CHAPTER VI.

THE EVIL EYE AND THE SCARING OF GHOSTS.

Hindus generally believe in the effects of the evil eye. If an accident befall any thing of value, or it undergoes any sudden change, it is said to be due to the effects of an evil eye. In order to escape from the influence of an evil eye, people begin the use of incantations and charms on a Sunday, Wednesday, or Thursday and finish them on the third or the fifth day. Small children, domestic animals, and beautiful objects are generally liable to be affected by an evil eye.

The following are some of the methods of evading the effects of an evil eye.

1st.--Dry chillies are waved round the body of the affected person and thrown into the fire, and if they do not thereupon make a loud noise, it is said that the effects of an evil eye are averted.

2nd.--Mustard seed and salt are waved round the face of a child and then thrown into the fire.

3rd.--Alum is waved round the child and then thrown into fire. The piece of alum thus thrown is sometimes believed to be changed into the form of a man or a woman. From this, conjectures are made as to the sex of the person by whose evil eye the patient is affected. The form or the figure is then broken by a toe of the left foot of the patient, and dry chillies, garlic, hair, rubbish from the house and salt are mixed in the alum powder. The mixture is waved round the patient three times and then thrown into fire. Meanwhile the sorcerer repeats the names of all persons, things and evil spirits suspected by him. After this performance has been repeated three times, the fire is deposited in a public place where three roads meet.

4th.--If the evil eye is believed to be that of a ghost, the sorcerer mutters some words to himself, waves ashes round the affected child, and blows them in the air.

5th.--The evil eye of a tiger is removed from an affected animal in the following manner. An oil lamp is burnt in the eye of a dead tiger and the lamp is waved round the animal by a Mahár. The Mahár is given a loaf prepared from eight kinds of grain.

6th.--Copper amulets and black cotton strings charmed by a sorcerer are also tied round the neck or arms of the patient. [618]

When a child is to be removed from one village to another, rice is scattered at the boundary of the village, at the bridges, rivers, creeks, etc, that are crossed during the journey. Cocoanuts are waved round the child and thrown away at the boundary of the village and at places supposed to be haunted by ghosts. Before entering a house in a new village, a small quantity of boiled rice, bread, or grains of rice are waved round the child and thrown away. It is believed that, when black ointment is applied to the eyes, cheeks, or forehead of a child, there is no fear of its being affected by an evil eye. This also depends on the position of the stars at the birth of a child. If anybody sees a beautiful thing and praises it, there is a chance of its being affected by an evil eye. It is believed that children, animals, trees, and even wood and stones, are apt to be affected by an evil eye. In order to avoid injury from an evil eye, cocoanut shells or a shoe are tied on a conspicuous part of a tree or a creeping plant, black beads known as Vajrabuttu are tied round the necks of children, and cowries and black beads are tied round the necks of animals. Even grown up persons are affected by an evil eye. When a man is very ill or frequently becomes unconscious, cocoanuts, fowls and boiled rice are waved round him and thrown away. [619]

When the effects of an evil eye cannot be removed by ordinary methods, the evil influence is said to have entered through the bones, 'Hádi drusta padali.' In order to remove it people bring the bone of an animal in the evening, and after besmearing it with oil and turmeric powder, wash it in hot water. It is dressed in a yellow cloth, and black and red ointments are applied to it. It is then waved round the affected person, and thrown away in some public place where three roads meet. [620]

For evading the effects of an evil eye, salt, mustard seed, hair, garlic, dry leaves of onions, dry chillies, and seven small stones from the road are put on the fire. The fire is then waved round the body of the affected person and thrown away. Charmed black cotton strings are turned over the burning incense and tied round the arm or the neck. Charmed ashes from the temples of certain deities are also applied to the forehead of the affected person. [621]

At Ibrámpur in the Ratnágiri District, it is believed that a person whose eyes have come under the influence of evil stars possesses the power of the evil eye. Ashes are taken on a mango leaf, and charmed with the mantras or incantations for an evil eye, and then they are applied to the forehead of the affected person. [622]

The people of Poladpur in the Kolába District believe the effects of an evil eye to be as follows. A healthy child becomes sickly and cries, a man may suffer from indigestion or loss of appetite, a cow or a she-buffalo yielding plenty of milk suddenly ceases to give milk or gives blood in place of it, a good image is disfigured or broken, and even stones are shattered to pieces by the effects of an evil eye.

