Kalari

The word Kalari means "threshing floor" or "battlefield" in Malayalam and Tamil. Training for Kalaripayattu, a martial art of Kerala is traditionally done inside the Kalari. Also the past village schools of Kerala, run by the traditional astrologers families were known by the name Kalari or Ezhuthu Kalari.

Every Kalari has a Puttara (meaning "platform where flowers are kept" in Malayalam). The Puttara is a seven tiered platform placed in the south-west corner and houses the guardian deity of the Kalari. The seven tiers symbolise the seven sisters of Amritavani whom where Chekavars of North Malabar were born. These 7+1 system is the basis of 7+1 illams of Thiyyas (Chekavar) of North Malabar. Other deities, most of them incarnations of the Bhagavathi or Shiva, are installed in the corners. Flowers, incense and water are offered to the deity every day.

The teacher in Kalari is called Guru or Gurukkal or Asan. Teachers of Ezhuthu Kalari or Ezhuthu Palli too were known as Asan or Ezhuthassan.The traditional astrologer caste Ganaka or Kaniyar were the Preceptors of fencing techniques They are still addressed by the title Panickar in certain regions of Kerala. It is believed that the duty of training martial arts was assigned to this sect by Parashurama in Keralolpathy.

Traditionally the Kalari is constructed by digging a hollow in the ground forming a sunken area four feet in depth, forty-two feet in length and twenty-one feet in breadth. This is usually called KuzhiKalari. Kuzhi means "portions formed by caving in the earth" in Malayalam.

The entrance to the Kalari is in the east, to let in the morning sunlight, and leads into the forty-two foot leg running East-West while the twenty-one foot leg runs North-South. Another consideration taken when constructing the kalari is that it is built in the south-west side of the main plot, just like the puttara which is kept in the South-West corner of the Kalari itself. The floor of the Kalari is leveled using mud.

...
Wikipedia