Marar is the name given to the caste of hereditary temple musiciansBodies of Silence, Floods of Nectar: Ritual Music in Contemporary Brahmanical Tantric Temples of Kerala. Yale Journal of Music & Religion: Vol. 7: No. 2, Article 2. of

Travancore The kingdom of Travancore (), also known as the kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor () or later as Travancore State, was a kingdom that lasted from until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvanan ...

Cochin Kochi ( , ), formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of Kerala. The city is also commonly referred to as Ernaku ...

and Malabar region in the state 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 ...

, whose primary duty was to provide the traditional temple '' Sopanam'' music. They belong to the

Ambalavasi Ambalavasi, more properly Ampalavasi, (IAST: Ampalavāsi; ) is the generic name for a group of Caste system in India, castes among Hindus in Kerala, India, who have traditionally rendered temple services. Castes The Ambalavasis are broadly div ...

caste.

Etymology

The word 'Marar' comes from the Tamil word 'mar', which means 'beat' and marar meaning the one who beat instruments like

chenda The Chenda (, ) is a cylindrical percussion instrument originating in the state of Kerala and widely used in Tulu Nadu of Karnataka in India. In Tulu Nadu (Coastal Karnataka), it is known as ''chende''. The instrument is strongly associat ...

and

idakka The idakka (), also spelt edaykka/edakka, is an hourglass-shaped drum from Kerala in south India, very similar to the pan-Indian damaru. While the damaru is played by rattling knotted cords against the resonators, the idakka is played with a ...

in temples. Men of marar caste are called Mārar and ladies are called Mārasyar or Amma. Paani, the indispensable part of high tantric rituals of temple such as ulsavabali, sreeboothabali etc. is another main hereditory temple profession of Marar. They were also known for their playing of chenda (valam thala represents deva vadyam (usually play inside the nalambalam) and edam thala represents asura vadyam) and idakka (deva vadyam) in temples ''Sopanadwani'' is the monthly publication of ''Akhila Kerala Marar Kshema Sabha''.

Social status

Marar of Kerala maintained a high ritual life akin to

Brahmins 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 ...

and other

castes. The social status of Ambalavasi and Marar varies with region. In North Kerala, they were popularly known as antharala jathikal, with a ritual rank lying between

Nair The Nair (, ) also known as Nayar, are a group of Indian Hindu castes, described by anthropologist Kathleen Gough as "not a unitary group but a named category of castes". The Nair include several castes and many subdivisions, not all of whom hi ...

s and Brahmins. They formed Akhila Kerala Marar Maha Sabha for the welfare of Marars. In South Kerala, Marar and Paathamangalakkar, along with other temple-related Ambalavasi castes, were considered as Auxiliary Nair subcaste. Despite being Ambalavasi, they were also known as Nair-Marar, and were part of Akhila Kerala Marar Maha Sabha along with the

Nair Service Society The Nair Service Society (NSS) is an organisation created for the social advancement and welfare of the Nair community that is found primarily in the state of Kerala in Southern part of India. It was established under the leadership of Mannathu ...

Notable People

* Peruvanam Kuttan Marar, artist. * K. Karunakaran, ex-chief minister. *

G. Sankara Kurup G. Sankara Kurup, (3 June 1901 – 2 February 1978) also referred to as Mahakavi G (The Great Poet G), was an Indian poet, essayist and literary critic of Malayalam literature. Known as one of the greats of Malayalam poetry, he was the first r ...

, writer *

Kuttikrishna Marar Kizhakke Marathu Kuttikrishna Marar (15 June 1900 – 6 April 1973) was an Indian essayist and literary critic of Malayalam literature. He was known for ''Bharathaparyaadanam'', a critical study of the Mahabharata, which is counted by many ...

, writer. * Kizhakkoottu Aniyan Marar, artist. * Annamanada Parameswara Marar, artist. * K. G. Marar, politician *

Shadkala Govinda Marar (1798–1843), or was a Carnatic musician from Kerala, India. He was a contemporary of Tyāgarāja and Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma. He was also adept in playing musical instruments like Chenda, Edakka and Thimila. His expertise in singing in ...

, musician. * Mattanoor Sankarankutty Marar,Percussionist.

References

{{reflist Performers of Hindu music Social groups of Kerala Musician castes