Lord Murukaṉ as the Moṭṭaiyāṇṭi in various Abodes – A Study

Abstract

Murukaṉ, variously known as Subrahmaṇya, Skanda/Kantaṉ, Kārttikeya and Kumara is a popular theme in Indian art since the Kuṣāṇa period. Tamil literary sources are dated since the Caṅkam Age (c. third century BCE1 to second century CE) in the classical corpus literature. It is necessary to specify these forms because a folk form associated with Paḻaṉi, one among the six centers of Murukaṉ cult in ancient Tamilnāḍu5. The Lord is known as Moṭṭaiyāṇṭi (moṭṭai-āṇṭi “the shaven-headed mendicant”). The name is backed by a myth. This article is aim to bring the history of Lord Murukaṉ as Moṭṭaiyāṇṭi.