Religion in Tamil Nadu

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Religion in Tamil Nadu consists of various religions practiced by the populace of the state.

Muslim
minorities. As a home to a multitude of religions, the Tamil culture reflects the influence of the same. Various places of worship are spread across the state.

Demographics

Religion in Tamil Nadu (2011)[1]

  Hinduism (87.6%)
  Christianity (6.1%)
  Islam (5.86%)
  Jainism (0.1%)
  Others/Not stated (0.3%)
Religion in Tamil Nadu
Religion 2001 2011
Population[2] % of Population Population[3] % of Population
Hinduism 54,985,079 88.1 63,188,168 87.9
Christianity 3,785,060 6.06 4,418,331 6.12
Islam 3,470,647 5.56 4,229,479 5.86
Jainism 83,359 0.13 89,265 0.12
Sikhism 9,545 0.01 14,601 0.02
Buddhism 5,393 0.01 11,186 0.01
Other 7,252 0.01 7,414 0.01
Not stated NA 0 188,586 0.26
Total 62,405,679 100 72,147,030 100

Hinduism

Main article: Hinduism in Tamil Nadu

As per the

Murugan became regarded as the Tamil kadavul ("God of the Tamils").[7][8][9] In the 7th century CE, the Pandyas and Pallavas, supporters of Buddhism and Jainism, transitioned to become patrons of Hinduism. This shift occurred with the revival of Saivism and Vaishnavism during the Bhakti movement spearheaded by the Alwars and Nayanmars.[10][11] Hinduism developed in the temples and mathas of medieval Tamil Nadu with self-conscious rejection of Jain practices.[12]

Aiyyan̲ār
, guardian folk deity of Tamils

In Tamil tradition, Murugan is the youngest son of Shiva and

Aiyyan̲ār (also known as Karuppan, Karrupasami), are worshipped who are thought to protect the villages from harm.[14][16]

As of the 21st century, majority of the population of Tamil Nadu are adherents of Hinduism with more than 89% of the population adhering to the same.[17][1] As a majority religion, the influence of Hinduism is seen widely in the Tamil culture including literature, music and dance. Most visual arts are religious in some form and usually centers on Hinduism, although the religious element might be a vehicle to represent universal and, occasionally, humanist themes.[18] Visual art ranges from stone sculptures in temples, to detailed bronze icons and frescoes and murals on temple walls.[19] [20]

A Chola bronze statue of Nataraja, god of dance, to whom Bharatanatyam is often dedicated

Majority of the available literature from the Sangam period was Hindu and categorized in the tenth century CE into two categories based roughly on chronology as the

Tiruppugal by Arunagirinathar in 14th century CE.[25][26]

Apart from traditional instruments from the Sangam period,

drum instrument are the major musical instruments used in temples and weddings.[27] The traditional music of Tamil Nadu is known as Carnatic music, which includes rhythmic and structured music dedicated to Gods.[28][29][30] Bharatanatyam is a major genre of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamilakam and is represented to invoke Nataraja, a form of Shiva.[31][32] There are many folk dance forms that originated and are practiced in the region which are done in veneration to Hindu gods and goddesses such as Kavadiattam,[33][34] Mayilattam,[35][36] Bhagavatha nadanam, Devarattam, Kai silambattam, Kuravanji and Urumiattam.[37] Koothu is a form of street theater that consists of a play performance which consists of dance along with music, narration and singing, usually dedicated to goddesses such as Mariamman with stories drawn from Hindu epics such as Ramayana and Mahabharata, mythology and folklore.[38][39] The dance is accompanied by music played from traditional instruments and a kattiyakaran narrates the story during the performance.[40]

Pongal is a major and multi-day harvest festival dedicated to the Surya, the Sun God.[41] Puthandu is known as Tamil New Year which marks the first day of year on the Tamil calendar.[42] Other prominent festivals include Karthikai Deepam,[43][44] Thaipusam,[45][46] Aadi Perukku,[47] and Panguni Uthiram.[48]

Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam, the largest functioning temple in India

Dravidian architecture is the distinct style of rock architecture from the state, where the koils considered of porches or Mantapas preceding the door leading to the sanctum, Gate-pyramids or Gopurams in quadrangular enclosures that surround the temple, Pillared halls and a tank called the Kalyani or Pushkarni.[49][50] The Gopuram is a monumental tower, usually ornate at the entrance of the temple forms a prominent feature of the Hindu temples of the Dravidian style.[51] There are a number of rock-cut cave-temples established by the ancient Tamil kings and later by Pandyas and Pallavas.[52] The Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, built by the Pallavas in the 7th and 8th centuries has more than forty rock-cut temples and monoliths including one of the largest open-air rock reliefs in the world.[53][54]

Meenakshi Temple at Madurai. The large Gopuram is a hall-mark of Dravidian architecture

There are more than 34,000 temples in Tamil Nadu built across various periods some of which are several centuries old.

Rajagopuram, one of the tallest in the world.[63]

Kanniyakumari, which houses the Vivekananda Rock Memorial since 1970.[69]

Christianity

Main article: Christianity in Tamil Nadu
The 16th-century Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health at Velankanni

The

neo-Gothic style.[71] In 1578, the Portuguese published a book in old Tamil script named 'Thambiraan Vanakkam', the first book in any Indian language to be printed and published.[72] The Europeans started to establishing trade centers from the 16th century CE along the eastern coast of the state, and the region was under the rule of British Raj from the 18th century to the mid 20th century.[73][74][75] This also brought Christian missionaries, who established churches and introduced the religion to various parts of the state.[76]

As per the 2011 census, Christianity is the second largest religion in the state with the total number of Christians numbering 4,418,331, forming 6.12% of the total population of the state.[1] There is a larger proportion of Christians in the southern districts, Kanyakumari (46%), Thoothukudi (16.7%) and Tirunelveli (10.6%).[77][78] The 16th-century Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health is located at Velankanni, about 12 km (7.5 mi) south of Nagapattinam on the Eastern coast. The town declared as a holy city by the pope is known as the 'Lourdes of the East'.[79]

Islam

Main article: Tamil Muslim
Erwadi Dargah, one of the oldest mosques

Arabic inscriptions from the ninth century CE at Kayalpatnam, detail about endowments given to the mosques by Pandyas.[83] The earliest literary work in the community was the Palsanthmalai from the 13th century with the most popular being the epic Seerapuranam by Umaru Pulavar in the 17th century[84][85]

As of 2011[update],

Dhul Qidah attracts people of all faiths from different regions.[87] Nagore Dargah where the urs festival is celebrated every year and attracts pilgrims from both sufi Islam and Hinduism.[88]

Jainism

Main article: Jainism in Tamil Nadu
Tirumalai

ancient Tamil country in the 3rd–7th century CE were patrons of Jainism.[94][95] Some of the early kings of the Cheras, Pandyas and Pallavas patronized Jainism.[96][11]

As of 2011[update],

vegetarians and retain some of the old Jain customs.[98]

Jain temples and a 16 feet (4.9 m) high sculpture of Neminatha dated from the 12th century and the tallest Jain image in Tamil Nadu.[102]

Buddhism

Raja Raja Chola I in early 11th century CE with various Buddha bronze statues dated between 11th and 16th century CE being found in the region.[106] As per the 2011 census, 11,186 people identified as followers of Buddhism, which was 0.02% of the total population of Tamil Nadu.[1]

Sikhism

As of 2011[update],

Gurudwaras and educational institutions in the state.[110]

See also

References

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