At this time the gods used to hold councils on the slopes below a hill

called Tikalmudri. The place where they sat was called Pòlkab. When the

gods were holding council at Pòlkab, Kwoto went and sat on the top of

the hill Tikalmudri. Then the gods said to one another, “How is it that

he sits on the top of the hill while we sit below? It is not at all

good.” They consulted together and decided to kill him. So three or

four of the gods went to Kwoto and said in a cunning way, “We will show

you your country” (i.e., the place which should belong to him; each of

the gods had his appointed place). So they took him to a steep

precipice called Teipâper, and having deceived him that they would show

him his country, they threw him down. Kwoto, however, was not killed,

but took the form of a kite and flew back to Tikalmudri. Then all the

gods were surprised that he was not dead, but decided to try and kill

him again, and they took him to the hill Kòdrtho, near Nidrsi, and

threw him down. (The hill Kòdrtho was inhabited by the god Kòdrtho.)

Kwoto was not killed, but pulled up a bamboo tree with its roots, and

flew back and struck Kòdrtho on the head, and Kòdrtho’s head split into

three pieces. One of these pieces is now the well-known hill, the Drug,

seen from Coonoor, while the other two pieces are eminences on the

ridge running out to the Drug.

Kwoto then returned to Tikalmudri. The gods said, “We cannot kill him;

he has some power; let us try his power.” So they gave him the

following task:

“Peivoi tirikvâ, pîdâr pîrichvâ?”

Low turn high fill?

i.e., “Can he turn the low stream and fill the high stream?” (According

to another account the words in which the task was given were, “Alvoi

tiriki, Kalvoi pîrsvôka,” i.e., “Can he turn the stream Alvoi and fill

the stream Kalvoi?”)

Kwoto then took a huge stone, which may still be seen near Kanòdrs, and

put it in the stream so that it flowed upwards. Then the stream begged

Kwoto, “We are going upwards according to your order, but it is very

difficult for us; we wish to be allowed to go our ordinary way.” So

Kwoto took away the stone and the stream resumed its natural course.

The gods saw what Kwoto had done and decided to try his power in

another way, so they said:

“Kânêr ât, kutei kurs ütia?”

Sun tie, stone chain can he do?

i.e., “Can he tie the sun with a stone chain?” Kwoto then took a stone

chain and tied it to the sun and brought the sun down to Nern, near

Kanòdrs, and tied it to a tree. When the sun wanted to drink, Kwoto

took it to the stream Kalvoi, from which the sun drank, and there is

now to be seen a hole in this stream at the place where the sun drank.

[73] Then Kwoto took the sun to a pool surrounded by trees called

Nerpoiker, also near Kanòdrs. While the sun was tied in this way, it

was dark both in this world and in Amnòdr. Then the people of Amnòdr

came to the gods and asked why they allowed Kwoto to do these things,

and said that they were now living in thick darkness, and they begged

that Kwoto should be allowed to put the sun back in its right place.

Then the gods went to Kwoto and asked him to put the sun back, and they

acknowledged that he was a god and the most powerful of the gods. They

said that he should no longer be called Kwoto, but that his name should

be Meilitars, because he was superior to all the gods; also that he

should go “parnur nòdr, putnur nòdr”, “to 1,600 places, 1,800 places,”

i.e., he should not belong to one place only, like the other gods, but

should go everywhere.

Then Meilitars put back the sun in its proper place.

(According to another version, the task of tying the sun was given in

the words:

“Kânêr ât, pîrsagun patrôkâ?”

Male buffalo tie, sun can he catch?

The sun was said to have been at this time sitting on the back of a

male buffalo, and Kwoto was told to tie the buffalo and catch the sun.

According to this account Kwoto first used an iron chain, kabantagars,

which was melted by the heat of the sun. Next he tried a bronze (?)

chain called kuchtagars, which also melted. Then he used a stone chain,

or karstagars, which did not melt, and he succeeded in tying the sun

with this. (This version of the story corresponds with that given by

Breeks.)

Kwoto or Meilitars was closely connected with two clans, those of

Melgars and Kanòdrs. It is said to be owing to the fact that Kwoto was

a Melgars man that Melgars people have the special privileges and

duties which are peculiar to that clan. At any rate, this is the view

held by the people of Melgars. At Kanòdrs, the name of Kwoto occupies a

prominent place in the prayer of the dairy, and several of the special

features of the ritual of the Kanòdrs dairy are said to exist in

consequence of the many wonderful things which Kwoto had done in its

neighbourhood. When new buttermilk has to be made for Kanòdrs, it is

made at a place called Kautarmad, far away, because Kwoto made new

buttermilk there, and in the ceremony at this place earth is taken from

certain places from which Kwoto took it.

Kwoto or Meilitars is the hero of several stories, in none of which

does he play a very creditable rôle.

At one time the Todas used to go to and fro between this world and

Amnòdr. Those who were dead stayed permanently in Amnòdr, but living

people could go to visit them and return. One day Punatvan of Kars went

with Meilitars to Amnòdr. They stayed there two days and two nights,

and then Meilitars came away without Punatvan’s knowledge. At that time

the people of Kars were living at Nasmiòdr, so Meilitars went to

Nasmiòdr and said that Punatvan intended to stop in Amnòdr, and wished

the Kars people to perform the funeral ceremonies for him, killing

thirty buffaloes. So the Kars people caught thirty buffaloes, the chief

one being called Enmon. Round the neck of Enmon were hung the two bells

(wursuli mani) called Karsod and Kòni. They cut a piece of stick and

put it in a putkuli to represent the dead body and then killed the

thirty buffaloes. As the buffaloes were on their way to Amnòdr, they

met Punatvan on his way back. Punatvan asked the chief buffalo, Enmon,

“Why do you come here?” Then Enmon told him what Meilitars had done.

