33. ĀRYA DANCE OR THE CĀKKIYĀR KŪTTU IN TAMIL NADU ________________________________________ 33.1. Cākkiyār Kūttu A family of dancers in Kerala who enact Kūḍiyāttām in temples are called Cākkiyārs. Their dance is called Cākkiyār-kūttu. They enact Sanskrit dramas making profuse use of Malayaḷam language. Many of the famous Sanskrit dramas of ancient India, like those of Bhasa, Mahēndravarmaṉ and others were enacted by them and a number of them are being enacted to this day. For example, the Mattavilāsa Prahasana of Mahēndra is enacted in temples as offerings on festival occasions even to this day. The Cākkiyār tradition in Kerala traced to remote antiquity by historians is considered a special form of Kerala art. The Cilappatikāram refers to the Koṭṭicēdam enacted by Kūttac-cākkaiyāṉ of Paṟaiyūr. Inscriptions of the Cōḻā period, show that the Cākkiyārs were living in Tamiḻnāṭu as well and were performing dance dramas in temples. An inscription on the west wall of the garbhagṛha of the Gomuktesvara temple, Tiruvaṭuturai, Mayūram Tāluk is of great interest to students of South Indian dance. The inscription is dated in the 9th regnal year of the Cōḻā emperor, Rājarāja I corresponding to 5th October, 995 C.E. The village assembly of Sāttanūr, in Teṅkaṟai Tiraimuṟnaṭu, met in the Catus-sālai-ambalam and endowed a nṛtta-bhoga, land for performing dance drama. The endowment was made in favour of Kumaraṉ Śrīkaṇṭaṉ, a Cākkaiyār, who was in enjoyment of Cākkai Kāni, the land earmarked for Cākkai of the village. The present land gift was intended for enacting an Āryak-kūttu in seven aṅgam (acts), in puraṭṭāsi (nakṣatra) festival, in the month of puraṭṭāsi, celebrated for the lord of Tiruvāṭuturai. The dance was to be enacted annually in perpetuity. The dancers were free to raise the crop of their choice and enjoy the proceeds and in turn, enact dance in the festival. The land was not saleable. The record says that on the Tirumulai day (beginning day when the sprouting ceremony is performed) of the puraṭṭāsi festival, the naṭaka should be announced during the night and the seven acts performed. The relevant portion reads puraṭṭāsi tirunāḷil tirumulaināṉūru irā (pattu) nāṭakam colli vaṟavittu ēḻu āṅgam āṭuvathāhavum. It refers to giving a summary of the dance drama on the first day. Colli vaṟaviṭal i.e., announcement equal unto pūrvaraṅga of the Nāṭya Śāstra. It is not also clear from the epigraph, whether the nāṭaka in seven acts should be enacted on the same day or performed for a number of days till the festival lasts. The next part of the inscription is equally interesting, as it refers to the provisions made for the dance. It prescribes two measures of rice per day for making rice powder, three betel nuts - pākku per day, two paṟṟu (bundles) of betel leaves per day and one uṟi of oil per day for preparing collyrium (or black pigments) and one pala of turmeric per day. Rice powder (white) turmeric (yellow) black pigments, betel nuts (brown) and betel leaves (green) were obviously used for colouring the face and body suited to the character. It is interesting to note the ingredients used for colours one thousand years ago and it is perhaps the earliest authentic record for such a usage. While referring to the nāṭaka, the deed interestingly calls it āryak-kūttu, from which it is clear that the cākkiyārs were enacting āryak-kūttu in temples of Tamiḻnāṭu and that they formed part of village assembly is established by the term namūr cākkai kāni udaiya i.e., one who enjoys the cākkai kāni of our village. A few further points of interest, deserve notice in this record. lively controversy is now going on among Scholars, about the use of the word nṛtta, nṛtya and nāṭya, nṛtta for pure rhythmic dance, nṛitya for abhinaya and nāṭya for story sequence. This inscription makes it explicitly clear; that what was intended to be enacted in the festival was a nāṭya in seven act. Nāṭakam colli varavittu ēḻu aṅgam āda. However, the endowment is called nṛtta bhōgam obviously the term nṛtta here is employed in a general sense of dance. That the dance drama is called Āryak-kūttu also deserve notice. The Āryars were performing dance in the Tamiḻ country even from the Saṅgam age, from the beginning of the current era. A verse in Kurntokai collection refers to the vigorous beat of the paṟai drum, when the Āryas danced on a