When children come across a gigantic statue of a man with curly moustache and eyes wide open with a large Aruval (Sickle) in his hand at a village roadside in Coimbatore, they are sure to be scared even to have a glance at him. The deity, which is called Ayyanar, is believed to receive Uyirpali (Animal sacrifice) and even described as the one, who eats a sumptuous meal on meat and drink a large pot of toddy.
When children come across a gigantic statue of a man with curly moustache and eyes wide open with a large Aruval (Sickle) in his hand at a village roadside in Coimbatore, they are sure to be scared even to have a glance at him. The deity, which is called Ayyanar, is believed to receive Uyirpali (Animal sacrifice) and even described as the one, who eats a sumptuous meal on meat and drink a large pot of toddy.
Before the advent of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism, the culture of worshipping Ayyanar had been popular in the Kongu region. The God, which was also adored as the family deity in certain clans, finds mention in various pieces of Tamil literature. But, later on, the above-said religions renamed Ayyanar differently and included in the pantheon of their respective religions.
Called as Brahma Sastha in Jainism and Sastha in Buddhism, Ayyanar, who ‘accepted’ the prayers of the people only through animal sacrifice, was later made into a ‘vegan’ deity in Shaivism with the name Saththan. What’s more, in Thirunavukarasar’s Thevaram, a Shaivite Bakthi literature, Ayyanar is portrayed even as the son of Lord Shiva.
The word Saththan which also means ‘The head of a trading caravan’ coincides in its meaning with the name of the trader-poet Seethalai Saththanar, who authored the great epic Manimekalai.
Though the deity was called Saththan by the upper caste Shaivites during the Chola period, the term Ayyanar is still retained in the culture of the downtrodden and the antiquity of sacrificing animals to the deity is still seen at Valayapatti, Kangeyam, Erode and Dharapuram of the Kongu region. However, the idols of Ayyanar found in these places are more artistic, as they were made in the Chola period. In certain other places, Ayyanar is also shown with his two consorts Pooranai and Pushkalai.
Interestingly, a sculpture of Ayyanar, which was discovered at Eengur in Erode, is with a stone inscription, which informs that a man by a long name Kurumpilaril Kavalan Poththan Seyyaalala Kulothunga Pallavarayan made the sculpture. The idols of Ayyanar are also seen at Aval Poondurai, Akilandapuram, and Chevur in the Kongu region.
Tracing the origin of worshipping Ayyanar, eminent archeologist and Tamil scholar Poongundran notes that the culture has been in continuity in Tamil society since the Sangam age. Explaining the meaning of the Tamil diphthong ‘Ayy’ as ‘Lord’ or ‘Master’ Poongundran points out that the letter was used as a word to address the Thalaivan (Lord) in Sangam lyrics.
In the villages surrounding Coimbatore, it is interesting to observe the continuity of the word’s same usage, when people address the male elder of their family as ‘Ayyan’