The following devices are used to ward off such evil effects. A black mark is made on the forehead of children. Black beads called Drustamani, and Vajrabuttu are tied round their necks. Marking nuts and cowries tied with a black thread are fastened round the necks of animals. A little black spot is marked on an image. A worn out shoe or a sandal is tied to the fruit-yielding trees. Salt and mustard seed are waved thrice round the face of a child repeating "Ishta mishta konyá pápinichi drushta" and thrown into the fire. Some people roll a cotton thread round a curry stone, wave it three times round the patient, and then put it into the fire; if the thread burns, the evil eye is held to have been removed. If the evil eye be on the food, three morsels of food are first raised to the mouth, and then thrown into the fire. Sacred ashes are applied to trees and creeping plants to remove the effects of an evil eye. [623]

The people of Khopoli in the Kolába District believe that the evil eye can be diverted from living creatures only, and not from inanimate things such as a stone or an earthen image. Sacred ashes are applied to the forehead of the suffering child by repeating the Rám raksha stotra, i.e., the protecting praises of Ráma, the seventh incarnation of Vishnu. Among Bráhmans, rice grains are waved thrice round the face of a child and put into water. The water is then thrown away. Even flowers are waved round the faces of small children in the evening and thrown away. [624]

At Chauk in the Karjat taluka of the Kolába District, some people wave the left shoe thrice round the body of the affected person for the purpose of evading the effects of an evil eye. A red hot iron bar is also cooled in water mixed with turmeric powder. [625]

At Shirgáon in the Máhim taluka of the Thána District water is drawn in a brass or a copper pot in the evening, and turmeric powder, rice, and any other edible articles on which the evil eye has fallen are put into it. Twentyone date leaves, each of them with a knot, are then waved round the body of the affected person and thrown into the water pot, burning coals being dropped into the mixture. The pot is then waved thrice round the body of the affected person, and kept in a corner of the bedroom for one night, with a basket, a broom, and a sandal or an old shoe placed on the top. It is then thrown away in the morning in some public place where three roads meet. If the water becomes red, it is supposed that the evil eye has been removed. [626]

The effects of an evil eye are sometimes visible on the face of a child in the form of small red pustules. The appearance of such pustules is called Chák padane. [627]

If a person is affected by an evil eye at the time of taking his meals, he loses his appetite. He also becomes weaker day by day. One of the modes of removing these evils is to wave fresh date leaves three times round the face of the affected person, and to throw them into water. Some people take water in a copper plate and extinguish in it burning sticks of the tamarind tree, after waving them round the body of the affected person. [628]

At Khárbáv in the Bassein taluka of the Thána District, five pieces of broken tiles are made red hot and put into water in which a little quantity of all the cooked food in the house has been mixed. Turmeric powder is also put into it. A pen knife or some other iron instrument is then turned five times in the water. A winnowing basket and a broom are waved thrice round the face of the affected person, and placed over the water pot. [629]

At Dahánu in the Thána District, two big stones, of which one has been waved round the face of a person affected by an evil eye, are struck one against the other. If the stone breaks, it is believed that the evil effect has been removed. Cowdung is mixed with water in a brass or a copper plate, and dust from a public road, hair, and burning black cotton cloth are put into another small vessel. This vessel is then waved round the person, and placed upside down over the mixture of cowdung. If it sticks to the brass plate, this is supposed to be due to the evil eye. [630]

The people of Kolhápur believe in the effects of an evil eye. A child suffering from an evil eye turns pale and thin, and suffers from headache. To avoid these effects, elderly women make a mark with lamp black on the face or brow of the child. Boiled rice and curds, and bread and oil are also passed round the face of a child, and thrown into a public road. [631]

