Page:South-Indian Images of Gods and Goddesses.djvu/246
patronized like the other orthodox Hindu temples, they are called srīkōyil. Four varieties of the goddess Pidāri are known from the records of Rājarāja I of the first quarter of the eleventh century A.D., viz., Punnaitturainangai, "the goddess (living on a river bank), in a grove of punnai trees," Poduvagai-ūr-udaiyāl, "the village deity common to all (classes)," Kuduraivattam-udaiyāl "the deity surrounded by (clay) horses," and Tiruvāl-udaiyāl, "the deity of the sacred banyan tree."
II
Worship of
these deities. The worship in the shrines of village goddesses is generally performed by non-Brahmans. In the Chingleput and North Arcot districts are a class of priests known as Ōchchans[1] who are exclusively devoted to service in Pidāri temples. They say that they are Brāhmanas of the Sākta creed and perform the worship according to the Tāntrik ritual. Sometimes, but very rarely, Brāhmanas also worship these fearful goddesses installed even within the sacred precincts of orthodox temples.[2] For example, Vattapirai-amman, "the mother who wears the circular crescent (on her head)" at Tiruvottiyūr near Madras, is a goddess of this kind to whom animal sacrifices are offered on fixed days in the year. On such occasions it is stated that the Sudra priest takes the place of the usual Brāhmana and an entrance opening directly into the outer courtyard of the temple—kept closed on other days of the year—is now thrown open for the goddess to receive animal sacrifices and worship from her Sūdra or other devotees. After the annual festival is over, the goddess is purified. The buffalo sacrifices, which these village deities are generally fond of, indicate their connexion with Mahishāsuramardinī, the slayer of the buffalo-demon and with other similar Tāntrik goddesses mentioned above.
ceremonies.Some of the ceremonies peculiar to the temples of the ceremonies, village goddesses, besides animal sacrifices, are (1) fire-walking, (2) swinging on the sidi with a hook passed through the skin during what is otherwise known as the chakra-pūjā, (3) lashing oneself with a whip, (4) piercing a metallic wire right through the tongue or through the sides of the mouth, (5) slashing at the breast and forehead with swords until the blood
- ↑ Thurston's "Castes and Tribes," Vol. V, p. 419f.
- ↑ In many important Siva temples of the South, I have observed processional images of village goddesses kept in a separate room and worshipped. It is gathered from the priests of the temples that before commencing any important festivals in the Siva temple, these images are carried in procession and the village deities are first appeased, the expense being met from the Siva temple.