Anaacaaras of the Kerala Brahmins

[Asko Parpola]

Dear Madhav, 

        There are several -- only partly overlapping -- lists of the 64
anaacaaras of the Kerala Brahmins, the oldest and best known being
included in the S'ânkara-Smrti. My wife has focused on these rules and
studied how far they still apply in Kerala, and I have edited and
translated the original text of this passage of the S'ânkara-Smrti and
its Malayalam commentary in the appendices of her book:

Parpola, Marjatta, 2000.  Kerala Brahmins in Transition: A Study of a
Nampûtiri Family. (Studia Orientalia, 91.) Helsinki: The Finnish
Oriental Society. xii, 436 pp., 55 ill., bibl., index. Pb 34 Euro. ISBN
951-9380-48-5. 

The cheapest and quickest way to get the book is to order it directly
from the distributor, the bookshop of all learned societies in Finland:

Tiedekirja
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FIN-00170 Helsinki
Finland

tel. +358-9-635177
fax +358-9-635017
e-mail: tiedekirja at tsv.fi

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be added.

With best regards,  Yours,  Asko





Madhav Deshpande wrote:
> 
> In the 17th-18th century text Vedavicaara that I am editing and
> translating, there is an interesting line explaining why the draaviDa
> brahmans of the south do not have any interaction/co-participation with the
> gurjara brahmans, though the gurjaras are technically considered to be
> draaviDas.  The text says:
> 
> gau.dadezavad gurjaradeze 'py anaacaarabaahulyaat te.saam
> aacaaryazaapa-dagdhatvaat keraladeziiyabraahma.naadivat
> samvyavahaaraabhaava.h
> 
> Like the the GauDa region, there is profusion of misbehavior (anaacaara)
> even in the Gurjara region, and hence, by being cursed by the aacaarya
> (who?), there is no dealing with them, as there is no dealing (for similar
> reasons) with brahmans from Kerala etc.
> 
> I wonder if anyone has come across this story of some aacaarya cursing the
> brahmans of Kerala and Gurjara regions for their supposed misbehavior?  I
> suppose the anaacaara in Kerala refers to the relations of brahmans with
> nayar women.  What sort of anaacaara is alleged for the Gurjara brahmans?
> 
>                                         Madhav Deshpande