Tribal medicine and its practitioners in Mananthavady

Tribal medicine and its practitioners in   Mananthavady

As my Birthplace, when I look to my surroundings, Mananthavady still to boast a few more things. one of these is the practice of tribal medicine. The culture and the tradition of these tribes exist within a thin sphere of influence. If these tribes become extinct, valuable knowledge of traditional medicines will be lost forever.

There are many tribes in this area and actually, the story of Wayanad is the story of tribals. The tribes can be prominently classified into Paniyas, Adiyas, Kattunayakans, Kurichiyans, Kurumas, Ooralis, UraaliKurumas etc. These tribes still believe and practice their traditional medicines which involve a variety of wild herbs.

Vellanvaidyar of Thirunelli and Keluvaidyar of Kattikulam in the Wayanad district of Kerala are famous for their traditional way of treatment based on wild herbs. While Vellanvaidyar is known for the treatment of cancer, paralysis, fractured bones, asthma and diabetes, Keluvaidyar is famous for the treatment of cancer, asthma, diabetes and skin diseases like psoriasis and eczema. They receive patients from far and wide. The patients who seek treatment from them after hospitals fail to cure their diseases get much relief .




Keluvaidyar of Kattikulam belong to the Kurichya tribe and he is famous for their traditional way of treatment based on wild herbs . Kartikulam is situated nearest town In Mananthavady , Kartikulam has now developed into a small city. Keluvaidyar, a new generation tribal healer, is a famous medical practitioner in the locality, and close to 1500 patients visit him a week.
He is famous for the treatment of All type of dioceses.






There are many tribes in this area and actually, the story of Wayanad is the story of tribals. The tribes can be prominently classified into Paniyas, Adiyas, Kattunayakans, Kurichiyans,Kurumas,Ooralis, UraaliKurumas etc. These tribes still believe and practise their traditional medicines which involve a variety of wild herbs.

Vellanvaidyar of Thirunelli and Keluvaidyar of Kattikulam belong to the Kurichya tribe and both are famous for their traditional way of treatment based on wild herbs.

 

My friend Neethu Mohan has a good article &  report in search of the traditional medicine practitioners.

Katticulam town

When the weather began to warm up, I set off to the foot of Thirunelli temple to meet Vellanvaidyar who is famous for the treatment of cancer, paralysis, fractured bones, asthma, diabetes etc.

“The power of our traditional medicines is indeed unique. We have medicines meant for adults as well as children,” he said as he examined a patient with a broken arm.

The Vaidyar’s assistant proudly narrated how his master had recently cured an eight-year-old paralytic girl who had been admitted in various hospitals in South India, but in vain. Finally, her parents met Vellanvaidyar. “Often, people are reluctant to stick to traditional medicines, and keep it as a last resort,” says the father of the child. He said the treatment for paralysis began with a detailed diagnosis, followed by the application of medicated oil. The Vaidyar then prepared the medication accordingly, and within a few weeks, the patient was cured partly. According to him, patients who first try modern medicines and then switch to traditional medicines take a longer time to get cured.


As per tribal customs, the ingredients used in the preparation of medicines are always kept as a secret. They believe the medicine loses its curing power if the details of the ingredients are revealed. Moreover, they do not follow the system of naming various wild herbs. “Very little scripted information is passed down from our forefathers about the medicines. We identify the herbs by its features,” says Vaidyar.

Vellanvaidyar is a renowned bone specialist too. He has a special set of formulae to treat fractures. For instance, egg is added to the ‘solution’ to increase its adhesiveness in fracture treatment. The procedure is quiet simple. First, the dislocation is precisely identified, then it is cleared, and finally the fractured area is covered with a special combination of medicines.

Recovery is usually expected within a few days. The Vaidyar collects all his medicinal herbs from the neighbouring forests.



Vellan Vaideyar Courtesy Neethu Mohan


The Vaidyar has patients from India and abroad. They include celebrities and sports persons.

The story of Keluvaidyar is the story of a small town called Kaatikulam in Mananthavady. Once a rural town in Mananthavady panchayath, Kaatikulam has now developed into a small city. Keluvaidyar, a new generation tribal healer, is a famous medical practitioner in the locality, and close to 1500 patients visit him a week.

He is widely known for the treatment of cancer, asthma, diabetes and skin diseases like psoriasis and eczema.

