Fear, Reverence and Ambivalence

Divine Snakes in Contemporary South India

Authors

  • Amy Allocco Elon University Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/rosa.v7i1-3.230

Keywords:

Tamil Nadu, snake blemish, fertility/infertility, ritual, gender

Abstract

In contemporary South Indian Hinduism, nagas are ambivalently imaged: they are divine beings with the capacity to bless as well as to curse. In addition to their primary association with fertility, these divinized non-human animals are perceived as particularly receptive to women's concerns (healing and familial prosperity) and are widely worshipped to obtain these blessings. The ritual propitiation of snake deities is overwhelmingly the practice of women in Tamil Nadu today, where naga deities take multiple manifestations, including that of divine snakes who live in anthills and anthropomorphic goddesses who are installed in temples. Yet nagas who are disturbed or harmed may cause a malefic astrological condition called naga dosam (snake blemish). This astrological flaw, which manifests in inauspicious planetary configurations in an individual's horoscope, is faulted for late marriage and infertility as well as an array of additional negative effects. Drawing on many years of ethnographic fieldwork and textual study in Tamil Nadu, this article describes and analyses myths and narratives that reveal the dual character of nagas as divine beings capable of dispensing blessings, as well as blocking marriage and with holding much-desired offspring. The article also analyses the critical dimension of gender in nagas' narratives, where human males often beat or kill their household's reptilian visitor, while females respond with offerings and reverence.

Author Biography

  • Amy Allocco, Elon University

    Amy L. Allocco is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University in North Carolina, USA. Allocco, who earned her PhD in Emory University, focuses her research on contemporary Hinduism, gender, and ritual traditions in the state of Tamil Nadu in South India, where she has been studying and conducting ethnographic fieldwork for more than 15 years. Her current book project analyses contemporary snake goddess traditions in South India and the repertoire of ritual therapies performed to mitigate nāga dōṣam (snake blemish), a malignant horoscopic condition understood to cause delayed marriage and infertility. Allocco has been awarded fellowships by the American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS), the American Association of University Women (AAUW), Fulbright International Institute for Education (IIE), and Fulbright-Hays to support her research and writing. She is co-editing a volume titled Ritual Innovation in South Asian Religions, is the author of several book chapters and has published an article in Method & Theory in the Study of Religion.

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Published

2013-10-08

Issue

Section

Fifth Tantra: Awe, Fear, Death

How to Cite

Allocco, A. (2013). Fear, Reverence and Ambivalence: Divine Snakes in Contemporary South India. Religions of South Asia, 7(1-3), 230-248. https://doi.org/10.1558/rosa.v7i1-3.230