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Myths and Folktales of India with Special Focus on the State of Kerala.

By Dr. A.J. Thomas

Introduction
India, like any other country that can boast of an ancient civilization, is home to myriad myths, legends and folktales. India is a vast country. It is in fact the seventh largest country in the world, with 28 states(provinces with a great degree of autonomy, in the Federal Indian system) and seven Union Territories (administered by the Central Government). It has 22 national languages with advanced and developed literatures, and are recognized by the Indian Constitution in its VIII th Schedule. They are: Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. Sahitya Akademi, the National Academy of Letters, has added two more to it (English and Rajasthani), making the languages it has recognized to be 24. All these states and territories have their own local narrative traditions. Apart from the grand narratives of Ramayana, Mahabharata, and the puranas that tell myriad mythological tales which are prevalent all over the country, and the nearly two millennia-old established early story cycles such as Kathasaritsagaram (An Ocean of Tales), Brihad Katha (The Great Story), Panchatantra, the Buddhist Jataka Tales, Vikramaditya Tales, and so on, hundreds of different localities of India have their own narrative traditions. A good percentage of these stories are written and preserved. Audio recordings of narrative songs, ballads etc., exist in various folklore centres across the country. From all regions, films, musicals, and other performance forms are created out of such stories. In the great Indian film industry parallel to Hollywood centred around Bombay( now Mumbai) and hence nicknamed Bollywood, hundreds of such stories are made into films, apart from other centres of film industry like West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala etc. One famous example is the work, Duvidha, by the celebrated folklorist and fiction writer in Rajasthani, Vijay Dan Detha, which was made into two very famous, artistically magnificent filmsDuvidha by the celebrated film-maker Mani Kaul in 1973, and Paheli by Amol Palekar in 2005, starring the modern-day acting legend, Shah Rukh Khan. The National Academy of Letters has collected and published many such tales from different regions, but a vast number of them remains to be collected and translated into English. Only a gigantic project spanning over several years involving hundreds of compilers, translators, editors, language experts and scholars can accomplish this task. But this would certainly be a task worth undertaking, before the all-obliterating forces of globalization and free market economy in their homogenizing effect will efface most of such local traditions.

Overview
Myths and legends have been the foundation of all epics around the world, including Iliad and Odyssey. The two great epics of India, Ramayana and Mahabharata , the puranas, early cycles of stories mentioned above and various other classical works are no exceptions. The Ramayana Within the Ramayana itself, there is the mention that the sage Valmiki composed the entire Ramayana story in verse, from existing legends, and made Ramas children Lava and Kusha, recite it in front of their father. In other words, Ramas life was lived according to the pre-existing script of Ramayana! So much so, that in certain regional versions of the Ramayana, Sita, Ramas wife, takes objection to certain actions of Rama, saying that such details are not found in the original! Of course, that original version was in the oral form, and recording of it came much later and in different stages. Apart from the various versions of the Ramayana existing in the different regions of India, (there are more than 300 of them, according to eminent poet, translator and pre-eminent folklorist A.K.Ramanujan), Ramayana tradition has spread all over Asia. Within India, myths and legends related to the Ramayana began to acquire regional characteristics, and regional versions of the epic in different lengths and forms appeared in the regional languages during the medieval period. Different versions of the Ramayana in India are found in almost all major literatures of the country, such as Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, Avadhi( a precursor to the modern Hindi; the name of the work is Ramcharitmanas by Goswami Tulsidas), Assamese, Bengali, Oriya, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Manipuri, Sindhi( a translation of Ramcharitmanas), Marathi, Konkani, Santhali etc. Apart from the above, different versions of the Ramayana are found among the various tribal people of India who have their own individual languages, such as the Birhors, Mundas, Asurs, Gonds, Murias, Marias, Pardhans, Khonds, the speakers of the Bakavoli language in Chattisgarh, Baigas, Agarias, etc It is interesting to note that one can find sacred spots in any locality in India where Rama and Sita were believed to have lived or passed through during their vanavaasa( life in the forest for fourteen years), and rocks with the footprints of Rama! In my state Kerala, in all the nooks and corners of the countryside I have visited, there is at least one such locality, with a localisesd legend. One can easily see how popular imagination has been fired throughout several millennia, by the myths and legends of the Ramayana, all over India. Across Asia, the other countries and regions where the Ramayana tradition has spread, are: Nepal, Burma, Sri Lanka(in Sinhalese), Java, Malaysia, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Mongolia, Japan, the Philippines and some others Even Korea is linked to the Ramayana story. I am quoting Wikipedia: According to an 11th century
Korean chronicle, the Samguk Yusa, the wife of King Suro of the ancient Korean kingdom of Geumgwan

Gaya, was a princess who travelled by boat from a faraway land called Ayuta to Korea in 48 CE. It is commonly thought that Ayodhya is the foreign land referred to in the Korean chronicles, but some scholars believe that the foreign land may have been Ayutthaya of Thailand. However, the local government of Ayodhya in India and the South Korean government validated and acknowledged the legitimacy of the connection and held a ceremony between the two governments to raise a statue of the princess on the banks of the Saryu River in Ayodhya. The princess's adopted Korean name is Heo Hwang-ok, who was the first queen of Geumgwan Gaya Dynasty and is the ancestor of the Korean Kim family of Kimhae and the Heo surname lineages. 2,000 years ago, a princess of Ayodhya had been shipped off as a bride to Suro. They had ten children, of whom nine became Buddhist monks while one built Korea. His descendants now form the 10 million-strong Kim Kimhae clan and Heo Gimhae clan.

There are also different versions of the Ramayana prevalent among the Buddhists, Jains, and also the Muslims of Lakshadweep. The Mahabharata The same is the case with the Mahabharata, though its spread in Asia is not as great as that of the Ramayana. It has different versions developed around local myths and legends, in almost all the above-mentioned Indian languages, and also among tribal people like the Bhils, Gonds etc. In Himachal Pradesh, a state nestled in the middle Himalayas of northern India, there are at least twelve different localized versions, which vary substantially from the original narrative. Practically each major valley in Himachal Pradesh has a local version of the great epic! Other Myths and Folk-tales There are also myths and legends which are outside the purview of these great epics and puranas, in different parts of India, especially among the tribal people and aborigines. For example, the folktales and legends of the North-Eastern regions of India, those of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and many other such centres.

Focus on the State of Kerala.


Now let me focus on the myths and folktales of Kerala. Kerala is an ancient land where Bodhidharma(the legendary Buddhist monk and founder of the Shaolin Temple of China), Adi Sankaracharya(the great philosopher-saint who championed the concept of Advaita or Monism), Bhasa, the great Sanskrit poet and dramatist(a contemporary of Kalidas, the greatest poet of ancient India) and Madhava, the great medieval mathematician, were born. Kerala is also a land of myths, legends and sagas that have thrived over the millennia.

Myths, Ballads & Folk-narratives.

Vadakkan Pattukal (The Northern Ballads), the songs of the mid-regions of Kerala including Kuttanad( the paddy-cultivating wetlands abounding in backwaters, rivers and lakes, pet-named as the Rice-bowl of Kerala), such as Edanaadan Pattu, Chengannuraathi and many other smaller ballads, Thekkan Pattukal (The Southern Ballads), and Mappilappattukal(Songs of the Mopla Muslims) are among the main narrative songs of Kerala. Teyyam, Tira, Padayani, Mudiyettu, Bhadrakaalippaattu, Tolpaavakkoothu, Maargam Kali, Kanniyarkali, Chavittunaatakam, Kaakkaarissi Naatakam, Vellari Naatakam, Thiruvaathirakali, Kaikottikkalai, Oppana, Villadichaankali etc., are some of the folk performing art forms. Kerala has also adopted folk sagas from several foreign sources brought in by merchants, and by missionaries of religions like Jainism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam, who were cordially welcomed by the kings of the land. Intermixing with local traditions, these foreign strands also added colour and texture to the multi-layered culture of Kerala. From the Oral to the Written The introduction of English education in Kerala in the 19th century brought about the advent of western narrative forms like the novel and the short story. Prior to this, classical narratives like Kathasaritsagar, Panchatantra and Jataka Tales, and the prose narratives woven into the performing art form of Purushardha Koothu, had defined the structure of an indigenous Malayalam folk narrative. Into this scene had come mixed narratives like Vikramaaditya Charitram,(stories involving King Vikramaaditya of Ujjain, Vetaal,(a spectral companion), and Bhatti(thought to be Bhartrhari, the great Sanskrit poet, and also the kings brother), Karalman Charitram,(similar to, or even derived from, the European Chansons de Rolland, the sagas of the Frankish king, Charle Magne, or Charles the Great, who reigned the Holy Roman Empire, with Aachen as his capital) and the several Mappilappattukal originating from the Arabian Nights and other Arab-Persian sources. There were also ancient Tamil narratives like Chilappathikaaram and some Kannada narratives of the same period seeping across the borders into Keralas several tiny kingdoms and principalities. All these had some elements of the classical structure while their oral rendering from generation to generation had brought to them the flexibility of folk narratives.