rope fastened to poles. This refers to the male members dancing on rope. The Saṅgam works like Naṟṟinai, Ahanāṉūru and Kuṟinci Pāttu, refers to dancing girls, ādumahaḷ, dancing to the accompaniment of musical instruments on ropes festened to poles. Though these dancing girls are not specifically called Ārya dancers rope dancing seems to have been associated with Āryas and was not a local form. Thus it is clear, the rope dancing was performed by both men and women. The Tamiḻ epic Cilappatikāram, refers to two kinds of dance, iruvahik-kūttu. The early commentator Arumpada Vuraiyāsiriyar - takes it to refer to dēsi and mārgi dance. Mārgi according to this author stands for vaṭugu the Northern dance. They also deal with aha-mārgam and puṟak-kūttu. The later commentator lists several combinations iruvahaik-kūttu-twin categories as (a) āryam and tamiḻ; (b) vacai and puhal; (c) vettiyal and poduviyal etc. Elaborating the form of dance called ‘cēdam’, this writer divides this form into āryam and tamiḻ naṭam. It relates to the abridgement of the original story. This is further confirmed by the enactment of the story of Tripurasamhāra of Śiva called kottic-cēdam enacted by the kūttac-cākkaiyaṉ of Paṟaiyūr. It is evident that āryak-kūttu, does not necessarily mean, only the acrobatic dance like rope dance but also included refined dance, based on Sanskrit language and lore. The inscription of Rājarāja under discussion states clearly that the nāṭaka, in seven acts performed in the temple of Tiru-ā-aṭu-turai was called āryak-kūttu. The dance drama enacted in the Tiru-ā-aṭu-turai temple in the time of Rājarāja, was āryak-kūttu, performed by a Cakkiyār. In all probability this dance drama was in Sanskrit with Tamiḻ interwoven as a Maṇiprāvaḷa. It may be mentioned that several dancers were employed by Rājarāja Cōḻā, to perform dance and also dramas in the great temple of Tanjore when he built it. Among the four players of Naṭaka-one was a Cākkiyar -named Tiru-veḷḷārai Cākkai alias Maṟaikkāṭu Gaṇapati. His name indicates that he hailed from Maṟaik-kāṭu, the modern Vēdāraṇyam in Tanjore District. This further confirms our assumption, that Sanskrit plays were enacted in great temples of Tamiḻnāṭu, in the 10th-11th century C.E by Cākkiyārs and such dramas were known as Āryak-kūttu. The Sanskrit dramas were enacted in other temples of Tamiḻnāṭu, during the Cōḻā period, is attested by two inscriptions dated in the reign of R ājēndra Cōḻā I. Both the inscriptions come from the Śivalōkanātha temple, Kīranūr, Naṉṉilam Tālūk, Tanjore District. The first one (1022 C.E.) records a gift of land to Marudūr Cākkai alias Parameśvaran Śri Kaṇṭan, for enacting dramas during festivals. He received seventy kalams of paddy annually at the rate of ten kalams per day of performance. Obviously, his dance drama lasted for seven days. The inscription also records dances performed during paḷḷi eḻucci rites (i.e., waking up daily in the morning).
The other record refers to the enactment of a cakkai-kūttu in five acts. This was also enacted during festivals. This provision was made by Kalyāṇa Madādevi the queen of Rājēndra Cōḻā I, probably in the 21st year of his reign (1033 C.E.). The mention of the dance drama as cakkai-kūttu, and the name of dancer as marudūr-cakkai, deserve special attention. From the inscription of Rājarāja I discussed earlier, it is seen that the dance drama enacted by Cakkaiyār was called āryak-kuttu. This indicates that Sanskrit dramas enacted in the temples of Tamiḻnāṭu were called āryak-kuttu or cakkai-kūttu and that they were enacted by Cakkaiyār dancers. The cākkiyār-kūttu now considered an exclusive Kerala form of dance (from which the Kathakaḷi is derived) was prevalent in Tamiḻnāṭu, from the Saṅgam age to the mediaeval times.
