuk kotuttal (offering to evil spirits), to appease the evil spirits. Ayya Vaikundar instructed the people not to observe these practices. One of the main instructions of Ayyavazhi was that there were neither devils
nor demons and that witchcraft
and sorcery
had no effect.
"We come to intimidate the veta Brahmins." Another statement of the same kind is found in Thingal patham
which says, "Those who wear a tuft (Brahmins) will not remain on this earth any longer". Apart from these open statements, certain mythical episodes implicating the Brahmins are too conspicuous to be missed. For example, the mythical narrative blames the Brahmins for consuming the whole of the nectar that is meant for all humanity, and on that account, condemns them to grow on earth as palmyra trees.
Another episode which alleges corrupt and immoral practices by the Brahmin priests at Srirangam and Thiruchendur
cannot obviously be missed. The followers of Ayyavazhi were called upon to don the mantle of priesthood in the place of the Brahmins.
condemns idolatry. On its view, leading all sort of meaningless ritualistic practices and giving birth to superstition
, the idol-worship led the priest to exploit the illiteracy and ignorance of the common people. Hence Ayya denounced idolatry and compelled his followers to detest and resist the same.
During the period of Ayya Vaikundar
the lower caste people of the South Travancore are not allowed to enter the temples. So they erected small pyramids of mud or brick and use to worship them. Ayya found these practises as uncivilised custom and put forward a new way of worship. This serves as a religious reformation in the socio-cultural history of South Travancore. There are quite a large number of verses in the Ayyavazhi scriptures on strengthening this view of Vaikundar.
. Vaikundar seems to have chosen these disciples to be his close associates and to propagate his teaching and ideals to the people.
s broke out such as Upper cloth agitation, Temple entry agitation
and other movements including that of Narayana Guru
, Chattampi Swamikal
, Vallalar
, Ayyankali
etc.
There is also a view that Swami Vivekananda too was influenced by Ayyavazhi teachings. Historians view that that Vivekananda visited the Swamithope
Pathi
during his visit to Kanyakumari in December 1892 and he was impressed by the principles behind rituals of this monistic
faith, such as wearing a head gear during worship in temple, worshipping in front of mirror etc., and started wearing a turban from then on. Dr. Poulose suggests that Vivekananda received some spiritual instructions from the disciples of Ayya Vaikundar
.
Ayyavazhi
Ayyavazhi is a dharmic belief system that originated in South India in the 19th century. It is cited as an independent monistic religion by several newspapers, government reports and academic researchers. In Indian censuses, however, the majority of its followers declare themselves as Hindus...
includes a corpus of teachings of its initiator Ayya Vaikundar
Ayya Vaikundar
Ayya Vaikundar , according to Akilattirattu Ammanai , a scripture of the Ayyavazhi, was a Manu Avatar of Narayana, incarnated as Muthukutty or Mudisoodum Perumal, a Nadar of Swamithoppe, Tamil Nadu Ayya Vaikundar , according to Akilattirattu Ammanai (or Akilam), a scripture of the Ayyavazhi, was...
in the
form of instructions and slogans found in the religious book Akilattirattu
Akilattirattu Ammanai
Akilathirattu Ammanai , also called Thiru Edu , is the main religious text of the Tamil belief system Ayyavazhi...
.
Dharmam
The teachings on Dharmam have two levels of understanding: a principle of 'righteousness', and a concrete activity of 'charity' or 'almsgiving'.As a principle, the followers of Ayyavazhi believed that the prime motive of the mission of Ayya Vaikundar was to establish Dharmam in this world by destroying the evil force of KaliKali
' , also known as ' , is the Hindu goddess associated with power, shakti. The name Kali comes from kāla, which means black, time, death, lord of death, Shiva. Kali means "the black one". Since Shiva is called Kāla - the eternal time, Kālī, his consort, also means "Time" or "Death" . Hence, Kāli is...
. It is said in Akilattirattu that people, even while listening to the teachings of Ayya Vaikundar, 'realised' that the evil of Kali was gradually being withdrawn from the world and that Dharmam was being established in its stead. Transposed to the social plane, this principle of Dharmam was considered as the mission of "protecting or salvaging the lowly, the oppressed." As a practical activity, Dharmam meant charity and almsgiving. This was taught to be the way to seek God. People were specially exhorted to undertake charity by means of material goods, and do it without discriminating among the beneficiaries.
