Kaumaram

Kaumaram (Tamil: கௌமாரம்) is a Hindu denomination that primarily venerates the Tamil/Hindu deity of war, Murugan, also known as Kumaran, Karthikeyan (in South India), Arumugan, and Subramaniyan. Devotees of Kumaran, called Kaumaras, also revere members of his family: Parvati, Shiva, and Ganesha, as well as his consorts, Devasena/Deivayanai and valli, the daughters of Indra in Tamil tradition. The important theological texts relating to Kumara are a part of the Shaiva agama canon. This sub-tradition is found among the Tamils, Kannadigas, and the Vedda, in South India, Sri Lanka, and among the Tamil diaspora worldwide. The love story of Kumara/Murugan and his wife Valli, a girl from a local tribe, is popular in Tamil Nadu, where Murugan acquired the status of a patron god of the Tamil people.