Family Roots

A chart (family tree) with the available information at least for the last one hundred and fifty years or so has been prepared.

These are summarised as follows:

1. THEKKUMPADAM VEEDU

This “Tharavadu” got divided into four parts- “Thavazhies” long back as follows. The four divisions are 1.Thekkumpadam Puthan Veedu 2. Thekkumpadam Veedu 3. Thekkumpadam Pathazhapura 4 Thekkumpadam Puthiya Veedu. It is not known when it actually took place and how. However, the relationship and common rights remained uninterrupted and still continue as usual observing all the rituals as before.

2. MAVINKAL VEEDU

This Tharavadu also got divided into five parts (Thavazhies) 1. Mavinkal Veedu(Tharavadu) 2. Mavinkal Kezhake Veedu 3. Kezhakke Mavinkal Veedu 4. Mavinkal Thakkulathu Veedu 5. Mavinkal Pandiyala Veedu. All the family rites are continued as usual uninterrupted in spite of the above divisions.

3. UKKOMMAL VEEDU

As stated earlier, the continuity of this “Tharavadu” unfortunately was interrupted for want of a female child and the extinction of this Tharavadu was averted by adopting a female child from the above Puthiya Veedu Branch and continued to flourish. This made the above two families function with certain common rites and they are being continued.

THEKKUMPADAM VETTAKKORUMAKAN TEMPLE

The above mentioned members of the Thekkumpadam Puthan Veedu Tharavadu established the above temple and considered the deities as family twin gods of Vettakkorumakan and Oorpazhassi and maintain it with daily puja in the morning and evening by Namboothiries with the assistance of Ambalavasies like “Nambeesan and Marar” for making garlands and collecting flowers for worship and drum beating respectively. They attend to the duties of cleaning temple premises (insides of the “Nalambalam and Chuttambalam”). They are regular staff members of our temple duly paid by us.

Few years back, for the smooth running of the temple, a Trust of three members of Thekkumpadam Puthan Veedu Tharavadu alone was created and got it registered. The senior most person among them who believed in god and temple worship was made the Managing Trustee.

After some years we amended the Trust Deed and got it registered with nine members duly making the suitable senior most believer in the TP family as Managing Trustee and co-opting the remaining eight persons from the above “ MunnillathuVeedu” family members. This has been done for facilitating better participation and cooperation of all our three family members and relatives of the three “Tharavads”. This has been done on the basis of our earlier “ Neyyamrithu Sangham” of Munnilathu Veedu functioned in our temple for the last several years. Even though the Sangham is now defunct due to the non-availability of persons to perform “Vretha” for taking “Neyyamrithu” to Payyavoor Siva temple for “Abhishekam” (Immersion of god with ghee). However, we have restarted this five years back by taking ghee duly performing puja by the priest of our temple after prayers by our family members to Payyavoor for the Abhishekam of Siva.

The family members of “Munnillathu Veedu” especially of the Thekkumpadam Puthan Veedu are spread over in different parts of our state / country and even in foreign countries and a good number of them are not aware of the roots as the matriarchal system was practically made almost defunct and not being observed to a very great extent, it is felt that gradually it would become difficult for us to maintain our Tharavadu temple. Hence it is felt, with the available information we may prepare a chart (family hierarchical tree). This will enable the members of the Thekkumpadom Puthan Veedu Tharavadu to understand each other and will generate a feeling that the temple belongs to them and they will have the responsibility to continue to maintain and run the temple with all the devotion which will give them all prosperity, happiness and peace of mind in places wherever they are as the belief is that the family deities will take care of them irrespective of their place of residence in case they are devotional.

The “family tree-chart” will be made upto date by the Temple Trust duly collecting information from these family members once a year. Co-operation of every family member, especially who are located away from Cherukunnu is required to feed up-to-date information for the Trust. We may have to think of a website for the Tharavadu in case response is encouraging from our people.

As per the matriarchal system, members of the family and their female children, grand children, great grand children etc irrespective of male or female will be known as T.P( Thekkumpadam Puthan Veedu). The children of the male children (first generation) and , even the next generation of their male children, in case they are willing, can also co-operate with our Temple Trust. At the moment, due to this system we have included only the first generation of the male members of our Tharavadu in our chart. Who ever are willing to co operate with us, we can very well include the next generation of the male members also to help us in running our Tharavadu temple as “relatives”.