Odiyan : The untold legend

Odiyan was the word used to describe people who practiced odi vidya (a form of black magic) that allowed them to change form. The odiyans, known for their physical prowess, were the product of a vicious caste system, black magic and thirst for power. 

The powers

As the folklore goes , the odiyans used to apply an oil obtained from killed human fetus  on their ear . This was supposed to give them powers to assume forms that they desired. They never changed into the forms or object they intended to be,  but created a sensory illusion on his prey. Odiyan would assume the shape of a bull or a cat or  even rocks and lay on the route that the victim routinely uses at night .when the victim approaches he would transform instantly and kills the prey within seconds .

The question that popped in my mind was , why go to such lengths to kill someone if he could be stabbed or shot like the assassins do these days. The reasons told by my grandmother were :

1.Most of the able bodied men at the time had kalari training from a young age hence it would have been difficult to over power them other than through a ruse.

2. The operations were covert so the people who arrange the assassin did not want themselves to get involved in the mess.

3. Odiyans were experts in disposing off their victims , leaving no trace .

The tactic used to over power the victims was the element of surprise .  The odiyans may take the form of a bull but there might be some sort of deformity to it . For example it might  appear three-legged or tailless which could amuse the onlooker and would make him go for a closer examination .  This gives the odiyan enough time to mount an attack and kill the prey as he approaches .  unfortunately these deformed bodies could be their undoing . A seasoned mantrikan or a Tharavad elder could easily recognize the anomalies the odiyan mounts on the senses and act accordingly to uncover the bluff.  

The illusionary power of odiyan comes from the oil they apply on their ear. It was derived  from the amniotic fluid of an unborn human fetus. The targets were young women during their first pregnancy.  Odiyans like any pulaya or pana men of the time worked as serfs at large tharavads.  During the day time while at work they would identify their victim and mark her off with a sign which would be inscribed on the walls of the tharavad . At night , the pulaya or pana would return as odiyan and using his spells  make the woman walk unconsciously in her sleep to a predetermined spot where the he would be waiting for her . The woman would be split open with sharpened knifes made of bamboo and the fetus taken out . The fetus is then from a bamboo pole to harvest the fluid while the woman would walk back home to her room where she would bleed to death.The amount of oil obtained would be only a few drops but it could last  for a handful of odi tricks.