From January 18 to February 3, the Tirunnavaya Navamukunda Temple, which stands on the shore of the Bharathapuzha, the largest river flowing through Kerala, is witnessing a religious gathering of a kind never seen before. The temple is one of the oldest in Kerala and is among the 108 Divya Desams of the Vaishnava tradition. The ongoing festival, named the Maha Magha Mahotsavam, is being projected as the Kumbh Mela of Kerala.

The gathering, its rituals, and the festival itself have received a cold shoulder from Kerala’s political circles. Although the mood among most parties toward the Kumbh Mela is unfavourable, they remain cautious and refrain from making explicit public statements about it.

Until the mid-eighteenth century, Tirunnavaya was home to Mamankam, a local festival held once every 12 years that functioned as a major political and religious spectacle. The festival originated during the period when the Chera dynasty ruled Kerala. Later, when the region came under the control of various local chieftains and kings, the Tirunnavaya temple and the Mamankam festival came under the patronage and authority of the local kingdom of the Valluvakkonathiri.

Sometime many centuries ago, the Zamorin of Malabar usurped the control and guardianship of Mamankam from the Valluvakkonathiri. From then on, at every Mamankam, the Valluvakkonathiri sent a small group of men on a mission: to kill the Zamorin and reclaim control of the festival. By this time, the Zamorin, the most powerful king in Kerala with a sizable army, was impossible to defeat with such a small force, and the Valluvakkonathiri’s men were invariably sent on a suicidal mission. Over the ages, this suicidal mission came to be regarded as heroic. Many songs were composed in praise of these men, who set out fully aware that they would not return. Eventually, the mission itself almost became a ritual. The Zamorin would preside over the Mamankam celebrations and rituals from a designated platform, while the Valluvakkonathiri’s men would arrive at the venue, attempt to cut through the heavily armed forces protecting the Zamorin, and be killed before they could reach him. The grim ritual drama came to an end around the........

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