The man and buffalo put their heads together and cried, and their tears

became a pool of water. [74] Then Punatvan took the two bells from the

neck of Enmon and sent them back to Nasmiòdr, where they are kept to

this day, but he returned to Amnòdr with the buffaloes. Then Ön, the

ruler of Amnòdr, ordered that in future no one should return to the

world of the living from Amnòdr, and since that day the Todas have not

been able to go to and fro between the two worlds as they used to do.

At the present time the people of Keradr have no ti. Once they had a ti

which they lost through the action of Kwoto, who went one day to their

dairy at Tîkîrs, near Mòdr, and, hiding the kaltmokh in the wood, took

his place. When the palol milks, it is the duty of the kaltmokh to let

out the calves and send them to the palol. Kwoto did not do this

properly, but sent more calves than were required, so the palol became

angry and took his stick (kwoinörtpet) to beat the supposed kaltmokh,

but the stroke missed and fell on the palol himself.

Another day the palol told Kwoto to pour out the remainder of the

buttermilk at the appointed place. Instead of doing this Kwoto poured

it into the stream, and the buttermilk so poured became a god called

Mòraman, who sends smallpox. [75] Then the palol became very angry and

said he would no longer be palol, if he had to keep such a kaltmokh.

Then Kwoto revealed to the palol and to the real kaltmokh that he was a

god, and gave them a medicine called mûvòmad, which has the property

that anyone who takes it will never grow old.

After giving mûvòmad to the palol and kaltmokh, Kwoto sent them into

the air, together with the dairy and the buffaloes and everything

belonging to the ti, and they all went in the air to Kupars, near Pan;

they stayed there for some time and then disappeared, and now nothing

can be seen of them, but if people go near Kupars, they hear the voices

of the palol and kaltmokh when they are talking to one another.

Since that time the people of Keradr have been without a ti.

Another story in which Kwoto played a prominent part is connected with

the custom of eating flesh. I received several versions of this story

and was unable to satisfy myself which was correct.

According to one account Kwoto once went to Mitur in the Wainad, where

Kurumbas live. Kwoto played with these people, and one day caught and

killed a wild buffalo. He said to the Kurumbas, “I have killed this

buffalo; let us eat its flesh”; and he gave to each a portion. The

Kurumbas ate their portions, but Kwoto only pretended to eat; he held

out his putkuli in front of him and instead of eating dropped his

portions inside the cloak. When the Kurumbas had finished, Kwoto got up

and all saw on the place where he had been sitting the flesh which he

had pretended to eat. Then the Kurumbas were angry and went to beat

Kwoto with sticks, asking why he had not eaten the flesh, and they

insisted that Kwoto should eat some of it. Kwoto ran away, and when the

Kurumbas pursued him he pretended that he was lame and consented to eat

some of the flesh of the buffalo. He also told them that he was a god

and said that he would dance before them, and did so like a lame man.

He told the Kurumbas that whenever he came in the future, he would

dance to the Kurumbas first and then to the Todas; and now the Kwoto

teuol, or diviner (see Chap. XII), when he dances, does so first to the

Kurumbas, and when he dances before them he does so as if he were lame.

After this Kwoto disappeared and since that time has not been seen. He

is said to live in a temple at Mitur, but “wherever there is a god,

there also is Kwoto, or Meilitars.”

According to another account, this story was told of the people called

Panins (Panyas), but in this version Kurumbas were also said to be

present, though it was the Panins who were made to eat the flesh.

According to a third account, obtained, however, from an untrustworthy

informant, Kwoto practised this deception on the gods themselves, and

made them eat the flesh of a calf while only pretending to eat himself.

This was said to have been the starting-point of the erkumptthpimi

ceremony, and Kwoto was said to have killed the calf with the same

formalities as are now used in this ceremony. All other Todas

strenuously denied that Kwoto made the gods eat flesh. There was,

however, so much reticence about the erkumptthpimi ceremony and its

history, that I am not confident that Kwoto was not in some way

connected with its origin, and that the version of my untrustworthy

informant may in this case have been correct.

OTHER GODS

There are very many other deities. Of the following I can give little

more than the names.

Atiato is the nòdrodchi of the Kwòdrdoni clan and also of Pedrkars. He

lives near the chief villages of these clans, and has a temple of which

the priest is said to be an Irula, and Todas sometimes give to this god

offerings of clarified butter.

Konto or Konteu is the nòdrodchi of the Panol, and lives on the hill

Konto, to which fire is set by the palol of the Kars or Pan ti (see

Chap. XIII).

Kòdrtho is the nòdrodchi of Nidrsi. He played a part in the history of

Kwoto, and according to some accounts he was the mun, or maternal

uncle, of this god.

Near the source of the Paikara river, there is a cave in which there is

a pool called Alvoi. Sometimes this pool gives forth a loud bubbling

noise, and this is believed to be due to a teu dipping himself in the

water. The name of the god is Alvoi Kalvoi, Kalvoi, situated at some

distance from the pool, being a hill on which the god usually lives.

There are other gods about whose histories I have no information.

Tiligush is the nòdrodchi of Päm and Karadr of Taradr. Pòrzo inhabits a

hill near Nòdrs, and Karzo, a hill near Kars, and the names of other

gods, such as Kaladrvan, Teikhun, Peigwa, Karmunteu, Kondilteu and

Mundilteu, are mentioned in the prayers of the ti dairies.

In addition to these, who are certainly true Toda gods, the Todas also

pay respect to the gods of the other tribes on the Nilgiris, while

occasionally the names of Hindu gods are mentioned in their ceremonies.

If a Toda be asked if he worships one of these gods, he will almost

certainly assent, but at the same time he distinguishes them from his

own gods. The only deity who seemed to be confused with their own gods

by some of the Todas was Petkon, whose Badaga name was said to be

Betakarasami. Breeks calls him Betikhan, and states that he is a

hunting god; and according to some Todas Petkon was a son of Teikirzi.