Different Types of the Folk Songs and their Characteristics.


Vadakkan Paattukal (Northern Ballads)
Vadakkan Paattukal are folk-narrative songs which are very much alive even today among the agricultural labourers of Malablar. I have had the occasion to listen to the singing of such songs during transplantation of paddy seedlings in a couple of places. The labourers, both male and female, working in paddy fields or other agricultural lands including plantations, sing them. Most of these songs are about the exploits of heroes or heroines, while some maybe about the lusting after women, of certain chieftains, and the heroic resistance of a low-caste woman who is unwilling to succumb to that lust. These songs are called Thoram Paattukal--a descriptive word denoting the use they are put to, namely, to sing while at work. But the latest trends show that they are welcome on

celebratory occasions as well -- like weddings, naming ceremony and so on. The prominence these songs received, over the last forty years, in the field of cinema also is one of the reasons for them to find honourable access into the drawing rooms of the middle classes. Almost all heroic ballads worth the name have been converted to celluloid versions, often in lurid melodrama. But they helped the tradition to survive, albeit in a changed tonality and application. What we call Vadakkan Pattukal are mostly about the heroes and heroines of Kadathanaad, a region that includes lands that lie roughly between Kannur and Kozhikode in North Malabar, and therefore, some experts call them Kadathanaadan Paattukal. They consist chiefly of, one, Puthooram Paatukal, two, Tacholi Paattukal and three, Ottappattukal, assorted single songs around individual heroes/heroines. Efforts were on from the late nineteenth century onwards, under the initiative of British educationists and administrators to collect these ballads in written form. Also the earliest English translation of these ballads was accomplished almost eighty years ago. Chelanaat Achyuta Menons Ballads of North Malabar Vol.1 was published by Madras University in 1935(This book is now not accessible). The Songs of the Mid-regions. The songs of the mid-regions are mainly Edanaaadan Paattu, Chengannuraathi, Maanikkam Pennu, Kaamacha Velan, Chengannu Velan and Maani, Malanaatilaathi, Mankompilaathi and Paandi Chirutha, and countless small, independent songs. A good many of them survive even now thanks to the oral rendering by stalwarts like Mariyaamma John(Mariyaamma Chedathi) and Koduppunna Chennan. While Mariyaamma Chedathi( dead about three years ago) could sing almost two thousand lines of Chengannuraathi from her memory, Koduppunna Chennan( also dead) could muster up nearly 5000 lines of Edanaadan Paattu. Chenganuuraathi is about the exploits of a folk hero of that name. Edanaadan Paatu deals with the revenge story of Edanaadan, the hero, who kills his fathers murderers. The songs are sung during agricultural activities in the paddy fields of mainly Kuttanad, and are sung predominantly by Paraya and Pulaya men and women who are agricultural labourers. Many of these songs have now been made available in written form in collections, thanks to the untiring efforts of research scholars.

Thekkan Paattukal (Southern Ballads)


Thekkan Paattukal (Southern Ballads) mainly are, Iravikkuttippillapporu, Moovottu Mallan Katha, Ponnirattal Katha, Panchavankaattu Neelippattu, Kannadianporu, Ulakudaperumaalppattu, Purushaadeviyammappattu, Anchutampuraan Pattu, and some others. None of these have received so much acclaim as Iravikkuttippillapporu. This song is also known as Kaniyankulathu Poru. Iravikkuttippillapporu deals with the tragic death in battle of a commander in chief of the Venad Kingdom(presently southern Kerala)in the year 810 of the Malayalam Era(ca.1642 A.D).

Moovottu Mallan Katha, is the story of farmers who turn to evil spirits for protection and revenge as their rights for cultivating the land was in jeopardy, at the hands of their own uncles. In the end, the evil spirits destroy the nephews, the neighbours and the entire land as well--a grim reminder of what happens when one seeks the alliance of evil forces in whatever sphere of life, be it politics, economic activities or social activities, as we are time and again reminded by what is happening all around us now-a-days. Ponnirattaal Katha, is the story of Ponnirattaal, a beauty born in the village of Kadayam in the present Tirunelveli District of Tamilnadu. She belonged to the Vaduvar caste. Infatuated by her looks, an aristocrat named Pavoor Inasooran married her. As their love-intoxicated life went on smoothly, the lack of children pained them. But due to many vows and penance, she conceived. Then she falls prey to the evil custom of black magic in which a pregnant woman is sacrificed. Kalliyankaattu Neelippattu is about a cruel yakshi(a spirit) of that name who infested Kalliyankaad in Nanjinaad , who was, in her human life, a hapless Brahmin wife cruelly murdered while pregnant, by her greedy husband who wanted to inherit her wealth.

Maappilappaattukal (Folk-songs of the Muslim Community)


The chief ballads or narrative poems that exist among Maappilappaatukal as already seen, are Badr Kissappaattu and Badr-ul Munir Husnuljamal Kissappaattu. Unlike all the folk ballads, these have been described as mahakavyas and were actually written by Mahakavi(Great Poet) Moinkutty Vaidyar who was born in Kondotti near Kozhikode about 150 years ago. Besides the two already mentioned works, he has authored two more mahakaavyas(great poetic works), Uhdpada and Hijra and khanda kaavyas(single poetic works) like Kilattimaala and Elippada. What gives them the folk aura is the way these kaavyas(poetic works) have been constantly in oral rendition, unlike any other mahakaavyas, and the fact that they are the life-blood of a narrative tradition that extends directly from the Arabian Nights. It will be interesting to note that Mohiyudeen Maala written by Khali Muhammad in 1670, a few years before Ezhuttachchan, the Father of Modern Malayalam wrote his famous Ramayanam Kilippattu, is the first known Maappilappattu. It is rendered in a surprisingly modern Malayalam, free for the most part from Arabic words, unlike Moinkutty Vaidyars mahakaavyas written two centuries later. Narrative Texts Related to Folk-performance Forms Thottampattu is the verbal narrative element in a Teyyam performance, which is the nerve-centre of all folk performances of northern Malabar. Teyyam is a corruption of Deyvam(God), and is the most evident form of ancestor worship prevalent extensively today. Directly connected to the Bhutaradhane of South Canara (Tulunad) of Karnataka, this practice has its roots in the prehistory of Dravidian antiquity. When a hero or heroine, or a victim, dies, the collective consciousness of the community elevates them to the status of gods and goddesses and propitiate them, more often to escape their wrath which can be very dangerous when they are in spirit form unlike in mortal, flesh and blood form. Certain Teyyams are considered guardians of the entire community. Anyway, the

story that describes the life and death of the Teyyam is sung in narration, and that is what interests us. Mudiyettu is the oldest extant theatre form in the country. Its depicts the Great Goddesss fight with Darikan, a demon, and his eventual killing by Devi. But comic interludes, with narrative strands, sung during the performance, provides the researcher with the earliest form of verbal narration. Padayani is another folk drama form, found mostly in south-central Kerala. This also is almost as old as Mudiyettu and has many narrative interludes. Kanyaarkali, Poraattu and Tolppaavakkoothu are folk performance forms found mostly in and around the Palakkad area. Kanyaarkali is a martial kind of folk performance form, with some narrative passages sung by chorus-like singers. Poraattu is the perfect folk-play, played by the Pulayas and Parayas--oppressed classes. The narrative element here is typically folk. Tolppaavakkoothu is a shadow-play, projecting shadows of glove-puppets in action, on to a screen. Mythological themes were used in the plays.