“Ours is a 100 percent traditional method of treatment. Unlike other alternative methods, we do not make use of metallic ingredients in our medicines and so the effect is immense,” says Keluvaidyar. People suffering from various ailments come here from Bengaluru and Dubai for treatment. Workers assist him in the preparation of medicines in a small facility attached to his dispensary.

However, it was not easy for Kelu to become a famous Vaidyar. It took him years to collect the details of the traditional practitioners and document their treatment methods.

According to him, the data collection was a Herculean task as the old generation practitioners were unwilling to impart their knowledge to the new generation.

Keluvaidyar is very particular about the secrecy of the formulae of medicines he uses. Since the tribals do not have a system for naming the herbs, documentation of medicines is practically impossible. There arises the issue of patenting the medicines. “We have some of the best and most effective medicines in the world, but we are not aptly credited for our efforts,” says the practitioner with disappointment.

“Every week, I go into the forests and stay there for a couple of days hunting for the right herbs,” he said.

 If these tribes become extinct, valuable knowledge of traditional medicines will be lost forever.Thus, we have to ensure that the culture and the ecology of the tribal India is not impinged upon.

My town Mananthavady

My town Mananthavady

It is always fascinating to write an essay about your own native village or town. Digging from past and hearing from here and there you can add more details. Mananthavady locals invite you to contribute to add more details on this essay...

Mananthavady (Manantoddy) is a Municipal town, recently upgraded from grama Panchayath and Situated in Mananthavady Taluk in the Wayanad district of Kerala, India. The town is located on the banks of Mananthavady Puzha, a tributary of the Kabini River. Mananthavady Locals has a rich heritage, and mix of every caste and creed normally seen in south India. Most of the aboriginals still have a large chunk of the population, while settlers from Malabar and Travancore selected this place as their native one later. Merchants, farmers, Government, and Private sector employees and visitors make the town as a miniature Kerala, While local workforce from north Indian places and tourists added the flavor as a bigger India. 

History

Mananthavady has been referred to as "Hosenkadi" in a dictum scribbled under a copper artifact found at the Ananthanathaswamy Temple at Varadoor. Presence of Jain Community and Ananthaswamy temple at Pandikkadavu make this nomenclature as a site of Maha Anantha Vadi. But the dominant view on the etymology is that the word is derived from "Mane Eytha Vady (The place where an arrow was shot at the deer)". This view is strengthened by the existence of a place called Ambukuthy, literally the location where the arrow pierced, on the outskirts of the town. This area was once ruled by the Pazhassi dynasty and the tomb of Pazhassi Raja is an important heritage site located in the heart of the town. Manathavady was a major army camp for the British during their campaign against Pazhassi. One can still see the vestiges of the colonial period - canteen, club, barracks, rest house, cemetery - around Mananthavady. The place Thazhe Agadi was the prominent market place and very important commercial port in Kabani River during the British Era and before. The vast open space near to Pandikkadavu Bridge was once served as barracks of native British soldiers. There was evidence of bloodshed as a battle between British and Local people, at Thazhe angadi and near to Valliyoorkavu, most of the attacks from the water. Mananthavady remained the most important town till the 1970s and was the capital of Wayanad Taluka.

Facilities

The District Hospital in Mananthavady is the only major treatment facility for the service of the tribal communities and other less privileged sections of Wayanad. It is the third biggest town in Wayanad District, after Sulthan Bathery and Kalpetta. Mananthavady is located 35 km north-east of the district headquarters Kalpetta, 80 km east of Thalassery and 110 km north-east of Kozhikode.  All roads are well connected with bus routes including low floor AC Volvo Buses. As a main alternate route to Bangalore, Night traffic is prominent here. Even at 2  am a bus to Ooty and Kannur and numerous buses to Mysore and Calicut are available. Mananthavady town is not sleeping and freshly prepared food is available all the night from local makeshift Thattukada at Gandhi Park.

Major Government Offices, Police station, and  Munsif court are located at Mananthavady.

Connectivity 

Mainly five Ghat roads are used for reaching Mananthavady from coastal towns and lower hilly towns of Kerala. No rail connections. A small Airport is proposed near to Panamaram, which will ease the present traffic problems to connect other major towns of Kerala and other airports. It will be cheap and time-saving and benefits a lot of gulf employees, Nursing, Engineering and IT  students in other states., Also tourist flow will be 10 fold.

