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Showing posts from January 21, 2024

A Theyyam Run

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Preamble- Ramble It is difficult to pinpoint  when Curiosity became Desire and when Desire turned into  Obsession . But, that it was brewing for  quite a while is true.  Our Mysore being in close proximity to North Kerala ( Malabar -Wayanad), one  grew up with the "general knowledge" that  that part of God's Own Country  also had a lively , thriving culture of  its own Spirits, Shamans and Vamachara rituals ("black magic "type), all of  which went back to the Beginning  of Time.  One also knew that they  called their Spirits  "Theyyams" ( derived from  "Deivam" meaning Supernatural Being  or God ) who made an appearance between October and April to drive away diseases , ensure good crop and give other blessings.  Sometime in late 1990s , the very early days of Web Logging, a blogpost  by an European lady had caught attention. She had documented everything about  a Theyyam ritual : selection of th...