If they do not, he does not even exercise the power of excommunication, which he nominally possesses. He is not a Sanyasi, but a Grihastha or householder. He marries his daughters to castemen, though he refrains from eating in their houses. The dead are, as a rule, buried in a sitting posture, but, at the present day, cremation is sometimes resorted to. Death pollution, as among some other non-Brahmanical castes, lasts for sixteen days. It is usual for a Pandaram to officiate at the death ceremonies. On the first day, the corpse is anointed with oil, and given a soap-nut bath. On the third day, five lingams are made with mud, of which four are placed in the four corners at the spot where the corpse was buried, and the fifth is placed in the centre. Food is distributed on the fifth day to Pandarams and the castemen. Sradh (annual death ceremony) is not as a rule performed, except in some of the larger towns. The Kammalans profess the Saiva form of the Brahman religion, and reverence greatly Pillaiyar, the favourite son of Siva. A few have come under the Lingayat influence. The caste, however, has its own special goddess Kamakshi Amma, who is commonly spoken of as Vriththi Daivam. She is worshipped by all the sub-divisions, and female children are frequently named after her. She is represented by the firepot and bellows-fire at which the castemen work, and presides over them. On all auspicious occasions, the first betel and dakshina (present of money) are set apart in her name, and sent to the pujari (priest) of the local temple dedicated to her. Oaths are taken in her name, and disputes affecting the caste are settled before her temple. There also elections to caste offices are held. The exact connection of the goddess Kamakshi with the caste is not known. There is, however, a vague tradition that she was one of the virgins who committed suicide by throwing herself into a fire, and was in consequence deified. Various village goddesses (grama devata) are also worshipped, and, though the Kammalans profess to be vegetarians, animal sacrifices are offered to them. Among these deities are the Saptha Kannimar or seven virgins, Kochade Periyandavan, and Periya Nayanar. Those who worship the Saptha Kannimar are known by the name of Madavaguppu, or the division that worships the mothers. Those who revere the other two deities mentioned are called Nadika Vamsathal, or those descended from men who, through the seven virgins, attained eternal bliss. Kochade Periyandavan is said to be a corruption of Or Jate Periya Pandyan, meaning the great Pandya with the single lock. He is regarded as Vishnu, and Periya Nayanar is held to be a manifestation of Siva. The former is said to have been the person who invited the Tattans (who called themselves Pandya Tattans) to settle in his kingdom. It is traditionally stated that they emigrated from the north, and settled in the Madura and Tinnevelly districts. An