able to mimic the way their kin performed, what is essential to be a successful channel/medium is also the aptitude of being possessed by the deity. There are certain rules the channel/medium needs to follow to prepare his body for the possession. This may include being a vegetarian and not drinking alcohol. The channel/medium feels the sudden spirit possession only for a few seconds but after that he is filled with the deity's energy that lets him behave as the deity for the entire ritual. There are two types of mediators between the spirits and the humans. The first type of mediator is known as the pātri. These are members of middle castes such as Billava (toddy tappers, formerly also bow-men). The second type of mediator ("channels/mediums") typically belong to scheduled castes such as Pambada, Parava or Nalike. While the pātri has only a sword and a bell as ritual tools, the channel/medium uses makeup, ornaments, masks etc. Both mediums are believed to channelise the deity from an altered state of consciousness. But while the channel/medium may speak as the būta (in the first person) and about the būta (in the third person, i.e. when he recounts his/her pāḍdana), the pātri only speaks as the būta in the first person. Pāḍdana Pāḍdanas are songs that form a major part of Tuluva oral literature. Much of the body of this literature has been built on the legends of the būtas and daivas. Pāḍdanas have numerous variations for the same narrative. As in other epic traditions, there is no single author. Pāḍdanas are orally transmitted and recited. The language of the pāḍdanas is old Tulu. Some famous examples are the Siri-Kumar Pāḍdanas and the Koti and Chennayya Pāḍdanas. The pāḍdanas sung by women while planting paddy are referred to as "field songs". The pāḍdanas recite the origins of the spirits and deities. This is one way for the rituals to reconstruct the past and render a legitimization to it. The singers act as the indigenous narrators of the history of the native land. The pāḍdanas also stand in opposition to the puranic, male based principles as they highlight the feminine principles of mother earth. The pāḍdanas also reflect multi-socio-cultural background shifts (for example, the move from Matrilineal system to Patrilineal system). The older sense of cosmology is retained through the pāḍdanas. The pāḍdanas also reflect processes of Hinduisation and Sanskritization. In popular