Aitihyamaala.
In the latter part of the 19th century, all the aforesaid narrative traditions found a synthesis in Kottarathil Sankunnis Aithihyamala (A Garland of Legends). Sankunny, a raconteur, who was also a great Sanskrit scholar, dramatist, Kathakali-playwright, poet and satirist who authored 59 books, was the focus around which the pioneering Malalylalam newspaper baron Kandathil Varghese Mappilas court met at Kottayam. The stories Sankunni related in the court, were published in Varghese Mappilas Bhasha Poshini and Malayala Manorama. The written tales were of course hemmed in by limitations of time and space, thus losing many of the endearing aspects of the oral rendering, but their publication in a magazine and newspaper ensured their wider reach. Aithihyamaala which is indeed a garland of 126 legends, is described now as Keralas Kathasaritsagar, indicating that it undoubtedly occupies the pride of place among the prose folk-narratives of our land.

Special Focus: Vadakkan Paattukal (Northern Ballads)


Of all the above-mentioned narratives, Vadakkan Paattukal is by far the most important versenarrative tradition. Therefore, I have selected, for the present, Vadakkan Paattukal, for tracing the profiles of its heroes and heroines of different types, bringing out their importance in the general folk-tale scenario of Kerala. Also, various stories found in these Northern Ballads have been made into more than a dozen very important popular films. Other performing art forms like musicals and Kathaprasangam (a story-teller narrating the story in prose accompanied by verses, sung professionally, interspersed with mono-acting, miming and mimicry)have been woven out of these folk-narratives. A number of TV serials, novels etc., have also been made out of them. Many of these stories have

been prescribed for school curriculum, and also as texts for university studies in courses on Keralas folk culture and literature. The majority of the Vadakkan Paattukal belongs to either Puthooram or Tacholi traditions, and there are only very few independent ballads. Heroes/Heroines (i)Puthooram Paattukal (The Songs of Puthooram) Puthooram Paattukal are centred around the members of the Puthooram tharavaad. Chelanaat Achyutha Menon opines that these songs are at least one thousand years old. Mahakavi Ulloor S.Parameshwara Iyer, one of the great renaissance Malayalam poets, and the author of the eightvolume History of Malayalam Literature, believes that these songs came into being somewhere around the 13th century. Another opinion is that Puthooram Aaromal Chekavar lived in the 12th century. Anyone who examines the story-content and references to social practices point undoubtedly towards the antiquity of these songs. A Chekavar was a member of a lower caste of northern Kerala, whose traditional vocation was training people in martial arts(kalarippayattu), and fighting Ankams(duels) on others behalf of patrons. If a Chekavar died in direct combat with the opponent, it was considered very prestigious for the family and for the land. Chekavars cultivated the best of health, training, prowess with weapons and dexterity in unarmed combat. The Chekavars were well-built, handsome and formidable. Several ladies of Chekavar families were also equally trained in weaponry and physical prowess like the male members. Unni Aarcha, Aaromal Chekavars sister, is famous for her wonderful exploits. Puthooram Paattukal deal mainly with personages like Aaromal Chekavar, Unni Aarcha, Aromalunni and Kannappan Chekavar. Of this, Kannappans is a love-story. Of the rest, all except one are the depiction of adventures by the lead figures. They include the touching romantic tale of how Aaromal Chekavar who went over to his maternal uncles house to play a game of dice ended up marrying his cousin according to the Gaandharva rite(done clandestinely). Aaromal Chekavar The tragic story of Aaromal Chekavar will jerk tears out of any stone-hearted person. The dispute between two chieftains who were twins, as to who should be the reigning one, to be settled through an Ankam by Aaromal and Aringodar(which was Aaromals Puthariyankam, or, debut duel in the career of a duelist) ended in Aaromals untimely death through the deceit of his in-law, Chantu. As Aaromal was resting in Chantus lap, after winning the duel and beheading his opponent, the in-law sank the pointed stem of a brass-lamp into his stomach, fatally deepening a flesh wound sustained during the duel. Aaromalunni

A succeeding story is that of Aaromalunni, Aaromal Chekavars nephew, who sets off, in his boyhood, to find out Chantu and settle scores with him.His super-human exploits and how he severed Chantus head and presented it on a platter to Unni Aarcha, his mother, is the theme of Aaromalunnis paattu(song). Unni Aarcha Unni Aarchas paattu deals with the incident in which she went to see the temple festival at Allimalarkkaavu, and was waylaid by some hooligans whom she defeated singlehandedly and humiliated beyond words. There were many other exploits this valorous lady accomplished, often in the place of her husband, the meek and mild Kunhiraman. Unni Aarcha, equal in her prowess in martial arts to any of the celebrated heroes of the ballads, is the most colourful and feted heroine of the Vadakkan Paattukal

Tacholippattukal,(The Songs of Tacholi)


When one considers the time-period of Tacholippattukal, which are songs centred around the superhero Tacholi Othenan and his descendants, we come to note that whereas during the time of Aaromal Chekavar, the right of fighting an Ankam was that of only the lower caste Chekavars, but, by the time of Tacholi Othenan, this right has passed on to the higher caste Nairs. Throughout the land, kalaris came up and Nairs were well-trained in the martial tradition. Although those belonging to other communities were also permitted to undergo martial arts training, managing wars was clearly the prerogative of the upper caste Nairs, as is evident from most of the stories of the period. Of this, the local Nair chieftains took the power of the naaduvaazhi(the chief of the region) into their hands to dispense justice as the latter proved to be weak. Tacholi Othenan was one such Nair warrior. Tacholi Othenan His exploits form the core of Kadathanaadan Pattukal. However, M.R.Raghava Varrier points out that there are songs about Tacholi family outside Kadathanaad; for example, in Ponnani and Valluvanaad regions, there are songs about the exploits of Tacholi Othenan. In all, there are more than 200 songs, on Tacholi Othenan alone, a staggering number, indeed. Mahakavi Ulloor who ascertained Othenans birth as at midday on the New Moon day of the month of Mithunam in the year 759 M.E.(1591 A.D), opines that it is impossible to find such a valorous warrior and compassionately generous human being fused in one personality as Tacholi Othenan, even if one examines the whole of Keralas ballads. Suppress any kind of insurgency and unruliness, protect any weak person with all his might, maintain without ups and downs the power and influence of any king or chieftain who enlisted his support, Othenan accomplished all this with distinction. It is difficult to find such a perfect Devi(Goddess) devotee, who was a fearless warrior

and unalloyed patriot, according to Ulloor. However, modern research reveals that Othenan was also an arrogant bully and a womanizer! Othenan had a weakness only for two things. Fish and women. Of the latter, he had had his fill, during the thirty-two years he lived in this world. He was a much married man with a bevy of concubines and countless one-night stands throughout the land. It is his womanising nature that landed him in many of the difficulties, from where he was rescued, again, mostly by his loyal women or trusted servant and friend Chaappan. For example, in the song of Othenan and Irutmalam Koilom Tampuran, in which one of his provisional wives traps him and hands him over to the Tampuran to be hanged. Such escapades form the majority of the adventures depicted in the Tacholippaattukal. It was finally one of his concubines who stole his protective talisman that ensured that no one could fire at him. He was shot dead by someone hiding near the arena as he returned to retrieve his weapon which he had inadvertently left behind, in his last fight which he had won. Tacholi Othenan was a natural warrior who killed his first foe, a local chieftain who had insulted his mother, at the age of eight! He went on to win 64 duels and battles in the 32 years of his life. Undoubtedly he is the most important and colourful of all the heroes of Vadakkan Paattukal Ambaadi, Othenans son, was a kind of child prodigy who proved to be the worthy son of an illustrious father. The songs centred around him depict his exploits. There were also two nephews of Othenan, Chandu and Kunhikelu, who were warriors in their own right. No others are heard of in the songs as a worthy successor to the mighty lineage.

