- Nambeesan
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Practices
Nambeesan is a sub-caste of Ambalavasi. They belong to the Viswamitra Gotram.
They wear the sacred thread "Yajñopaveetam" (Poonool) and adhere to the Maha 'Gayatri mantra'. The origin of this category of Brahmins dates back to the time when Parashurama created the state of Kerala and constructed 108 temples in the state. In order to take care of the rituals in these temples, he brought many Brahmin families from the Aryan civilization (Namboothiris). These families followed the custom of marrying off their daughters before they attained puberty. One of these families was not able to marry their daughter before her puberty. Hence, this family was pushed out of the caste (bhrasht), was forbidden to preside over rites and rituals inside the sanctum sanctorum of temples and was stripped of their 'priestly status'. But, the prevailing caste system being a system of division of labour or occupation, it was necessary to allot some kind of occupation to this "interim caste" (antharala vargam). This family and their descendents were known as Nambeesans and were given the task of assisting the priest in the temple by providing flowers, garlands and other items necessary for the performance of poojas. They gained the name pushpaka because of their association with flowers. Those belonging to this caste follow all the customs and traditions of the mainstream brahmins(namboothiris)such as the shodasakriyakal, but resort to a different occupation for living. Later on, many more categories of brahmins migrated to Kerala from the regions of Andhra Pradesh, Konkan etc. and different new castes who mingled, merged and followed similar customs as the Nambeesans evolved, leading to expansion of the "pushpaka" community.
See also
Pushpaka Brahmins
Sree Pushpaka Seva Sangham
Shodasakriyakal
Pushpakadhwani
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