Generally, in the Konkan districts, opprobrious names are given to children when they are sickly, always crying, and weak, or when they are short lived. These names are Marya, Rodya, Kerya, etc. It is believed that children improve in health when called by such opprobrious names. [632]

Opprobrious names such as Dhondu, Kondu, Keru, are given to children in families in which the first children are shortlived. But their real names are different. The names of the wellknown arithmetician Keru Nána Chhatre and his son Kondopant Chhatre are examples of opprobrious names. [633]

Among high class Hindus, the first son is not generally called by his real name, but by one of the opprobrious names given above. [634]

Children are sometimes weighed with shoes or sandals, and also with cowdung. In some cases, their nostrils are bored, especially the right one. [635]

Hindus generally call their children by the names of their deities and ancestors, and they attribute the premature death of their children to their own misbehaviour towards such ancestors, or to their having abused them; they fear that such abuse or misbehaviour has offended the ancestors. To avoid their displeasure and the consequent death of their children, the people give opprobrious names to their next born such as Dagadya, Dhondya, Gundya, Dandya, Kerya, Ukirdya, Kondya, Lobhya, etc. The custom of tattooing one side of the body of females also prevails in the Kolhápur District, especially in cases where the children in a family are shortlived. [636]

In the Puránas there are instances of males being transformed into females, and females into males. For example, the female Amba was transformed into a male called Shikhandi and the male Nárad was transformed into a female. Arjuna, the third brother of the Pándavas is said to have changed his sex, and turned into Bruhannada. [637]

In the Shivlilamruta, a book pertaining to the god Shiva, in the chapter of Simantini, it has been described how a man was turned into a woman. [638]

At Kolhápur, there are no instances known of a change of sex. The goddess Yallamma has a high reputation in this district for making a change in the habits and deportments of men and women, especially among low caste people. It is believed that the curse of this goddess has the power of destroying the virility of males, whereupon they behave like females. Many instances of this type can be seen at the fair of the goddess Yallamma, which is held in Márgashirsha (December); men dressed in women's clothes and vice versa are often seen at this fair. [639]

In Western India, iron nails are generally used when any spirit is to be buried in the ground. Other metals, such as gold, silver, and copper, are sometimes offered to the ghosts. The blood of fowls and goats is also offered to them. When incense is burnt before a sorcerer, the spirit enters into his body. Water is charmed and sprinkled over the body of a person attacked by an evil spirit. Rice and udid grains are required for exorcising spirits. Red powder Pinjar, turmeric powder, black ointment kájal, lemons, Narakya Wuda a kind of incense, betel-leaves, betelnuts, cocoanuts, mango leaves, Nirgudi leaves, and pieces of cloth are also used for the same purpose. [640]

Cane sticks are used by people as a protection against evil spirits. A stick cut from the tree known as Pándhri is also used as protection. Charmed black cotton strings are tied to the wrist, arm or neck. If a man is very much afraid of a ghost, he repeats the name of the monkey god Máruti or any other deity that may be favourable to his family. [641]

The blood of fowls and goats is used as a protection against ghosts and Devachárs, and also against witchcraft. Charmed water is waved round the person affected by an evil spirit, and thrown away. Rings, amulets, and anklets made of metals of five kinds are put on the hands and legs of children to ward off the effects of evil spirits. [642]

It is customary among certain people to apply spittle to the sandalpaste mark on the forehead of a man, and to the red Kunku mark on the forehead of an unwidowed woman. It is considered to be a protection against evil spirits. [643]

The beak of an eagle, a stick cut from a tree known as Pándhri, a cane having three joints, and the root of a shrub called Shrávad, which has white leaves, are used as protection against evil spirits. [644]

At Pendur in the Málwan taluka of the Ratnágiri District it is believed that an iron stick held in the hand is a protection against evil spirits. [645]

