Araiyar Sevai

Araiyar sevai ( _ta. அரையர் சேவை) is a Tamil performing art form, centred around the ritual singing and enactment of the religious hymns of the Divya Prabandham. Araiyar sevai is generally performed only inside Vaishnavite temples in the presence of the temple "urcavar" - the temple's processional deity - by hereditary performers. Although temple inscriptions suggest its performance was once widespread, it is today only performed in three temples in Tamil Nadu and at the Melkote temple in southern Karnataka.

Origin legends

Tamil legends trace the origin of the araiyar sevai to Nathamuni, a 10th century Vaishnavite teacher, who according to tradition compiled the Divya Prabandham. According to the legends, Nathamuni composed musical tunes ("icaippa") for the hymns along with dance steps to bring out their meaning. He instituted three annual festivals, called "tiruvattiyayanam" for the performance of the hymns. These include the festivals of Pongal, Panguni uttiram and Aadi puram.

The performers: Araiyars

The art form is practiced principally by a few families of hereidtary performers, called "araiyar". An araiyar is attached to a temple as a priest and conducts certain prayers throughout the year, but only performs the araiyar sevai during the "IAST|tiruvattiyāyaṉam" festivals instituted by Nathamuni. Araiyars are male, and must spend several years studying the hymns of the Divya Prabandham and the traditional commentaries on the hymns, particularly the commentary known as "IAST|īṭu" by IAST|Vaṭakku Tiruvītippiḷḷai, in addition to studying the artform itself.

In recent years, some Vaishnavites have attempted to broaden the range of temples in which araiyar sevai is performed, and to teach it to non-hereditary performers in order to arrest its decline.

Performance

The traditional clothes worn during araiyar sevai performances are the "pañcakacam" (a style of wearing the veshti) and a conical hat called "araiyar kullai", which bears the Vaishnavite symbols of the conch, discus and thirunamam. During the actual performance, a piece of cloth taken from a garment used by the temple deity is tied to the hat. The araiyar also wears a garland, and holds cymbals which he plays during the performance.

An araiyar sevai begins with a ritual summons, where the officiating priest using a ritual formula, calls upon the araiyar to come before the temple "urcavar" - the temple's processional deity. The araiyar replies with a formulaic response and puts on the "araiyar kullai" as he approaches. He then sounds a few strokes on the cymbals, and begins the performance.

Each verse is performed in three steps. In the first step, the araiyar sings the verse. In the second step, he dances a few steps which, through a system of ritualised gestures, give expression to the literal meaning of the verse. In the third step, he explains the inner meaning of the verse, as explained in "IAST|Tampirāṉ paṭi", a traditional commentary on the Divya Prabandham. On specific days, the performance of individual verses is followed by a dramatisation of specific scenes from Hindu mythology, such as the churning of the ocean, the birth of Andal, or the slaying of Kamsa. The final element of the performance is the "mutukkuri vaipavam", which depicts a worried mother consulting a "kattuvicci" female soothsayer about her daughter, who is lovelorn.

See also

*Dance forms of Tamil Nadu
*Ancient Tamil music

References

*Citation | last=Bharati | first=Srirama | title=Araiyar Sevai: Theatre Expression in Sri-Vaishnava Worship | year=1999 | publisher=Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan | place=Mumbai | isbn=8172761414