Pulichamundi is a Theyyam that belongs to the group of Theyyams where humans become gods after death. Pulichamundi is a Theyyam that is worshipped in the Tulu nadu and in the hill villages of Kasaragod district. Pulichamundi is usually the sub-deity of the main deity in the Kavus.
The legend of Pulichamundi is as follows. Since the mother of the Tuluvangam family did not have children, she constantly performed Parvati puja. Thus, after praying for many days, the mother gave birth to four sons. Later, a baby sister was born to all four children. They named her Mathu.
They cherished and raised the only female child in the family and married her when she grew up. But even after many years, she did not have a child. The four brothers, who were saddened by this, did penance. As a result, she became pregnant, but the vaidya(Doctor) predicted that she would have an unlucky child. The four brothers, who were saddened by this, guarded her day and night.
She, who had longed to bathe after the festival, had gone to the field to comb leaves to comb her hair. At that very moment, a tiger jumped out and bit her and dragged her away. The brothers, who were distraught at not seeing their sister, searched the whole country. Suddenly, they saw the tiger biting half of her body. Unable to bear the grief and anger, they killed the tiger with an arrow. Thus, the tiger also fell dead next to the half-body of their sister.
Suddenly, in front of the four brothers, who were crying over the loss of their sister, Matu, a divine goddess, appeared in the form of a goddess. She said that Chamundi, who took the form of a tiger (Puli), has touched her, so from now on I will be known as Pulichamundi. The mother of the Tuluvangam family thus became Pulichamundi and the goddess after her death, and later in Tulu and the surrounding areas, Pulichamundi started being performed as a Theyyam. People belonging to the Cheron and Paravar castes perform this Theyyam.