Otta PaattukalI(Assorted Single Songs)


(i)Mathilerikkanni Otta Paattukal literally, Single Songs, which do not belong to either of the above two traditions, are not many in Vadakkan Paattukal. But the most important among them is Mathilerikkanni a song of about 5000 lines which is of exceeding poetic beauty and accomplished language. This deals with the tragic tale of a warrior maiden, who was married to the King of Venad, who by force of circumstances, had to impersonate as a male warrior, under the false name Ponnan, to lead the kings army into battle. In the meanwhile, the kings cousin, a maiden of exceeding beauty, also named Kanni, falls in love with the kings wife in a mans attire, thinking that he is a male. To avoid embarrassment, Mathilerikkanni disappears and goes back to her fathers house. The king goes in search of her. But a third maiden, also named Kanni, falls in love with him. When the king doesnt fall for her charms, she decides to poison Mathilerikkanni so that she can possess the king. Thus poisoned, Mathilerikkanni, on her deathbed, reveals to her husband, the king, that she was the one who in her disguise, was the commander-in-chief Ponnan, and died. Hearing this, her father dies of grief. Her husband too dies of a broken heart.

Poomathai Ponnamma

Yet another one which rivals Mathilerikkanni in pathos, is Poomathai Ponnamma which describes how a local chieftains lust for a Pulaya woman which she spurned, landed her in a fabricated charge of adultery and how she was executed by burning. At the last moment, the truth of the case came out, the guilty chieftains house caught fire and he too was burned to death. Other Assorted Songs Another one of the single songs is Panayankulangara Kunhicheran which upholds the impartiality of royal justice; yet another one is Raamathelamele Kunhichaappan which describes how the avarice of a Nair aristocrat lands him in jail. There are a few more such songs such as AAdimaharaajaavine Katha(The Song of King Aaadi), Karumparampil Kannante Katha(The Story of Karumparampil Kannan), Puthunaadan Chanthu Naadu Kaanaan Poya Katha(The Story of Puthunaadan Chantu Who Went on a Tour of the Countryside, Kannadi Poyilil Kunhyelappan(Kunhyelappan of Kannadi Poyil), Neeliyachuram Vaana Kunhimmathu(Kunhimmathu who Reigned at Neeliyachuram) and others. Conclusion Most of the folk-narrative songs, as already seen, are sung in the context of agriculture-related activities. They are loose-structured, and improvisation is possible in response to exigencies at the time of singing; only that the singer has to conform to certain basic conventions, which are common factors in all such songs. For example, in Vadakkan Pattukal, the use of words out of context, with apparently no semantic content, but providing the required beat. Therefore, Tacholyollomana kunhyodenan (The dear, good and petite Othenan of Tacholi) is the way he is addressed by his friends, near relatives, and arch enemies--even Irutmalam Koilom Tampuran, who is about to hang him! With the maintaining of the required beat and the use of stock phrases, a remarkable elasticity is reached in the oral rendering of the songs. This is, generally, the nature of folk songs in other regions as well. All the Northern Ballads together are less than fifty in number, in published versions. As already seen, there were more than 200 songs about Tacholi Othenan alone, sung by the agricultural labourers in the early 20th century, of which only a few are preserved in print. In another instance, of the Otta Paattukal, or Single Songs there used to be the stories of eighteen valorous and virtuous women belonging to the lower classes, of which only four songs are extant. The songs about the other fourteen are yet to be found. As socio-economic patterns have changed drastically over the last half century, even the use of such songs by the agricultural labourers during tedious physical labour to ease their drudgery, is dwindling rapidly. The number of the older generation of people who knew such songs are shrinking day by day. Whatever has already been done by way of preservation through documentation, remains. Preservation and circulation of these ballads through translation in modern idiom is one way of ensuring to keep these ballads in public memory at the national and even international levels. The same is the case with other narratives mentioned above both in verse and prose, especially the unparallelled prose work called Aitihyamaala (A Garland or Legends). A few stories from

Aitihyamaala, have been translated and published by the Oxford University Press, India, under the title, Lore & Legends of Kerala. A bigger compilation of the Aitihyamaala in English translation has been done by Sreekumari Ramachandran, published by Mathrubhumi Books, Kozhikode. In the case of the remaining works, like the Vadakkan Paattukal (Northern Ballads), literary and cultural organizations within India and even the ones abroad, like the Asia Cultural Network of Korea, can make substantial contributions by way of organizing translations, preferably in verse. I wish to acknowledge a deep debt of gratitude to the Department of Culture, Ministry of Culture, Government of India, which had granted me a Senior Fellowship, to do research on Native Narrative Traditions during the period 2000-2002, enabling me to do extensive research in this area. BIBLIOGRAPHY Books in English Dundes, Analytic Essays in Folkore. The Hague: Mouton, 1975. Narayana Panikkar, Kavalam, Folklore of Kerala. New Delhi: National Book Trust. Krishnamoorthy.K, Satkati Mukhopadhyay. A Critical Inventory of Rmyana Studies in the World: Indian languages and English. ((Vol I). New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi in collaboration with Union Acadmique
Internationale, Bruxelles, 1991

Krishnamoorthy.K, Satkati Mukhopadhyay .A Critical Inventory of Rmyana Studies in the World: Foreign Languages (Vol.II). New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi,1993.
Narayan, T.C. Lore and Legends of Kerala.New Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2009.

National Seminar on Myths in Contemporary Indian Literature. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi:19-21 February 2003. Raghavan Payyanad, Folk Lore. Trivandrum: Kerala Language Institute,1986. Raghavan Payyanad, Ideology, Politics and Folklore. Payyanur: F.F.M. Publications Raghavan,V. (Ed).The Ramayana Tradition in Asia. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi, 1980. Sankunny, Kottarathil. Aithihyamaala. Trans.Sreekumari Ramachadran. Kozhikode, Mathrubhumi Books, 2010.

Books in Malayalam Aboobakar Pulamanthole (Comp.) Marakkaanaavaatha Maappilappaattukal. Manchery: Vikas Book Stall, 1994. Achutha Menon, C., Vadakkan Pattukal Chennai: Madras University, 1956.

Achuthanandan, K.V. Vadakkan Pattukal (26Nos.). Trichur: H&C.Books,1996. Anandakkuttan, V. (Ed.), Kerala Bhasha Ganangal 2 Vols. Trichur: Kerala Sahitya Akademi, 1980. Aniyan, Joseph. (Ed)Iravikkuttippillapporu.Changanacherry: Classic Media, 1988. Appunni Nambiar, M.C. Vadakkan Pattukal.(25 Nos.) Kozhikode: Malabar Books,1998. Balakrishnan Nair, Chirakkal T.Kerala Bhasha Ganangal Trichur: Kerala Sahitya Akademi, 1979. Balakrishnan, Payyannur. Vadakkan Paattukalile Veeraanganakal.Trivandrum: Prabhath Book House, 1990. Balan, Pootheri. Naaraanathu Bhrantan.Karippur: Sevasramam,1999. Bhargavan Pillai, ed. Panappattukal. Kottayam: National Book Stall, 1975. ----. ed.Malabarile Panappattukal. 1981 ----.ed. Kakkarissinatakam. Kottayam: National Book Stall. Bhaskaran Shastri, Thompil (Comp.), Patayaniyum Pattukalum. Chalappally, 1987. Chandrahasan, K.A., Padayani, Mudiyettu, Teeyattu, Thrissur: Impact. Chanthera, C.M.S. Vadalkke Malabarile Pattulsavam. Kannoor, Published by the Author,1976. ----. ----. Kannakiyum Cheermakkavum. Kottayam. National Book Stall,1976. Kaliyattam Kannoor. Deshamitram Press, 1967.

