Pandaram caste is surname of many people in southern India. Pandaram caste meaning is Pandaram is described by Mr. H. A. Stuart33 as being the name rather of an occupation than a caste, and used to denote any non-Brahmanical priest. The Pandarams seem to receive numerous recruits from the Saivite Sudra castes, who choose to make a profession of piety, and wander about begging. They are in reality very lax in their modes of life, often drinking liquor and eating animal food furnished by any respectable Sudra. They often serve in Siva temples, where they make garlands of flowers to decorate the lingam, and blow brazen trumpets when offerings are made, or processions take place. Tirutanni is one of the chief places, in which they congregate.
It is recorded, in the Gazetteer of the Trichinopoly district, that the water for the gods bath at Ratnagiri is brought by a caste of non-Brahmans known as Tirumanjana Pandarams, who fetch it every day from the Cauvery. They say that they are descended from an Aryan king, who came to the god with the hope of getting rubies from him. The god, in the guise of a Brahman, tested his devotion by making him fill a magic vessel with Cauvery water. The vessel would not fill, and the Aryan stranger in a fit of anger cut off the Brahmans head. The dead body at once turned into a lingam, and the Aryan was ordered to carry water for the temple till eternity.
Pandaram is used both as the name of a caste, and of a class composed of recruits from various castes (e.g, [46]Vellala and Palli). The Pandaram caste is composed of respectable people who have settled down as land-holders, and of Sanyasis and priests of certain matams (religious institutions), and managers of richly endowed temples, such as those at Tiruvadudurai in Tanjore and Mailam in South Arcot. The common name for these managers is Tambiran. The caste Pandarams are staunch Saivites and strict vegetarians. Those who lead a celibate life wear the lingam. They are said to have been originally Sozhia Vellalas, with whom intermarriage still takes place. They are initiated into the Saivite religion by a rite called Dhikshai, which is divided into five stages, viz, Samaya, Nirvana, Visesha, Kalasothanai, and Acharya Abhishekam. Some are temple servants, and supply flowers for the god, while others sing devaram (hymns to the god) during the temple service. On this account, they are known as Meikaval (body-guard of the god), and Oduvar (reader). The caste Pandarams have two divisions, called Abhisheka and Desikar, and the latter name is often taken as a title, e.g, Kandasami Desikar. An Abhisheka Pandaram is one who is made to pass through some ceremonies connected with Saiva Agama.
The mendicant Pandarams, who are recruited from various classes, wear the lingam, and do not abstain from eating flesh. Many villages have a Pandaram as the priest of the shrine of the village deity, who is frequently a Palli who has become a Pandaram by donning the lingam. The females are said to live, in some cases, by prostitution.
The Lingayat Pandarams differ in many respects from the true Lingayats. The latter respect their Jangam, and use the sacred water, in which the feet of the Jangam are washed, for washing their stone lingam. [47]To the Pandarams, and Tamil Lingayats in general, this proceeding would amount to sacrilege of the worst type. Canarese and Telugu Lingayats regard a Jangam as superior to the stone lingam. In the matter of pollution ceremonies the Tamil Lingayats are very particular, whereas the orthodox Lingayats observe no pollution. The investiture with the lingam does not take place so early among the Tamil as among the Canarese Lingayats.
For the following note, I am indebted to Mr. C. Hayavadana Rao. Dr. H. H. Wilson34 is of opinion that the word Pandaram ismore properly Panduranga, pale complexioned, from their smearing themselves with ashes. It is so used in Hemachandras history of Mahavira, when speaking of the Saiva Brahmans. A more popular derivation of the name is from Bandaram, a public treasury. A good many well-to-do Pandarams are managers of Siva temples in Southern India, and accordingly have the temple treasuries under their care. It is, however, possible that the name has been acquired by the caste by reason of their keeping a yellow powder, called pandaram, in a little box, and giving it in return for the alms which they receive.
