The street may have lost its old poetic name – Senthamizh Paaduvaan Veethi – and become East Uthrai Street now, but for the Araiyars in whose honour the lane was thus called earlier, service to Lord Namperumal at the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam continues to be the lynchpin of their existence.
“Araiyar Sevai is instrumental to create Bhakti (devotional worship directed to one deity),” says Araiyar Bharathwaj, who is one of the 13 hereditary practitioners of this ancient male-only art form in Srirangam.
‘Araiyar’ is a Tamil word of multiple meanings. As noted by Vasudha Narayanan in her book The Vernacular Veda: Revelation, Recitation, and Ritual ,’(The University of South Carolina Press; 1994): “‘Arai’ could mean ‘to say’ or ‘declaim’, but the word is generally taken to mean ‘king’. The Araiyar is taken to be the monarch of the Alvar [sic] verses; indeed for the duration of the performance he assumes the roles of the Alvar.”
Incorporating elements of dance ( Iyal ), music ( Isai ) and drama ( Nadagam ), Muthamizh Araiyar Sevai attempts to create the mood for devotion in the temple by chanting the venerated 4,000 paasurams of the Divya Prabandham , a collection of holy verses composed in chaste Tamil by the 12 Vaishnavite Azhwar saints in Devaganam style. This was compiled in its present form by the scholar Naathamunigal in the 9th century.
Wearing a distinctive costume, that includes a conical headgear embroidered with the Vaishnava insignia, and a dhoti in the ‘panchakacham’ style with a cloth tied around the waist, the Araiyar Sevai artistes have several roles to perform during festivals. The ‘taalam’ (cymbals) are also integral to their performance.
The Araiyar Sevai may take place only in front of the processional (or ‘festival’) image of the deity and nowhere else.
Early years
Initiated into the Sevai at the age of 6 by his father, Bharathwaj started attending temple services formally when he turned 9.
“I had a miniature cap like that worn by the Araiyars during the Sevai, that I used to put on at home, and conduct services for a small idol of Lord Namperumal,” he recalls. “I only knew 45 verses of Thirumaalai then.”
Araiyars spend years mastering not just the Hindu scriptures, but also classical dance, music and philosophy. It is a position that carries no remuneration.
The male members of the families that have nurtured Araiyar Sevai in Srirangam therefore, have also had to pursue a professional career beyond the temple.
Bharathwaj’s father, for instance, retired as a senior official in Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL); others in the family are working as chartered accountants and software engineers. Bharathwaj himself has worked as a commercial pilot after graduating in Computer Science.
“We are normal middle class families. We have the same dreams and ambitions like anyone else. Lord Perumal has created this interest [Araiyar Sevai] in us, that overrides all other issues in our life,” says Bharathwaj, who has completed 25 years in this sacred service.
The right tone
The melange of narrative styles that makes up Araiyar Sevai is intended to reach out to all worshippers, says Bharathwaj. “The Araiyar doesn’t simply recite the lines of the paasuram songs. He has to depict Azhwar’s moods and message in such a way that the common worshipper can understand and be encouraged to offer prayers,” he says.
Araiyar Sevai has been a constant in Srirangam’s spiritual life over centuries, even though some practices have been modified. “It was quite common in the earlier days for the Araiyars to stop their own performances to take up the explanation of verses that anyone in the assembled gathering asked about. So the service would go on without a time schedule,” recalls Bharathwaj.
“To streamline this, we have now got printed booklets that show the schedule of dates and times when sections of the verses and scriptures will be explained and performed, and also the tales related to the deity would be narrated.”
The 22-day Adhyayana Utsavam in the Tamil month of Margazhi is the most important event in the calendar of the Araiyar Sevai artistes. Everyday, for the initial 10 days called Pagal Pathu , the Araiyar descendants take turns to perform both in the morning and afternoon sessions. Vaikunta Ekadasi falls on the 11th day, after which the Araiyars start their evening services up to the 22nd day (called ira pathu ).
A group effort
“Nobody can be an individual performer in this art,” says Bharathwaj. “For Adhyayana Utsavam, we go as a group, because we have to perform 250 paasurams every day. From breath control and performance, our energy should not flag. Group performances help us to break down the material and prepare separately, and also support the others when they are tired.”
The 13 Araiyar Sevai artistes currently associated with the temple have split their duties according to the Tamil calendar’s odd- and even-numbered days.
During the Muslim occupation of Srirangam in 1323 AD, when the ritual prayers were discontinued at the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, it is said that an Araiyar offered prayers secretly through a small hole in the wall, using clapping instead of cymbals to avoid detection for 63 years. The practice of not using the cymbals in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple continues today.
These Araiyars also perform their service at Sri Nachiar Temple in Woraiyur. The other temple where the Araiyar Sevai is performed is Sri Andal temple in Srivilliputhur.
Not very keen on being filmed or photographed, these traditional artistes have always been firm believers in service to the Lord.
“Those attending the prayers and those conducting the service, should both be mindful of not doing anything that goes against the spirit of worship in the temple,” says Bharathwaj. “As the times change, we must adapt to modern life, but Araiyar Sevai will continue to be in our family.”
* Additional information courtesy: Srirangam Bhooloka Vaikuntam by J. Ramanan and Vrinda Ramanan, Bala Kala Vidhanam Publication, Tiruchi
