"But in the concerns of this world, to obtain good crops and freedom
from sickness, a host of minor deities have to be propitiated. These
consist of _bhuts_ or spirits of the household, the sept, the village,
and common deities, such as the earth and sun. Chola Pacho or the
lady of the grove lives in the _sarna_ or sacred grove, which has
been left standing when the forest was cleared. She is credited with
the power of giving rain and consequently good crops. Churel is the
shade of a woman who has died while pregnant or in childbirth. She
hovers over her burial-place and is an object of horror and fright to
every passer-by. It is her nature to look out for a companion, and she
is said always to choose that member of a family whom she liked best
during her lifetime. She will then come at night and embrace him and
tickle him under the arms, making him laugh till he dies. Bhula or the
wanderers are the shades of persons who have died an unnatural death,
either having been murdered, hanged, or killed by a tiger. They all
keep the scars of their respective wounds and one can imagine what a
weird-looking lot they are. They are always on the move, and are, as
it were, the mendicant portion of the invisible community. They are
not very powerful and are responsible only for small ailments, like
nightmares and slight indispositions. When an Ojha or spirit-raiser
discovers that a Bhula has appeared in the light of his lamp he shows
a disappointed face, and says: 'Pshaw, only Bhula!' No sacrifice
is offered to him, but the Ojha then and there takes a few grains
of rice, rubs them in charcoal and throws them at the flame of his
lamp, saying, 'Take this, Bhula, and go away.' Murkuri is the thumping
_bhut_. Europeans to show their kindness and familiarity thump people
on the back. If this is followed by fever or any kind of sickness
it will be ascribed to the passing of Murkuri from the body of the
European into the body of the native.
"_Chordewa_ is a witch rather than a _bhut_. It is believed that
some women have the power to change their soul into a black cat,
who then goes about in the houses where there are sick people. Such a
cat has a peculiar way of mewing, quite different from its brethren,
and is easily recognised. It steals quietly into the house, licks
the lips of the sick man and eats the food which has been prepared
for him. The sick man soon gets worse and dies. They say it is very
difficult to catch the cat, as it has all the nimbleness of its nature
and the cleverness of a _bhut_. However, they sometimes succeed, and
then something wonderful happens. The woman out of whom the cat has
come remains insensible, as it were in a state of temporary death,
until the cat re-enters her body. Any wound inflicted on the cat will
be inflicted on her; if they cut its ears or break its legs or put
out its eyes the woman will suffer the same mutilation. The Oraons
say that formerly they used to burn any woman who was suspected of
being a _Chordewa_.