Thalassery-Bavali Road is the major road passing through Mananthavady, which is well connected with both Mysore and Kodagu. Mananthavady is well connected with Mysore(110 km away), via Kartikulam, Bavali and H D Kote, through Nagarhole National Park. This road is very good and properly maintained, green, have unending scenic beauty. Every species of Animals including Tiger, leopard, Bison, Elephants can be seen easily on a normal drive On this road at every corner of, deers, wild pigs and Monkeys are abundant which runs a parallel to Kabini River and closed during the night time to protect wild animals. Another road goes to Gonikoppal(60 km away) in Kodagu, via Kartikulam, Tholpetty forest, Kutta and Ponnampet. From Kutta take a right turn toward Nagarhole national park and it connects directly to Hunsoor and Mysore. This road also closes at 6 pm. Kalpetta and Sultan bathery also connected by different very good roads. Calicut is connected byNH 212 through a ghat road, know as Thamarasseri churam or Wayanad ghat road. To reach Kuttiady Vadakara in Calicut District, there is another major road and it runs through a very good ghat section .A direct road from Mananthavady to Nedumpoil, to Kannur, is unique and less traffic with very good roads. On the same route, turn to the Kottiyoor Shiva temple, from Boys town, took the fork to Iritty. The road touches the sky in its peak and then goes through the Kottiyoor forest reserve. All roads in the ghat sections were good, slightly narrow in places that's all. All of these make Mananthavady has the most number of major roads in Wayanad. For visitors, all of these roads itself is a treat.

New Institutes

 Wayanad has been an educationally backward district of Kerala until recently, especially when it came to higher education. There was a time when the Government High School (now the Government Higher Secondary School) in Mananthavady was the only high school in the Panchayath. FGKM high school, Kaniyaram , St Patricks School Ondayangadi, Hill Blooms School, Pandikkadavu, and Amrita vidyalayam are famous.The situation has vastly improved from that time and since the establishment of Kannur University the opportunities for higher education has also improved. Many governments, aided and unaided schools exist in Mananthavady. They come under different boards of education such as Kerala State Education Board and Central Board of Secondary Education. Some of the schools which follow the state syllabus are listed below: The Government College, Mananthavady was established in 1981. It was the only center for higher learning in North Wayanad for a long time. In 1995 Mary Matha Arts & Science College was started in the Government aided sector. Govt. College of Engineering was started in 1999, the first engineering college in Wayanad. In the unaided sector, there are two colleges - P.K.K.M. College of Applied Science and W.M.O Imam Gazzali Arts & Science College. All the colleges are affiliated to Kannur University. The university also has a centre in Mananthavady with three departments (Teacher Education, Zoology and Rural & Tribal Sociology).

 Art Gallery: The Kerala Lalithakala Akademi Art Gallery is located on the Mysore Road. The Gallery regularly hosts exhibitions of various Indian artists and organizes cultural events.

 Boys town (15 km north of Mananthavady): Herbal garden, nature care centre, sericulture unit, perma-culture centre etc., established by the Wayanad Social Service Society and Gene Park (the Indo-Danish project for promoting herbal gardening) are situated here Brahmasthana Temple & Mata Amritanandamayi Math (1.5 km from the Town). Chandanathode: The only pine forest in Wayand.

 Kuruvadweep (17 km east of Mananthavady ): 950-acre (3.8 km2) protected river delta system.

 Latin Church: Situated at the heart of the town. It is a reminder of the towns colonial past. There was once situated a fort made by British. A cemetery with a lot of unknown Europeans presence here.

 Mananthavady Park : It is situated on the banks of the Mananthavady puzha, Opposite to GHS Mananthavady on Calicut road. (1 km from the Panchayath Bus Stand). The park is also known for its bat colony. The attempts by the authorities to get rid of the bats lead to protests by environmental activists.

Paalamandhapam Devi Temple & Malakkari Temple Koolivayal(12 km from Mananthavady, 6 km from Panamaram town).

Pallikkal Juma Masjid (Kalyanathum Pallikkal): One of the oldest mosques in kerala situated in the heart of pallikkal angadi. 

Payingattery Agraharam (payingattery Gramam): One of the oldest agraharams in Wayanad (2 km of mananthavady)

 Pazhassi Kudeeram: Tomb of Pazhassi Raja (who fought the British to his death).

 Periya: A village about 25 km from Mananthavady town on Thalasserry road., near to it Peria peak boast the only Evergreen forest in Wayanad.. A naturalist German Mr. Grahah Wolf made Narayana Gurukulam and Botanical Garden created by himself has a visual and educational mine for any nature loving person.

Jessy Estate and Makkimala: are know for gold mining in the British era. remains of old mine still there. 

Thalapoya: Known for rich and calm tea estates.

