Ankalaparamecuvari

Ankalaparamecuvari is a Hindu goddess popular in parts of Tamil Nadu. Her cult is notable for its association with rituals carried out in cemeteries and burning grounds, which incorporate a colorful ritual object called a kapparai. The kapparai, which is often decorated with the faces of deities, is typically carried in procession to a cemetery/burning ground, where a ceremony called the "mayana kollai" is carried out. During the mayana kollai, priests and sometimes other participants may eat ashes and bone fragments found at the burning ground, although the precise nature of this ritual varies widely from one temple to the next. Ankalaparamecuvari may also be associated with other cemetery deities like Irulappan.

References

• Ankalaparamecuvari : a goddess of Tamil Nadu, her myths and cult (ISBN 3-515-04702-6) by Eveline Meyer (Stuttgart : Steiner Verlag Wiesbaden GMBH, 1986)