Agency in the Subaltern Encounter of Evil: Subverting the Dominant and Appropriating the Indigenous

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies Volume 29 God and Evil in Hindu and Christian Theology, Myth, and Practice Article 7 2016 Agency in the Subaltern Encounter of Evil: Subverting the Dominant and Appropriating the Indigenous James Ponniah University of Madras Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/jhcs Part of the Christianity Commons, Comparative Methodologies and Theories Commons, Hindu Studies Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Ponniah, James (2016) "Agency in the Subaltern Encounter of Evil: Subverting the Dominant and Appropriating the Indigenous," Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies: Vol. 29, Article 7. Available at: https://doi.org/10.7825/2164-6279.1630 The Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies is a publication of the Society for Hindu-Christian Studies. The digital version is made available by Digital Commons @ Butler University. For questions about the Journal or the Society, please contact [email protected]. For more information about Digital Commons @ Butler University, please contact [email protected]. Ponniah: Agency in the Subaltern Encounter of Evil: Subverting the Dominan Agency in the Subaltern Encounter of Evil: Subverting the Dominant and Appropriating the Indigenous James Ponniah University of Madras THIS essay focuses on subaltern encounter of addressed theodicy with a subaltern programme evil that occurred in two different religious of action. Because Vaikundar chose to situate orbits, namely, Hinduism and Christianity in theodicy within the context of social India. The Hindu phenomenon to be studied is discrimination and religious exploitation of his Ayya Vaḻi1 (henceforth, AV) founded by Ayya time, he proposed various measures to conquer Vaikundar (1809-1851) and the Christian evil, evil which manifested itself in inequality, phenomenon, Bible Mission (henceforth, BM) caste-oppression etc., Similarly, through established by Devadas Ayyagaru (1840-1960). various ways to be discussed below, Devadas too While attempts have been made earlier in the designed a new programme of theodicy by writings of Chad Bauman, Zoe Sherinian, incorporating practices from the domain of folk Eleanor Zeliott, Sathianathan Clarke and culture, thereby empowering the religiously G.Patick2 to study the relation between religion marginalised lay people. They both exercised and subaltern agency in India, this work has a subaltern agency in evolving concrete strategies different focus in that it employs the idea of to empower the subalterns to encounter evil. subaltern agency to discuss the parallel ways Before focusing on their strategies, let me first through which two nominally Hindu and furnish an overview of these two movements. Christian movements, originating from two Introducing the Phenomena under Study different backgrounds and time periods, have Ayyā Vaḻiis one of the contemporary 'Hindu' developed a subaltern theodicy, borrowing from religious movements spread primarily among classical and local traditions, to offer a means for the Cāṇārs (also known as Nāṭārs now) in the critiquing domination and overcoming southern districts of Tamilnadu (especially in marginalization. Kanyakumari District). This religious movement While there is ample literature both on was founded in the latter part of 19th century by Christian and Hindu theodicy more broadly, this Muthukuttisamy, popularly known as Ayya article’s contribution is to look at the respective Vaikundar (b. 1809) and grew so rapidly in the theodicy through subaltern lens. While most of 19th and 20th centuries among the low caste the existing works of theodicy in both the people (especially among the Cāṇārs) that the traditions revolve around philosophical debates movement is estimated to have seven hundred that try to reconcile one’s belief in the existence thousand adherents all over the world today. of God with the fact of evil, my endeavour here Ayya Vaikundar was born as a Cāṇār (whose is to delineate how both Vaikundar and Devadas Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies 29 (2016): 46-53 Published by Digital Commons @ Butler University, 2016 1 Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies, Vol. 29 [2016], Art. 7 Agency in the Subaltern Encounter of Evil 47 occupation then was toddy-tapping) in the with God, something about which the Lutheran princely state of Travancore—ruled according to Church did not approve. After several warnings the Brahminic varnashrama dharma ideology and arguments, his services of forty-six years as and, as a result, the low caste Cāṇārs suffered a touring evangelist in the American Evangelical multiple forms of discrimination.3 Vaikundar Lutheran Mission were officially terminated as identified himself totally with