Courage and fortitude
Part of Ayya Vaikundar's teachings included symbolic actions for the purpose of incinerating the evil spirits and impounding the powers of those practising black magic. These were purported to instill courage among the ordinary people. He also imparted direct teachings on courage and fortitude. People were instructed not to fear any supernatural or temporal powers of malignant or inimical character. They were exhorted "not to fear anyone except Vaikundar," whose abiding presence with them would be the source of their strength. They were told that "it was fortitude that would make them rule the earth" and that because of this, they were not to be intimidated by any exploiter.Living with dignity
"If you live with dignity and self-respect, the KaliKalineesan
Kalineesan is someone who was caught by Kalimayai according to Akilattirattu Ammanai, the source of Ayyavazhi mythology. Kaliyan is the sixth fragment of Kroni and Kalineesan. According to Ayyavazhi mythology, the kalimayai captured the King of Travancore and henceforth was called Kalineesan....
would destroy itself" is another oft-repeated verse from Akilattirattu. The importance of this instruction comes to light when considering that the destruction of Kali is projected in Akilattirattu as one of the chief motives of the mission of Ayya Vaikundar. The book, through various other narratives, underscores the point that the people are to live in dignity. For example, the narrative on the origin of the Santror Makkal as the children of Narayana
Narayana
Narayana or Narayan or Naraina is an important Sanskrit name for Vishnu, and in many contemporary vernaculars a common Indian name. Narayana is also identified as the original man, Purusha. The Puranas present divergent views on Narayana...
endowed the people with a divine pedigree, and it was a powerful story to drive home the message that the people were a dignified humanity. Some of the rituals that emerged in the life of Ayyavazhi were aimed at indoctrinating the message of human dignity. Wearing a piece of headgear during worship is an example of one of these rituals.
Against caste-discrimination
Akilattirattu projected to the imagination of the followers of Ayyavazhi an ideal society where the caste discrimination did not exist. In its account of the past, Akilattirattu speaks of an age in which people lived as one family without the discrimination of caste. It blames the kalineesanKalineesan
Kalineesan is someone who was caught by Kalimayai according to Akilattirattu Ammanai, the source of Ayyavazhi mythology. Kaliyan is the sixth fragment of Kroni and Kalineesan. According to Ayyavazhi mythology, the kalimayai captured the King of Travancore and henceforth was called Kalineesan....
for dividing the people on the basis of caste. It speaks of a future when Ayya Vaikundar will rule all the people with equality.
Other verses from Akilattirattu, such as
- "Cast away the eighteen castes and the demons into the mountain, fire and the sea"
- "Do not discriminate between the powerful and powerless"
- "The caste would disappear by itself"
point to the fact of a considerable indoctrination against the inequalities of castes.
Against political oppressors
A very strong critique of the political oppressors seems to have been operative in Ayyavazhi. In the first place, it was expressed in the very characterisation of the ThiruvithankurTravancore
Kingdom of Travancore was a former Hindu feudal kingdom and Indian Princely State with its capital at Padmanabhapuram or Trivandrum ruled by the Travancore Royal Family. The Kingdom of Travancore comprised most of modern day southern Kerala, Kanyakumari district, and the southernmost parts of...
king as Kalineesan, the representative of the evil force, and of the British as Venneesan
Venneesan
Venneesan was a mythical figure found in Ayyavazhi mythology. According to Akilattirattu Ammanai, the holy text of Ayyavazhi and source of Ayyavazhi mythology, he was the son of Kalineesan.- Birth and marriage of Venneesan :...
(the wicked white). Kalineesan was projected to be the main oppressor who perpetrated the rule of Kali by exploiting the labour of the people through the systems of oozhiyam and levies, and by imposing the discriminatory caste system. Akilattirattu indicts the king as the cause of oppression and issues admonitions to him to revoke the exploitative measures.
A slogan having political overtones seems to have been heard repeatedly in the gatherings of Ayyavazhi. It came as a declaration from Ayya Vaikundar that he was going to dethrone the king and rule the country under a Single Umbrella. Among the many accusations raised against Ayya Vaikundar, the one that he would overthrow the rule of kings was among the most serious.
Against economic exploitation
Strong discontent against the deeply entrenched exploitation of the labouring masses was expressed in the form of poetic lamentations that were repeated and commented upon in the gatherings of Ayyavazhi. Akilattirattu devotes three full pages to enumerating and lamenting upon the innumerable exploitative measures imposed on the toiling masses, primarily on the Chanars. It lists a number of oppressive taxes (imposed on items such as firewood and the implements of the people's occupation). It also speaks about the varieties of taxes levied on land and cultivation and narrates the way the exploitative system of oozhiyam burdened the people. In a very telling statement, Akilattirattu summarises its accusation that "the treacherous neesanKalineesan
Kalineesan is someone who was caught by Kalimayai according to Akilattirattu Ammanai, the source of Ayyavazhi mythology. Kaliyan is the sixth fragment of Kroni and Kalineesan. According to Ayyavazhi mythology, the kalimayai captured the King of Travancore and henceforth was called Kalineesan....
squeezed out the labour and its produce from the Santror."
