The above account of the ornaments of a Hindu woman is sufficient to
show that her profuse display of them is not to be attributed, as
is often supposed, to the mere desire for adornment. Each ornament
originally played its part in protecting some limb or feature from
various dangers of the seen or unseen world. And though the reasons
which led to their adoption have now been to a large extent forgotten
and the ornaments are valued for themselves, the shape and character
remain to show their real significance. Women as being weaker and
less accustomed to mix in society are naturally more superstitious and
fearful of the machinations of spirits. And the same argument applies
in greater degree to children. The Hindus have probably recognised
that children are very delicate and succumb easily to disease, and
they could scarcely fail to have done so when statistics show that
about a quarter of all the babies born in India die in the first year
of age. But they do not attribute the mortality to its real causes
of congenital weakness arising from the immaturity of the parents,
insanitary treatment at and after birth, unsuitable food, and the
general frailty of the undeveloped organism. They ascribe the loss
of their offspring solely to the machinations of jealous deities and
evil spirits, and the envy and admiration of other people, especially
childless women and witches, who cast the evil eye upon them. And
in order to guard against these dangers their bodies are decorated
with amulets and ornaments as a means of protection. But the result
is quite other than that intended, and the ornaments which are meant
to protect the children from the imaginary terrors of the evil eye,
in reality merely serve as a whet to illicit cupidity, and expose them
a rich, defenceless prey to the violence of the murderer and the thief.