the oppressed of March 1, 1938. In the same year, he found an masses, especially with the Cāṇārs and independent Pentecostal movement called Bible interpreted their experiences of caste Mission. Of late, the Bible Mission has become a discrimination, injustice and exploitation as force to be reckoned with in Andhra Pradesh, prevalence of kali, i.e., evil power.4 AV one of the southern states of India. The state understands kali as an all-pervasive evil power witnesses a mammoth gathering of nearly three that is both cosmic and personal, invisible and to four hundred thousand people for its annual visible. While describing in various idioms kali’s meeting at Pedakakani in Gunter district pernicious presence throughout all aeons, AV normally held in the last week of January. BM is frames Kali Yuga as the full maturation of kali a unique phenomenon not only because of its whose embodied form is none other than the popularity but also for its distinctive practices as king of Travancore himself. Though his official discussed below. Though Devadas’ view of evil name was Swathithirunal, Vaikundar named was a traditional Christian idea, namely, evil as him Kalineecan (‘personification of evil’). Even the work of the devil, his battle against evil was as he held Kalineecan responsible for the a digression from his former Lutheran Church to miseries of the downtrodden, Vaikundar include local beliefs and practices. claimed himself to be an avatar of Vishnu whose Exploring Common Grounds and Strategies in mission was to launch a decisive battle against Subaltern Encounter of Evil various forms of evil (kali) and to inaugurate When we analyse the origin, the vision and Dharma Yuga. Both his views on Kali Yuga and his the contributions of these two religious leaders, vision of Dharma Yuga, as described below, were subalternity and peripherality seem to framed as an emancipatory project for the undergird both these phenomena. Both hailed subaltern masses. from a low caste subaltern background. One The contemporary Christian phenomenon (Devadas) was a Dalit and the other (Vaikundar) to be explored in this paper is Bible Mission, was a Cāṇār, one of the most oppressed groups founded in 1938 by a Dalit Lutheran layman, in Southern Travancore. Both found their Mungamuri Devadas, popularly known as religious leadership outside mainline religious Ayyagaru (Father) Devadas in Andhra Pradesh, traditions. Having defected from the Lutheran India.5 Devadas served in the Lutheran Mission Church, Devadas started his own indigenous both as a teacher in the seminary and a warden Pentecostal Church, BM. Vaikundar, being a low of the boarding house for the boys at St. Paul's caste Cāṇār, was never part of mainline Hindu Church, Rajamundry. Devadas was a powerful religion and founded his own brand of religion preacher held in high esteem by all. But trouble called AV. Both lived on the margins of society, started when he openly talked about visions and leading a very simple ordinary ascetic life, dreams through which one can communicate https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/jhcs/vol29/iss1/7 DOI: 10.7825/2164-6279.1630 2 Ponniah: Agency in the Subaltern Encounter of Evil: Subverting the Dominan 48 James Ponniah befitting a sadhu in the Indian tradition. Both claimed that, in bright daylight, God wrote two worked for the marginal groups. Devadas words—Bible Mission—in the air and told him “to worked for the religiously marginalised, the come out as a prince of an army.”9 Subsequently, ordinary lay people whose needs were largely this command resulted in the foundation of a ignored in the clergy-centred mainline Pentecostal church called BM. Further, by Churches.6 Unlike the Lutheran Church claiming that he had direct access to God and His characterised by top-heavy administrative plans through dreams and visions, Devadas structures, Devadas made BM a self-governed constructed a new source of authority— church in which ordinary local people enjoyed extraneous to the Lutheran Church—to autonomy by actively participating in and legitimize his teachings and practices. While he managing the day-to-day affairs of the Church.7 rejected the invitation to be ordained as a Vaikundar worked primarily for the socially minister in the Lutheran Church, he—after his marginalised, the Cāṇārs who were placed on expulsion—not only claimed that he was the periphery of the fourfold caste system. directly ordained by God in a vision, but Considered a little above Paḷḷars and Paṟayars, exercised self-assumed authority to ordain one Cāṇārs were still regarded as polluting and had of his followers as a minister.10 Similarly, though to maintain a physical distance from the high born in a low caste Cāṇār family, Vaikundar, as castes. They had to keep thirty-six paces away mentioned above, declared

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