ashtabandam the herbal bind

Shaky idols are considered a bad omen. Our ancestors have developed an adhesive to fix the idol to the pedestal. The making this adhesive is a long and laborious process. There is a family in Thiruvananthapuram who makes this wonderful bond.

When we stand in obeisance in a temple we neither think of the crafts man who chiseled the idol nor are bothered to find out how these images are fixed to the pedestal. Here is that bit of information.

This amazing adhesive is made from eight natural materials including herbs namely, finely powdered conch, gall nut, sealing wax, gooseberry, resin of pinur dammar, [chanchailiam] and two varieties of gravel [from Bharathapuzha and Periyar] and cotton.

“All these natural materials are taken in a definite proportion. The mixture is placed on a granite slab fixed to the ground. Five men position themselves in the form of a semicircle and beat the mixture in succession with a hammer weighing 10 Kg for three hours a day. I squat opposite to them stirring the mixture after every hammering. This process is continued for 41 days” said G Narayanan, who claims to be the only person who makes this adhesive in Kerala.

On the 41st day the mixture would have attained a waxen consistency. They are made into small balls and stored. These balls are very light but harden on cooling. When required it is taken to the temple hammered once again and is applied on the pedestal. Temple celebrates this event as Ashtabandakalasam. Normally it is performed every 12 years.

However it is not performed in temples where the idols are exposed to the elements like the Vana Durga, and in serpent groves. After Ashtabandam, usual ablution is banned for the next 41 days. During this period powdered conch is dusted at the joint and rubbed using a bamboo reed. Krishna thulasi is not offered to the deity during this period as it has the capacity to corrode the binding material