Erumatheru;(Buffalo street): British relocated some people from Andra for their need in diary products and given a street for them.Now they dominates the rich class of the society.

Jain Temple; located at Pandikadavu.

Thirunelli Temple:

This is a famous pilgrim center 36 km from Mananthavady. Thirunelli Temple (also Tirunelli) is an ancient temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu on the side of Brahmagiri hill in Kerala. The Temple is located at an altitude of about 900m in north Wayanad in a valley surrounded by mountains and beautiful forests. It is situated 32 km away from Manathavady its nearest town.
History

No proper records of the exact dates of establishment of temple exist, though it is beyond dispute that Thirunelli was once an important town and pilgrim center in the middle of an inaccessible jungled valley surrounded on four sides by mountains. There also exists documentary proof that Thirunelli at the time of Chola king Bhaskara Ravi Varma I (962–1019 CE) was an important town and pilgrim center in south India. In the dense jungles surrounding the temple, the ruins of two ancient villages can be found. Also, recent excavations at the time of paving roads have yielded period coins of the 9th and 10th century. Noted historian V. R Parameswaran Pillai in his book "Thirunelli Documents" clearly states that this temple was once an integral part of the early history of North Kerala. Temple bells in sync with mountain streams make spiritual music as you meditate on the Thirunelli Temple premises in the midst of Wayanad forests. Devotees believe that holy dips in the Papanasini mountain spring close to Thirunelli Temple wash away your sins. The sanctum Sanctorium is forbidden to Non-hindus, but other parts of temple and Papanasini route is is open for all visitors without any religious restrictions. 

Kalindi Rivulet and Thirunelli village: a tourist spot near to Temple.  The culture is connected with Tribal and settlers issues, unmarried mothers issue and, place of novelist P Valsala, who wrote a story for the Malayalam movie Nellu which pictured here.

Thrissilery Siva Temple: One of the famous shrines in Wayanad situated in Thrissilery. There is a Jala Durga temple in the same complex.

Thrissilery Shiva Temple Wayanad is one of the famous shrines in Kerala. This temple is built in an excellent manner and involves fabulous architecture. Lord Shiva is a Hindu deity worshipped very ardently by Indians and Hindus around the world. Thrissilery Shiva Temple is situated at Thrissilery which is place neighboring to Sulthan Bathery. Wayanad Tourists should visit this Shiva temple and enjoy the excellent architecture and serenity of this temple. 

The principal deity of this Temple is Lord Shiva. There is an interesting fact about this Thrissilery Shiva Temple Wayanad. Devotees of this temple sternly believe that paying one’s contributions to Thrissilery Shiva Temple Wayanad is comparable to completing the ancestral rites at the Vishnu Temple in Thirunelli. Nearby this temple is another famous temple called Jala Durga temple installed by the mythological creator of Kerala by name Parashuram. 

The idols and carvings in this temple exhibit exemplary artwork. The principal deity Lord Shiva is also very enchanting in his looks. Devotees who visit this temple can offer flowers, Banana, and coconut as offering to Lord Shiva. You can experience serenity and peace once inside this temple. Mananthavady locals like the following custom and it is a real good thing, that This temple is open for all visitors without any religious restrictions. 

Tholpetty Wild Life Sanctuary: It is 24 km on the way to Coorg.

 Valliyoorkkavu (3 km from the town): This Temple is dedicated to Mother Goddess and is worshipped in three principal forms of Vana Durga, Bhadrakali and Jala Durga. It is the most important place of worship for the tribal communities. The annual 15-day festival is in March/April and is the most grand of all festivals in the district. Slave trade used to take place here during the festival. It is still the largest congregation of all tribals of Wayanad.

  Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary: Established in 1973, the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary is contiguous to the protected area network of Nagarhole and Bandipur of Karnataka on the northeast and Mudumalai of Tamil Nadu on the southeast. Rich in bio-diversity, the sanctuary is an integral part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, which has been established with the specific objective of conserving the biological heritage of the region. The sanctuary is very rich in flora and fauna. 

Muthireri kavu: A temple associated with Kottiyoor Vysakha Mahotsavam . The temple is situated in small village Muthireri,about 8 km distance in Mananthavady

Libraries

Pazhassi Smaraka Granthalayam,established in (1926), Solidarity Library, Anjukunnu Pothujana Grandhalayam, Tagore Smaraka Grandhalayam Kommayad, Kaniyaram Prabhath Reading room and Library, Ozhakkody National Library  are notable.