Iyer
Iyers are an ethnoreligious community of Tamil Brahmins. Most Iyers are followers of the Advaita philosophy propounded by Adi Shankara and adhere to the Smarta tradition. This is in contrast to the Iyengar community, who are adherents of Sri Vaishnavism. The Iyers and the Iyengars are together referred to as Tamil Brahmins. The majority of Iyers reside in Tamil Nadu, India.
Iyers are further divided into various denominations based on traditional and regional differences. Like all Brahmins, they are also classified based on their gotra, or patrilineal descent, and the Veda that they follow. They fall under the Pancha Dravida Brahmana classification of Brahmins in India.
Apart from the prevalent practice of using the title "Iyer" as surname, Iyers also commonly use other surnames, such as Sāstri or Bhattar.
Etymology
Iyer has several meanings in Tamil and other Dravidian languages, often referring to a respectable person. The Dravidian Etymological Dictionary lists various meanings for the term such as "father, sage, priest, teacher, brahman, superior person, master, king" with cognates such as tamayan meaning "elder brother" and simply ai "lord, master, husband, king, guru, priest, teacher, father". Linguistic sources often derive the words Ayya, Ayira/Ayyira as Prakrit versions of the Sanskrit word Ārya which means 'noble'.In ancient times, Iyers were also called Anthanar or Pārppān, though the usage of the word Pārppān is considered derogatory in modern times. Until recent times, Kerala Iyers were called Pattars. Like the term pārppān, the word Pattar too is considered derogatory.
Population and distribution
Today, Iyers live all over South India, but an overwhelming majority of Iyers continue to thrive in Tamil Nadu. Tamil Brahmins form an estimated less than 3 per cent of the state's total population and are distributed all over the state. However, accurate statistics on the population of the Iyer community are unavailable.Iyers are also found in fairly appreciable number in Western and Southern districts of Tamil Nadu. Iyers of the far south are called Tirunelveli Iyers and speak the Tirunelveli Brahmin dialect.
Migration
Over the last few centuries, many Iyers have migrated and settled in parts of Karnataka. During the rule of the Mysore Maharajahs, many Iyers from the then Madras province migrated to Mysore. The Ashtagrama Iyers are also a prominent group of Iyers in Karnataka.Iyers have also been resident of the princely state of Travancore from ancient times. The Venad state and the southern parts of Kerala was part of the Pandyan kingdom known as Then Pandi Nadu. There were also many Iyers in Venad which later on grew to be the Travancore state. The old capital of Travancore was Padmanabhapuram which is at present in Kanyakumari district. There has also been a continuous inflow from Tirunelveli and Ramnad districts of Tamil Nadu which are contiguous to the erstwhile princely state of Travancore. Many parts of the present Tirunelveli district were even part of the old Travancore state. These Iyers are known today as Trivandrum Iyers. Some of these people migrated to Cochin and later to Palakkad and Kozhikode districts. There were also migrations from Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu to Palakkad. Their descendants are known today as Palakkad Iyers. These Iyers are collectively now called as Kerala Iyers. In Coimbatore, there are many such Iyers due to its proximity to Kerala.
Apart from South India, Iyers have also migrated to and settled in places in North India. There are significantly large Iyer communities in Mumbai, and Delhi. These migrations, which commenced during the British rule, were often undertaken in search of better prospects and contributed to the prosperity of the community.
Much earlier, Iyers have also came to Sri Lanka. According to the Buddhist scripture Mahavamsa, the presence of Brahmins have been recorded in Sri Lanka as early as when the first migrations from the Indian mainland supposedly took place. Brahmins used to be an influent constituent of the Sri Lankan Tamil minority, despite their negligible demography. It is also believed that they have played a historic role in the formation of the Jaffna Kingdom. The current Tamil Brahmin population of Ceylon, which belongs exclusively to the Iyer caste, is however relatively recent. Most of its members are of Indian origin, settled on the island since the second half of the 18th century, with the rise of the Hindu revival movement in the northern region. They are almost solely committed to the priesthood.
In recent times Iyers have also migrated in significant numbers to the United Kingdom, Europe and the United States in search of better fortune.
Subsects
Iyers have many sub-sects among them, such as Vadama, Brahacharnam or Brahatcharanam, Vāthima, Sholiyar or Chozhiar, Ashtasahasram, Mukkāni, Gurukkal, Kāniyālar and Prathamasāki. Each sub-sect is further subdivided according to the village or region of origin.Iyers, like all other Brahmins, trace their paternal ancestry to one of the eight rishis or sages. Accordingly, they are classified into eight gotras based on the rishi they have descended from. A maiden in the family belongs to gotra of her father, but upon marriage takes the gotra of her husband.