33.2. Āryak-kūttu at Tiru-viṭai-marudūr Tiru-viṭai-marudūr near Kumbhakōṇam, Tanjore district, is a famous Śiva-kṣetra. The temple of Śiva as Mahāliṅgaswāmi is sung by Tēvāram saints and has been in continuous worship from around the 6th century if not earlier. This part was under the control of Pallavas from the middle of 6th cent. An incomplete inscription found on the main wall, now completely lost, dated in the Kali era 4083, equal to the 13th regnal year of the Cōḻā, Parakesari Uttama Cōḻā, refers to Kañcanūr a nearby village, in the then Nallāṟṟūr-nāṭu. Kañcanūr was also called Simhaviṣṇu-caturvedi-maṅgalam. The inscription was left incomplete. However, the record is important for it furnishes two historic facts that Kañcanūr was also called Simhaviṣṇu-caturvedi-maṅgalam named after Mahendra Pallava’s father, who ruled in the middle 6th century, which is in the heart of the Cōḻā country and was firmly under the Pallavas then. This is corroborated by the Paḷḷaṉ-kōyil copper plate of Simha-varmaṉ, the father of Simhaviṣṇu in whose plate, Simhaviṣṇu is credited with the conquest of lands up to the banks of Kāvēri. It seems Palaiyaṟai became the capital of the Pallavas in the Cōḻā country. It is of interest to note that Mahendra Pallava I (590-630 CE) is also associated with this region is seen from this inscription. It is important to mention Mahendra was a contemporary of the Śaiva saint Apparswāmikaḷ who sang delightful Tēvāram. His younger contemporary was Jñāṉasambandar who spread Tamiḻ through Tēvāram music. Mahendra himself was a great lover of music and dance he created a new rāgā called Saṅkīrnajāti. And also two outstanding dance dramas in Sanskrit named Mattavilāsa-prahasana and Bhagavad-ajjuga both were to be enacted in temples as offerings on festivals. Both were intended for āryak-kūttu. The Mattavilāsa-prahasana by him is enacted till date in Kerala temples by a group of dancers called Cākkaiyārs and that they enact only āryak-kūttu to this day. This tradition has been very much alive in the 6th cent onwards The earliest record found in the temple was that of Pallava ruler Nandivarman II (SII III). Nandivarman’s activity in this region near Kumbhakōṇam is found in Nāthan kōil (Palaiyaṟai) which itself was called “Nandipuram”, after the king. It is not unlikely that that another Pallava king is also referred to in this region. He was the victor of Teḷḷāru, who was the father of Aparājita Pallava who had the title Rājamārtānda. Nandi III, his father, himself had the title “Kumāramārtāndan” who gifted 65 kaḷañcu of gold for burning a perpetual lamp. This record was originally reorded on a stone slab. This temple was rebuilt in the time of 4th year of Parāntaka Cōḻā early in his reign -910 CE. During that reconstruction, a copy of the record was made, and the stone was used for the foundation. So, when the temple was reconstructed the merchant guild of Tiru-viṭai-marudūr, the village sabhā of Tiraimūr, the temple priests, the Administrator of the temple, and the temple accountant, who were to examine the affairs of the temple, found that the stone on which the original record of Nandi was engraved was used as a foundation stone and that a copy of the same made before such a use. They then ordered that the record should be re-engraved on the stone wall after reconstruction. The record says the Administrators met in the “Nāṭakasālai” of the temple of Tiru-viṭai-marudūr. It is an illustrious example of care and scrutiny of ancient records of the temple which were copied and re-engraved in temples. The record also shows that the temple has attracted the attention of the Pallava rulers from the 6th to 9th century. This record shows that there was a regular Nāṭakasālai in the temple of Tiru-viṭai-marudūr where some of the transactions regarding the administration of the temple was deliberated. There are two records of the time of Āditta Karikāla, the elder brother of Rājarāja I. who conquered the Pāṇḍyā and assumed the title of Parakesari, who captured the head of the Pāṇḍyā – “Pāndyani-talaikoṇḍa Kō-parkesari”. Both the records are dated in his 4th regnal year. The first record registers the provisions for enacting Sanskrit drama in the temple mentioned as “Āryak-kūttu” in the record. The endowment was examined by the Official Śri-raṅgaṉ-udaiyān Parāntaka-mūvēndavelān, a high ranking Royal Officer mentioned as “Koyilnāyakam”, the village assembly of Tiraimūr, the merchant guild of Tiru-viṭai-marudūr, and the temple attendants who met in dance hall, nāṭakasālai, of the temple and deliberated the endowment. The royal order stipulated that proper apportionment for the enactment of Āryak-kūttu by Kīrti-maṟaik-kādaṉ alias Tiru-veḷḷaraic-cakkai, for which purpose one vēli of land including pādukkai-cēri-paṭṭu in the land of Vilāṅgkudi, a temple land, a devatāna, for that purpose. The said dancer should perform the dance drama from the succeeding year onwards, one