8o Wilber Theodore Elmore 



In the Madura temple^ is a combination of Siva, Vishnu, and 

 Dravidian worship. The original god was called Chokkalingam, 

 and from his name and attributes we may judge that at first he 

 was one of the local demons. The Brahmans, not wishing to 

 antagonize so important a deity, adopted him into their pantheon, 

 giving him the honor of being an incarnation of Siva. 



But there was another powerful local deity, a goddess, who was 

 much more feared by the people than was Chokkalinam, as a 

 Sakti is always more terrible than a male god. Her name was 

 Minakshi.* The Brahmans wished to attach this powerful cult 

 also, and accomphshed it by arranging a marriage between Min- 

 akshi and Chokkalingam, now called Siva. 



In memory of this marriage there is a great annual celebration 

 at which often as many as one hundred and fifty thousand people 

 are present. At this celebration the marriage ceremonies are 

 again performed, but they are never completed. While the cere- 

 monies are proceeding, every year without fail some one sneezes 

 at the right moment, and as a sneeze at such a time is most in- 

 auspicious, the marriage is declared off for another year. As the 

 revenues of the festival are very large, the real motive of this 

 postponement is to make certain that the festival will be repeated 

 the next year. The sneezing stops the marriage ceremony, but 

 does not stop the drawing of the idol cars and the other excite- 

 ments of the festival. 



Another curious feature of the festival deserves to be recorded. 

 The powerful king, Tirumala Naik, who reigned in Madura two 

 and a half centuries ago, and who built the great palace and 

 much of the temple there, was not a Saivate, but a Vaishnava 

 who also worshiped Minakshi. He devised a plan by which the 

 Saivite and Vaishnava sects should be brought together and at 

 least made to fraternize. 



Twelve miles to the north was the temple of the Vaishnava 

 god, Algar, who had himself been a Dravidian god, the local 

 demon of the thief caste, before being adopted into Hinduism. 



8 This is the third largest temple in the world. It covers thirteen acres. 



9 Minakshi was originally a powerful Pandian queen. After her death 

 she was deified and worshiped by her subjects. 



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