Chummar Choondal, Kaalitheyyam Poraattu, Kottayam, National Book Stall. Damodaran, Mundyadi. Varamozhiyil Varaatha Anchadi Thottangal. Kottayam: Current Books, 2000. Hydrose Poovakkursi (Comp.) Oppanappaattukal, Manchery: Vikas Books Stall, 1997. Kerala Sahitya Akademi (Comp.), Theyyam. Trichur: Kerala Sahitya Akademi,1978. Kutty, V.M., Maappilappaattinte Lokam. Kozhikode: Pappillon, 2000. ----.Mahakavi Moyinkutty Vaidyar.New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi,2007. Mahakavi Moyinkutty Vaidyar, Badarul Munir Kissappaattu. Tirurangadi: Ashrafi Book Centre. ----. Badr Kissappatt, Kozhikode: Tirurangadi Book Stall.

Mariyama John (Comp.), Maanikkampennu. Changanasserry: Manusham,1998. Muhammad, Khali. Mohiyudeen Maala (1670) Namboodiri, Vishnu, M.V. ed. Uttara Keralathite Thottampattukal. Trichur: Kerala Sahitya Akademi, 1981.

Narayanan Menon, Kundoor: Paakkanaar.Kottayam: C.J.M.Publications, 1988. Narayana Panikkar, Kavalam, Folklore of Kerala, New Delhi, National Book Trust. Nair, KK. Unniyaarcha. Kanoor : Haji K.P.Ahammadkunji & Brothers,1955. Padmakumari, J., (Ed.) Moovottumallan Katha, Trivandraum: Kerala Language Institute. Panikkotti, M.K. Vadakkan Paattukaliloode. Kottayam : National Book Stall,1999. Pandit K.K. Panikkar, Vikramadityan; (Comp.) Alappuzha : Vidyarambham Press. Premnath, Vettiyar, Nadan Pattukal. Trichur: Kerala Sahitya Akademi, 1979. Raghavan Payyanad, Folk Lore. Trivandrum: Kerala Bhasha Institute, 1986. Raghava Warrier M.R., Vadakkan Pattukalude Paniyala. Shukapuram: Vallathol Vidyapitham. Raja Raja Varma, Ezhumattoor. Patayanipattum Natonnathayum Mattum, Kottayam: Books,1998. Sajita, K.R. (Ed.), Edanaadanpatt. Changanassery: Thapasam, 1997. Sankunni, Kottarathil, Aithilhamala Kottayam: Current Books, 1976. Santha Book House, Vadakkan Pattukal.(26 Nos.) Guruvayoor: Santha Book House,1980. Trichur District Panchayat. Nattarivinte Ninavu. Trichur : Natan Kalakalari, 1998. Viswambharan, Kilimanoor, Keralathile Naadan Pattukal. Kottayyam: National Book Stall,1956. Viswanatha Kurup, Kavalam, Kuttanadinte Thanimayum Paatukalum. Trichur: Kerala Sahitya Akademi, 1989. Vishnu Namboodiri, M.V. (Ed.), Murickanchery Keluvinte Paattukatha. Kottayam: Current Books, 1999. Current

Myths and Folktales of India with Special Focus on the State of Kerala.
By Dr. A.J. Thomas

Introduction
India, like any other country that can boast of an ancient civilization, is home to myriad myths, legends and folktales. India is a vast country. It is in fact the seventh largest country in the world, with 28 states(provinces with a great degree of autonomy, in the Federal Indian system) and seven Union Territories (administered by the Central Government). It has 22 national languages with advanced and developed literatures, and are recognized by the Indian Constitution in its VIII th Schedule. They are: Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. Sahitya Akademi, the National Academy of Letters, has added two more to it (English and Rajasthani), making the languages it has recognized to be 24. All these states and territories have their own local narrative traditions. Apart from the grand narratives of Ramayana, Mahabharata, and the puranas that tell myriad mythological tales which are prevalent all over the country, and the nearly two millennia-old established early story cycles such as Kathasaritsagaram (An Ocean of Tales), Brihad Katha (The Great Story), Panchatantra, the Buddhist Jataka Tales, Vikramaditya Tales, and so on, hundreds of different localities of India have their own narrative traditions. A good percentage of these stories are written and preserved. Audio recordings of narrative songs, ballads etc., exist in various folklore centres across the country. From all regions, films, musicals, and other performance forms are created out of such stories. In the great Indian film industry parallel to Hollywood centred around Bombay( now Mumbai) and hence nicknamed Bollywood, hundreds of such stories are made into films, apart from other centres of film industry like West Bengal,

Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala etc. One famous example is the work, Duvidha, by the celebrated folklorist and fiction writer in Rajasthani, Vijay Dan Detha, which was made into two very famous, artistically magnificent filmsDuvidha by the celebrated film-maker Mani Kaul in 1973, and Paheli by Amol Palekar in 2005, starring the modern-day acting legend, Shah Rukh Khan. The National Academy of Letters has collected and published many such tales from different regions, but a vast number of them remains to be collected and translated into English. Only a gigantic project spanning over several years involving hundreds of compilers, translators, editors, language experts and scholars can accomplish this task. But this would certainly be a task worth undertaking, before the all-obliterating forces of globalization and free market economy in their homogenizing effect will efface most of such local traditions.

Overview
Myths and legends have been the foundation of all epics around the world, including Iliad and Odyssey. The two great epics of India, Ramayana and Mahabharata , the puranas, early cycles of stories mentioned above and various other classical works are no exceptions. The Ramayana Within the Ramayana itself, there is the mention that the sage Valmiki composed the entire Ramayana story in verse, from existing legends, and made Ramas children Lava and Kusha, recite it in front of their father. In other words, Ramas life was lived according to the pre-existing script of Ramayana! So much so, that in certain regional versions of the Ramayana, Sita, Ramas wife, takes objection to certain actions of Rama, saying that such details are not found in the original! Of course, that original version was in the oral form, and recording of it came much later and in different stages. Apart from the various versions of the Ramayana existing in the different regions of India, (there are more than 300 of them, according to eminent poet, translator and pre-eminent folklorist A.K.Ramanujan), Ramayana tradition has spread all over Asia. Within India, myths and legends related to the Ramayana began to acquire regional characteristics, and regional versions of the epic in different lengths and forms appeared in the regional languages during the medieval period. Different versions of the Ramayana in India are found in almost all major literatures of the country, such as Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, Avadhi( a precursor to the modern Hindi; the name of the work is Ramcharitmanas by Goswami Tulsidas), Assamese, Bengali, Oriya, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Manipuri, Sindhi( a translation of Ramcharitmanas), Marathi, Konkani, Santhali etc. Apart from the above, different versions of the Ramayana are found among the various tribal people of India who have their own individual languages, such as the Birhors, Mundas, Asurs, Gonds, Murias, Marias, Pardhans, Khonds, the speakers of the Bakavoli language in Chattisgarh, Baigas, Agarias, etc

It is interesting to note that one can find sacred spots in any locality in India where Rama and Sita were believed to have lived or passed through during their vanavaasa( life in the forest for fourteen years), and rocks with the footprints of Rama! In my state Kerala, in all the nooks and corners of the countryside I have visited, there is at least one such locality, with a localisesd legend. One can easily see how popular imagination has been fired throughout several millennia, by the myths and legends of the Ramayana, all over India. Across Asia, the other countries and regions where the Ramayana tradition has spread, are: Nepal, Burma, Sri Lanka(in Sinhalese), Java, Malaysia, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Mongolia, Japan, the Philippines and some others Even Korea is linked to the Ramayana story. I am quoting Wikipedia: According to an 11th century
Korean chronicle, the Samguk Yusa, the wife of King Suro of the ancient Korean kingdom of Geumgwan Gaya, was a princess who travelled by boat from a faraway land called Ayuta to Korea in 48 CE. It is commonly thought that Ayodhya is the foreign land referred to in the Korean chronicles, but some scholars believe that the foreign land may have been Ayutthaya of Thailand. However, the local government of Ayodhya in India and the South Korean government validated and acknowledged the legitimacy of the connection and held a ceremony between the two governments to raise a statue of the princess on the banks of the Saryu River in Ayodhya. The princess's adopted Korean name is Heo Hwang-ok, who was the first queen of Geumgwan Gaya Dynasty and is the ancestor of the Korean Kim family of Kimhae and the Heo surname lineages. 2,000 years ago, a princess of Ayodhya had been shipped off as a bride to Suro. They had ten children, of whom nine became Buddhist monks while one built Korea. His descendants now form the 10 million-strong Kim Kimhae clan and Heo Gimhae clan.