At Chauk in the Karjat taluka of the Kolába District, pictures of certain deities are tattooed on the body for the purpose of protection against evil spirits. It is also believed that evil spirits run away when salt and garlic are thrown into fire as they cannot bear the smoke of burning garlic. [646]

At Medhe in the Rohe taluka, when the dead body of a woman dying within ten days of her delivery is taken out of the house for burial, an iron horseshoe is driven into the threshold of the house, and grains of Náchani are scattered in the street while the corpse is being carried to the burial ground. [647]

At Bhuwan in the Murbád taluka some people tie a square piece of leather to the necks of their children as protection against evil spirits. [648]

At Rái, a custom prevails of putting coral necklaces on children as a protective against evil spirits. [649]

Iron nails and horseshoes are driven into the threshold or on to the door of a house on the full moon day or the last day of the Hindu calendar month at evening time, to prevent the entrance of evil spirits. Dirty localities being considered to be haunts of evil spirits, people living in such localities burn incense in their houses every day. While exorcising evil spirits the sorcerers throw charmed Udid grains and Rále panic seeds on the body of the diseased, or place these things below his bed. Rings made of metals of five kinds,--iron, copper, brass, silver and gold--are charmed on an eclipse day, and worn by people. Red lead and cowries are tied to the necks or feet of animals as protection against evil spirits. The spirits that haunt buried treasures are pacified by the blood of fowls and goats when digging up such treasures. [650]

Certain mantras are written on a paper, and the paper is tied to a black cotton string, or the paper is put into a copper amulet, and then tied to a black cotton string. The black cotton string with the amulet is then tied round the arm or the neck of a person attacked by evil spirits, or suffering from malarial fevers. These mantras are never disclosed to anybody. [651]

Nádádora is a black cotton thread having seven or nine knots with a charmed paper in one of these knots. The thread is first held over burning incense, and then tied round the neck or the arm of the diseased. Sunday is generally chosen for attaching these threads. [652]

At Poladpur in the Kolába District, there lived a sorcerer who used to give such amulets and charmed threads. He placed about ten or twelve copper rings or amulets in a copper plate kept in the sun. While thus exposed to the sun, these amulets were continuously watched by the sorcerer for some two hours, repeating certain mantras. [653]

At Málád in the Thána District, copper amulets and charmed black cotton threads in the name of Kál Bhairav, an incarnation of the god Shiva, are used as protective against evil spirits. They are tied to the arms or the neck of the diseased on an eclipse day, on the last day of the Hindu calendar month, or on a Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday. [654]

At Kolhápur, the use of amulets is generally resorted to by people suffering from the attacks of evil spirits or from malarial fevers. The sorcerer who exorcises the evil spirits writes certain mantras on a paper, or draws certain symbols and repeats the mantras over them. The paper is then wrapped in an amulet made of copper or silver, and fastened to a cotton thread. This amulet is tied round the arm or the neck of the diseased. Before tying it to the arm or the neck, it is once held over burning incense. [655]

A sacred circle is frequently used as a protection from spirits. The sorcerer draws a circle on the ground, with his stick, and the following articles are put inside it. Cocoanuts, lemons, red lead, and a Kohala gourd. Fowls are also sacrificed to this circle. The filling in of this circle is called mánda bharane by the exorcists. [656]

Rice or Udid grain, and ashes charmed by mantras, are scattered round a certain area of land, or are given to a person supposed to be affected by evil spirits. The spirits cannot enter a place charmed in this manner. They are also scattered round the place supposed to be haunted by evil spirits in the belief that neither evil spirits nor snakes can transgress the boundary thus marked by a sorcerer. [657]

Formerly sages and saints used to make such sacred circles round their residence, repeating certain mantras, for their protection from evil spirits. It is believed that the spirits cannot enter or leave these enchanted circles. They used to bury bottles containing such spirits at the boundaries of these circles. There are many such places in the Kolhápur District, such as Buránsáheb of Brahmapuri, the Sádhubuwa of Panhála, and Bábu Jámál at Kolhápur. [658]

It is a general belief among all classes of Hindus in the Bombay Presidency that Saturday is an unlucky day, and in some places Friday and Tuesday are also considered inauspicious.

