As already said, the Nambūtiris are for the most part landholders, or of that class. They are also temple priests. The rich have their own temples, on which they spend much money. All over Malabar there are to be seen Pattar Brāhmans, wandering here and there, fed free at the illams of rich Nambūtiris, or at the various kōvilakams and temples. And they are always to be found at important ceremonial functions, marriage or the like, which they attend uninvited, and receive a small money present (dakshina). But the Nambūtiri never goes anywhere, unless invited. From what I have seen, the presents to Brāhmans on these occasions are usually given on the following scale:—eight annas to each Nambūtiri, six annas to each Embrāntiri, four annas to each Pattar Brāhman. The Nambūtiri is sometimes a money-lender.
Of the two divisions, Nambūtiri and Nambūtiripād, the latter are supposed to be stricter, and to rank higher than the former. Pād, meaning power or authority, is often used to all Nambūtiris when addressing them. Thus, some who are called Nambūtiripāds may really be Nambūtiris. It may not be strictly correct to divide the Nambūtiris thus, for neither so-called division is separated from the other by interdiction of marriage. The class distinctions are more properly denoted the Ādhyan and Asyan, of which the former is the higher. An Ādhyan is never a priest; he is a being above even such functions as are sacerdotal in the temple. But there are also divisions according to the number of yāgams or sacrifices performed by individuals, thus:—Sōmatiri or Sōmayāji, Akkitiri or Agnihōtri, and Adittiri. A man may reach the first stage of these three, and become an Addittiripād by going through a certain ceremony. At this, three Nambūtiri Vaidikars, or men well versed in the Vēdas, must officiate. A square pit is made. Fire raised by friction between two pieces of pīpal (Ficus religiosa) wood with a little cotton is placed in it. This fire is called aupāsana. The ceremony cannot be performed until after marriage. It is only those belonging to certain gōtras who may perform yāgams, and, by so doing, acquire the three personal distinctions already named. Again, there are other divisions according to professions. Thus it is noted, in the Cochin Census Report, 1901, that “the Ādhyans are to study the Vēdas and Sāstras; they are prohibited from taking parānnam (literally meals belonging to another), from taking part in the funeral ceremonies of others, and from receiving presents. Those who perform the sacrifice of adhana are known as Aditiris, those who perform some yāga are called Somayagis or Chomatiris, while those who perform agni are called Agnihotris or Akkitiris. Only married men are qualified to perform the sacrifices. The Nāyar is an indispensable factor in the performance of these sacrifices. The Bhattatiris are to study and teach the Sāstras; the Orthikans are to teach the Vēdas, and to officiate as family priests. The Vādhyans are to teach the Vēdas, and to supervise the moral conduct of their pupils. The Vydikans are the highest authority to decide what does or does not constitute violation of caste rules, and to prescribe expiatory ceremonies. The Smarthas are to study the Smritis and other Sāstras relating to customs, with the special object of qualifying themselves to preside over caste panchāyats, or courts, and to investigate, under the orders of the sovereign, cases of conjugal infidelity arising among the Nambūtiris. The rulers of Cochin and Travancore issue the writs convening the committee in the case of offences committed within their territory. The Zamorin of Calicut, and other Chiefs or Rājas, also continue to exercise the privilege of issuing such orders in regard to cases occurring in Malabar. The Tantris officiate as high priests in temples. They also practice exorcism. There are Ādhyans among this class also. Having received weapons from Parasu Rāma and practiced the art of war, the Sastrangakars are treated as somewhat degraded Brāhmans. They are prohibited from studying the Vēdas, but are entitled to muthalmura, that is, reading the Vēdas, or hearing them recited once. Having had to devote their time and energy to the practice of the art of war, they could not possibly spend their time in the study of the Vēdas. The Vaidyans or physicians, known as Mūssads, are to study the medical science, and to practice the same. As the profession of a doctor necessitates the performance of surgical operations entailing the shedding of blood, the Mūssads are also considered as slightly degraded. They too are entitled only to muthalmura. Of these, there are eight families, known as Ashta Vaidyans. The Grāmanis are alleged to have suffered degradation by reason of their having, at the command of Parasu Rāma, undertaken the onerous duties of protecting the Brāhman villages, and having had, as Rakshapurushas or protectors, to discharge the functions assigned to Kshatriyas. Ooril Parisha Mūssads are supposed to have undergone degradation on account of their having accepted from Parasu Rāma the accumulated sin of having killed the warrior Kshatriyas thrice seven times, along with immense gifts in the shape of landed estates. They are not allowed to read the Vēdas even once.”