There are also different versions of the Ramayana prevalent among the Buddhists, Jains, and also the Muslims of Lakshadweep. The Mahabharata The same is the case with the Mahabharata, though its spread in Asia is not as great as that of the Ramayana. It has different versions developed around local myths and legends, in almost all the above-mentioned Indian languages, and also among tribal people like the Bhils, Gonds etc. In Himachal Pradesh, a state nestled in the middle Himalayas of northern India, there are at least twelve different localized versions, which vary substantially from the original narrative. Practically each major valley in Himachal Pradesh has a local version of the great epic! Other Myths and Folk-tales There are also myths and legends which are outside the purview of these great epics and puranas, in different parts of India, especially among the tribal people and aborigines. For example, the folktales and legends of the North-Eastern regions of India, those of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and many other such centres.

Focus on the State of Kerala.


Now let me focus on the myths and folktales of Kerala. Kerala is an ancient land where Bodhidharma(the legendary Buddhist monk and founder of the Shaolin Temple of China), Adi Sankaracharya(the great philosopher-saint who championed the concept of Advaita or Monism), Bhasa, the great Sanskrit poet and dramatist(a contemporary of Kalidas, the greatest poet of ancient India) and Madhava, the great medieval mathematician, were born. Kerala is also a land of myths, legends and sagas that have thrived over the millennia.

Myths, Ballads & Folk-narratives.


Vadakkan Pattukal (The Northern Ballads), the songs of the mid-regions of Kerala including Kuttanad( the paddy-cultivating wetlands abounding in backwaters, rivers and lakes, pet-named as the Rice-bowl of Kerala), such as Edanaadan Pattu, Chengannuraathi and many other smaller ballads, Thekkan Pattukal (The Southern Ballads), and Mappilappattukal(Songs of the Mopla Muslims) are among the main narrative songs of Kerala. Teyyam, Tira, Padayani, Mudiyettu, Bhadrakaalippaattu, Tolpaavakkoothu, Maargam Kali, Kanniyarkali, Chavittunaatakam, Kaakkaarissi Naatakam, Vellari Naatakam, Thiruvaathirakali, Kaikottikkalai, Oppana, Villadichaankali etc., are some of the folk performing art forms. Kerala has also adopted folk sagas from several foreign sources brought in by merchants, and by missionaries of religions like Jainism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam, who were cordially welcomed by the kings of the land. Intermixing with local traditions, these foreign strands also added colour and texture to the multi-layered culture of Kerala. From the Oral to the Written The introduction of English education in Kerala in the 19th century brought about the advent of western narrative forms like the novel and the short story. Prior to this, classical narratives like Kathasaritsagar, Panchatantra and Jataka Tales, and the prose narratives woven into the performing art form of Purushardha Koothu, had defined the structure of an indigenous Malayalam folk narrative. Into this scene had come mixed narratives like Vikramaaditya Charitram,(stories involving King Vikramaaditya of Ujjain, Vetaal,(a spectral companion), and Bhatti(thought to be Bhartrhari, the great Sanskrit poet, and also the kings brother), Karalman Charitram,(similar to, or even derived from, the European Chansons de Rolland, the sagas of the Frankish king, Charle Magne, or Charles the Great, who reigned the Holy Roman Empire, with Aachen as his capital) and the several Mappilappattukal originating from the Arabian Nights and other Arab-Persian sources. There were also ancient Tamil narratives like Chilappathikaaram and some Kannada narratives of the same period seeping across the borders into Keralas several tiny kingdoms and principalities. All these had some elements of the classical structure while their oral rendering from generation to generation had brought to them the flexibility of folk narratives.

Different Types of the Folk Songs and their Characteristics.


Vadakkan Paattukal (Northern Ballads)
Vadakkan Paattukal are folk-narrative songs which are very much alive even today among the agricultural labourers of Malablar. I have had the occasion to listen to the singing of such songs during transplantation of paddy seedlings in a couple of places. The labourers, both male and female, working in paddy fields or other agricultural lands including plantations, sing them. Most of these songs are about the exploits of heroes or heroines, while some maybe about the lusting after women, of certain chieftains, and the heroic resistance of a low-caste woman who is unwilling to succumb to that lust. These songs are called Thoram Paattukal--a descriptive word denoting the use they are put to, namely, to sing while at work. But the latest trends show that they are welcome on celebratory occasions as well -- like weddings, naming ceremony and so on. The prominence these songs received, over the last forty years, in the field of cinema also is one of the reasons for them to find honourable access into the drawing rooms of the middle classes. Almost all heroic ballads worth the name have been converted to celluloid versions, often in lurid melodrama. But they helped the tradition to survive, albeit in a changed tonality and application. What we call Vadakkan Pattukal are mostly about the heroes and heroines of Kadathanaad, a region that includes lands that lie roughly between Kannur and Kozhikode in North Malabar, and therefore, some experts call them Kadathanaadan Paattukal. They consist chiefly of, one, Puthooram Paatukal, two, Tacholi Paattukal and three, Ottappattukal, assorted single songs around individual heroes/heroines. Efforts were on from the late nineteenth century onwards, under the initiative of British educationists and administrators to collect these ballads in written form. Also the earliest English translation of these ballads was accomplished almost eighty years ago. Chelanaat Achyuta Menons Ballads of North Malabar Vol.1 was published by Madras University in 1935(This book is now not accessible). The Songs of the Mid-regions. The songs of the mid-regions are mainly Edanaaadan Paattu, Chengannuraathi, Maanikkam Pennu, Kaamacha Velan, Chengannu Velan and Maani, Malanaatilaathi, Mankompilaathi and Paandi Chirutha, and countless small, independent songs. A good many of them survive even now thanks to the oral rendering by stalwarts like Mariyaamma John(Mariyaamma Chedathi) and Koduppunna Chennan. While Mariyaamma Chedathi( dead about three years ago) could sing almost two thousand lines of Chengannuraathi from her memory, Koduppunna Chennan( also dead) could muster up nearly 5000 lines of Edanaadan Paattu. Chenganuuraathi is about the exploits of a folk hero of that name. Edanaadan Paatu deals with the revenge story of Edanaadan, the hero, who kills his fathers murderers. The songs are sung during agricultural activities in the paddy fields of mainly Kuttanad, and are sung predominantly by Paraya and Pulaya men and women who are agricultural labourers. Many of these songs have now been made available in written form in collections, thanks to the untiring efforts of research scholars.

Thekkan Paattukal (Southern Ballads)


Thekkan Paattukal (Southern Ballads) mainly are, Iravikkuttippillapporu, Moovottu Mallan Katha, Ponnirattal Katha, Panchavankaattu Neelippattu, Kannadianporu, Ulakudaperumaalppattu, Purushaadeviyammappattu, Anchutampuraan Pattu, and some others. None of these have received so much acclaim as Iravikkuttippillapporu. This song is also known as Kaniyankulathu Poru. Iravikkuttippillapporu deals with the tragic death in battle of a commander in chief of the Venad Kingdom(presently southern Kerala)in the year 810 of the Malayalam Era(ca.1642 A.D). Moovottu Mallan Katha, is the story of farmers who turn to evil spirits for protection and revenge as their rights for cultivating the land was in jeopardy, at the hands of their own uncles. In the end, the evil spirits destroy the nephews, the neighbours and the entire land as well--a grim reminder of what happens when one seeks the alliance of evil forces in whatever sphere of life, be it politics, economic activities or social activities, as we are time and again reminded by what is happening all around us now-a-days. Ponnirattaal Katha, is the story of Ponnirattaal, a beauty born in the village of Kadayam in the present Tirunelveli District of Tamilnadu. She belonged to the Vaduvar caste. Infatuated by her looks, an aristocrat named Pavoor Inasooran married her. As their love-intoxicated life went on smoothly, the lack of children pained them. But due to many vows and penance, she conceived. Then she falls prey to the evil custom of black magic in which a pregnant woman is sacrificed. Kalliyankaattu Neelippattu is about a cruel yakshi(a spirit) of that name who infested Kalliyankaad in Nanjinaad , who was, in her human life, a hapless Brahmin wife cruelly murdered while pregnant, by her greedy husband who wanted to inherit her wealth.