Sunday is considered as an ordinary day.

Monday, Wednesday and Thursday are believed to be auspicious or lucky days.

It is said that a thing suggested or thought of on Friday cannot be carried out successfully. [659]

Sowing seed and watering trees is strictly forbidden on Sunday. It is believed that trees do not bear well if watered on Sundays. [660]

Tuesday and Friday are considered unlucky days for beginning a new task. Wednesday and Saturday are said to be inauspicious for visiting another village. [661]

The numbers 2, 6, 11 and zero are believed to be lucky, 4, 5, 10 and 8 are unlucky, and 1, 3, 7 and 9 are considered as middling or moderate.

The figure zero is by some considered inauspicious. [662]

The numbers 5, 7, 9 are said by some to be auspicious, and 1, 3, 11 and 13 inauspicious. [663]

Odd numbers are auspicious, and even numbers are said to be inauspicious. [664]

The following are generally held to be auspicious omens:--

While going on any business, to come across an unwidowed woman, a cow, Bráhmans, a five-petaled flower, or a pot filled with water; [665] the throbbing of the right eyelid and of the right arm of a man, and of the left eyelid of a woman; a Bráhman coming in front with a cup and a spoon in his hand after taking his bath; [666] the appearance of a peacock, the Bháradwáj or the blue jay, and the mongoose, especially when they pass on the left side of the person going on business. [667]

The following are considered to be auspicious when seen within a hundred paces of a person starting on business:--

Bráhmans, unwidowed women, boiled food, meat, fishes, milk, any kind of corn, the bird Chásha or the blue jay, passing by the left side, the appearance of the moon in front, a person coming across one's path with vessels filled with water, and a married couple, a cow with its calf, images of god, cocoanuts and other fruits, the mother, white clothes, the sound of a musical instrument, a horse, an elephant, curds, flowers, a lighted lamp, a jackal, a spiritual preceptor, a public woman, a Mahár, a washerman coming with a bundle of washed clothes, and a marriage procession. [668]

The following objects and persons are generally believed to be inauspicious:--

Oil, buttermilk, a couple of snakes, a monkey, pig, and an ass, firewood, ashes and cotton, a person with a disfigured nose, a man dressing his hair in the shape of a crown, red garlands, wet clothes, a woman wearing red cloth, an empty earthen vessel, a Bráhman widow, a Brahmachári and an unmarried Bráhman, [669] a widow, a bare-headed Bráhman, a cat going across the path, a dog flapping his ears, meeting a barber with his bag, a beggar, sneezing, or the asking of a question at the time of departure, waiting, meeting a person with an empty vessel, [670] howling of dogs and jackals, a pair of crows playing on the ground, and a lighted lamp extinguished by its fall on the ground. [671]

While plans or proposals are being made, it is considered inauspicious if any one sneezes or the sound of a lizard is heard. [672] Meeting a person of the depressed classes whose touch is pollution, or a Bráhman who accepts funeral gifts, is considered inauspicious. [673] Meeting a woman who is in her menses, a mourner, a buffalo, a snake and a diwad are considered inauspicious. [674] An iron vessel or an iron bar, cow dung cakes, salt, grass, a broom, a vulture, and a washerman bringing with him dirty clothes are also considered to be inauspicious omens. [675]

Among the Hindus in Western India, for the purpose of helping the spirit to go to heaven safely, and for securing its goodwill towards the survivors, after death ceremonies called the Shráddhas are generally performed. Some perform these ceremonies once a year in the month of Bhádrapada, and others perform them twice or thrice, i.e., on the anniversary day of the deceased as well as in the dark half of Bhádrapada, which is generally known as the manes' fortnight (pitru paksha). [676]

The funeral solemnities performed from the 1st to the 14th day from the death of the deceased are as described below:--