Previous accounts of the Toda gods have been very erratic. Some writers

have given the names of Hindu gods. Breeks gives the names of dairies

as those of gods, though he also records abbreviated versions of

several of the stories given in this chapter. The most curious account,

however, of the Toda gods is that of Marshall, who gives [76] the

following as the names of five gods which are muttered when milk is put

on the sacred bells:—Ânmungâno, Godingâtho, Beligoshu, Dekulâria, and

Kazudâva. We puzzled over these words for a long time, and could not

discover the names of gods even remotely resembling them. Finally it

became clear that the last was “kars ud âva” (“Give me one rupee”).

Similarly there was little doubt that “Beligoshu, Dekulâria” stood for

“beli karsu tudkersia” (“Will you not give me a silver coin?”), the

Badaga equivalent of the last word being very much like Dekulâria. The

first two names we could not identify with certainty, but the first is

possibly “en mûn gânei” (“Do not see my face”), and the second is

possibly the name of a Badaga buffalo-pen.

CHAPTER X

PRAYER

In the chapters in which the ritual of the dairies has been described,

one of the most important features of the ceremonial has been passed

over which must now be fully described. This feature is the prayer

which is always offered at certain stages of the dairy operations. In

the village dairies, of whatever kind they may be, no prayer is offered

at the morning ceremonial. In the evening the prayer of the dairy is

recited twice—once when lighting the lamp, and once when shutting the

buffaloes in their enclosure for the night, the prayer on this occasion

being said in front of the entrance to the pen.

At the ti dairy the palol prays both morning and evening. In the

morning he prays when lighting the lamp and after he has finished

milking; in the evening prayer is offered on both these occasions, and

also when shutting up the buffaloes for the night. The palol also

repeats a few clauses when going out to milk. Prayers are said on

certain other ceremonial occasions, and clauses from the prayers are

frequently uttered during the many ceremonies of the dairy.

At the evening ceremonial of the village dairy the prayer is said when

the lamp is lighted, while during the morning ceremonial, at which the

lamp is usually not lighted, there is no prayer. This suggests that the

prayer is especially related to the lamp-lighting, and that some idea

of worship of the light is involved, but occasionally for some special

reason, such as unusual darkness, the lamp may be lighted in the

morning, and on these occasions the prayer is not used. Nevertheless,

the relation between lamp-lighting and prayer both at the village and

ti dairies has probably some significance, and, taken in conjunction

with the undoubted salutation of the sun, it points to some degree of

worship of light and its sources which may at one time have formed a

more marked feature of the Toda religion than seems at present to be

the case.

The prayer when shutting up the buffaloes for the night is common to

both ti and village dairies. The night is the dangerous time for Toda

buffaloes, which are not infrequently killed by tigers, and the prayer

on the occasion of closing the pen is probably designed to promote

their safety.

At the prayer uttered at the close of the milking at the ti dairy the

palol adopts a special attitude which is shown in Fig. 28. He prays

leaning on his wand, the pohvet, with his hands crossed over one

another. This attitude is not employed in the village dairy, and only

on this occasion at the ti dairy.

In all cases the prayer is uttered “in the throat,” so that the words

cannot be distinguished by any one who may hear them. Whenever I

listened to the recital of a prayer as it was being offered by a

dairyman within the dairy, I heard only a gurgling noise in which no

words could be distinguished. On one occasion I was allowed to approach

the ti dairy at Mòdr while the first prayer was being offered by the

palol. I heard the beating on the persin (see p. 92) which accompanies

this prayer, and at intervals in the monotonous sound produced by the

voice of the palol there were pauses. As we shall see, the prayer of

the ti has certain sections which are distinguished from one another,

and it seemed possible that these pauses marked off the different

portions of the prayer, but it was clear that this was not the case,

the palol only stopping when the necessity for taking a new breath

became imperative.

Each village has its own prayer, and so far as I could ascertain this

prayer is used in all the dairies of the village; thus I believe that

at Taradr the same prayer would be used in both kugvali and tarvali.

This is not, however, a point on which I can speak positively, for

there was much reluctance to talk about this subject and many of the

Todas absolutely refused to discuss it. One point seemed quite clear,

at any rate among the Teivaliol, viz., that the different villages of a

clan had different prayers, though often with many clauses in common.

In general, the prayer of the ti is longer and more elaborate than that

of the village dairy. Different prayers are used at different dairies

of the same ti, though here again they may have many clauses in common.

In all cases the prayer consists of two distinct parts: a preliminary

portion consisting chiefly of names known as kwarzam, followed by a

portion which may be regarded as the prayer proper.

The prayer proper should be the same in every dairy, but it seemed to

me that there was a good deal of laxity as regards this portion, and

there is no doubt that it is often slurred over hastily and is less

strictly regulated than the preliminary portion of the prayer.

The following is the most generally accepted form:

Tânenmâ; târmâmâ;

may it be well or may be blessed; may it be well or may be merciful;

îr kark tânenmâ; nûv ârk mâ;

with the buffaloes and calves may it be well; may there be no disease;

kazun ârk mâ;

may there be no destroyer;

nudri ârk mâ;

may there be no poisonous animals (snakes and insects);

kâvel ârk mâ;

may there be no wild beasts (tigers, &c.);

per kârt pâ mâ; pustht kârt pâ mâ;

may be kept from (falling down) steep hills; may be kept from floods;

tüt ârk mâ; mâ un mâ; maj eu mâ;

may there be no fire; may rain fall; may clouds rise;

pul pûv mâ; nîr ûr mâ.

may grass flourish; may water spring.

The prayer then concludes with the names of two of the most important

gods or objects of reverence, followed by the words:

âtham idith emk tânenmâ.

them for the sake of for (or to) us may it be well.