Maappilappaattukal (Folk-songs of the Muslim Community)


The chief ballads or narrative poems that exist among Maappilappaatukal as already seen, are Badr Kissappaattu and Badr-ul Munir Husnuljamal Kissappaattu. Unlike all the folk ballads, these have been described as mahakavyas and were actually written by Mahakavi(Great Poet) Moinkutty Vaidyar who was born in Kondotti near Kozhikode about 150 years ago. Besides the two already mentioned works, he has authored two more mahakaavyas(great poetic works), Uhdpada and Hijra and khanda kaavyas(single poetic works) like Kilattimaala and Elippada. What gives them the folk aura is the way these kaavyas(poetic works) have been constantly in oral rendition, unlike any other mahakaavyas, and the fact that they are the life-blood of a narrative tradition that extends directly from the Arabian Nights. It will be interesting to note that Mohiyudeen Maala written by Khali Muhammad in 1670, a few years before Ezhuttachchan, the Father of Modern Malayalam wrote his famous Ramayanam Kilippattu, is the first known Maappilappattu. It is rendered in a surprisingly modern Malayalam, free for the most part from Arabic words, unlike Moinkutty Vaidyars mahakaavyas written two centuries later.

Narrative Texts Related to Folk-performance Forms Thottampattu is the verbal narrative element in a Teyyam performance, which is the nerve-centre of all folk performances of northern Malabar. Teyyam is a corruption of Deyvam(God), and is the most evident form of ancestor worship prevalent extensively today. Directly connected to the Bhutaradhane of South Canara (Tulunad) of Karnataka, this practice has its roots in the prehistory of Dravidian antiquity. When a hero or heroine, or a victim, dies, the collective consciousness of the community elevates them to the status of gods and goddesses and propitiate them, more often to escape their wrath which can be very dangerous when they are in spirit form unlike in mortal, flesh and blood form. Certain Teyyams are considered guardians of the entire community. Anyway, the story that describes the life and death of the Teyyam is sung in narration, and that is what interests us. Mudiyettu is the oldest extant theatre form in the country. Its depicts the Great Goddesss fight with Darikan, a demon, and his eventual killing by Devi. But comic interludes, with narrative strands, sung during the performance, provides the researcher with the earliest form of verbal narration. Padayani is another folk drama form, found mostly in south-central Kerala. This also is almost as old as Mudiyettu and has many narrative interludes. Kanyaarkali, Poraattu and Tolppaavakkoothu are folk performance forms found mostly in and around the Palakkad area. Kanyaarkali is a martial kind of folk performance form, with some narrative passages sung by chorus-like singers. Poraattu is the perfect folk-play, played by the Pulayas and Parayas--oppressed classes. The narrative element here is typically folk. Tolppaavakkoothu is a shadow-play, projecting shadows of glove-puppets in action, on to a screen. Mythological themes were used in the plays.

Aitihyamaala.
In the latter part of the 19th century, all the aforesaid narrative traditions found a synthesis in Kottarathil Sankunnis Aithihyamala (A Garland of Legends). Sankunny, a raconteur, who was also a great Sanskrit scholar, dramatist, Kathakali-playwright, poet and satirist who authored 59 books, was the focus around which the pioneering Malalylalam newspaper baron Kandathil Varghese Mappilas court met at Kottayam. The stories Sankunni related in the court, were published in Varghese Mappilas Bhasha Poshini and Malayala Manorama. The written tales were of course hemmed in by limitations of time and space, thus losing many of the endearing aspects of the oral rendering, but their publication in a magazine and newspaper ensured their wider reach. Aithihyamaala which is indeed a garland of 126 legends, is described now as Keralas Kathasaritsagar, indicating that it undoubtedly occupies the pride of place among the prose folk-narratives of our land.

Special Focus: Vadakkan Paattukal (Northern Ballads)

Of all the above-mentioned narratives, Vadakkan Paattukal is by far the most important versenarrative tradition. Therefore, I have selected, for the present, Vadakkan Paattukal, for tracing the profiles of its heroes and heroines of different types, bringing out their importance in the general folk-tale scenario of Kerala. Also, various stories found in these Northern Ballads have been made into more than a dozen very important popular films. Other performing art forms like musicals and Kathaprasangam (a story-teller narrating the story in prose accompanied by verses, sung professionally, interspersed with mono-acting, miming and mimicry)have been woven out of these folk-narratives. A number of TV serials, novels etc., have also been made out of them. Many of these stories have been prescribed for school curriculum, and also as texts for university studies in courses on Keralas folk culture and literature. The majority of the Vadakkan Paattukal belongs to either Puthooram or Tacholi traditions, and there are only very few independent ballads. Heroes/Heroines (i)Puthooram Paattukal (The Songs of Puthooram) Puthooram Paattukal are centred around the members of the Puthooram tharavaad. Chelanaat Achyutha Menon opines that these songs are at least one thousand years old. Mahakavi Ulloor S.Parameshwara Iyer, one of the great renaissance Malayalam poets, and the author of the eightvolume History of Malayalam Literature, believes that these songs came into being somewhere around the 13th century. Another opinion is that Puthooram Aaromal Chekavar lived in the 12th century. Anyone who examines the story-content and references to social practices point undoubtedly towards the antiquity of these songs. A Chekavar was a member of a lower caste of northern Kerala, whose traditional vocation was training people in martial arts(kalarippayattu), and fighting Ankams(duels) on others behalf of patrons. If a Chekavar died in direct combat with the opponent, it was considered very prestigious for the family and for the land. Chekavars cultivated the best of health, training, prowess with weapons and dexterity in unarmed combat. The Chekavars were well-built, handsome and formidable. Several ladies of Chekavar families were also equally trained in weaponry and physical prowess like the male members. Unni Aarcha, Aaromal Chekavars sister, is famous for her wonderful exploits. Puthooram Paattukal deal mainly with personages like Aaromal Chekavar, Unni Aarcha, Aromalunni and Kannappan Chekavar. Of this, Kannappans is a love-story. Of the rest, all except one are the depiction of adventures by the lead figures. They include the touching romantic tale of how Aaromal Chekavar who went over to his maternal uncles house to play a game of dice ended up marrying his cousin according to the Gaandharva rite(done clandestinely). Aaromal Chekavar

The tragic story of Aaromal Chekavar will jerk tears out of any stone-hearted person. The dispute between two chieftains who were twins, as to who should be the reigning one, to be settled through an Ankam by Aaromal and Aringodar(which was Aaromals Puthariyankam, or, debut duel in the career of a duelist) ended in Aaromals untimely death through the deceit of his in-law, Chantu. As Aaromal was resting in Chantus lap, after winning the duel and beheading his opponent, the in-law sank the pointed stem of a brass-lamp into his stomach, fatally deepening a flesh wound sustained during the duel. Aaromalunni A succeeding story is that of Aaromalunni, Aaromal Chekavars nephew, who sets off, in his boyhood, to find out Chantu and settle scores with him.His super-human exploits and how he severed Chantus head and presented it on a platter to Unni Aarcha, his mother, is the theme of Aaromalunnis paattu(song). Unni Aarcha Unni Aarchas paattu deals with the incident in which she went to see the temple festival at Allimalarkkaavu, and was waylaid by some hooligans whom she defeated singlehandedly and humiliated beyond words. There were many other exploits this valorous lady accomplished, often in the place of her husband, the meek and mild Kunhiraman. Unni Aarcha, equal in her prowess in martial arts to any of the celebrated heroes of the ballads, is the most colourful and feted heroine of the Vadakkan Paattukal

Tacholippattukal,(The Songs of Tacholi)


When one considers the time-period of Tacholippattukal, which are songs centred around the superhero Tacholi Othenan and his descendants, we come to note that whereas during the time of Aaromal Chekavar, the right of fighting an Ankam was that of only the lower caste Chekavars, but, by the time of Tacholi Othenan, this right has passed on to the higher caste Nairs. Throughout the land, kalaris came up and Nairs were well-trained in the martial tradition. Although those belonging to other communities were also permitted to undergo martial arts training, managing wars was clearly the prerogative of the upper caste Nairs, as is evident from most of the stories of the period. Of this, the local Nair chieftains took the power of the naaduvaazhi(the chief of the region) into their hands to dispense justice as the latter proved to be weak. Tacholi Othenan was one such Nair warrior. Tacholi Othenan His exploits form the core of Kadathanaadan Pattukal. However, M.R.Raghava Varrier points out that there are songs about Tacholi family outside Kadathanaad; for example, in Ponnani and Valluvanaad regions, there are songs about the exploits of Tacholi Othenan. In all, there are more than 200 songs, on Tacholi Othenan alone, a staggering number, indeed.