On the first day, at the time of burning the dead body, a plot of ground is purified by repeating certain mantras, and the corpse is then placed on it. Before setting the funeral pile on fire, balls of boiled rice or wheat flour are put on the face, the forehead, arms and the chest of the corpse. Such balls are placed on the body of the deceased only when death has taken place on an unlucky day, or when there is an unlucky conjunction of stars. The son, or some other near relative, of the deceased generally performs these rites with the help of a Bráhman priest. On the third day he goes to the burning place, collects the ashes of the deceased, and throws them into the sea. On this occasion he is accompanied by the relatives of the deceased. Rich persons who are able to go to Benares keep the bones of their deceased parents and throw them into the Ganges at Prayága near Benares after performing certain Shráddhas there. The giving of oblations continues daily till the tenth day. The oblations of the tenth day are called Das Pinda. The rites of the eleventh day are called Ekotistha. On the eleventh day the person performing the rites has to change his sacred thread, after sipping a little cow's urine. Cooked food is prepared at the place where the rites of the eleventh day are performed, and Bráhmans are fed there, or at least thirty-two mouthfuls of cooked food are offered to the sacred fire. A big ball of boiled rice is put before the sacred fire or near the Bráhmans taking their meals. This ball is then thrown into the sea. A male calf is branded, worshipped and let loose. This calf is called Vasu, and is considered sacred by the villagers. On the 11th day, special ceremonies for propitiating the eight Vasus and the eleven Rudras are performed, and gifts of a plot of ground, a cow, cooking vessels, various kinds of corn, golden images, silver and copper coins, clothes, shoes, umbrellas, bedding, etc. are given to the Bráhmans collected there. On the 13th day after death a feast is given to 13 or more Bráhmans and the other relatives. Navakádán, i.e., the gift of a ship and Gopradán, i.e., of a cow and a calf, are also given to the Bráhmans on the understanding that they will help the soul of the dead while crossing the river Vaitarna. [677]

Water mixed with til or sesamum seed, sandalpaste, and oblations of boiled rice are given daily to the manes to secure their goodwill towards the survivors. [678]

At Bankavli in the Dápoli taluka of the Ratnágiri District, in order to prevent the soul from assuming the form of a ghost, there is a custom of tying a piece of Gulvel, a species of moonseed, or the seed of a vegetable known as Máthbháji, round the neck of the corpse before burning it. It is also believed that, by doing this, the soul is prevented from troubling the survivors. [679]

At Poladpur in the Kolába District, some villagers drive an iron nail into the head of the corpse before it is taken to the funeral ground. They believe that, in consequence, the soul of the deceased will not turn into an evil spirit. Some people scatter grain on the road while the corpse is being carried to the cremation ground. [680]

Among the Hindus in the Konkan, as well as in the Deccan, dead bodies are generally burnt, but under the following circumstances they are buried.

Persons dying of small pox, women dying in childbirth or during their menses, children dying within six months from their birth, and Sanyásis are buried. The bodies of persons suffering from leprosy are necessarily buried. [681] Among Lingáyats the bodies are always buried. Certain mantras are repeated while burying or burning the dead body. While burying, cocoanuts and certain kinds of grain are thrown into the grave, and after covering the dead body with salt, the grave is filled up with earth and stones. [682] While burning, the dead body is placed on the funeral pile with its head to the north and feet towards the south. Tulsi wood, sandal-wood, and Bel wood are kept on the pile before placing the dead body over it. Cocoanuts and camphor cakes are placed on the body, and it is set on fire. Among the Lingáyats and Gosávis the dead are buried. Before burying, the Lingáyats have to take a written order from their priest, the Ayya or Jangam. The paper is then tied to the neck of the deceased, and the body is placed in a bag made of new cloth, the head being allowed to remain out of the bag. Bhasma or ashes, salt and camphor are also put into the bag along with the corpse, which is then buried. The Jangam repeats mantras when the body is in the grave. No such written order is necessary for the burial of Gosávis. A cocoanut is broken on the head of the corpse at the time of burying it. Among high class Hindus the corpse is carried to the funeral ground in a bier made of bamboos. Among the Lingáyats a gaily dressed frame called Makhar is prepared on the bier, and the body is dressed with clothes and head dress and seated in the Makhar. Some of them carry the dead body in a bag made of blanket. There is a custom of keeping foot-prints on the spot where a Sanyási is buried, and they are daily worshipped by the people. [683] Among the Káthawatis of Thána and Kolába Districts the dead body is first buried, and after a few days the skeleton is taken out of the grave and then burnt as usual. [684] Among the high class Hindus the moustaches are shaved at the death of parents, paternal uncle and elder brother. Among the Shudras it is not necessary to shave. [685] Persons who have lost their parents have to perform certain funeral rites or Shráddhas when they visit holy places such as Benáres, Prayág, Ayodhya and Násik, and they have to shave their moustaches at all these places before performing the funeral rites. [686] Moustaches are also shaved as a penance for certain sins. The Agnihotri, i.e., one who preserves perpetual fire in his house for worship, has to get himself shaved every fortnight. [687]

