The living Gods of the Teyyam

On the borders of Kerala and Karnataka, the age-old ritual of the Teyyamstages the gods coming down amongst Man in an incredible profusion ofcolours and finery. An encounter with a living myth, religion andchoreography passed down through history.

A Photo story by Christophe Boisvieux / LightMediation

2589-33: FIGHT OF TEYYAMS BALI AND SUGRIVA, ANDALUR TEMPLE, DHARMADAM, KERALA, INDIA

Contact - Thierry Tinacci - LightMediation Photo Agency - +33 (0)6 61 80 57 21 email: thierry@ligthtmediation.com

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-01: ARRIVAL OF TEYYAM VISHNUMURTI ESCORTED BY HISSERVANTS, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-02: ARRIVAL OF TEYYAM VISHNUMURTI ESCORTED BY HISSERVANTS, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-03:TEYYAM BHAGAVATHI, ANDALUR TEMPLE, DHARMADAM, KERALA, INDIA / India / DHARMADAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-04: DANCE OF TEYYAM GULIKAN, PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE,KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / India / DHARMADAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-05: TEYYAM VISHNUMURTI IN A TRANCE, KANNANKANDYBHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / India /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-06: PREPARATIONOF THE TEYYAM OFFERINGS, KANNANKANDYBHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-07: FIBER PALM HEADDRESS DESIGNED FOR TEYYAM GULIKAN,KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-08: APPLICATION OF MAKE UP TO TEYYAM RAKTHA CHAMUNDI,KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

2589-08: APPLICATION OF MAKE UP TO TEYYAM RAKTHA CHAMUNDI, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-09: TEYYAM GULIKAN SURROUNDED WITH SERVANTS,PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-10: TEYYAM ACTOR, (GODDESS VISHNUMURTHI), KANNANKANDYBHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-11: THE DRESSING OF TEYYAM GULIKAN, KANNANKANDYBHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-12: APPLICATION OF MAKE UP TO TEYYAM GULIKAN,KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-13: THE DRESSING OF TEYYAM NILIYAR BHAGAVATHI, SRIMANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-14: APPLICATION OF MAKE UP TO TEYYAM VISHNUMURTHI,KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

2589-15: TEYYAM GULIKAN LEAVING THE PALM HUT WHERE MAKE UP AND DRESSING TAKEPLACE, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-16: TEYYAM GULIKAN RECITING THE MYTH OF THE GOD HE ISENACTING, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-17: TEYYAM NILIYAR BHAGAVATHI TOURING THE SACREDGROUNDS OF THE KAVU, SRI MANDOTHUKAVU

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-18: TEYYAM NILIYAR BHAGAVATHI, SRI MANDOTHUKAVUTEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-19: TEYYAM GULIKAN PUTTING ON HIS MASK, THUS BECOMINGA GOD, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-20: TEYYAM ELLADATHI BHAGAVATHI, THAYILEKAVU TEMPLE,KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-21: TEYYAM DRUMS, SRI MANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNURREGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-22: ARRIVAL OF TEYYAM SUGRIVA, ANDALUR TEMPLE,DHARMADAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / DHARMADAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-23: TEYYAM KARANAVAN RECITING THE MYTH OF THE ANCESTOR HE IS ENACTING, THAYILEKAVU TEMPLE, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-24: ARRIVAL OF TEYYAM DHARMA DEVAM, ANDALUR TEMPLE,DHARMADAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

2589-44: TEYYAM GULIKAN COMFORTING A PRIEST, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-25: TEYYAM PALI VETAKORUMAKAN TOURING THE SACREDGROUNDS OF SRI MANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-26: TEYYAM PALI VETAKORUMAKAN BREAKING A COCONUT INFRONT OF THE KAVU'S ALTAR, SRI MANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-27: TEYYAM VAYANATTU KULAVAN, SRI MANDOTHUKAVUTEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-28: TRANCE OF TEYYAM VISHNUMURTI, KANNANKANDYBHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-29: TEYYAM GULIKAN CARRYING A HUGE PALM LEAFHEADDRESS, PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-30: TEYYAM GULIKAN BOWING TO THE SHRINE, PALLIPRAMKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-31: DANCE OF TEYYAM GULIKAN, PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE,KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-32: DANCE OF TEYYAM ELLADATHI BHAGAVATHI, THAYILEKAVUTEMPLE, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

2589-01: ARRIVAL OF TEYYAM VISHNUMURTI ESCORTED BY HIS SERVANTS, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-33: FIGHT OF TEYYAMS BALI AND SUGRIVA, ANDALUR TEMPLE,DHARMADAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / DHARMADAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-34: DANCE OF TEYYAM NILIYAR BHAGAVATHI, SRIMANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-35: DANCE OF TEYYAM GULIKAN, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHITEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-36: TEYYAMS VISHNUMURTI AND RAKTHA CHAMUNDI,KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-37: TEYYAMS GULIKAN AND PUTHIYA BHAGAVATHI, PALLIPRAMKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-38: OFFERING OF FRUITS AND INCENSE TO THE TEMPLE OFANDALUR, DHARMADAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / DHARMADAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-39: OFFERING OF BETEL LEAVES TO THE TEYYAM DHARMADEVAM, ANDALUR TEMPLE, DHARMADAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / DHARMADAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-40: TEYYAM GULIKAN FACING THE SACRED FIRE, PALLIPRAMKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

