in Europe, and also modernized Indian eye care in Mysore. Religion The Sankethi community is considered a fairly orthodox Hindu community, having mostly Vedic rites as a part of daily practice, though they do have certain culturally specific practices such as angaḍi habba, vāraturave and kanū habba. Pranatartiharan also reports that Sankethis also have a large variety of family deities, including grāmadevatas like Māramma and Dyāvamma. This is attributed to Sankethis' dissociation from work in temple services, as Sankethis are typically not priests (even in temples which they have built themselves). The Sankethis also have a community deity, known as Vāṇiyamma, who is said to appear in people's dreams and give them sacred missions. Furthermore, the Sankethi community has been open to outside influences, freely incorporating previously not practiced rituals like Caṇdī Homa, which earned the censure of other Brahmin communities for indulging in vāmācāra practices. The Sankethi community also has an atypical relationship with maṭhas, being historically exempt from paying gurudakṣiṇa to the Śṛṅgeri Śaṅkarācārya due to multiple purported occasions in which Kaushika Sankethis in particular are remembered to have preserved Śrṅgeri Maṭha's reputation without having been formally tied or subordinate to it. Cuisine Sankethi cuisine is not especially distinctive from other southern Karnataka cuisine, though there exists a definite influence from Tamil Nadu and Kerala cuisines. For example, shavige, a popular Sankethi dish is highly similar to idiyappam from Kerala, but is often flavored like sevai from Tamil Nadu. Sankethis by and large are vegetarians, so their cuisine consists entirely of vegetarian dishes. There is also avial and kutu, two other popular dishes in the Sankethi community, which are also found in Tamil cuisines. Due to their migratory history, influences from all over South India are evident. References External links North American Sankethi Association Dravidian peoples Kannada Brahmins Social groups of Karnataka