Volume 37, Number 1, January-June - Special Issue on the Ethnography
of Healing Guest Editor: Laurent Pordie

Ethnographical views on the valaikāppu. A pregnancy rite in Tamil Nadu
Pascale Hancart Petitet and Vellore Pragathi

In Tamil Nadu, the end of the first pregnancy is marked by the celebration of the valaikāppu rite. This article provides an ethnography of the rite as it is performed in rural areas by scheduled castes people. The first part will present the social context of reproduction as well as the ritual aspects of the ceremony. The second part will focus on the social interactions in which the performance takes place. The valaikāppu ceremony will thus be seen as a prism to study various symbolic, medical, social and economical aspects of motherhood in contemporary Indian society.

Keywords: Pregnancy; Ritual; Maternal Health; Reproduction; Tamil Nadu

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