dance drama performance on taip-pūsam festival and after the day of tīrtavāri, immersion festival perform drama for three days. He should also perform the dance drama in the vaikāsi tiruvātirai festival starting from the next day of the festival. He should perform these seven performances in the dance hall, nāṭakasālai where they met. He was entitled to receive 14 kalams of paddy for these performances from the temple treasury for his troupe. If he does not receive this paddy from the temple treasury, he should be paid double that quantity. The inscription is left unfinished beyond this point. This record is an illustrious endowment showing the king’s involvement in maintaining a dance festival called in the record as Āryak-kūttu in the temple and arranging a perpetual endowment for the same. The service was to be conducted by the village assembly, the temple priests, the merchant guild, and royal officers, with the stipulation that failure should be compensated by paying double the amount allotted. The performance was to be done for seven days in a year from a particular day of festivals and the point that deserves to be noted was that the artist was called Cākkai. Cākkais are the Cākkiyārs who perform to this day Sanskrit dramas in Kerala temples. As this tradition has survived only in Kerala it is generally believed that this art is exclusive to Kerala but it was popular in different parts of Tamiḻnāṭu as evidenced in inscriptions. Also please note that Sanskrit was an active living language in Tamiḻnāṭu. An inscription in the great temple of Tanjore shows Sanskrit drama was being enacted in Tanjore as well under the Cōḻā. Another point of interest is temples in Tamiḻnāṭu had Nāṭakasālais where dramas were enacted and that they formed part of temple complex. ( South Indian Inscriptions Vol III, no 202) A new service was started in the temple of Tiru-viṭai-marudūr creating an enactment for singing the Tirup-padiayams and also arranging for the dancing girls of the temple to sing in the 9th year of Vikrama Cōḻā, the son of Kulōttuṅga II. The service was called “Bānap-pēru” (Bāṇap-paṇi) This was a royal appointment issued by Vikrama Cōḻā and a certain Irumuṭi Cōḻaṉ alias Acancala Perarāiayaṉ was appointed to do the service. He was already singing in the temple and this new service was added to the existing one. He was to get paddy and kāsu in addition to his earlier pay. The record states that he was to sing in the presence of God of the Tiru-viṭai-marudūr temple and direct other Bāṇas for arranging the dancing girls to sing (tiru-viṭai-marudur - udaiyārukku - pādavum, ikkoyil taḷiyilārai pāduvikkavum ikkoyil tevaraṭiyārai pāduvikkavum bāṇapperāka). The Bāṇas were great singers from the Saṅgam age and we find the Bāṇas, Yāḻpāṇa was a close friend of Jñāṉa-sambandar and again we find the Bāṇas were appointed in the Great temple of Thanjavūr. According to this inscription the service should be added to the temple service and the Bāṇa should be paid one kalam of paddy per day to the Pērariayaṉ for singing. He should be allotted one residence as bāṇak-kuṭi-yiruppu as before. It is also interesting to note that there were different classes of dancing girls serving in the temple a) Taḷiyilār and b) Tēvaradiārs. The order which conferred the service in perpetuity on this singer and his descendants was to be documented and recorded on the stone wall of the temple. As it was the direct order of the king, a number of royal officers had signed the document. The record also gives the names of the Chief priest of the Tiru-viṭai-marudūr temple at that time as Tiru-ciṟṟambalap-bhaṭṭaṉ, the chief accountant of the temples as Kuṇḍaiyūr Kiḻavaṉ, and the Chief Administrator as mūlankuṭaiyāṉ and the maintainer of the streets (Tiruvīti) as Anbukkarasu. We find such a post to maintain the streets was existing at that time. Further, the records mention two classes of Women singers (dancing girls) named Taḷiyilār and Tēvaradiārs and they are mentioned in later inscriptions as well. It may be mentioned that Taḷiyilār claimed superiority in caste hierarchy and probably married and lived with one person as in the case of Paṟavai the dancing of Tiruvārūr who married Saint Sundaramūrti-nāyaṉar in 8th century. She belonged to Taḷiyilār family. It is interesting to note that the singing service is called paṇap-pēru.
