In the South Indian religious tradition, there are grand ten‐day festivals held each year in the streets around the temples, mosques, and churches. This tradition is found not only inTami l Nadu and Kerala but also in Sri Lanka and in a variety of diaspora settings as well. These festivities remind one in certain ways of the earthy, lower class ”carnival” activities of medieval Europe, around which the Soviet scholar, M.M. Bakhtin, built some of his theories, except that the South Indian festivals are intensely religious and still very popular. Festivals that go back to ancient times often re ... More

In the South Indian religious tradition, there are grand ten‐day festivals held each year in the streets around the temples, mosques, and churches. This tradition is found not only inTami l Nadu and Kerala but also in Sri Lanka and in a variety of diaspora settings as well. These festivities remind one in certain ways of the earthy, lower class ”carnival” activities of medieval Europe, around which the Soviet scholar, M.M. Bakhtin, built some of his theories, except that the South Indian festivals are intensely religious and still very popular. Festivals that go back to ancient times often reflect issues in hunting tribal society, those dating from the medieval period reflect the concerns of complex agricultural societies (with landlords, kings, and priests, prominent), and others that started more recently are concerned with dealing with specific changes in the immediate social setting.