It is well-known that the vedic rituals have come down to us in two broad types, the Grhya and the Srauta. The Grhya system is concerned with rites of passage of an individual such as the initiatory rite of the upanayana or marriage later. The Srauta ritual, on the other hand, is solemn and exalted, show casing in oral tradition the great learning of the Sruti literature, comprising, in other words, the three Vedas, (Rig-Yajur-Sama-vedas) and their ancillary texts. Whereas the Grhya system is still extant almost all over India, the Srauta type has survived in only isolated pockets of Brahman groups.

The Nambudiri Brahmans of Kerala from one such pocket, keeping up live traditions of the Srauta rituals. Three types of Srauta rituals from their repertory, the agnyadhana, the agnistoma, and agnicayana-atiratra, the first one setting up the three fires of a Srauta ritual and being initiatory to the latter two, both Srauta ritals of the Soma class. The agnistoma, or Somayagam as it is known among the Nambudiris, is the prakrti or paradigmatic model of the Soma ritual, lasting five days. The agnicayana-athirathra is a vikrti-modification-of the agnistoma, Agni to the Nambudiris, lasting twelve days, a great spectacle and display of learning.

It is with great honour that we announce that an Agni or Athirathram is planned in Panjal from April 4-15, 2011. Panjal was also the site of an Athirathram, in 1975 what has become the stuff of legend and romance, often viewed to have caused a resurgence of the Nambudiri Srauta culture in the following decades. We have had two Athirathrams since then one at Kundoor in 1990 and other at Kizhakkancherry in 2006 and more than five Somayagams in different years and different sites.

The Yajamana of the 2006 Agni, Kapra Akkithiri will be the over- all guide and mentor for the performance. The training and rehearsals for the ritual are on-going. The Yajamana of the 2011 Panjal Agni will be Putillattu Ramanajan Somayaji, himself the son of the 1990 Kundoor Agni. The Adhvaryam – that is, the praxis of the Yajurveda in the ritual and the heaviest load—wil be borne by the Kapra family. The hautram or the praxis of the Rgveda is led by the Naras family and the audgatram- the praxis of the samaveda in the ritual – by Tottam.