There does not seem to be any strict regulation as to the clauses of

the prayer, and in different versions some of the given above were

omitted, while others were added, especially requests for protection

against special animals, as pob ârk mâ, “may there be no snakes,” and

pîrzi ârk mâ, “may there be no tigers.” One man concluded with the

words erdâdrsink erdâdri ini, “I know half to pray, I know not half to

pray,” [77] but I do not know whether this was an individual

peculiarity or a special feature of the prayer of his dairy.

It seemed clear that the whole prayer referred to the buffaloes. It may

be summarised as follows:

“May it be well with the buffaloes, may they not suffer from disease or

die, may they be kept from poisonous animals and from wild beasts and

from injury by flood or fire, may there be water and grass in plenty.”

The first part of the prayer contains a number of clauses each of which

usually consists of the name of an object of reverence followed by the

word idith (often contracted into ith). This word is said to mean “for

the sake of,” so that the prayer as a whole seems to consist of clauses

mentioning a number of objects of reverence for the sake of which the

prayer is said, followed by the prayer consisting of clauses directed

to avert evils or bring blessings on the buffaloes of the dairy. The

word idith is used in the sense of “for the sake of” in ordinary

language. Thus, “for my sake, leave him,” would be “en idith, an pidr”

(me for the sake of, him leave).

The objects of more or less sanctity thus mentioned in the prayer are

not called by their usual names, but are referred to by means of

special names to which the general term of kwarzam is given. In some

cases the kwarzam differs little from the ordinary name, while in other

cases it bears no resemblance to it.

The kwarzam mentioned in the prayer fall into several groups: there are

the kwarzam of the gods, of the buffaloes, of the villages, of the

dairy and of its various parts, vessels and implements. In some cases,

especially in the case of the ti, we shall find that different dairies

differ in the prominence given to each kind of kwarzam; that the prayer

of one place consists chiefly of kwarzam of the dairy, while in the

prayer of another the kwarzam of the gods or of the buffaloes

predominate.

In some prayers there occur kwarzam of a special kind containing

references to incidents in legend—incidents which occurred in the life

of some deity especially connected with the dairy at which the prayer

is used, or other kwarzam may refer to incidents in the history of the

dairy or of the village in which the dairy is situated.

I had great difficulty in obtaining examples of the prayers, or rather

of those portions consisting of the kwarzam of the sacred objects.

There was little objection to giving the prayer proper; it was only

when the kwarzam were approached that the difficulty arose. It was

evident that it was this portion of the prayer which was regarded as

especially sacred and mysterious, and this was doubtless due to the

mention of sacred beings and objects by their sacred names.

With much difficulty I succeeded in obtaining the prayers of four

village dairies, three belonging to the Kuudrol, while the fourth was

the prayer, or part of the prayer, of the Kanòdrs poh. I was also

successful in obtaining two ti prayers and fragments of others.

THE VILLAGE PRAYER

The following are the kwarzam of the prayer used in the dairy of the

village of Kuudr, the etudmad of the Kuudr clan. On the left-hand side

of the page are given the kwarzam, each of which is followed by the

word idith when the prayer is uttered. On the right-hand side of the

page are given the objects, beings or incidents to which the kwarzam

refer.

PRAYER OF KUUDR

Atthkâr Kuudr village and probably also the Kuudr clan

or Kuudro.

òners Kuudr village.

palitûdrpali large dairy at Kuudr (tûdrpali).

palikidpali small dairy at Kuudr (kidpali).

tûdrpalshpelk lamp (pelk) of large dairy.

kidpalshpep all the sacred objects of small dairy.

tûtòdrtho large buffalo-pen (tû) at Kuudr.

tûkidtû small buffalo-pen (tû) at Kuudr.

kadrtorikkadr calf enclosure (kadr) at Kuudr.

keishkvet sacred buffaloes (pasthîr) of Kuudr.

tarskivan ordinary buffaloes (putiîr).

känpep portion of buttermilk (pep) originally given

by Teikirzi for pasthîr.

âtthpep portion of pep for putiîr.

mutchudkars stone in buffalo-pen at Kuudr where the

vessels of the large dairy are purified.

tarskikars stone in pen where the vessels of the small

dairy are purified.

nîrkiznîr sacred dairy spring of Kuudr.

Eikisiov a buffalo whose milk was the origin of the

spring.

Pülmâlpül a hill near Kuudr.

Emalpûv a buffalo which once lived at Kuudr.

Kakathûmûk a hill near Kuudr.

Karstum a buffalo which once died on this hill.

teikhkwadiki a tree by which the dairy vessel called mu is

buried (see p. 170).

manikiars the kiars tree by which the sacred bell (mani)

is laid when the dairy things are being

purified.

Keikars a hill near Kuudr.

keitnòdi hill near which the erkumptthiti ceremony is

performed (see Chap. XIII).

petüt pati pethût ir chief buffaloes given when Teikirzi divided

the buffaloes with wand in hand (see p. 186).

Literally, “wand with divide chief buffaloes.”

pûthion nâkh tarzâr calf which was the ancestor of the Kuudr

maj putiîr.

Thus, the prayer would run, “Atthkâr idith; òners idith; palitûdrpali

idith; .....” and the translation would run, “For the sake of the

village and clan of Kuudr; for the sake of the village of Kuudr; for

the sake of the large dairy of Kuudr;....” as far as the end of the

kwarzam given above, and then would follow the prayer proper, “tanenma,

tarmama,....”

This prayer begins with two kwarzam of the village or clan, followed by

others referring to the dairies and dairy vessels, buffalo pens and

buffaloes. Then follow certain kwarzam of the pep or buttermilk which

is of so much importance in the dairy ritual, and those of stones which

play a part in the ceremonies attending purification of the dairy

vessels. After the kwarzam of the dairy spring, there follow a number

of kwarzam referring to certain incidents in the history of the dairy.

