One of the principal deities of the Dhimars [541] as of other low
castes is Dulha Deo, the deified bridegroom. They fashion his image of
_kadamb_ [542] wood and besmear it with red lead. In Berar they also
pray to Anna Purna, the Corn-giving goddess of Madras corresponding
to Durga or Devi, whose form with that of her horse is engraved on
a brass plate and anointed with yellow and red turmeric. When about
to enter a river or tank for fishing or other purposes they pray to
the water-god to save them from being drowned or molested by its
denizens. They address a river as Ganga Mai or 'Mother Ganges' in
order to propitiate it by this flattery. Those who are employed on
ferry-boats especially venerate Ghatoia [543] Deo, the god of ferries
and river-crossings. His shrine is near the place where the boats are
tied up, and ferry contractors keep a live chicken in their boat to be
offered to Ghatoia on the first occasion when the river is sufficiently
in flood to be crossed by ferry after the breaking of the rains. Other
local godlings are the Bare Purakh or Great men, a collective term for
their deceased ancestors, of whom they make silver images; Parihar,
the soul of the village priest; Baram Deo, the spirit of the banyan
tree; and Gosain Deo, a deified ascetic. To the goddess Devi they
offer a black she-goat which is eaten ceremonially, and when they have
finished, the bones, skin and all the other remains of the animal are
placed in a pit inside the house. If anything should fall into this
pit it must be buried with the remains of the offering and not taken
out. And they relate that on one occasion a child fell into the pit,
and the parents, setting obedience to the law of the goddess above
the life of their child, buried it alive. But next year when the
sacrifice was again made and the pit was opened, the child was found
in it alive and playing. So they say that the goddess will save the
life of any one who is buried in the pit with her offering. When a
widower marries a second time his wife sometimes wears a _tawiz_ or
amulet in the shape of a silver box containing charms round her neck
in order to ward off the evil machinations of her predecessor's spirit.