“There are,” Mr. Subramani Aiyar writes, “five sub-divisions among the Nambūtiris, which may be referred to:—
(1) Tampurakkal.—This is a corruption of the Sanskrit name Samrāt, and has probable reference to temporal as much as to secular sovereignty. Of the two Tampurakkal families in South Malabar, Kalpancheri and Azhvancheri, the latter alone now remains. As spiritual Samrāts (sovereigns) they are entitled to (1) bhadrāsanam, or the highest position in an assembly, (2) brahmavarchasa, or authority in Vēdic lore, and consequent sanctity, (3) brahmasamrāgyam, or lordship over Brāhmans, (4) sarvamanyam, or universal acknowledgment of reverence. Once in six years, the Azhvancheri Tampurakkal is invited by the Mahārāja of Travancore, who accords him the highest honours, and pays him the homage of a sāshtānganamaskāram, or prostration obeisance. Even now, the Samrāts form a saintly class in all Malabar. Though considered higher than all other sub-divisions of Nambūtiris, they form, with the Ādhyas, an endogamous community.
(2) Ādhyas.—They form eight families, called Ashtādhyas, and are said by tradition to be descended from the eight sons of a great Brāhman sage, who lived on the banks of the river Krishna. The fund of accumulated spirituality inherited from remote ancestors is considered to be so large that sacrifices (yāgas), as well as vanaprastha and sanyāsa (the two last stages of the Brāhman’s life), are reckoned as being supererogatory for even the last in descent. They are, however, very strict in the observance of religious ordinances, and constantly engage themselves in the reverent study of Hindu scriptures. The Tantris are Ādhyas with temple administration as their specialised function. They are the constituted gurus of the temple priests, and are the final authorities in all matters of temple ritual.
(3) Visishta.—These are of two classes, Agnihōtris and Bhattatiris. The former are the ritualists, and are of three kinds:—(1) Akkittiris, who have performed the agnichayanayāga, (2) Adittiris, who have done the ceremony of agniadhana, (3) Chomatiris, who have performed the soma sacrifice. The Bhattatiris are the philosophers, and are, in a spirit of judicious economy, which is the characteristic feature of all early caste proscriptions, actually prohibited from trenching on the province of the Agnihōtris. They study tarkka (logic), vēdānta (religious philosophy or theology), vyākarana (grammar), mīmāmsa (ritualism), bhatta, from which they receive their name, and prabhākara, which are the six sciences of the early Nambūtiris. They were the great religious teachers of Malabar, and always had a large number of disciples about them. Under this head come the Vādyars or heads of Vēdic schools, of which there are two, one at Trichūr in Cochin, and the other at Tirunavai in British Malabar; the six Vaidikas or expounders of the caste canons, and the Smartas, who preside at the smartavichārams or socio-moral tribunals of Brāhmanical Malabar.
(4) Sāmānyas.—They form the Nambūtiri proletariat, from whom the study of the Vēdas is all that is expected. They take up the study of mantravāda (mystic enchantment), pūja (temple ritual), and reciting the sacred accounts of the Avatāra and astrology.
(5) Jātimatras.—The eight leading physician families of Malabar, or Ashta Vaidyas, are, by an inexcusable misuse of language, called Gatimatras or nominal Nambūtiris. The class of Nambūtiris called Yatrakalikkar (a corruption of Sastrakalikkar) also comes under this head. They are believed to be the Brāhmans, who accepted the profession of arms from their great founder. Those that actually received the territory from the hands of Parasu Rāma, called Grāmani Nambūtiris or Grāmani Ādhyas, are also Gatimatras. They were the virtual sovereigns of their respective lands. The physicians, the soldiers, and the landed kings, having other duties to perform, were not able to devote all their time to Vēdic recitations. The mutalmūrā or first study was, of course, gone through. In course of time, this fact was unfortunately taken by the religious conscience of the people to lower the Brāhmans who were deputed under the scheme of Parasu Rāma for special functions in the service of the nation in the scale of Nambūtiri society, and to mean a formal prohibition as of men unworthy to be engaged in Vēdic study.
Papagrastas are Nambūtiris, who are supposed to have questioned the divine nature of Parasu Rāma, The Urilparisha Mussus, who too are Brāhmans who received gifts of land from Parasu Rāma, the Nambitis, the Panniyūr Grāmakkar, and the Payyanūr Grāmakkar or the Ammuvans (uncles), so called from their matriarchal system of inheritance, form other sections of Nambūtiris.”
It is recorded, in the Cochin Census Report, 1901, that “certain special privileges in regard to the performance of religious rites and other matters of a purely social nature serve as the best basis for a sub-division of the Nambūtiris in the order of social precedence as recognised amongst themselves. For this purpose, the privileges may be grouped under two main classes, as given in the following mnemonic formula:—