Eikisiov is the kwarzam of a buffalo which was one day being milked at

Kuudr when some of the milk was spilt on the ground. From that day the

ground became swampy, and on digging, a spring of water was found which

has ever since been used as the dairy spring and is called kiznîr. The

two following kwarzam refer to incidents of which I have no record.

Karstum is the kwarzam of a buffalo which was one day grazing on the

hill Kakathûmûk when it began to bellow and could not be induced to

stop; the people tried to take it back to the pen, but it would not go

and died on the hill, and has ever since been remembered in the prayer.

These kwarzam are followed by two referring to trees of ceremonial

importance—one the tree by which is buried the mu on the integrity of

which the continuity of the dairy procedure depends, while the other is

connected with the sacred bell.

Then follow the kwarzam of a hill on which there are cairns and that of

the sacrificial place of the village. The prayer concludes with two

kwarzam of a different kind. The first refers to the act of the goddess

Teikirzi, who portioned the buffaloes and assigned to each clan its

share. In so doing we have seen that she touched each buffalo on the

back with her wand, saying in each case to whom the buffalo should

belong, and this act is commemorated in the prayer in the form, “for

the sake of the dividing of the chief buffaloes with the wand.” The

last kwarzam is that of the calf, from which the ordinary buffaloes or

putiîr of Kuudr are descended, but I was unable to ascertain the

meaning of the words, except nakh, which is the name of a

three-year-old buffalo.

In the Kuudr prayer several of the kwarzam refer to incidents of a more

or less miraculous nature which are believed to have happened at the

village where the prayer is used, while the last kwarzam but one refers

to one of the chief events of Toda mythology.

It will be noticed that many of the kwarzam used in this prayer

correspond very closely to the names in ordinary use. Some, such as

keitnòdi and teikhkwadiki, are the same words as those in general use,

while others differ from the ordinary words in the reduplication of

part of the name, tûdrpali becoming palitûdrpali and kiznîr becoming

nîrkiznîr.

PRAYER OF KIUDR

The following are the kwarzam of the prayer used at Kiudr, which is one

of the most sacred of Toda villages.

Kwarzam of

Kîlvòh the dairy at Kiudr.

kerâni one of the patatmani of Kiudr.

mêdrâni the other patatmani.

pongg one of the ertatmani.

nongg another ertatmani.

pelteirzi the lamp of the dairy.

îrtîrzi also the lamp.

känmûv the way by which the dairyman goes from the

dairy to milk; the punetkalvol.

nîrtâkh the dairy stream.

nîrtîrshki also the dairy stream.

keitu the buffalo-pen.

tülivaners the posts at the entrance of the

buffalo-pen.

tashtpâlûv the bars of the entrance of the pen.

kadrtûlikkadr the calf enclosure.

arkatchar the household stream.

inerti also the household stream.

ârsvitchkârs the house (ars) at Kiudr.

eivitchâv also the house.

nersâdrvel the milking place.

keikûdr the stream which runs between the house and

the dairy (see 307).

kwoteiners }

kwelthipushol }

etamûdri } all of Kiudr village.

eraikin }

kârmus }

pârvakûdr }

arspem slope of hill (pem) near Kiudr.

The special features of the Kiudr prayer are the large number of

kwarzam of the village and the inclusion of the kwarzam of the house

and household stream. The prayer of Kiudr is the only Toda prayer in

which either the house or household stream is mentioned, and this fact

is in accordance with the high degree of sanctity which has become

attached to this village. It will be noticed also that the buffaloes

are not mentioned, and that nearly all the clauses of the prayer apply

to the buildings and their contents or to other parts of the village or

to the village itself. Only the last kwarzam of the prayer applies to a

place not actually in the village itself, and I could not ascertain why

this place was so favoured. With this exception, the Kiudr prayer is

one in which the kwarzam are entirely limited to those of the village

and the dairy.

It will be remembered that when the buffaloes of the Nòdrs ti migrate

from Mòdr to Anto they pass by the village of Kiudr, and that the

occasion is observed in various ways by the people of the village (see

p. 135). I was told that certain kwarzam referring to this occasion are

used in the Kiudr prayer. According to one man, these kwarzam are

always recited in the prayer before those which have been already

given, but others denied that they were so used. It is possible that

these kwarzam are only said on special occasions, such as the day of

migration, or it may be that they were formerly used, but are now being

forgotten.

These kwarzam are as follow:

uner pâgit nòdr ti buffaloes, come near country.

unkeu pâgit nòdr bell of wars dairy, come near country.

eupalol pâgit nòdr god palol, come near country.

eutuni pâgit nòdr god tuni, come near country.

eitût pâgit nòdr hair done up, come near country (this has

reference to the practice of tying the hair which

is followed by the palol when engaged at his

sacred work (p. 92).

Teigun ürpit nòdr horn (of warsir) blow country.

Kiudkudr ürpit nòdr horn (of liir) blow country.

Then follow the kwarzam already given.

These kwarzam are of a different form from those used in the general

form of prayer, and the various persons or objects mentioned are

referred to either by their usual names or by slight modifications of

them, as in eupalol or euvalol and eutuni. There seemed to be no doubt

that these words were abbreviations of teupalol and teutuni, the

omission of an initial t being not uncommon in the Toda language. Thus

in this prayer the dairyman is called “god palol,” and his garment “god

tuni.”

PRAYER OF KWIRG

Kwirg is one of the villages of the Kuudrol and is the place to which

their buffaloes go when it is necessary to make new pep for the whole

clan.

Kwatakwirg Kwirg village.

kûlpudshol Kwirg village.

palikeithiolv the dairy.

tûmadshû the pen.

kadrkeiri the kadr (calf enclosure).

nîrtiûdsh the dairy stream.

pinpunûv a hill.

pilkârs a hill.