2589-05: TEYYAM VISHNUMURTI IN A TRANCE, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-41: TEYYAM VISHNUMURTI BLESSING THE TEMPLE SERVANTS,KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-42: CONSULTATION OF TEYYAM PALI VETAKORUMAKAN, SRIMANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-43: TEYYAM BHAGAVATHI, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHITEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-44: TEYYAM GULIKAN COMFORTING A PRIEST, KANNANKANDYBHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-45: TEYYAMS VELLATAM AND RAKTHA CHAMUNDI,KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-46: TEYYAM RAKTHA CHAMUNDI, KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHITEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-47: CONSULTATION OF TEYYAM RAKTHA CHAMUNDI,KANNANKANDY BHAGAVATHI TEMPLE, KANJANGAD REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-48: TEYYAM ELLADATHI BHAGAVATHI, THAYILEKAVU TEMPLE,KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

2589-60: POTTAN TEYYAM LYING ON A PYRE, PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-49: TEYYAM CHILD ACTING AS A VACCINE AGAINSTCHICKENPOX, ANDALUR TEMPLE, DHARMADAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-50: TEYYAM GULIKAN, PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR,KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-51: TEMPLE PRIEST, ANDALUR TEMPLE, DHARMADAM, KERALA,INDIA / INDIA / DHARMADAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-52: THE TEYYAM DRUMS IN FRONT OF THE SHRINE, SRIMANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-53: AS IN MANY KAVUS NO IDOLS CAN BE FOUND. SACREDWEAPONS ARE WORSHIPPED INSTEAD / INDIA / KANNUR

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-54: DANCE OF TEYYAM VAYANATTU KULAVAN, THE OLD MAN OFTHE MOUNTAIN, VALIYANUR KOLOT KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-55: DANCE OF TEYYAM VAYANATTU KULAVAN, THE OLD MAN OFTHE MOUNTAIN, VALIYANUR KOLOT KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-56: TEYYAM PUTHIYA BHAGAVATHI, "MASTER OF FIRE",PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

2589-18: TEYYAM NILIYAR BHAGAVATHI, SRI MANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-57: TEYYAM PUTHIYA BHAGAVATHI TOURING THE SHRINE,PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-58: TEYYAM PUTHIYA BHAGAVATHI TOURING THE SHRINE,PALLIPRAM KAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA /

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-59: POTTAN TEYYAM SITTING ON A PYRE, PALLIPRAM KAVUTEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

2589-65: TEYYAM THI CHAMUNDI SURROUNDED BY DEVOTEES, VISHNUMURTI BALAGOKULAMTEMPLE, NILESHWARAM, KERALA, INDIA

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-61: POTTAN TEYYAM LYING ON A PYRE, PALLIPRAM KAVUTEMPLE, KANNUR, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / KANNUR

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-62: TEYYAM THI CHAMUNDI PUTTING ON A FIBER PALM DRESS,VISHNUMURTI BALAGOKULAM TEMPLE, NILESHWARAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / NILESHWARAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-63: TEYYAM THI CHAMUNDI THROWN ON A PYRE, VISHNUMURTIBALAGOKULAM TEMPLE, NILESHWARAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / NILESHWARAM

The living gods of Teyyam / 2589-64: TEYYAM THI CHAMUNDI ON FIRE, VISHNUMURTIBALAGOKULAM TEMPLE, NILESHWARAM, KERALA, INDIA / INDIA / NILESHWARAM

2589-26: TEYYAM PALI VETAKORUMAKAN BREAKING A COCONUT IN FRONT OF THE KAVU'S ALTAR, SRI MANDOTHUKAVU TEMPLE, KANNUR REGION, KERALA, INDIA

The living Godsof the Teyyam

The car jolts about as it labours along thetrail full of potholes. Its headlamps piercethe black night that envelops, sinceseveral hours ago, the dense labyrinth ofthe coconut grove, a vegetal ocean whereyou quickly lose your bearings. With onelast splutter, it stops by a clearing lit by anarsenal of neon lights perched in thetrees. Across from a modest shrine andcrowd of villagers stands a figure with afearsome appearance, dressed andmade-up in red. He sports a heavyheaddress, a false beard, silvery eyes thatflash in the light from the torches. Heincarnates Vayanattu Kulavan, "the oldman of the mountain", a deified herowhose origins have got lost in the mists oftime. This ancestral figure is one of the300 Teyyams that the villagers of thenorthern coast of Malabar venerate. FromNovember to May, during the dry season,these divinities appear each day in themost diverse forms in the sacred space ofthe kavu, little forest temples built in theheart of the coconut grove. The ancient mother goddess, commonlycalled here Bhagavati, is the central figurepar excellence, but many Teyyams alsorepresent the later gods of the Hindupantheon and the deified heroes,ancestors, animals and trees.Paradoxically, it is exclusively theuntouchables who playact theseextraordinary living gods. Roles arereversed the time of the performance: thepariah becomes a god and sometimesgoes as far as blessing the Brahman! Butthis revolutionary inversion is only possibleafter a long and learned process. The

