Dīkṣitars or Thillai Vazh Anthaanar are a

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas ( or ; ), sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed ...

Shaiva Shaivism (, , ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the supreme being. It is the second-largest Hindu sect after Vaishnavism, constituting about 385 million Hindus, found widely across South Asia (predominantly in ...

Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

servitor community of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

who are based mainly in the town of

Chidambaram Chidambaram is a major town and municipality in Cuddalore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, on the banks of the Vellar River where it meets the Bay of Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Chidambaram taluk. The town is believed to b ...

Smartha The ''Smarta'' tradition (, ) is a movement in Hinduism that developed and expanded with the Puranas genre of literature. It reflects a synthesis of four philosophical strands, namely Uttara Mīmāṃsā, Advaita, Yoga, and theism. The Smar ...

(especially the Vadamas),

Sri Vaishnava Sri Vaishnavism () is a denomination within the Vaishnavism tradition of Hinduism, predominantly practiced in South India. The name refers to goddess Lakshmi (also known as Sri), as well as a prefix that means "sacred, revered", and the god V ...

and other Brahmins in South India also carry the surname Dikshitars, but are different from the Chidambaram Dikshitar. They are an exclusive group of Brahmins learned in the Vedas and '' yagnas'' (sacrifices) who also serve as the hereditary trustees of the Nataraja temple in

. They are also called ''Thillai Muvayiravar'' or the ''Three Thousand of Thillai''. Every Dikshitar once he is married becomes as of right a trustee and '' archaka'' of the Nataraja temple. A practice unique to the community is that the priests wear the tuft of hair in front of the head similar to the

Nambuthiri The Nambudiri (), also transliterated as Nampoothiri, Nambūdiri, Namboodiri, Namboothiri, Namboodri, Namboori, and Nampūtiri, are a Malayali Brahmin caste, native to what is now the state of Kerala, India, where they constituted part of th ...

Brahmans of

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

History

The Dikshithars might be traced back to the first line of Brahmanas who migrated to South India from the north, this migration happened as the result of the increasing spread of

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...

and

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

in the North.The establishment of

Mauryan The Maurya Empire was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in South Asia with its power base in Magadha. Founded by Chandragupta Maurya around c. 320 BCE, it existed in loose-knit fashion until 185 BCE. The primary sourc ...

Satavahana The Satavahanas (; ''Sādavāhana'' or ''Sātavāhana'', IAST: ), also referred to as the Andhras (also ''Andhra-bhṛtyas'' or ''Andhra-jatiyas'') in the Puranas, were an ancient Indian dynasty. Most modern scholars believe that the Satavaha ...

and Kadamba rule in South India also necessitated the movement of Brahmans into the new regions because these kingdom required trained ritualists. They are mentioned in the 12th century work, the Periyapuranam of

Sekkizhar Sēkkilān Mādēvadigal Rāmadēva (12th century CE), known popularly by his family name as Sekkizhar, was a saint and a contemporary of Kulottunga Chola II. He compiled and wrote the ''Periya Puranam'' (Great Story or Narrative) in 4253 vers ...

. They were originally the ritual arbiters of imperial legitimacy in the

Chola Empire The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

, ritually crowning successive monarchs. This honour was reserved only for rulers belonging to the

Chola dynasty The Chola dynasty () was a Tamil dynasty originating from Southern India. At its height, it ruled over the Chola Empire, an expansive maritime empire. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd cen ...

. When Kutruva Nayanar, a chieftain of Kalandai became very powerful as a result of his conquests, he requested the 3000 of Tillai to crown him as king of the

Chola The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

country but they declined saying that they would only crown a Chola and instead fled to the

Chera The Chera dynasty ( or Cēra, ), also known as Keralaputra, from the early historic or the Sangam period in Tamil-speaking southern India, ruled over parts of present-day states Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Cheras, known as one of the mu-ventar ...

country to escape his wrath. It is also of interest to note that

Kulottunga Chola I Kulottunga Chola I ('; Middle Tamil: Kulōttuṅka Cōḻaṉ; Classical Sanskrit: Kulottuṅgā Cōḷa; 1025–1122) also spelt Kulothunga (), born Rajendra Chalukya ( Telugu: Rājēndra Cāḷukyuḍu), was a Chola Emperor who reigned from ...

, during his rule, introduced priests from

Vengi Vengi or Venginadu ( Telugu: వేంగి) is a historic region located in present-day Andhra Pradesh, India spread over the Godavari and Krishna river deltas. Its capital was located at Pedavegi, near Eluru. Vengi was a prominent city in a ...

, his original homeland, to perpetuate the myth of the ''Tillai three thousand'' in order to legitimize his royal and priestly power.

References

Tamil Brahmins {{India-ethno-stub

History

See also

References