The Vedas are further sub-divided into shakhas or "branches" and followers of each Veda are further sub-divided based on the shakha they adhere to. However, only a few of the shakhas are extant, the vast majority of them having disappeared. The different Vedas and the corresponding shakhas that exist today in Tamil Nadu are:
| Veda | shākhā |
| Rig Veda | Shakala and Paingi |
| Yajur Veda | Kanva and Taittiriya |
| Sama Veda | Kauthuma, Jaiminiya/Talavakara, Shatyayaniya and Gautama |
| Atharva Veda | Shaunakiya and Paippalada |
Culture
Rituals
Iyer rituals comprise rites as described in Hindu scriptures such as Apastamba Sutra attributed to the Hindu sage Apastamba. The most important rites are the Shodasa Samaskāras or the 16 duties. Although many of the rites and rituals followed in antiquity are no longer practised, some have been retained.Iyers are initiated into rituals at the time of birth. In ancient times, rituals used to be performed when the baby was being separated from mother's umbilical cord. This ceremony is known as Jātakarma. However, this practice is no longer observed. At birth, a horoscope is made for the child based on the position of the stars. The child is then given a ritual name. On the child's birthday, a ritual is performed to ensure longevity. This ritual is known as Ayushya Homam. This ceremony is held on the child's birthday reckoned as per the Tamil calendar based on the position of the nakshatras or stars and not the Gregorian calendar. The child's first birthday is the most important and is the time when the baby is formally initiated by piercing the ears of the boy or girl. From that day onwards a girl is expected to wear earrings.
A second initiation follows when the child crosses the age of seven. This is the Upanayana ceremony during which a Brahmana is said to be reborn. A three-piece cotton thread is installed around the torso of the child encompassing the whole length of his body from the left shoulder to the right hip. The Upanayana ceremony of initiation is solely performed for the members of the dvija or twice-born castes, generally when the individual is between 7 and 16 years of age. In ancient times, the Upanayana was often considered as the ritual which marked the commencement of a boy's education, which in those days consisted mostly of the study of the Vedas. However, with the Brahmins taking to other vocations than priesthood, this initiation has become more of a symbolic ritual. The neophyte was expected to perform the Sandhya Vandanam on a regular basis and utter a prescribed set of prayers, three times a day: dawn, mid-day, and dusk. The most sacred and prominent of the prescribed set of prayers is the Gayatri Mantra, which is as sacred to the Hindus as the Six Kalimas to the Muslims and Ahunwar to the Zoroastrians. Once a year, Iyers change their sacred thread. This ritual is exclusive to South Indian Brahmins and the day is commemorated in Tamil Nadu as Āvani Avittam.
Other important ceremonies for Iyers include the rites for the deceased. All Iyers are cremated according to Vedic rites, usually within a day of the individual's death. The death rites include a 13-day ceremony, and regular Tarpanam, for the ancestors. There is also a yearly shrārddha, that must be performed. These rituals are expected to be performed only by male descendants of the deceased. Married men who perform this ritual must be accompanied by their wives. The women are symbolically important in the ritual to give a "consent" to all the proceedings in it.
Festivals
Iyers celebrate almost all Hindu festivals like Deepavali, Navratri, Pongal, Vinayaka Chathurthi, Janmaashtami, Tamil New Year, Sivarathri and Karthika Deepam. An important festival, exclusive to Brahmins of South India, is the Āvani Avittam festival.Weddings
A typical Iyer wedding consists of Sumangali Prārthanai, Nāndi, Nischayadhārtham and Mangalyadharanam. The main events of an Iyer marriage include Vratam, Kasi Yatra, Oonjal, Kanyadanam, Mangalyadharanam, Pānigrahanam and Saptapathi. This is usually followed by Nalangu, which is a casual and informal event.Traditional ethics
Iyers generally lead orthodox lives and adhere steadfastly to their customs and traditions. Iyers follow the Grihya Sutras of Apastamba and Baudhayana. The society is patriarchal but not feudal.Iyers are generally vegetarian. Some abjure onion and garlic on the grounds that they activate certain base senses. Cow milk and milk products were approved. They were required to avoid alcohol and tobacco.
Iyers follow elaborate purification rituals, both of self and the house. Men are forbidden from performing their "sixteen duties" while women are forbidden from cooking food without having a purificatory bath in the morning. Food is to be consumed only after making an offering to the deities.
The bathing was considered sufficiently purifying only if it conformed to the rules of madi. The word madi is used by Tamil Brahmins to indicate that a person is bodily pure. In order to practice madi, the Brahmin had to wear only clothes which had been recently washed and dried, and the clothes should remain untouched by any person who was not madi. Only after taking bath in cold water, and after wearing such clothes, would the person be in a state of madi.
This practice of madi is followed by Iyers even in modern times, before participating in any kind of religious ceremony.
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