âtthpep }

känpep }

mutchudpep }

keishkvet } see Kuudr prayer.

tarskivan }

petüt pati pethût îr }

pûthion nâkh tarzâr maj }

It will be seen that many of the clauses are common to this prayer and

that of Kuudr.

The three kwarzam of pep were said to be used in every dairy of the

Kuudrol, but it did not appear that they were used at Kiudr. The third,

mutchudpep, is not included in the Kuudr prayer, but mutchudkars

appears in its place. Two hills are mentioned in the Kwirg prayer, but

there are none of the references to special events connected with the

village such as exist in the prayer of Kuudr.

THE PRAYER OF THE KANÒDRS DAIRY

When I was staying at Pishkwosht and visited the conical dairy at

Kanòdrs with Neratkutan, he told me that the prayer of this dairy had

forty kwarzam referring to the gods, as well as many of other kinds,

but on going into detail I could only obtain the following:—

Pâr nûr teu the 1600 gods.

pût nûr teu the 1800 gods.

Kwoto Kwoto or Meilitars (see p. 203).

Atioto Atioto (see p. 210).

Kurindei teu Kurindo (see p. 192).

Konteu Konteu or Konto (see p. 211).

Anteu Anto (see p. 188).

Pòrzo Pòrzo }

Kòdrtho Kòdrtho } see p. 211.

Kârzo Karzo }

Teikhunteu Teikhun

mänpóh Kanòdrs village.

mutîrshpóh ditto.

tûnertû the pen.

kânêr the sun ? (see p. 206).

kuteikurs the stone chain used by Kwoto (see p. 207).

aners Kuzhu village.

tûtashki Pishkwosht village.

This prayer is quite unlike those of the other village dairies and was

much more like that of a ti dairy. As we have seen, the poh of Kanòdrs

resembles a ti dairy both in the elaborateness of its ritual and in the

high degree of sanctity of its dairyman, and this resemblance is now

seen to extend to the prayer used in the dairy ritual.

Other dairies of the Tartharol which have an especial degree of

sanctity are the kugvali of Taradr and the conical dairy of Nòdrs. I

made great endeavours to obtain the prayers used in these places, but

without success.

THE TI PRAYER

The prayers offered at the ti dairies are as a general rule longer and

more complex than those of the ordinary village dairy. The latter

portion of the prayer, or the prayer proper, does not seem to differ

from that of the ordinary dairy, the differences being in the kwarzam

recited at the beginning. The different dairies of the same ti may have

different prayers; thus, at the Nòdrs ti there is a special prayer for

the dairy at Anto which is longer and more complicated than that used

at Mòdr, but it is probable that this is exceptional and is owing to

the great antiquity and sanctity of Anto. The other dairies of this ti

probably use much the same prayer as at Mòdr, though there may be

certain slight modifications at each.

THE ANTO PRAYER

This prayer is characterised by a very large number of kwarzam

referring to the dairy, its contents and surroundings. On ordinary days

a shortened form of the prayer is used which consists wholly of kwarzam

of this kind. On special days, such as the occasions of ponup and

irnödrthiti, other kwarzam are said, including those of gods and

buffaloes.

The following kwarzam are those in daily use, each being followed by

the word idith as in the village prayer:—

Kwarzam of

Anto the ti.

eithipôh ditto.

mêdrpôh the ti poh.

pôhtîrzh the wars poh.

ûv the milking place (pepkarmus).

pero the special pen used on the night before the ponup

ceremony.

keirv the pen used on the night before the migration of the

buffaloes.

kâtû the ordinary pen.

Teirz a hill near the dairy on which Anto lives.

tîlkav the back of the dairy (pohpalikef).

îrbâr the way by which the kaltmokh goes to and from the

dairy.

Pîthipôh the cave where the Pithi was born (see p. 184).

nersâvul sacred path to the dairy by which the mani, pep, &c.,

are taken.

karkadr path by which ordinary people approach the dairy.

tadipül ditto.

einpül path by which the palol goes to draw water.

panpül path by which the palol returns from drawing water.

Kiûln a hill near the dairy.

Keini another hill.

titkîn stream at which the palol bathes and washes his

garments.

tîtòr stone by this stream marking the spot by which the palol

bathes, &c.

teirpül spot at which the palol halts and prays for the third

time during the procession to Anto (see p. 135).

teirpôh ditto.

nîrkûli place at which palol and kaltmokh defæcate.

Katthvai hill near Anto (see p. 188).

Kubul ditto.

Ködrs place near Anto (see p. 188).

Tudrs ditto.

teibithikars stone rolled by Anto.

teibithival lower part of the hill Katthvai (see above).

On ordinary days these kwarzam are followed by the prayer tanenma

tarmama, &c. On special occasions the following kwarzam are inserted

between those already given and the prayer proper:—

Kwarzam of

Ekîrzam meidjam Teikirzi, Tirshti.

Kûdreij Kudreiil dairy.

tîdj ditto.

Kûlâdrtho Kuladrtho dairy.

Perithi ti vaners ti dairy at Perithi in the Wainad.

Kòti One of the hills at which fire is lighted by the

palol at the teutütusthchi ceremony (see p. 291).

pagvôh ditto.

Pûthi another hill at which fire is lighted.

ânul ditto.

Kûlinkârs Kulinkars (see p. 188).

Nòtîtrzivan Nòtirzi (see p. 189).

Kuzkârv Korateu (see p. 190).

unir one group of tiir (see p. 112).

unkeu mani of wars dairy.

Persin mani of ti dairy.

kûdrs mani bells of punir.

tadsth axe which came from Amnòdr with the buffaloes.

tâpâr an iron bar.

âter the second group of tiir (see p. 112).

teiter the third group of tiir.

Keirz the buffalo which has the mani called Keu put on

its neck.

pîlti buffaloes (unir).

persv ditto.

