Madapura of Muthappan

The Parassinikadavu temple in Kannur district of Kerala does not fit into the ambit of a normal temple & so is locally called a Kavu or Madapura. The customs & rituals followed here are different from any other temple in Kerala. The ancient culture of Vasudeva Kutumbakom which literally means the world is one single family is followed  here by allowing everyone entry to the temple irrespective of caste, gender, creed, religion or age. The Muthappan as he is fondly called belongs to the poor & toiling masses, is a rebel to all traditions that existed in old times. He is happy when offered toddy or dry fish which were staple of the poor. His existence in the world is also as a hunter carrying a simple bow & arrow. The unique customs can also be found in the way things function here. The prices of offerings are the lowest when compared to other temples & the temple provides free meals & accommodation to devotees. The custom of providing every devotee a small portion of pulses with coconut & glass of tea is still followed. This offering to all is a ritual that goes back centuries & symbolizes the simple way of life followed by the people for whom Muthappan was the ideal. 

The story of Muthappan & many other rituals come from legends which have been passed on over generations & are followed till today.

It is believed that one couple by the name of Ayyankara Devan & Padikutty were childless & longed for one. Devan was a landlord & he was worried for his clan, they both prayed long to Lord Shiva for a child. One day, Padikutty went for a bath in the pond where she was about to take a dip when her maidens heard a child crying. They looked around & found a beautiful boy lying on a flat stone. Padikkutty was in immense joy & took the boy in her lap to their illam. Ayyankara Devan & Padikutty were convinced that the child was given to them by God for their devotion & happily adopted him into their clan. As per custom, the child was taught vedas & his upanayanam was conducted to convert him to a Brahmin as he was not born to them. The child grew older & soon people realized that he was no ordinary child. He was more interested in being with people of lower strata, visiting their homes, going around the forests to hunt, and working with them in the fields. He was a good hunter & when the child brought back the kill to his illam to be eaten; Ayyankara Devan grew concerned. His actions became wilder in the days to come & this enraged Devan who banished the child from his illam. The child did not like this treatment; angered by this his eyes glared with fire & burned all the vegetation around the illam. He then turned to his father, Padikutty fearing the death of her husband closed the child's eye from behind saving Devan from the wrath of the child. During the Theyyam performances, Muthappan is seen wearing a shield on his eyes called the vellikannu which signifies this incident. 

This incident made the boy leave the illam in search of solace. He left the illam with a Bow & arrow to continue his hunting. He passed Kunnathurpadi when he saw a pot of toddy on the palm tree. Curious about its content, the boy climbed the tree & drank the toddy. Chandran, a local tribal who was responsible for collecting the toddy, came to find a boy drinking all his toddy & scolded the boy. He threw stones at the boy to make him come down. The child became angry & with his glaring eyes transformed Chandran to a stone. Concerned about her husband, Chandran’s wife came looking for him & found the boy on top of the tree. Looking at the boy, she thought him to be an elderly person & called out Moothappan which means the eldest in the tribe. This was the first time when someone had called the boy by this name & this is what people still call the deity here. He is given the title of head of the tribe. The offering of Toddy at the temple also symbolizes the liking of God towards it.

All along his travels around the countryside, dogs kept following Muthappan & so one can find many dogs around the temple freely roaming. They are revered the same as the lord & given the title of his companion. Muthappan continued his journey organizing the poor & downtrodden to revolt against the Brahmin hegemony. To organize such meetings he also built Madapuras similar to the temple around many places. The Muthappan temple is the biggest of all Madapuras in Kerala. 

 

The temple does not have any priest, the person in charge of conducting daily rituals is called the Madyan who is the eldest member of the ancestral Thiyya community. Everyday one can witness the Theyyam performance of Thiruvappan & Vellatom. Muthappan is considered to be the personification of two Gods - Lord Vishnu (Thiruvappanna) & Lord Shiva (Vellattom). The Theyyams happen every day in the morning & evening which is open for all devotees. Post the performance, devotees can speak to the Theyyams which is a unique ritual where Muthappan hears to one’s concern & gives solutions. This custom is not seen anywhere in the world & thus the Theyyam artist is considered to be the exact embodiment of Muthappan. When a person visits the Madapura, it makes you wonder how small a human is and what life actually means. Leading a simple life of ideals is more important that all the opulence around.