The folk traditions are not lacking in this respect. Indeed, there are not only
explicit guidelines about house-making, which combine ritual and practical con-
siderations, but a vast lore about the character of the houses, and its significance
for the well-being of the household also exists.
Thus, among the Brahmans of the Kashmir Valley, widely known as the
Pandits (Madan 1989),^3 the house is the abode of gods as well as human beings.
It has a guardian deity (gr.hadeva ̄) who is identified (through the rituals associ-
ated with him) with Va ̄stupati, the vedic lord of the earth. The bonds between
the house, the deity, and the household are intimate. It is noteworthy that, tra-
ditionally, a Kashmiri Pandit household never sold or bought a house. On build-
ing a new house, the protective deities would be ritually reinstalled there before
entering it, and the old house would then be demolished or, rarely, abandoned.
The sentiments of love, sharing, and solidarity that characterize interpersonal
relations in a well integrated household are, in the Pandits’ estimation, the
highest ideals of human conduct, the acme of morality. The house is loved and
valued because of the sanctity and the sentiments associated with it and
not merely because of its material value. It is regarded as a moral space par
excellence. The home is said to be neither the place for the indulgence of one’s
physical appetites (bhogas ́a ̄la ̄), nor for the performance of austerities (yogas ́a ̄la ̄,
Madan 1989: 256–7). In other words, it is the narrow middle ground, the
“razor’s edge” of the Upanisads.
An even richer conception of the house in relation to the householders than
among the Pandits is found in Tamil Nadu. Here houses are material structures
like they are everywhere, but they also partake of the properties of personhood.
Valentine Daniel writes:
Not only are houses, as are [village] and persons, [made of] substance that can be
contaminated and changed by mixing with other substances (hence the concern
with what kind of substance crosses the vulnerable thresholds – windows and
doors – of the house and affects its own substance and that of its inhabitants) but
houses are also “aware” of their vulnerability. They have personlike needs for
companionship, and experience loneliness and fear when isolated. (Daniel 1984:
114)Houses here are believed to have a life cycle: they are conceived and born, they
grow, and may eventually die. Houses like human offspring have astrological
significance and may bring good or bad fortune to the household. They have
feelings and attitudes. It is not therefore without trepidation that the decision
to build a house is taken. To minimize the risks and uncertainty strict rules are
followed in the selection of the site. It must be judged to be auspicious, and ap-
propriate rituals (e.g. Va ̄stu Purus.apu ̄ja ̄, although everybody is not sure who
Va ̄stu is) may be performed.
Conception is said to occur when a corner post or cornerstone is installed by
a member of the artisan caste who is traditionally entrusted this work. While at
work, he must observe rules pertaining to himself. For example: he must eat only
296 t. n. madan