Keirv buffalo which drinks pep on day of migration (see

p. 135).

Kîthi buffalo which wears the kudrs mani.

kudûvòrs the path at Mòdr by which ordinary people approach

the dairy.

tadrpòrs place near Mòdr at which the palol and kaltmokh

defæcate.

tarikipül place near Mòdr where the erkumptthpimi ceremony is

performed.

kidkadr calves’ hut (karenpoh) at Mòdr.

ponpôh ti dairy at Mòdr.

kidpôh wars dairy at Mòdr.

Òdrtho ti dairy at Òdrtho.

Kûdreiil wars dairy at Kudreiil.

munârten a ti dairy.

The following is all I was able to obtain of the prayer used at

Mòdr:—“Ekîrzam meidjam idith, Anto eithipôh idith, Kûlinkârs idith,

Nòtîrzivan idith, Kûlâdrvan idith, Teukuteithi idith, Kûdreij tîdj

idith, Kuzkârv idith, Alvoi Kalvoi idith, tanenma tarmama,” &c. Two of

these kwarzam, “Teukuteithi idith” and “Alvoi Kalvoi idith” are not

mentioned in the Anto prayer. I have no doubt that the list of kwarzam

is very incomplete.

THE PRAYER OF MAKARS

The following is the prayer used at Makars, the chief dairy of the Kars

ti. The kwarzam of the dairy are here comparatively few in number, but

the prayer is especially rich in the kwarzam of gods and buffaloes, and

it furnishes a very good example of the relation of the prayer formulæ

to the Toda legends.

The kwarzam of the prayer run as follow:—

Anto The god Anto.

Nòtîrzivan Nòtirzi.

Kûlinkârs Kulinkars or Teikhars.

Kuzkârv Korateu.

Onkonm Onkonm who lives on a hill in the Kundahs.

Ekîrzam meidjam Teikirzi and Tirshti.

Azo } Azo and Mazo.

Mazo }

Katadrvanpoh place near Kûlinkars.

Peigwa god living on hill near Makurti Peak.

Karmunteu Karmunteu.

Kotzgârth the Paikara river (Teipakh).

Kondilteu Kondilteu, a god opposite the hill of Kòti.

Mûndilteu a god on a hill near the last.

Onûlvpoh place near Majòdr.

Kûlâdrazenteu god on a hill near Kuladrtho.

kaban adi arten teu “iron door shut god.”

kaban kûl eiten teu “iron stick held god.”

mòrs ver arten teu “mòrs tree under event god.”

kûghîr kùdr kwaten teu “crooked horned buffalo horn cut god.”

tebkúter at, tan mun “imitation buffalo horns took, his

madrik teu mother’s brother’s lap god.”

mâvel kâritan teu “sambhar from calved god.” (The last six

kwarzam refer to the story of Kuzkarv

(see p. 190).

pülnerkûrz buffaloes of tî called pürsîr.

tetnîrkan ditto.

pirsk muneki potitth îr “sun to facing that came buffalo.”

nerk muneki potitth îr “bell to facing that came buffalo.”

putûḍr mun kekitth îr “tûḍr tree back (face?) rubbed buffalo.”

Kitheri kûtk ethkitth îr “Kitheri stream to jumped buffalo.”

pâtûsh kattith îr “desolate pen from made buffalo.”

Warwark ethkitth îr “Warwar (stream) to jumped buffalo.”

ö khuberam kitj erditth “seven heaps buffalo-dung fire set

êram buffaloes.”

pêrnêr bell (mani) or pürs dairy.

unêr ditto.

persagun mani of pars dairy.

talg ditto.

nârvtüls lamp.

poikar pürs dairy.

pârsvôh pars dairy.

tînnudri pen.

kakûnnudri ditto.

nîrkar dairy spring.

tülinîr ditto.

pünpôh dairy at Enòdr.

kâtû pen at Enòdr.

pünnîr spring at Enòdr.

Enòdr Enòdr ti mad.

mêdrpôh dairy at Pars.

peiltû pen at Pars.

tülinîr spring at Pars.

Pars Pars ti mad.

âtârnudri dairy at Neradr.

nêrieners pen at Neradr.

Neradr Neradr ti mad.

pülvôh dairy at Kòn.

aners ditto.

tedrvâs pen at Kòn.

pûvârsnîr spring at Kòn.

Kòn Kòn ti mad.

Then follow “tanenma tarmama,” &c.

The kwarzam of the prayer given above are arranged in a definite order.

First come the kwarzam of sixteen gods or of hills or places closely

connected with gods, then follow six kwarzam referring to various

incidents in the life of the god Korateu. These are followed by two

kwarzam of buffaloes, and then follow six referring to various features

of the founding of Makars, of which an account has been given on p.

116. Then follows a kwarzam relating to an incident which is probably

recent. The palol of this ti used to make seven heaps of the dung of

the buffaloes. There is a law that the dung should not be sold, which

the palol disobeyed, and soon after a fire broke out suddenly from the

seven heaps, and this event is commemorated in the prayer by means of

the kwarzam meaning “seven heaps of buffalo-dung, fire set buffaloes,”

and is included among the kwarzam relating to buffaloes, probably

because there was a belief that the anger of the buffaloes was the

cause of the fire.

The buffalo kwarzam are followed by eleven referring to the bells of

the ti and to the dairy, pen and spring of Makars, and these are

followed by kwarzam referring to the other places of the ti—viz.,

Enòdr, Pars, Neradr, and Kòn. In each case there are said the kwarzam

of the dairy, pen, spring, and place except in the case of Neradr,

where for some reason the kwarzam of the spring is omitted.

