Description :The mother Goddess holds precedence in the religious affiliations of the people of Kerala and though the Goddess is recognized by several names, it is as Bhagavati that she gets star billing in Kerala. Temples and shrines dedicated to Bhagavati abound all over the region especially north Malabar carry an import all their own. From February to April each year these abodes of worship quit their normal, humdrum routine and, overnight, rouse themselves to provide the backdrop for a dance spectacle of overpowering ritualistic grandeur. Both the event and the characters who adorn it are known as Taiyam, a corruption of the word daivam or divinity. The main features of the Taiyam celebration are the appearance in appropriate disguise of a series of performers impersonating gods and demons the masquerade and dance of these characters before those assembled to witness the same and the acceptance of offerings from the congregation followed by the bestowing of blessings upon all. Taiyam tradition is centuries old.The dancers are drawn exclusively from the lower castes not ably the Pulaya, Panan, Vannan and Tiyan, who, by profession, are farmers, weavers, basket makers, washer men, toddy-tappers. Taiyam today essentially belongs to the simple Village folk.
Source :Sangeet Natak Akademi
Type :Article
Received From :Sangeet Natak Akademi
DC Field
Value
dc.contributor.author
Khokar, Mohan
dc.coverage.spatial
Kerala
dc.date.accessioned
2017-07-04T22:29:47Z
dc.date.available
2017-07-04T22:29:47Z
dc.date.issued
1989
dc.description.abstract
The mother Goddess holds precedence in the religious affiliations of the people of Kerala and though the Goddess is recognized by several names, it is as Bhagavati that she gets star billing in Kerala. Temples and shrines dedicated to Bhagavati abound all over the region especially north Malabar carry an import all their own. From February to April each year these abodes of worship quit their normal, humdrum routine and, overnight, rouse themselves to provide the backdrop for a dance spectacle of overpowering ritualistic grandeur. Both the event and the characters who adorn it are known as Taiyam, a corruption of the word daivam or divinity. The main features of the Taiyam celebration are the appearance in appropriate disguise of a series of performers impersonating gods and demons the masquerade and dance of these characters before those assembled to witness the same and the acceptance of offerings from the congregation followed by the bestowing of blessings upon all. Taiyam tradition is centuries old.The dancers are drawn exclusively from the lower castes not ably the Pulaya, Panan, Vannan and Tiyan, who, by profession, are farmers, weavers, basket makers, washer men, toddy-tappers. Taiyam today essentially belongs to the simple Village folk.
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