Opinions are divided as to whether the Pandarams are Lingayats or not. The opinion held by F. W. Ellis, the well-known Tamil scholar and translator of the Kural of Tiruvalluvar, is thus summarised by Colonel Wilks.35 Mr. Ellis considers the Jangam of the upper countries, and the Pandaram of the lower, to be of the same sect, and both deny in the most unequivocal terms the doctrine of the metempsychosis. A manuscript in the Mackenzie collection ascribes the origin of the Pandarams as a [48]sacerdotal order of the servile caste to the religious disputes, which terminated in the suppression of the Jain religion in the Pandian (Madura) kingdom, and the influence which they attained by the aid which they rendered to the Brahmans in that controversy, but this origin seems to require confirmation. In a large portion, perhaps in the whole of the Brahmanical temples dedicated to Siva in the provinces of Arcot, Tanjore, Trichinopoly, Madura and Tinnevelly, the Pandaram is the highest of the temple, and has the entire direction of the revenues, but allows the Brahmans to officiate in the ceremonial part according to their own good pleasure, as a concern altogether below his note. He has generally the reputation of an irreproachable life, and is treated by the Brahmans of the temple with great reverence, while on his part he looks with compassion at the absurd trifles which occupy their attention. These facts seem to point to some former revolution, in which a Jangam government obtained a superiority over the Brahmanical establishments, and adopted this mode of superseding the substantial part of their authority. It is a curious instance of the Sooder (Sudra) being the spiritual lord of the Brahman, and is worthy of further historical investigation. Dr. Wilson36 also thinks that the Pandarams are Lingayats. Mr. H. A. Stuart37 says that they are a class of priests who serve the non-Brahman castes. They have returned 115 sub-divisions, of which only two are sufficiently large to require mention, Andi of Tinnevelly and Malabar, and Lingadari of Chingleput and Tinnevelly. Andi is a quasi-caste of beggars recruited from all castes, and the Lingadari Pandarams are the same as Jangams. [49]Pandaram is, in fact, a class name rather than the name of a caste, and it consists of priests and beggars. Mr. C. P. Brown38 thinks that the Pandarams are not Lingayats.The Saiva worshippers among the Tamils are called Pandarams- these are not Vira Saivas, nor do they wear the linga or adore Basava. I name them here chiefly because they are often mentioned as being Vira Saivas, whereas in truth they are (like the Smartas) Purva Saivas, and worship the image of Siva in their houses. It must be remarked that Mr. Brown appears to have had a confused idea of Pandarams. Pandarams wear the linga on their bodies in one of the usual modes, are priests to others professing the Lingayat religion, and are fed by them on funeral and other ceremonial occasions. At the same time, it must be added that they aremore especially the begging sectionsvery lax as regards their food and drink. This characteristic distinguishes them from the more orthodox Lingayats. Moreover, Lingayats remarry their widows, whereas the Pandarams, as a caste, will not.
Pandarams speak Tamil. They are of two classes, the married and celibate. The former are far more numerous than the latter, and dress in the usual Hindu manner. They have the hind-lock of hair known as the kudumi, put on sacred ashes, and paint the point between the eyebrows with a sandal paste dot. The celibates wear orange-tawny cloths, and daub sacred ashes all over their bodies. They allow the hair of the head to become matted. They wear sandals with iron spikes, and carry in their hands an iron trisulam (the emblem of Siva), and a wooden baton called dandayudha (another emblem of Siva). When they go about the [50]streets, they sing popular Tamil hymns, and beat against their begging bowl an iron chain tied by a hole to one of its sides. Married men also beg, but only use a bell-metal gong and a wooden mallet. Most of these help pilgrims going to the more famous Siva temples in the Madras Presidency, e.g, Tirutani, Palni, Tiruvannamalai, or Tirupparankunram. Among both sections, the dead are buried in the sitting posture, as among other Lingayats. A samadhi is erected over the spot where they are buried. This consists of a linga and bull in miniature, which are worshipped as often as may be found convenient.
The managers of temples and mutts (religious institutions), known as Pandara Sannadhis, belong to the celibate class. They are usually learned in the Agamas and Puranas. A good many of them are Tamil scholars, and well versed in Saiva Siddhanta philosophy. They call themselves Tambiransa title which is often usurped by the uneducated beggars.
In the Census Report, 1901, Vairavi is returned as a sub-caste of Pandaram, and said to be found only in the Tinnevelly district, where they are measurers of grains and pujaris in village temples. Vairavi is further used as a name for members of the Melakkaran caste, who officiate as servants at the temples of the Nattukottai Chettis.
Pandaram is a title of the Panisavans and Valluvan priests of the Paraiyans.
