Namadhari Naik or Halepaika is a Hindu Kshatriya community (the same Community also known as Halepaika, Namadhari Naik, Namadhari Gowda) predominantly found in Uttara Kannada, Udupi district and Dakshina Kannada District soldier community of Karnataka State in India and are numerically a majority community in the Uttara Kannada district. They have sub castes - Dasa Pantha and Bhakti Pantha. They are the followers of Sri Madvacharya and Sri Raamanujachaarya. They originated from the South coastal region of Karnataka. They are an agricultural and priest community, though agriculture once formed an important source of income. The people of the community use Nayak (ನಾಯಕ)and Naik (ನಾಯ್ಕ), Gowda as surnames. The community considers the Lord of Tirupati Venkataramana as their deity, apart from the local gods and Local group of family deities depending on their place of origin. Origin According to the People of India series by the Anthropological Survey of India it, the Halepaiks/Komarpaiks are migrants from Andhra Pradesh. It refers to the legend of king Gopala Krishnaraya who was ruling Vijayanagar, when the Halepaiks were living in Kumarakshetra near the capital (read: Hampi). It says that one of the Halepaiks, Narayana, son of Ranga Naik and Laxmi Devi, impressed the king by faithfully serving him, pleased with which the King granted him the village of 'Halepaik' as inam. Halepaiks find continuous reference in Kuvempu's Malegalalli madumagalu and Kanuru Heggaditi which deal with life in the Western Ghats in the 19th century. The then contemporary condition of Halepaiks, vague reference to their origins, social standings, inter relation with other communities, ongoing class struggle can be summed up from this work. Kuvempu indicates that there was a decision taken among the landlords that Halepaiks were to be not allowed to hold their own lands and were to be confined to tilling others' lands. The discrimination extended to ceremonies and rituals as well with the Halepaik groom not allowed to ride a horse to his marriage as was the practice for ages. The landlords seem to have guarded this privilege of theirs very closely. This also indicates the social downfall Halepaiks had attained by then. Present conditions and social status This caste is also found in the adjoining districts of North and South Canara. It is possible that they be akin to the Thiyyas of Malabar, whose status, and occupation bear a close resemblance to their own. The term ' Hale Paikas ' probably