There are also certain verses found in Akilattirattu and Arul Nool
Arul Nool
The Arul Nool is a supplement to the Akilattirattu Ammanai, and is likewise considered a holy scripture of Ayyavazhi, an offshoot sect of Hinduism. This book contains the collection of messages given by Ayya Vaikundar to his Disciples , whose names are unknown...
which are in the form of instructions. A verse in Akilattirattu says, "Whoever makes an earning, let him rule over it and no one need be lightened of another." Another verse proclaims, "Tell that there is no Sevies to be paid anymore." There are also verses that call for revolutionary actions from the followers. For example, a section in Arul Nool goes as follows:
- My child, born to rule the world, rise and awake
- The arrogant mean is waging a war
- Come my son, to raise an army to incinerate this world
- Dignified as you are, the ignominy is intolerable
- I brought a paisa by carrying on my head a heavy load
- He snatched away even that one paisa
- Did you take birth when such a cruel king is ruling?
Against puja, blood-sacrifice, and offerings to temples
Ayya Vaikundar also offered a strong admonition to the followers of Ayyavazhi against conducting Puja (making offerings to temples and undertaking blood sacrifices to appease evil spirits). This admonition is repeated in several places in Akilattirattuu and Arul Nool. Instructions to give up "devil worship," idol worship, sacrifices of goats, roosters and pigs to deities, offerings of eggs, fried meat and other edibles were explicitly present in Ayyavazhi. Ayya Vaikundar is shown to be proclaiming these admonitions as a titular message to his mission as soon as he emerged from the sea after the Transformation.The people had their own folk practices, such as peikkuk kotuttal (offering to demons) or cetikkuk kotuttal (offering to evil spirits), to appease the evil spirits. Ayya Vaikundar instructed the people not to observe these practices. One of the main instructions of Ayyavazhi was that there were neither devils
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
nor demons and that witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
and sorcery
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
had no effect.
Condemnation of the Priests
Ayya Vaikundar and other prominent persons of Ayyavazhi made many statements lamenting the alleged domination of the Brahmins. One such statement by Vaikundar is found in PatthiramPatthiram
The Patthiram is one of the sub-sections of Arul Nool. The author of the content is unknown. But it was believed to be written down by Dharma Citar. This contains the rules and regulations for Citars. It is meant in the way that Ayya giving the acts to Dharma Citar....
"We come to intimidate the veta Brahmins." Another statement of the same kind is found in Thingal patham
Thingal patham
The Thingal patham is one of the sub-sections of Arul Nool which was the secondary scripture of Ayyavazhi.The author of the content is unknown. This contains the events and reason for the Avatar of Vaikundar. It also contains some prophecies....
which says, "Those who wear a tuft (Brahmins) will not remain on this earth any longer". Apart from these open statements, certain mythical episodes implicating the Brahmins are too conspicuous to be missed. For example, the mythical narrative blames the Brahmins for consuming the whole of the nectar that is meant for all humanity, and on that account, condemns them to grow on earth as palmyra trees.
Another episode which alleges corrupt and immoral practices by the Brahmin priests at Srirangam and Thiruchendur
Thiruchendur
Thiruchendur Murugan Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Muruga and one of the Arupadaiveedu of Lord Muruga. It is located in the small town of Thiruchendur in the district of Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, India. It is 55 km south-east of Tirunelveli, 40 km from Tuticorin and 75 km...
cannot obviously be missed. The followers of Ayyavazhi were called upon to don the mantle of priesthood in the place of the Brahmins.
Denunciation of Idolatry
Unlike the other Indian religious systems, AyyavazhiAyyavazhi
Ayyavazhi is a dharmic belief system that originated in South India in the 19th century. It is cited as an independent monistic religion by several newspapers, government reports and academic researchers. In Indian censuses, however, the majority of its followers declare themselves as Hindus...
condemns idolatry. On its view, leading all sort of meaningless ritualistic practices and giving birth to superstition
Superstition
Superstition is a belief in supernatural causality: that one event leads to the cause of another without any process in the physical world linking the two events....
, the idol-worship led the priest to exploit the illiteracy and ignorance of the common people. Hence Ayya denounced idolatry and compelled his followers to detest and resist the same.
During the period of Ayya Vaikundar
Ayya Vaikundar
Ayya Vaikundar , according to Akilattirattu Ammanai , a scripture of the Ayyavazhi, was a Manu Avatar of Narayana, incarnated as Muthukutty or Mudisoodum Perumal, a Nadar of Swamithoppe, Tamil Nadu Ayya Vaikundar , according to Akilattirattu Ammanai (or Akilam), a scripture of the Ayyavazhi, was...
the lower caste people of the South Travancore are not allowed to enter the temples. So they erected small pyramids of mud or brick and use to worship them. Ayya found these practises as uncivilised custom and put forward a new way of worship. This serves as a religious reformation in the socio-cultural history of South Travancore. There are quite a large number of verses in the Ayyavazhi scriptures on strengthening this view of Vaikundar.