Among high class Hindus boiled rice is daily offered to the dead after a portion has been thrown into the fire, the remainder being given to the crows. The portion thrown in the fire is called Vaishvadev, and that which is given to the crows is called Kágwás. Among other Hindus it is given on the last day of Bhádrapada and on the date of the father's death, annually. [688] Oblations of boiled rice are given to the dead every day, on the last day of the Hindu calendar month, on the date of a person's death every month, on the same date of the dark half of Bhádrapada every year. These oblations are put out of the house before taking the meals. It is believed that the ancestors come down in the form of crows to partake of these offerings. [689] Oblations of cooked food are also offered to a cow, and considered thus to be received by the dead. They are especially given to the crows annually in the dark half of Bhádrapada on the date of the deceased's death. [690] After the corpse has been carried to the funeral ground, an oil lamp containing one cotton wick is kept on the spot where the deceased expired. The flame of the lamp is directed towards the south as it is believed that the soul goes to heaven by the south. A ball of boiled rice and a little quantity of water or milk is kept daily for the first ten days near the lamp while repeating the name of the deceased and of the gotra to which it belonged. The lamp is taken out of the house on the 11th day. [691]

Hindus believe that impurity attaches to all the things in the house in consequence of the death of a person in that house. All those things which can be purified by washing are washed and taken back, while things like earthen pots, cooked food, etc. are thrown away, special care being taken to break these pots, so that they may not be used again. Even the walls of the house are white washed. [692] The earthen pots that are required for the funeral rites of the dead are all broken. One which is required for boiling water to bathe the corpse is broken when the body is carried to the funeral ground. Of the rest, one is broken at the funeral pile after the son has passed thrice round the pile with an earthen vessel filled with water. It is believed that birds and animals drinking water out of these vessels would be infected by disease, and this is the reason why these pots are broken. The mourners who use earthen vessels during the mourning break them at the end of the mourning period. [693] Among the Agris of Chaul in the Kolába District, all earthen vessels in the house are broken on the eleventh day after a death in the family, the chief reason assigned for this act being that the wishes and desires of the deceased might lurk in the earthen vessels and cause trouble to the inmates of the house. [694]

All the members of the family of the dead have to observe mourning for ten days. They are purified on the eleventh day after taking a bath and sipping Panchgavya, or the five products of the cow. The son of the dead person, or one who performs the funeral rites of the dead is purified on the twelfth day after completing the rites of Sapindi. A man in mourning does not touch those who are not in mourning. If anybody touches him, both of them have to take a bath. The son of the deceased or, in the absence of a son, any male member belonging to the family is entitled to perform the funeral rites of the dead. These rites are performed during the first twelve days, beginning from the first day or from the 3rd, 5th, 7th or the 9th. One who performs these rites has to sleep on the ground during these twelve days. A person hearing of the death of a member of his family within the first ten days from the date of the death, becomes free from that mourning on the eleventh day. If he happens to hear it within one month of the death, he has to observe it for three days and after one month he has to observe it for one day only. [695] The son, or one who performs the funeral rites of the deceased has to sleep on the ground, and has to take his meals only once a day till the end of the 13th day. He takes his bath in cold water. Sweet things are not prepared in the house during the days of mourning. During the period of mourning, every morning, a Bráhman comes to the mourner's house and recites some passages from the Garud Purána, which relates to the state of the soul after death. On the eleventh day the house is besmeared with cowdung, and cow's urine is sprinkled in the house. All the clothes are washed. Mourning is not observed in the case of a death of a Sanyási, and the Lingáyats do not observe any kind of mourning. [696]

