ABSTRACT
In the 1920s the humorist “S.V.V.” wrote the satirical piece An Elephant’s Creed in Court, originally published in Everyman’s Review.1 The article mercilessly poked fun at the interminable quarrels over seeming trivialities between the two Vai‚~avite sub-sects2 of the Çr⁄vai‚~ava3 community of South India, the Va†akalais and the Teπkalais. It begins:
The dispute was whether the temple elephant should wear the Vadagalay or the Tenkalay caste-mark. We believe our readers know that the Vadagalays wear on the forehead a caste-mark resembling the shape of the U and the Tenkalays that of Y. The fights over the caste-marks between these two important Vaishnava sects in southern India, has long been of an acute and rancorous character, especially in places where there are rich and famous temples. The omnipotent God was often kidnapped out of his shrine to be compelled to wear this or the other Namam (caste-mark) and if he stuck to his shrine, was forced to submit to the varying moods of mundane Judges. Vessels, umbrellas, curtains, bells, vehicles and other paraphernalia belonging to the temple suffered a similar faith and had their persuasions fixed by decrees in courts, which changed as often as each higher tribunal reversed the decree of that immediately below. The turn now came to the temple elephant. Till now he belonged to the Vadagalay creed and piously munched the palm-leaves under a Vadagalay-namam bristling broad and thick on his forehead. But the Tenkalays said that he was not born, or bred in the Vadagalay faith and could not be permitted to wear that Namam consistently with his duties in the temple.4
