Tying the Universe

This contribution aims at giving an account for the complexity of Kūṭiyāṭṭam, which brings together elements coming from different traditions. In particular, there are possible parallels between these structures of Kūṭiyāṭṭam and Vedic rites: Kūṭiyāṭṭam has developed over centuries in Kerala’s orthodox temples and thus is strongly influenced by its Brahmanic patrons who, apart from that, still attend and preserve Vedic traditions. Similarly, Kūṭiyāṭṭam is strongly permeated by a ritual attitude: in the past it was considered the kuladharma (‘family duty’) of specific groups (Cākyārs, Naṅṅyārs, Nampyārs) and had its fixed time and place in the temple. Thus, this contribution examines possible bidirectional influences between these two traditions as they can be seen especially in Mantrāṅkam. Furthermore, it exemplifies the methodological issue of overlapping boundaries linking ‘ritual’ and ‘theatre’.