Morning Watch: Pandem Paliya - Authentic Healing Tovil Morning Watch Dance of Southern Sri Lanka

Morning Watch Dances: Pandem Sanniya / Paliya - an authentic healing Tovil (Toil or Devil) Dance of Southern Sri Lanka.
Skilled practitioners perform special traditional rituals to cast-out the specific demons (devils) who they believe are causing their patient's problems.
These Morning Watch Dances start about 3 am and finish at sunrise, when all demons are believed to return to their abodes.
There are about 18 disease-causing Demons but usually only 7 or 8 dance. The final one wears a mask depicting all of them. These "appearances" follow a standard format. The special drumbeat is sounded to summon each Demon from the Demon Palace.
Pandem Sanniya / Paliya is the first to dance. He wears an enormous lion mane mask, and represents death. Often as in this short video, he appears in duplicate, as two figures.
Usually, he just dances; whereas the other Demons not only dance but also engage in comic and bawdy exchanges with the Drummer, much to the amusement of the audience.
Pandem Sanniya's / Paliya's appearance is preceded by loud drumming, and noises from the Demon Palace which shakes violently. He/they then bursts out holding burning torches onto which they throw dummala powder, causing flames to shoot skywards.
Pandem Sanniya / Paliya dances around the Performance Area, pausing from time to time in statuesque poses, staring threateningly at members of the audience. At the end of their performance, they/he wave their torches three times over the head of the patient before retreating back into the Demon Palace.
These healing ceremonies are lengthy and expensive. They usually involve the whole family, and often their neighbours. They can last all night.
The skilled practitioners take special precautions against the dangerous demons, including cross-dressing to confuse the demons.
Please use the following link to my website for further details of this demon
www.sheppard.m...
Note. "Pandem" can also be spelt "Pandam."
You Tube Links for the Playlists for Evening Watch, Midnight Watch and Morning Watch are as follows:
Tovil (Devil) Dances 1: Evening Watch
• Evening Watch Dances b...
Tovil (Devil) Dances 2: Midnight Watch
• Tovil (Devil) Dances 2...
Tovil (Devil) Dances 3: Morning Watch
• Morning Watch: Finale
For further details and photographs of these spectacular and increasingly rare ceremonies, see my website:
www.sheppard.m...
Also see this World Music Journal article which has references to very interesting video recordings and references on the different drum rhythms by a Tovil specialist.
aawmjournal.com...

[@prabhathmanawadu]

❤

[@priyankadesilva150]

😂❤

[@thilinaabeysiriwardana4225]

If I was say I’m going to Australia the rest will go there

[@LankaBest]

Thanks. Yes.

[@amilasenanayaka4342]

Niyamai

[@LankaBest]

Thanks. Hope you enjoyed it

[@inkypnkyponky580]

Eii me natanne

[@veenagamini2572]

❤❤❤

[@LankaBest]

Thanks
ස්තුතියි

[@raneyella2149]

Mayalga tali poon nambryat Dann pilis

[@LankaBest]

සමාවන්න. Google හට පරිවර්තනය කළ හැක්කේ ඔබේ භාෂාවේ ස්ක්‍රිප්ට් (අකුරු) භාවිතයෙන් ලියන ලද පෙළ පමණි.
Sorry. Google can only translate text written using your language's script (letters).

[@dakunedagaya2740]

පන්දම් සන්නිය නෙවෙයි පන්දම් පලිය රිරි යකගෙ දිශ්ටිය

[@LankaBest]

Thanks. Is there an error?

[@LankaBest]

I have edited the title and description. Are these now correct?

[@madumalikumarasingha8649]

Ou hariyatama hari😂

[@raneyella2149]

MA natn kattiyaga poon nambryat Dann ok

[@LankaBest]

සමාවන්න. Google හට පරිවර්තනය කළ හැක්කේ ඔබේ භාෂාවේ ස්ක්‍රිප්ට් (අකුරු) භාවිතයෙන් ලියන ලද පෙළ පමණි.
Sorry. Google can only translate text written using your language's script (letters).

[@nirupanirupa2188]

සැබවින්ම මේ උරුම රැකගතයුයි......

[@LankaBest]

ස්තුතියි. මම එකඟයි.
Thanks. I agree.

[@AjithPriyadarshana-zz9hs]

❤