Castes and Tribes of Southern India/Ambattans of Travancore
Ambattans of Travancore.—For the following note I am indebted to Mr. N. Subramani Aiyer. The barbers of Travancore are called by various designations, those in Central and South Travancore preferring to be known by the name of Kshaurakan or Kshaurakkāran, a corruption of the Sanskrit kshuraka, while Ambattan seems to find general favour in the south. A curious name given to the caste throughout Travancore is Prānopakāri, or one who helps the souls, indicating their priestly functions in the ceremonials of various castes. A contraction of this name found in the early settlement records is Prānu. The members of those families from which kings and noblemen have at any time selected their barbers are called Vilakkittalavan, or more properly Vilakkuttalayan, meaning literally those who shave heads. In North Travancore many families are in possession of royal edicts conferring upon them the title of Panikkar, and along with it the headmanship of the barber families of the village in which they reside.Others have the title of Vaidyan or doctor, from the secondary occupation of the caste.
Endless endogamous septs occur among the barbers, and, at Trivandrum, there are said to be four varieties called Chala Vazhi, Pāndi Vazhi, Attungal Vazhi, and Peruntanni Vazhi. But it is possible to divide all the Kshaurakans of Travancore into three classes, viz., Malayālam-speaking Ambattans, who follow the makkathāyam law of inheritance; (2) Malayālam- speaking Ambattans who follow the marumakkathāyam law of inheritance; (3) Tamil-speaking barbers, who have in many localities adopted Malayālam as their mother-tongue, and indicate their recent conversion in this direction by preserving unchanged the dress and ornaments of their womenkind. In Pattanapūram, for example, there is a class of Malayalam-speaking barbers known as Pūlāns who immigrated into that taluk from the Tamil country about two hundred years ago, and reveal their kinship with the Tamil-speaking barbers in various ways. In Kottayam and some other North Travancore tāluks, a large number of barbers may be described as recent converts of this character. In theory at least, the makkathāyam and marumakkathāyam Ambattans may be said to form two distinct endogamous groups, of which the former regard themselves as far superior to the latter in social position. Sometimes the makkathāyam Ambattans give their girls in marriage to the marumakkathāyam Ambattans, though the converse can never hold good. But, in these cases, the girl is not permitted to re-enter the paternal home, and associate with the people therein.
A local tradition describes the Travancore Kshaurakans as pursuing their present occupation owing to the curse of Surabhi, the divine calf. Whatever their origin,they have faithfully followed their traditional occupation,and, in addition, many study medicine in their youth, and attend to the ailments of the villagers, while the women act as midwives. When a high-caste Hindu dies,the duty of supplying the fuel for the funeral pyre, and watching the burning ground, devolves on the barber.
In their dress and ornaments the Travancore barbers closely resemble the Nāyars, but some wear round gold beads and a conch-shaped marriage jewel round the neck, to distinguish their women from those of the Nāyars. This, however, does not hold good in South Travancore, where the women have entirely adopted the Nāyar type of jewelry. Tattooing prevails to a greater extent among the barbers than among other classes, but has begun to lose its popularity.
The barbers not only worship the ordinary Hindu deities, but also adore such divinities as Murti, Māden, and Yakshi. The corpses of those who die as the result of accident or contagious disease, are buried, not burnt.A sorcerer is called on to raise the dead from the grave, and, at his instance, a kuryala or small thatched shed is erected, to provide a sanctum for the resurrected spirit.Every year, in the month of Makaram (January-February), the day on which the Utradam star falls is taken as the occasion for making offerings to these spirits.
In every village certain families had bestowed on them by the chieftains of Kērala the right of deciding all questions affecting the caste. All social offences are tried by them, and the decision takes the form of an order to celebrate iananguttu or feast of the equals, at which the first article served on the leaf placed before the assembled guests is not food, but a sum of money.
The tāli-kettu and sambandham ceremonies are celebrated, the former before, and the latter after the girl has reached puberty. The preliminary rites of betrothal and kāpu-kettu (tying the string round the wrist)over, the bridegroom enters the marriage hall in procession. There are no Vedic rites; nor is there any definite priest for the marriage ceremony. The conchshell is blown at odd intervals, this being considered indispensable. The festivities last for four days. A niece and nephew are regarded as the most legitimate spouses of a son and daughter respectively. After the cremation or burial of a corpse, a rope is held by two of the relations between the dead person's remains and the karta (chief mourner), and cut in two, as if to indicate that all connection between the karta and the deceased has ceased. This is called bandham aruppu, or severing of connection. Pollution lasts for sixteen days among all sections of the barbers, except the Tamils, who regain their purity after a death in the family on the eleventh day.