South-Indian Images of Gods and Goddesses c11.s2.1

c11.s2.1

Worship of the deities. The worship in the shrines of village goddesses is generally performed by non-Brahmans. In the Chingleput and North Arcot districts are a class of priests known as Ōchchans¹ who are exclusively devoted to service in Pidāri temples. They say that they are Brāhmanas of the Sākta creed and perform the worship according to the *Tāntrik* ritual. Sometimes, but very rarely, Brāhmanas also worship these fearful goddesses installed even within the sacred precincts of orthodox temples.² For example, Vattapirai-amman, “the mother who wears the circular crescent (on her head)” at Tiruvottiyūr near Madras, is a goddess of this kind to whom animal sacrifices are offered on fixed days in the year. On such occasions it is stated that the Sūdra priest takes the place of the usual Brāhmana and an entrance opening directly into the outer courtyard of the temple—kept closed on other days of the year—is now thrown open for the goddess to receive animal sacrifices and worship from her Sūdra or other devotees. After the annual festival is over, the goddess is purified. The buffalo sacrifices, which these village deities are generally fond of, indicate their connexion with Mahishāsuramardini, the slayer of the buffalo-demon and with other similar *Tāntrik* goddesses mentioned above.