An Ayyar is enjoined to lead a disciplined life. He must rise at the hour of Brahma i.e. 3a.m., make his ablutions and recite the Gayatri Mantra at least 108 times. The Brahmachari performs the samidadhanam and the grihastha aupasana. In both these rites, offerings are made to the sacred fire. This is followed by what is called Shiva puja, though all the deities are worshipped at this time. Along with a Shiva linga it is important to have a saligram, which is a Vaishnava symbol, in the household. The various images are washed with water and milk as the performer of the puja chants Vedic hymns, this `abhisheka` being followed by the offering of flowers.
The devout Ayyar makes it a point to read the Ramayana or the Bhagavad Gita. He recites the thousand names of Vishnu at dusk, followed by stotras (praises) addressed to Ganapati his guru, Saraswati, Lakshmi, Rama, Krishna, Hanuman, Subramanya and other gods and goddesses. He may also read the Devi Mahatmayan. He performs the sandhya at dawn and dusk and the madhayhnikam at midday. The Gayatri japa is the most important part of these daily rites. An Ayyar who does not chant the Gayatri is not fit to perform any other ceremony.
Before the commencement of any rite, Ayyars invoke Ganapati, Vishnu and Paramesvara (Shiva) but in their `sankalpa` they declare that they are performing the rite to please Paramesvara (the Supreme God).
Initiation by a guru is necessary before certain deities can be worshipped. There is a `mulamantra` (root mantra) pertaining to Shiva and to Vasudeva or Narayana into which Ayyars are usually initiated.
There is a Shaiva flavour about Ayyar religion as the worship of Rudra is a part of their individual and community life. But the worship of Vishnu and Vaishnava deities, such as, Rama, Krishna and Hanuman, has a place of equal importance in their life. When an Ayyar performs his sandhya he invokes the various names of Vishnu and touches various parts of his body when mentioning them.
Like members of other Brahmin communities, Ayyars must observe the 16 samskaras (literally meaning refinement but in practice also connoting consecration or sanctification). Some of the important ones are as follows:-
Garbhadhanam is performed at the time of the nuptial ceremony and sanctifies the procreative act; `pumsavanam` and `siman-tonnayanam` (parting of the hair) ceremonies protect the mother and the child she is carrying and are performed during the first pregnancy.
Jatakarma is performed at birth, the child being fed with gold, honey and ghee. Namkaran ceremony (name-giving ceremony) takes place when the child is 11 days old. The rite of `annaprasanam` is the feeding of rice or solid food to the child for the first time; upanayan must be conducted in the fifth or eighth year although the Ayyars are not strict about keeping this rule.
The boy is invested with the yajnopavita (sacred thread consisting of three strands knotted together) which implies that he has now had a second birth and has become dvija (twice-born) and can now qualify for studentship or Brahmacharya, the scriptures enjoining on him the leading of a disciplined life, the strict observance of celibacy and bodily and mental cleanliness. Finally samavartana is the ceremony, which concludes studentship.
It is doubtful if Ayyars today remember the meaning of this samavartana as most of them go through it hurriedly on the day of their marriage.
An Ayyar marriage is mixture of Vedic ritual and Tamil custom. First, horoscopes are matched. Then an auspicious day is fixed by the priests for the marriage.The bridegroom is taken in procession to the bride`s place and is welcomed with music and the betrothal ceremony is then held. The `vrntam` is conducted on the morning of the marriage day.
The bridegroom goes on a short symbolic "pilgrimage" as if to Kasi carrying umbrella, walking stick and a coconut. The bride`s father goes to meet him and persuades him to return and marry his daughter. Some non-Brahmin communities also enact this prelude.
The couple sits before the holy fire and the priests chant Vedic hymns. The bride`s father washes the bridegroom`s feet with milk and water and affirms that he is giving away his daughter in marriage. Then follows the `panigrahanam` or the clasping of each other`s hands by the couple. This is one of the most important rites. Saptapadi or taking seven steps together round the sacred fire, is of equal significance.
Among the non-Vedic rites observed is the tying of the tali by the bridegroom round the bride`s neck.
The festivals of the Ayyars are numerous, most of them being common to other Hindu communities. They are Upakarma, Diwali (festival of lights), Bhogi Pandigal, Pongal, Taipusam, Mahashivaratri, Ramanavami, Janamashtami, Vmayaka Chaturthi and Navaratri.
Ayyars observe a number of vratams (vows). One is to propitiate Varalakshmi. Rishipanchami is observed by elderly women. Fasting is common with the devout.
For centuries the Ayyars preserved the Hindu way of life, orthodoxy and Brahminic ritual and though they took to modern education, they did not become westernised. But in recent decades they have spearheaded social reform and played a great role in the struggle for freedom. Their contribution to music is immense. They have produced some of India`s greatest lawyers, administrators, statesmen and scientists and others who have kept alive the religious and cultural heritage of India.
The Ayyar community has produced outstanding administrators and politicians, such as, C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar (1879-1966); scholars such as U.V. Swaminatha Iyer (1855-1942) who brought co light many palm-leaf manuscripts to enrich Tamil literature, the famous scientist, C.V. Raman (1888-1976) who was the first Indian to win the Nobel Prize in a science subject (physics); many legal luminaries; outstanding poets like the revolutionary poet, Subrahmanya Bharati, who gave a new direction to Tamil literature by taking the language to the masses; famous dancers and musicians, two of whom, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri, were famous composers of music. The defence services have also attracted a large number of Ayyar young men.
Ayyars believe that they are descended from the ancient rishis. Each family belongs to a gotra named after a rishi. Traditionally they adopt one of the following appellations: Ayyar, Sastri, Sarma, Dikshitar, Ghanapathigal, Sroutigal and Rao. They are divided into subjects, each denoting either a particular origin, mode of worship or social practice, which are Vathima, Ashtasahasram, Dikshitar, Sholiar (or Chozhiar), Mukkani, Kaniyalar, Sankethi, Prathamasaki and Gurukkal.
