Mayilattam (

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

: மயிலாட்டம்) is an artistic and religious form of dance performed in the Hindu temples of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil languag ...

in reverence to

Lord Subrahmanya Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesh ...

. Mayilattam performers wear costumes from head to toe like peacock with beak, that can be opened and closed using a thread, and perform specific dances. The performers dance on a tall piece of wood attached at the end of their feet. This art requires extensive training and practise. This dance is performed in all Murugan (

) temples as a tradition during festivals. Due to the difficulties in practise and less amount of wages for the dancers, the number of Mayilattam performers is decreasing.

References

Tamil dance styles {{Hinduism-stub