Centres of worship: Pathis and Nizhal Thangals
Pathis and Nizhal Thangals were centres of worship and religious learning established in different parts of the country by devout followers of Ayyavazhi. They were established even during the time of Ayya Vikundar, and they served as centres for propagation of the beliefs and practices of Ayyavazhi.Disciples
From among the large number of followers, Vaikundar seems to have chosen five persons to be called as his ( Citars)disciples. They are Sivanandi from Mailadi, Pandaram from Kailasapuram, Arjunan from Pillayarkudiyirruppu, Subbiah from Colachel, and Hari Gopalan from ThamaraikulamThamaraikulam
Thamaraikulam is a panchayat town in periyakulam taluk of Theni district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Gandhinagar, Bangalapatti, Thamaraikulam, Thasildar nagar these are important wards in this village.-Demographics:...
. Vaikundar seems to have chosen these disciples to be his close associates and to propagate his teaching and ideals to the people.
Impact
Sociologically speaking, Ayya Vaikundar was the first to succeed as a social reformer in launching political struggle, social renaissance as well as religious reformation in the country. In addition it also created many social changes in the southern India impinging greatly on society highly resulting in social and self-respect movementSelf-Respect Movement
The Self-Respect Movement was founded in 1925 by Periyar E. V. Ramasamy in Tamil Nadu, India. The movement has the aim of achieving a society where backward castes have equal human rights, and encouraging backward castes to have self-respect in the context of a caste based society that...
s broke out such as Upper cloth agitation, Temple entry agitation
Temple Entry Proclamation
The Temple Entry Proclamation issued by Maharaja Shri Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma and his Dewan Sir C. P. Ramaswami Iyer in 1936 abolished the ban on low-caste people or avarnas from entering Hindu Temples in the state of Travancore .The edict is as follows:Today, the Temple Entry...
and other movements including that of Narayana Guru
Narayana Guru
Sri Nārāyana Guru , also known as Sree Nārāyana Guru Swami, was a Hindu saint, sadhuand social reformer of India. The Guru was born into an Ezhava family, in an era when people from backward communities like the Ezhavas faced much social injustices in the caste-ridden Kerala society...
, Chattampi Swamikal
Chattampi Swamikal
Sree Vidyadhiraja Parama Bhattaraka Chattampi Swamikal was a Hindu sage and social reformer. His thoughts and work influvenced the launching of many social, relegious, literary and political organizations and movements in Kerala and for the first time gave voice to those who were...
, Vallalar
Arutprakasa Vallalar Chidambaram Ramalinga Swamigal
Arutprakasa Vallalar Chidambaram Ramalingam , whose pre-monastic name was Ramalingam, is commonly known in India and across the world as Vallalar...
, Ayyankali
Ayyankali
Ayyankali was a leader of the Indian lower caste Dalits known as the Untouchables. He pioneered many reforms to improve the lives of the Dalits. In 1937 he was praised by Mahatma Gandhi when he visited Venganoor, Ayyankali's home town...
etc.
There is also a view that Swami Vivekananda too was influenced by Ayyavazhi teachings. Historians view that that Vivekananda visited the Swamithope
Swamithope
Swamithope is the name of a town that lies southeast of the City of Nagercoil, the capital of the District of Kanyakumari in the State of Tamil Nadu, at the extreme southern tip of India...
Pathi
Pathi
Pathi is the name of the primary centres of congregational worship for the South Indian religious system of Ayyavazhi, having a relatively large structure like that of a temple...
during his visit to Kanyakumari in December 1892 and he was impressed by the principles behind rituals of this monistic
Monism
Monism is any philosophical view which holds that there is unity in a given field of inquiry. Accordingly, some philosophers may hold that the universe is one rather than dualistic or pluralistic...
faith, such as wearing a head gear during worship in temple, worshipping in front of mirror etc., and started wearing a turban from then on. Dr. Poulose suggests that Vivekananda received some spiritual instructions from the disciples of Ayya Vaikundar
Ayya Vaikundar
Ayya Vaikundar , according to Akilattirattu Ammanai , a scripture of the Ayyavazhi, was a Manu Avatar of Narayana, incarnated as Muthukutty or Mudisoodum Perumal, a Nadar of Swamithoppe, Tamil Nadu Ayya Vaikundar , according to Akilattirattu Ammanai (or Akilam), a scripture of the Ayyavazhi, was...
.
See also
- PathiPathiPathi is the name of the primary centres of congregational worship for the South Indian religious system of Ayyavazhi, having a relatively large structure like that of a temple...
s - Nizhal Thangals
- List of Ayyavazhi-related articles