Religion in Kerala
The ancient Keralites followed a Dravidian way of life and their
religion was a strong mixture of animism, totemism and spiritual
worship. Tree worship and animal worship were also common.
advent of Aryan religions like Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism from the
north changed this Dravidian way of life. The liberal natives welcomed
the new religions, leading to a synthesis of Aryan and Dravidian
Main Religious GroupBuddhism
Jainism was the first to come to Kerala. It arrived even before the
Christian era. The Koodalmanikyam Temple of Irinjalakkuda is believed to
have originally been a Jain temple. Jainism started declining in Kerala
around the 8th century and nearly disappeared around the 16th century.
Jain shrines still survive in Wayanad, Kasargod, Alappuzha and Kochi.
Buddhism came to Kerala around the 3rd century BC during the reign of
emperor Ashoka and held sway in Kerala for a few centuries.
The Vadakkunnatha Temple of Thrissur and the Shiva Temple at
Madavurpara at Kazhakkoottam near Thiruvananthapuram show evidence of
having been Buddhist shrines at one time. The temple architecture, the
'sastha' cult, 'naga' (serpent) worship and the festival processions
evince shades of Buddhist influence.
Malayalam Language too shows the influence of Buddhism in the sizeable
content of Pali words in it. Buddhism started declining by around the
8th century AD. It was the Hindu reform movement that hastened the
decline of both religions.
The Syrian Christians of Kerala believe that St. Thomas, one of the
direct disciples of Christ landed near Muziris in 52 AD and established
7 churches, of which 4 exist even today.
There is recorded evidence of a theologian from Alexandria coming to
Kerala to preach the gospel in 180 AD and the migration of about 400
people from the Middle East in the 4th century and yet another exodus at
the beginning of the 9th century.
The Portuguese who arrived in 1498 AD introduced Latin rites. Later,
during the British rule, the Church Mission Society of London began its
work in the country.
Today, there are five distinct branches of Christianity in Kerala, the
Roman Catholic Church following either Syrian, Latin or Malayalam
liturgies, the Orthodox Syrian Church, the Mar Thomas Syrian Church, the
Church Of South India and the Nestorian Church.
The Arabs had a long relationship with Kerala, dating back to several
centuries, probably even before the Christain era. It was around the 8th
century AD that Islam came to Kerala from over the seas.
Legend has it that the last of the great monarchs of the Chera empire,
Cheraman Perumal, embraced Islam and set sail to Mecca. His conversion
served as a fillip to the spread of Islam in Kerala.
The Zamorins of Kozhikode also encouraged the Muslims. In later years,
the invasions of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan of Mysore spawned an increase
in the number of Muslims in north Kerala.
One of the pioneers of the Hindu renaissance was Sankaracharya or Adi
Sankara (7th century AD), who founded a school of Vedic studies. His
philosophy of 'Advait Vedanta' stressed the oneness of the individual
soul with the all pervading cosmic force, 'brahmin'.
Sankara's preaching combined the best of Hinduism and Buddhism. This
philosopher-saint set up 'mutts' (religious centres) in the four corners
of India, Badrinath in the northern Himalayas, Puri in the east, Dwarka
in the west and Sringeri in the south.
In effect, he laid the foundations of a cultural synthesis, which
constitutes the religious history of India. Since the Hindu gurus
imparted their philosophy in Sanskrit, the language of scholars, they
wielded little influence over the masses.
The saints and savants of the Bhakti cult, by popularising simple Hindu
devotional literature in local dialects, generated intense religious
enthusiasm among the masses and this eventually precipitated the decline
of Jainism and Buddhism in Kerala.
The Jew Of Kerala
The Jews reached Kerala in the 1st century AD they came to Muziris
fleeing the Pogroms in their homelands and settled in places like Parur
They became a prosperous trading 