A class of people called hill Pandarams are described39 by the Rev. S. Mateer as miserable beings without clothing, implements, or huts of any kind, living in holes, rocks, or trees. They bring wax, ivory (tusks), and other [51]produce to the Arayans, and get salt from them. They dig roots, snare the ibex (wild goat, Hemitragus hylocrius) of the hills, and jungle fowls, eat rats and snakes, and even crocodiles found in the pools among the hill streams. They were perfectly naked and filthy, and very timid. They spoke Malayalam in a curious tone, and said that twenty-two of their party had been devoured by tigers within two monsoons. Concerning these hill Pandarams, Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar writes that they live on the banks of streams in crevices of rocks, caves, and hollows of trees. They are known to the dwellers on the plains as Kattumanushyar, or forest men. They clad themselves in the bark of trees, and, in the rainy and cold seasons, protect their bodies with plantain leaves. They speak a corrupt form of Tamil. They fear the sight of other men, and try to avoid approaching them. A former European magistrate of the Cardamom Hills took some of them to his residence, but, during their three days stay there, they refused to eat or talk. There is a chieftain for every four hills, but his authority is little more than nominal. When women are married, the earth and hills are invoked as witnesses. They have Hindu names, such as Raman, Kittan (Krishna), and Govindan.
In a lecture delivered some years ago at Trivandrum, Mr. O. H. Bensley described the hill Pandarams as being skilful in catching fish, their mode of cooking which is to place the fish on roots on a rock, and cover them with fire. They keep dogs, and, by their aid, replenish their larder with rats, mungooses, iguanas (lizard, Varanus), and other delicacies. I was told that the authority recognised by these people is the head Arayan, to whom they give a yearly offering of jungle produce, receiving in exchange the scanty clothing required by them. We had an opportunity of examining their stock-in-trade, [52]which consisted of a bill-hook similar to those used by other hillmen, a few earthen cooking-pots, and a good stock of white flour, which was, they said, obtained from the bark of a tree, the name of which sounded like ahlum. They were all small in stature, with the exception of one young woman, and, both in appearance and intelligence, compared favourably with the Uralis.
Pandaram caste is one of the many castes subcastes of India.
India has thousands of castes and subcastes, they are in existence and practice since the Vedic times. They were created to solve the problem of division of labor. Pandaram caste name could indicate the type of work people belonging to the Pandaram caste do or did in earlier times. Many last names in India indicate the place the person originally belongs to. All castes sub castes are primarily divided into 4 categories:
1.Brahmins – The learned or priestly class
2.Khastriyas – The warrior class or those with governing functions
3.Vaishyas – The trader, agriculturalists or cattle rearers class
4.Shudra – The class that serves other three categories
Pandaram caste belongs to one of the above 4 categories. Indian caste system is the best system to solve the problem of division of labor. In earlier times there was no rigidity in caste system. Indian caste system is still the best solution for the problem of division of labor, the only change that is needed as per changed times is that rather than having a vertical hierarchical system with Brahmins on top and Shudras at bottom, it would be good to have a horizontal socialist system with Brahmins, Khastriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras all at same level.
The caste system of India is in ruins at present. It is also cause of bloody quarrels in certain parts of the rural India. People of backward castes have reservations in government jobs, this facility is widely misused in India. Many of the backward caste people have become rich and still use the facility for their benefit. Many in India believe reservation in jobs should be given on the basis of poverty rather than caste because there are many poors in upper castes as well.
Many criticize the Indian caste system because of bad material condition of lower castes but if they observe in an unbiased way they would find that there are many in upper castes with bad material conditions. The problem lies in power not in castes, power can corrupt anyone be it from upper caste or lower caste.
All cultures, all countries, all religions have caste system in one form or the other. Christians have different churches depending on the region or language or skin color of people. Muslims have a priestly class that tries to control everything. Arab Muslims before the oil boom were so much divided among tribes that if you drank water from a well of a different tribe you could be shot dead. Tribal divisions still exists among Muslims. You can also see the caste system in a different form in your corporate companies. I had seen different food and drinking facilities for people at different levels.
Pandaram caste is also known as Pandaram Gotra.
Caste situation is quiet different in urban India, people in urban areas especially youngsters don?t bother about castes. Inter caste, inter religious, inter lingual marriages are quiet common in urban India. Inter caste, inter religious and inter lingual marriages in rural areas attract severe criticism and many times people are expelled from community for not marrying as per religious and caste rules.