TAMIL NADU, INDIA, September 27, 2025 (The Federal, by Pramila Krishnan): In the quiet hamlets of Tamil Nadu, ancient Gods of the land still reign over people’s faith. Yet, the way They are worshipped is undergoing a slow but profound transformation. What were once simple village rituals involving local songs, offerings and earthy ceremonies, are now being replaced with Sanskrit mantras and Hindu temple customs, a process scholars and observers describe as the Sanskritisation of village Deities. P. Vasu, state president of the Tamil Nadu village priests’ association, recently organized a 12-day training for village priests to decorate Deities with various alankaras and to chant Sanskrit shlokas. His association has close to 100,000 priests performing pujas in various village temples. Tamil folk songs are being slowly edged out in favor of the Sanskrit slokas. This not only changes the nature of the worship but also alters the gender dynamics of the faith. They are being homogenized, claim the critics, stripped of their regional identities, and turned into another version of Shiva or Kali.

“Similar to how Deities are dressed up in big and popular temples, devotees expect the same environment in village temples. They expect us to perform special pujas and decorations for village Deities and also to chant mantras and perform an archana in their name with Sanskrit mantras. Earlier, we used to sing songs and perform rituals based on what was handed over by our ancestors. Now, we have added Sanskrit mantras also in the rituals,’’ said Vasu.

More at source.
https://thefederal.com/category/states/south/tamil-nadu/sanskritisation-tamil-nadu-village-gods-2088

Post Views: 42