Historical Monuments Of Karunagappally Taluk - A Historiographical Analysis Of The Work Pracheena Malayalam By Chattambi Swamikal

Abstract

Kerala Society had seen a revolutionary change in the socio political sphere. These were led by the social reform movements pioneered by Social reformers like Vaikunda Swamikal, Thycud Ayya, Sreenarayana Guru, Chattambi Swamikal, Vaikom Abdul Mavulavi, Ayyankkali. They fought the orthodox dogma of untouchability and social injustice that existed in the society. The social reform movements like Vaikom satyagraha, Guruvayur Satyagraha, later the temple entry proclamation and finally the Indian constitution in its Article 17 Untouchability was made illegal.  Chattambi Sweamikal in particular led the revolutionary change especially in the Nair community of Kerala. Nair community in particular was a stalwart in the renaissance movement of Kerala. The caste system in Kerala had not only the roots in manusmriti but also the brahmin claim that the Kerala land was granted to the Brahmins by Parashurama. This was asserted by the brahmin priests through a cornucopia of pseudo historical works.  ‘Pracheena Malayalam’ is a monumental work on the historical insight into the formation of Kerala. Through this work Swamikal rebuttes the works forged by Brahminical hegemony that imposed a cruel form of Kerala’s caste system. However, more than a social transformation work ‘Pracheena Malayalam’ has a historiographic importance. He used folk tales, geographical information, scripters, old names, common usages etc to argue against the hegemonic grip that brahmanical literature  held on to the historical documentation of Kerala History. It was controversial when it was published in 1913, it is still controversial. In Addition to the waves it stirred in the socio-political arena, it also stirred the hornet’s nest in the field of historical research of Kerala.