The brother of the deceased, his son, grandson and all the members belonging to the family, have to observe the mourning for ten days. The married daughter of the deceased has to observe it for three days. From the fifth or sixth generation in the same family, it is observed for three or one day only. [697] In case of the death of a wife's parents, the husband has to observe mourning for three days. During the mourning days people do not worship the gods or go to the temples. Milk is also prohibited during the mourning period. The mourners are not to touch anybody except the members of their family. [698]

On the thirteenth day the sons and other members of the family are taken out to visit the temple of any deity by the people assembled for the purpose. It is believed that after going to the temple on the 13th day, the sons and the other members of the family are at liberty to go out of the house. [699]

At Kolhápur it is believed that the deities Etalái and Kálkái of the Konkan districts keep with them evil spirits as their servants. These servant spirits obey the orders of these deities. Some people in this district go to the temples of these deities and request them to lend them the services of these spirit servants. It is considered very lucky to secure the help of these spirits. The temple ministrant then requests the deity to give a Kaul or omen. For this purpose, the temple ministrant calls on the deity to enter his body, and when he is possessed by the spirit of the deity, he allows the applicant to take with him one of the deity's servants for a fixed period. The Gurav, or the ministrant, then explains to the person the period for which the spirit servant is given, and the amount of the annual tribute required to be given to the deity for the use of her servant. He also gives him a cocoanut and sacred ashes. The applicant then returns home, believing that the spirit servant will follow him, and from that time he prospers. This spirit servant is called Chetuk, and it can be seen only by the person in whose charge it is given by the Gurav. [700]

At Achare in the Ratnágiri District, the spirit of a Bráhman well versed in the Vedas is called Mahápurusha and it is said to be benevolent. It haunts Pipal and Umbar trees. [701]

At Murbád in the Thána District, the spirit known as Vetál, the king of evil spirits, is considered to be benevolent. [702]

The spirit known as Mahápurush haunts the Pipal and Umbar trees. Avagat the ghost of a widow haunts the Avali (Phyllanthus emblica) tree. Alavant, the ghost of a woman dying at childbirth or during her menses, lives in the Nágchámpa, Surang and the Kájra trees. Devachár, Sambandh, Munja, Zoting, Khavis and Khápra reside in trees and plants. [703]

The people of Kolhápur believe that the spirits known as Brahmasambandh, Brahma Rákshasa, and Khavis reside in trees. [704]

The spirits known as Devchár and Chálegat are considered to be the special protectors of crops and cattle. [705]

The people of Ubhádánda in the Ratnágiri District believe that the village deities and the Devachárs are the special protectors of crops and cattle. Offerings of fowls and cocoanuts are made to them annually. [706]

At Kochare in the Ratnágiri District, the spirit known as Viswáti is believed to be the special protector of crops and cattle. [707]

The people of the Kolába District consider that the spirits known as Mhashya, Khavis, and Bándav are the protectors of crops and cattle. [708]

At Dahánu in the Thána District, the spirit Cheda is believed to be the guardian of crops and cattle. [709]

The people of Kolhápur believe that the deities of the fields protect the crops and cattle. Those who are in possession of the Chetuk, or the servant spirit, are sure to find their crops and cattle protected by this servant spirit. [710]

Evil spirits are not usually invoked to frighten children, but occasionally the names of goblins such as Bágulbáwa, Bowáji, Gosávi etc. are mentioned to scare them. [711]