• APARNA. S. ANIL

The name ‘Theyyam’ originates from the word ‘Theivam’ which means God. Theyyam which is also known as ‘Kaliyattom’, is an ancient socio-religious ceremony performed in the Northern parts of Kerala. The performance of Theyyam is in close association with the agrarian practices of ancient Kerala. It is regarded mainly as a sacred dance performance of ‘Kali’, as the name ‘Kaliyattom’ suggests. It is also known as ‘Theyyattom’ as every ‘thera’ or village was duly bound to perform it. The rich socio-cultural history of Theyyam acts as a speculum of cultural ethos as well as the social realities from the 12th century A.D. This paper is a humble, unbiased attempt to analyze how Brahminical hegemony imposed its interests over the attempts of Theyyam to provide insights to the community over the prevailed caste hierarchy and related inequalities of the time, as a Dravidian form of resistance against the aspects of Aryanization, thereby distorting the ‘Thottam’ songs or myths that were sung during the performance. So many historical events were, in turn, instrumental in affecting a change in the performance of Theyyam.

theyyam, kaliyattom, theyyattom, brahminical hegemony, thottams, untouchability, chatur varna

"BEYOND SACRED- UNDERSTANDING THE HISTORICAL, SOCIO- POLITICAL AND CULTURAL DIMENSIONS OF THEYYAM", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 1, page no.1143-1147, January-2019, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1901C59.pdf

"BEYOND SACRED- UNDERSTANDING THE HISTORICAL, SOCIO- POLITICAL AND CULTURAL DIMENSIONS OF THEYYAM", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 1, page no. pp1143-1147, January-2019, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1901C59.pdf