actors of the Teyyam first patientlyundergo an hours long make-up session.Three fundamental colours, red, yellowand black, are artfully applied with the aidof a paintbrush shaped out of a thin stalkfrom a coconut palm. This ever-presenttree abundantly furnishes the primematerials for the costumes and theofferings. Smoothed out in concentriccircles or skillfully braided, vertically or intothe arc of a circle, its leaves serve astiaras or monumental headwear and formaround the Teyyam a vegetal halo. Somany accessories shamelesslyabandoned at the end of the ceremony:the Teyyam remains an ephemeral art... Partially dressed and made up, theofficiant comes on stage for a first time tosing a Tottam, a chant invoking the divinitythat he is getting ready to incarnate. Whilehe recounts, to the haunting rhythm of thedrum, his myth and legend, the divine littleby little takes possession of him. Soon, hisvoice changes, his eyes roll upwards, hisrespiration becomes gasping. He letshimself drop heavily onto a stool to aringing din before executing one last briefdance, the Vellatam, an abridged previewof what will soon follow. He finally goesback to his leafy dressing room only toreappear a moment later in full glory,entirely made up and adorned. They put adiadem, headdress or mask on him tofinish establishing the divinity in his body.He then contemplates his image in amirror and loses at that moment itselfconsciousness of his previous identity tofully become the god. Firmly held up bytwo assistants devoted to symbolicallystopping any of the divine energy fromescaping, he goes around the templethree times, bowing in front of each altar.The dance can then begin to an incrediblebeating of the drums. Whirling around fora long time, the Teyyam progressivelyexhibits ascendancy over the sanctuary,

jumps about in all directions and giveshimself over to audacious capers,oblivious to the overwhelming heat andthe weight of his headdress. He finally sitsdown, out of breath, in a seat in the cornerof the sanctuary to be fully available to all.He speaks to the faithful like a father to hischildren, answers question, pronouncesjudgments, arbitrates disputes. The wholecommunity forms one body around himand assimilates him: the dream of a goddescended amongst his people has cometrue... For the most part, the local population hasremained profoundly attached to thisprivileged dialogue with their gods, heroesand ancestors. Some Teyyams havecertainly been used by the Brahmans tooppress and keep under their thumb thelower classes worried about thevengeance of the gods. But most of theTeyyams have also contested theestablished order, denounced, behind themask of the divinity, the misdeeds of abad government and comforted andprotected the unfortunate. To a recentlymarried woman anxious to be have achild, the Teyyam Vishnumurti answered,"Don't worry, I will take care of you. Likethe waves in the sea, I will always be withyou". Incarnation of the god Vishnu in the formof a lion man, he is also one of the manyTeyyams who can permit one to win theirclaim in the case of a dispute. In effect,each god distinguishes itself through itspowers and attributions. Some protect thelivestock, curing or preventing diseases;others bring prosperity and fertility. That isthe case for the all-powerful mothergoddesses like Niliyar Bhagavati, dressedin an immense 6 meter hat, or PuthiyaBhagavati, a veritable living flame,surrounded by and wearing on her head acircle of incandescent torches. Finally,others keep evil forces away from the

community with the help of their magicpowers. There is Rakhta Chamundi, theterrible drinker of blood who feasts on theflesh of demons, and also Gulikan, arepresentative of Yama, the god of death,who appears in each Teyyam, or nearly,as a leitmotiv. In charge of bringing thedead to the great beyond, this amazingfunereal clown made-up with rice powderand dressed in a skirt of coconut fibers isfamous for his many capers: he awakes adozing spectator with a start or chases aherd of laughing children who scatter likea flock of sparrows! His make-up and hiscostume, both very simple, are practicallyidentical to that of his twin brother, thePottan Teyyam or Teyyam "idiot", withpowers reputed to be supernatural. Thislatter, like the former, wears a headdressof braided leaves and a red and whitecardboard mask with hypnotic graphics.But the comparison stops there. Theperformances of the Pottan Teyyam areinfinitely more complex and longer. HisTottam, which on its own can last fivehours, forcefully denounces the perversionof the caste system. The god Shiva takeshere the form of an Untouchable to defythe famous sage and Brahman,Shankaracharya. He refuses to step asidefor the Brahman and orders him to tell "thedifference between the color of aBrahman's blood and his own... betweenthe reflection of the moon in a pot made ofearth and in a pot made of gold".Overwhelmed the sage prostrates himselfbefore him whom recognizes as his Lord.In another version, the God/Untouchable,thrown upon a pyre, is miraculouslyspared from the flames, thus showing thesage his errors. But here, the Teyyamdoes not content itself with recounting amyth. He puts actions to words and liesfully down on a blazing fire! A shiver runsthrough the audience; the flames quicklylick at his fiber garments, giving out thick

smoke. The fire's bite becomes stronger and stronger, but he seemsinsensitive to it and laughingly complains about the cold! Supreme, hecasually mocks the flames, revealing to the world his divine nature andexalting fraternity amongst Man...