Story of A Matrilineal Society

 

People without the knowledge of their history, origin, and culture are like trees without roots.

Like every other states, kerala is also known for its rich culture and history. But otherthan coconuts and backwaters something peculiar is the rich Matrilineal society of the land passed on by great women like Sethu Lekshmi bhai, Queen unnimaya etc. Definitly the upcoming feminist economy has a lot to do with the matrilineal society of the south.

Hailing from the same this is indeed a part of my past and someway or the other yours too, its my pride to take you all along with me through this untouched parts of history.

Kerala with its high social indices of literacy, sex ratio and low female infanticides, it projects the image of a progressive state, But ask the women who actually live there and they will have a different story to tell. The supposed presence of matriarchy in its history has earned Kerala the image of being a female-friendly state.

Let me be frank! a true matriarchal society never existed in Kerala. Here, let me take you through a system that came closest to giving women decision making power, autonomy over their sexuality and their bodies and a control in the matters of their marriage and children called matrilineal society.

So, What’s it all about?!

While India follows patriarchy, which is a social system where men have monopoly over the social, cultural and political realms of society and hold primary authority over women and children, what was practised in some communities in Kerala was not a system diametrically opposite to this. In the system of matrilineal society (not to be mistaken for matriarchy) descent was traced through females and the succession of property was from mothers to daughters. This is not to say that, under such a system men became the oppressed gender. All it did was narrow down the gender gap that was left behind by a patriarchal society

How did the matrilineal society come into place?

The communities believed to have practiced this system were the khasi in meghalya, Nayars of Cochin and Travancore, the Ezhavas and the Malabar Muslims of northern Kerala. The most researched and recorded among them have been the Nayar communities of central and southern Kerala.

There are many contesting theories to this question but the most widely accepted one purports that the origin of this system is traced back to the time when the sole purpose of men was to indulge in warfare, because shedding blood for your own land was considered to be the truest purpose. Since that is where the ‘honour’ was, that is where men went. Family, succession, children and economic resources were left to women to take care of simply because men had different priorities at the time.

What was it like to live in a matrilineal society?

Families lived together as joint families in large mansions called ‘taravad‘. Family members shared ownership over the property; this meant that no individual could claim their share. Lineage was traced through females. Even after marriage, the woman stayed at her ancestral home and it was the husband who had to come stay in his wife’s house. This is not to say that this society was devoid of patriarchal elements. For all intents and purposes the actual control of the property and resources was in the hands of the maternal uncle known as the ‘Karnavan’ who had the final say in all matters.

So, why does this matrilineal society not exist anymore?

There were a multitude of factors that pushed this society into decline, the primary being a shift in the role that men played in the system. When the period of war and conflict ended and the men returned to being members of the mainstream society, marriages became stronger and more monogamous. The upper caste men got ‘modern English education’ which was heavily influenced by the Victorian ‘family values’, where their own culture was accused of being barbaric and uncivilised.

In the midst of all these changes, the women gradually faded into the background. The image of a humble, virtuous wife with ‘lady like qualities’ of being passive and submissive was glorified. Decades of this attempt to retreat to patriarchal ‘values’ brings us to what these communities are like today, not very different to any others you’ve seen. Kerala is surrounded by states that have a strong culture of patriarchy, resulting in the fading of matrilineal families it was obvious to see this transition.

Well! To be honest! Women in Kerala still enjoy a slightly higher education stature compared to most women across the country. A few families still follow the matrilineal tradition of carrying the mother's name throughout their life. And we can see sprouting groups of feminist and controversies even among us. Hence these past has a lot to do with the education to women and evolution of gender equality in and out of the state and in and out of the minds.

Hence my intention was to share a piece of my past since it’s a privilege to keep track of where we belong because history and culture is the backbone to our existence.

Inspired by The Ivory Throne.

-Love and Light

Lekshmi S P