Margamkali

The tradition & historical record

Margamkali (Malayalam: മാർഗ്ഗംകളി) is an ancient Indian round dance of the Saint Thomas Christian community based in the state of Kerala. The dance is mainly practised and propagated by the endogamous sub-ethnic group known as the Knanaya or Southist Christians. The Margam Kali retells the life and missionary work of Thomas the Apostle, based on the 3rd-century apocryphal Acts of Thomas. Historically different forms of the Margam Kali existed in practice among the Kerala Syrian Christians, a Saint Thomas Christian or Northist version and a Knanaya or Southist version. Historian Dr. Istvan Perczel notes that only the Knanaya version is in existence today, with its 14 stanza form written by the Knanaya priest Anjilimootil Itti Thomman in the 17th century. The prototype of Margamkali is composed of 14 stanzas (padas) which are derived from Syrian and Tamil words, and they got to be included in its composition. Until the ninth century AD., Keralam was a part of Tamilakam and the language of the Kerala region was Tamil or Middle Tamil. Gradually Malayalam came under the influence of Sanskrit and Prakrit with the spread of Aryan influence. But some scholars states that those songs are written in a language which is neither pure Malayalam of today nor the spoken Tamil of today, and this language is absolutely free of any Sanskrit terms,it might be Middle Tamil spoken in Chera Kingdom or Chentamil. ¹

There are several opinions on the potential origin of Margamkali. They are: ¹

It is traced back to Jewish wedding songs and dance from the diaspora. Scholars have found common origin among Malabar Jewish dance and songs and the dance form of Margamkali. In addition, scholars like P.M. Jussay and Dr Shalva Weil have found many similarities in the customs and rituals of Knanaya Christians and Malabar Jews. It is derived from Sangam kali, a performance dance form of Brahmins. It is derived from the Yathra Kali, a performance art of Nambudiri Brahmins in Kerala. "Margam" means path or way or solution in Malayalam, but in the religious context it is known as the path to attain salvation. The process of conversion to Christianity was known as "Margam Koodal" until recently in Kerala. Much of this folk art is woven around the mission of St. Thomas, the Apostle. The original Margam Kali describes the arrival of St. Thomas in Malabar, the miracles he performed, the friendship as well as the hostility of the people among whom he worked, the persecution he suffered, the churches and crosses he put up in various places, etc. These details are incorporated in the various stanzas of the Margam Kali songs. Kerala's Margam Kali is an important element in the age-old and hallowed tradition of St Thomas among the Syrian Christians of Malabar Coast. The disparity between the present condition of this form and the early days leads one to assume three important phases in the history of Margamkali. The first phase was the pre-colonization one in which this semi-theatrical form was performed by the Saint Thomas Christians during special occasions. Parichamuttukali (The sword and shield dance) was also a part of it. Later Synod of Diamper curbed and suppressed this native form. ¹

Typically, a dozen dancers sing and dance clapping around a Nilavilakku wearing the traditional "Chattayum Mundum". The lamp represents Christ and the performers his disciples. The performance is usually held in two parts ("padham") and begins with songs and dances narrating the life of Saint Thomas, the apostle. It then takes a striking turn with a martial play of artificial swords and shields. Margamkali does not use any instruments other than two small palm size cymbals played by the same person who sings the song. It was originally played by men and afterwards by boys, but nowadays women also perform the dance. ¹

Currently both Margamkali and Parichamuttukali are included in the State Youth Festival of Kerala. This makes these art forms a competitive item in the Four-tier system (i.e. School, Sub District, Revenue and State level) Youth festival. Margam Kali is performed mainly by women in cultural shows and by school children in a variety of competitions. ¹

The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Margamkali”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. ¹

Margamkali is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. ²

The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation. ²