Mahakavi Ulloor who ascertained Othenans birth as at midday on the New Moon day of the month of Mithunam in the year 759 M.E.(1591 A.D), opines that it is impossible to find such a valorous warrior and compassionately generous human being fused in one personality as Tacholi Othenan, even if one examines the whole of Keralas ballads. Suppress any kind of insurgency and unruliness, protect any weak person with all his might, maintain without ups and downs the power and influence of any king or chieftain who enlisted his support, Othenan accomplished all this with distinction. It is difficult to find such a perfect Devi(Goddess) devotee, who was a fearless warrior and unalloyed patriot, according to Ulloor. However, modern research reveals that Othenan was also an arrogant bully and a womanizer! Othenan had a weakness only for two things. Fish and women. Of the latter, he had had his fill, during the thirty-two years he lived in this world. He was a much married man with a bevy of concubines and countless one-night stands throughout the land. It is his womanising nature that landed him in many of the difficulties, from where he was rescued, again, mostly by his loyal women or trusted servant and friend Chaappan. For example, in the song of Othenan and Irutmalam Koilom Tampuran, in which one of his provisional wives traps him and hands him over to the Tampuran to be hanged. Such escapades form the majority of the adventures depicted in the Tacholippaattukal. It was finally one of his concubines who stole his protective talisman that ensured that no one could fire at him. He was shot dead by someone hiding near the arena as he returned to retrieve his weapon which he had inadvertently left behind, in his last fight which he had won. Tacholi Othenan was a natural warrior who killed his first foe, a local chieftain who had insulted his mother, at the age of eight! He went on to win 64 duels and battles in the 32 years of his life. Undoubtedly he is the most important and colourful of all the heroes of Vadakkan Paattukal Ambaadi, Othenans son, was a kind of child prodigy who proved to be the worthy son of an illustrious father. The songs centred around him depict his exploits. There were also two nephews of Othenan, Chandu and Kunhikelu, who were warriors in their own right. No others are heard of in the songs as a worthy successor to the mighty lineage.

Otta PaattukalI(Assorted Single Songs)


(i)Mathilerikkanni Otta Paattukal literally, Single Songs, which do not belong to either of the above two traditions, are not many in Vadakkan Paattukal. But the most important among them is Mathilerikkanni a song of about 5000 lines which is of exceeding poetic beauty and accomplished language. This deals with the tragic tale of a warrior maiden, who was married to the King of Venad, who by force of circumstances, had to impersonate as a male warrior, under the false name Ponnan, to lead the kings army into battle. In the meanwhile, the kings cousin, a maiden of exceeding beauty, also named Kanni, falls in love with the kings wife in a mans attire, thinking that he is a male. To avoid embarrassment, Mathilerikkanni disappears and goes back to her fathers house. The king goes in

search of her. But a third maiden, also named Kanni, falls in love with him. When the king doesnt fall for her charms, she decides to poison Mathilerikkanni so that she can possess the king. Thus poisoned, Mathilerikkanni, on her deathbed, reveals to her husband, the king, that she was the one who in her disguise, was the commander-in-chief Ponnan, and died. Hearing this, her father dies of grief. Her husband too dies of a broken heart.

Poomathai Ponnamma
Yet another one which rivals Mathilerikkanni in pathos, is Poomathai Ponnamma which describes how a local chieftains lust for a Pulaya woman which she spurned, landed her in a fabricated charge of adultery and how she was executed by burning. At the last moment, the truth of the case came out, the guilty chieftains house caught fire and he too was burned to death. Other Assorted Songs Another one of the single songs is Panayankulangara Kunhicheran which upholds the impartiality of royal justice; yet another one is Raamathelamele Kunhichaappan which describes how the avarice of a Nair aristocrat lands him in jail. There are a few more such songs such as AAdimaharaajaavine Katha(The Song of King Aaadi), Karumparampil Kannante Katha(The Story of Karumparampil Kannan), Puthunaadan Chanthu Naadu Kaanaan Poya Katha(The Story of Puthunaadan Chantu Who Went on a Tour of the Countryside, Kannadi Poyilil Kunhyelappan(Kunhyelappan of Kannadi Poyil), Neeliyachuram Vaana Kunhimmathu(Kunhimmathu who Reigned at Neeliyachuram) and others. Conclusion Most of the folk-narrative songs, as already seen, are sung in the context of agriculture-related activities. They are loose-structured, and improvisation is possible in response to exigencies at the time of singing; only that the singer has to conform to certain basic conventions, which are common factors in all such songs. For example, in Vadakkan Pattukal, the use of words out of context, with apparently no semantic content, but providing the required beat. Therefore, Tacholyollomana kunhyodenan (The dear, good and petite Othenan of Tacholi) is the way he is addressed by his friends, near relatives, and arch enemies--even Irutmalam Koilom Tampuran, who is about to hang him! With the maintaining of the required beat and the use of stock phrases, a remarkable elasticity is reached in the oral rendering of the songs. This is, generally, the nature of folk songs in other regions as well. All the Northern Ballads together are less than fifty in number, in published versions. As already seen, there were more than 200 songs about Tacholi Othenan alone, sung by the agricultural labourers in the early 20th century, of which only a few are preserved in print. In another instance, of the Otta Paattukal, or Single Songs there used to be the stories of eighteen valorous and virtuous women belonging to the lower classes, of which only four songs are extant. The songs about the other fourteen are yet to be found. As socio-economic patterns have changed drastically over the last half century, even the use of such songs by the agricultural labourers during tedious physical

labour to ease their drudgery, is dwindling rapidly. The number of the older generation of people who knew such songs are shrinking day by day. Whatever has already been done by way of preservation through documentation, remains. Preservation and circulation of these ballads through translation in modern idiom is one way of ensuring to keep these ballads in public memory at the national and even international levels. The same is the case with other narratives mentioned above both in verse and prose, especially the unparallelled prose work called Aitihyamaala (A Garland or Legends). A few stories from Aitihyamaala, have been translated and published by the Oxford University Press, India, under the title, Lore & Legends of Kerala. A bigger compilation of the Aitihyamaala in English translation has been done by Sreekumari Ramachandran, published by Mathrubhumi Books, Kozhikode. In the case of the remaining works, like the Vadakkan Paattukal (Northern Ballads), literary and cultural organizations within India and even the ones abroad, like the Asia Cultural Network of Korea, can make substantial contributions by way of organizing translations, preferably in verse. I wish to acknowledge a deep debt of gratitude to the Department of Culture, Ministry of Culture, Government of India, which had granted me a Senior Fellowship, to do research on Native Narrative Traditions during the period 2000-2002, enabling me to do extensive research in this area. BIBLIOGRAPHY Books in English Dundes, Analytic Essays in Folkore. The Hague: Mouton, 1975. Narayana Panikkar, Kavalam, Folklore of Kerala. New Delhi: National Book Trust. Krishnamoorthy.K, Satkati Mukhopadhyay. A Critical Inventory of Rmyana Studies in the World: Indian languages and English. ((Vol I). New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi in collaboration with Union Acadmique
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