Muniandi


Muniandi is a regional Tamil guardian deity. The deity Muniandi refers to the Munis worshipped by the Tamil people in India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.
Muni refers to a class of guardian deities which are classified as Siva Gana. They are servants of the Supreme God Siva and his female half Shakti. The Munis could refer to former warriors, kings or sages who achieved the status of a Muni after their human death. Some of the Munis worshipped were created as Munis and did not go through the human life cycle.
The Munis are worshipped as Guardian Deity, Favourite Deity and Family Deity. Muniandi is also known as Muniappan, Aandiappan and Munisamy.

Mentions in Kandar Shashti Kavasam

There are mentions regarding Munis in the Kanda Shasti Kavasam. However Munis that were mentioned in the verses refer to types of evil spirits or ghost that is prevalent in the Tamil folk fore in contrast to the guardian deity.
paarka paarka paavam podipada

billi soonyam perumpahai ahala

valla bootham valaashtihap peihal

allal paduthum adangaa muniyum

pillaihal thinnum puzhakadai muniyum

kollivaayp peihalum kuralaip peihalum

penkalai thodarum bramaraa chatharum

adiyanaik kandaal alari kalangida.
Please see and see that my sins are powdered,

Let the black magic and great enmity go away,

Let great devils and those who shake their tails,

Let the uncontrollable Muni, which creates problems,

Let the back yard Muni which eats babies,

Let the ghosts with fire in their mouth,

Let the ghosts which steal my speech,

And let the Brahma Rakshasas which follow ladies,

Run away screaming when they see me.

Meaning of Muniandi

The word Muniandi is a combination of two words, Muni and Andi. The word Andi could be defined in two ways. One referring to slave of God and the other ruling. The second explanation could be derived from the word Aandavar which literally means he who rules. The reason for this explanation is the word Andi being used for other Gods in the Tamil pantheon.
Please refer to the following examples:
As such, the word Muniandi could refer to a slave Muni or he who rules in the form of Muni. Munis like Vaal Muni are also known as Vaal Muni Andavar and Vaal Muniswaran.

Muniandi to Muniswaran

Eventually Muniandi came to be identified as Muniswaran. The Munis who were worshipped as Muniandi in the past were later given the suffix Iswaran which means Lord or Ruler. This may not necessarily refer to Siva. The King of Lanka in the epic Ramayana, Ravanan, is also known as Lankeswaran. Siva, hailed as the Supreme God of the universe is known as Sarveswaran, Parameswaran and even Visveswaran.

Forms of Worship

Tree Worship
Stone Worship
Statue worship
There are many theories on the origins of these Munis. There are also mythological stories passed down orally for generations. According to one of the oldest oral tradition, the Munis were created to protect Goddess Shakti in the form of Goddess Pachaiamman against 7 Arakar Veerars. Various Pachaiamman temples in Tamil Nadu, India has statues for these Munis.
These are the names of the 7 Arakar Veerars:
During the last few decades, Gurukkals in Malaysia and Singapore have been trying to equate the Munis to Sivan himself by fusing the story of Muni into the story of Daksha Yagam. According to these Gurukkals, 7 Munis known as Saptha Muni emerged from the face of Siva to destroy Daksha's fire sacrifice.
However, reference in written puranas such as Vayu Purana has proven that the Munis worshipped today as Muniswaran or Muniandi have got nothing to do with Daksha Yagam. They were never mentioned in these Puranas.
Besides mythological origins, some Muni may have their own historical origin. They could be former warriors, sages or kings. Both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes are served as Padayals depending on the type of Muni. For example, in one of the Pachaiamman temple, non-vegetarian dishes are only served for Sem Muni. Paal Muni believed to be of Brahmin origin is only served vegetarian dishes.
The non-vegetarian dish is usually cooked after conducting ritual animal sacrifice.

Forms of Muniandi

There are many forms of Muni. Here are the list of 7 Munis known as Saptha Muni in one of the ancient temples for Pachaiamman:
Kottai Muni is the presiding deity of the annual Jallikattu bullfight in Alanganallur, Tamil Nadu. Paandi Muni, the guardian of the North Gopuram of the Madurai Meenakshi Amman temple is believed by some to be the chief of the Munis. According to one legend, he was Emperor Neduncheliyan of Pandyan Kingdom. The other known Munis are Raja Muni, Lada Muni, Karu Muni, Agni Muni, Veera Muni, Rettai Muni, Kaavu Muni and Yellai Muni. There is also another concept of Nava Muni instead of 7.

Tamil Diaspora

The deity is also popular amongst the Tamil diaspora outside Tamil Nadu. In Malaysia, Muniandi worship was started by Tamil migrants who had the Munis as their Kula Deivam. The family temples which were built in the estates and villages later turned into public temples. Eventually, more people started worshipping these Munis and it became popularised. Most modern day Malaysians are hereditary worshippers of these Munis. Moreover, they have accepted this deity as one of the main deities of worship.