How Kerala keeps its Karkkadakam rituals alive

Published 24 July 2026 · india

Karkkadakam was usually not the most desirable of months. It rained incessantly, there was sickness and scarcity, disease and death. When everything turned grey and

Karkkadakam was usually not the most desirable of months. It rained incessantly, there was sickness and scarcity, disease and death. When everything turned grey and gloomy, people devised ingenious ways to stay healthy and positive. They relied on belief and built rituals around them to help cope with the harshness of the season. While many of these rituals disappeared with time, a few still remain. Theyyam for hope In the northern regions of Kerala, from Kannur up to Kasaragod, Karkkadaka Theyyams appear, bringing with them a sense of hope and prosperity. In unrelenting rain, amid the beats of the chenda, these Theyyams arrive, singing the songs of the Gods. These are usually performed by children from the designated communities. Among the Karkkadaka Theyyams in Kasaragod region are the Aadi Galinchan, performed by the Nalkadaya community, the Karkkadothi Theyyam, performed by the Vannan community and the Aadi Vedan Theyyam performed by the Malaya community. In Kannur, Karkkadothi and Vedan and the two Theyyams that are performed during the month. Families offer rice and money to the performers. “The belief is that they remove all the negativity surrounding the season, including diseases and death and ring in a sense of positivity. The reason why children are chosen is that their innocence is believed to bring in prosperity,” says Venugopal Panikker, a former English teacher and Theyyam performer from Kanayi, near Payyannur, Kannur. It has a socio-economic aspect as well, adds Venugopal. “By May, the Theyyam season ends and and the artists have no work and means of income. This way, the families are able to tide over the difficult season,” he adds. Leave, Chetta Warding off chetta and welcoming Sheevothi is the most popular ritual, still practised in many parts of Kerala, with regional variations. On Karkkadakam eve, chetta or Jyestha Bhagavathy who stands for all things “dirty” is asked to leave and her younger sister, Sheevothi or Sree Bhagavathy who personifies prosperity, is welcomed in. The entire process resembles a performance of sorts. One of them being the practice of taking turmeric, charcoal, coconut shell, coconut fibre, broom, taro plant and soil from four corners of the house and placing them in a clay pot or a basket and discarding them while chanting ‘Chetta po...

Sheevothivaa...’. This is both a call for the bad to leave and an invocation of the good. This is prevalent in parts of Palakkad district and north Malabar. Here, on the first day of Karkkadakam, families perform Sheevothi vakkal, where a traditional lamp is lit and objects such as valkkannadi (traditional mirror) and dashapushpam (ten sacred flowers) are arranged. Holy texts are also kept, usually the Ramayana. Some even keep kajal, sindoor, turmeric, and a piece of sandal. Girls apply homemade mehndi on this day. In parts of central and southern Kerala, warding off chetta is done on the last day of Karkkadakam so as to welcome the month of Chingam, the season of harvest. “When we were young, it was the senior most member of the family who used to do this. To welcome sheevothi we light the traditional lamp kept on a palaka (wooden pooja stool). Tulsi leaves and kindi (a type of pitcher with a sprouted aperture) filled with water are also kept. Back door is kept closed to keep chetta out,” says Remadevi P, a homemaker from Thiruvananthapuram, who has her roots in Kozhikode. Alappuzha-native Rajasree Santhosh, now settled in Thiruvananthapuram, seconds this. “When you throw away the old things, you have to do that with your back turned,” Rajasree says. However, in some pockets of Thrissur, it is the youngest of the family who take out the discarded things in a clay pot placed on his head, saying ‘Pottiyum makkalum po po, Deviyum makkalum va va...’,” she says. Appeasing Kaliyan Another interesting ritual is Kaliyanu kodukkal, which is meant to appease the figure called Kaliyan, a mythical figure who is believed to ensure a good harvest. “The mango and jackfruit seasons are over by the time Karkkadakam begins. Since it is believed to be a month of scarcity and diseases owing to the rain, we exhort Kaliyan to ensure enough produce,” says young folk musician, Athul Narukara, who recently posted a Reel on his social media page about the ritual at his home at Manjeri in Malappuram district.