The feature of the Makars prayer which is especially interesting is the

reference to legend in the kwarzam. This reference occurs in the Kuudr

prayer and in those of Kanòdrs and Anto, but the references are far

more elaborate in the Makars prayer. These references were very useful

in providing incidental confirmation of the details of legends

previously obtained, while in other cases they put me on the track of

stories which I might otherwise have failed to obtain. One point of

interest connected with them is that, in the absence of the legends,

they might easily be supposed to be meaningless sentences. We have seen

that there is reason to believe that the Todas are forgetting much of

their mythology, and if the legends referred to in the Makars prayer

should be forgotten, these kwarzam would become meaningless formulæ.

This appears to have happened already in some cases; there were certain

kwarzam of which I could obtain no translation; thus, all the kwarzam

of the clans and villages were of this nature and could not be

explained, though they almost certainly had a definite origin. A good

instance of a kwarzam which is on its way towards a similar fate is

that at the end of the Kuudr prayer. The meaning of only one word was

clear—viz. nâkh—while maj was probably the word for cloud, and the

kwarzam appears to refer to some incident of legend in which a

three-year-old calf and a cloud were concerned, but I could obtain no

record of the incident, nor of the legend of which the incident was a

feature.

I have treated these formulæ of the dairy as prayers, and I think there

can be very little doubt that they are of the nature of supplications,

and are believed to invoke the aid of the gods in protecting the sacred

buffaloes. It must be confessed, however, that there is no actual

evidence in the formulæ of direct invocation of the gods. The name of

no god is mentioned in the vocative form. In some prayers there is

barely mention of a god at all, if the term ‘god’ be limited to the

anthropomorphic beings of the hill-tops.

The exact relation between the formula and the gods largely depends on

the exact meaning of the word idith, which is not quite clear. But,

whatever the meaning of this word, it is evident that it is used in

exactly the same way in the case of a god as in the case of a buffalo,

a place, a dairy vessel, or other even meaner object.

Perhaps the nearest approach to an appeal to gods in the prayer is in

the words at the end, in which the names of certain gods are mentioned,

followed by the words âtham idith emk tânenmâ, “for their sake may it

be well for us.”

There is little doubt that the Todas offer prayers to their gods in

their ordinary daily life, altogether apart from the dairy ritual. I

was told by one man that when anyone leaves an etudmad he should pray

that he may return safely, and in this case my informant said that he

prayed to Teikirzi. Unfortunately I did not ask the exact form of the

prayer, and do not know whether the goddess was invoked by name or

whether kwarzam were uttered of the same form as in the prayer of the

dairy. We may, however, be confident that the idea of supplication to

the gods is not foreign to the Toda mind.

We shall see later that in the formulæ used in Toda sorcery, the names

of gods are mentioned, followed by the same word idith which is used in

the dairy formulæ. In the magical formulæ the evidence of appeal to

deities is somewhat stronger than in the case of the dairy formulæ,

which are certainly of a religious character. It seems most likely that

the word idith was at one time used especially in connexion with the

names of gods, and carried with it some idea of supplication. Gradually

other sacred objects were included in the prayer, the same form being

used for them as for the gods, this inclusion being prompted by the

belief that the mention of any sacred object might help to promote the

efficacy of the prayer. Later, when any mysterious and seemingly

miraculous incident occurred at a village, it seems to have become the

custom to commemorate it in the prayer.

It is quite clear that at the present time the earlier portion of the

prayer, consisting of the kwarzam, is regarded as more important than

the latter portion, which reads like the actual prayer. I suspect even

that in practice the prayer proper is often omitted, or that only the

first two words, tanenma, tarmama, are said. There certainly seemed to

be no very rigorous laws as to the exact number or order of the clauses

of this part of the prayer. The earlier portion, on the other hand, is

very strictly regulated, and the order in which the kwarzam are to be

uttered is definitely prescribed. Certainly there is far more reticence

in connexion with the kwarzam, and this may safely be taken to indicate

that a higher degree of sanctity attaches to them than to the words of

the prayer proper.

It is probable that the alteration in the relative importance attached

to the two parts of the prayer would have to go little further in order

to produce a state of things in which the Toda dairyman would use the

first parts of the formulæ only, and an anthropologist visiting the

Todas at this stage would find them using formulæ which would not be

recognisable as prayer.

If, at the same time, the process of forgetting their mythology should

also have advanced, the Todas would then provide an excellent example

of a people using in their religious ritual meaningless forms of words,

and the Toda kwarzam seem to furnish one way in which people may come

to use such meaningless forms.

CHAPTER XI

THE DAIRY RITUAL

In the preceding chapters I have given an account of an elaborate

ritual wholly connected with the buffalo and with the dairy. This

ritual is certainly of a religious character, and, though there is much

in the nature of the dairy formulæ which is uncertain, there can be

little doubt that they are intercessory and that they bring the dairy

operations into definite relations with the Toda deities.

It seems most probable that the general idea underlying the dairy

ritual is that the dairyman is dealing with a sacred substance, the

milk of the buffaloes. This sacred substance is to be converted into

other substances, butter and buttermilk, which are to be used by the

profane. At the present time much of the butter goes to those who are

not even Todas and are regarded by the Todas as inferior beings.

It seems most probable that the elaborate ritual has grown up as a

means of counteracting the dangers likely to be incurred by this

profanation of the sacred substance, or, in other words, as a means of

removing a taboo which prohibits the general use of the substance.

Similarly the migration ceremonies have the general underlying idea of

counteracting any possible evil influence which may accompany the

passage of the buffaloes through the profane world from one sacred

place to another. During the migration, objects may be seen by the

multitude which under ordinary circumstances are strictly screened from

the general gaze, and objects may be touched, or be in danger of being

touched, by people who ordinarily may not even see them.

Again, the ceremonies connected with entrance upon any dairy office are

intended to purify the candidate and make him fit to see and touch and

use the sacred objects.

The purpose of some of the other ceremonies is less obvious. The

irpalvusthi ceremony seems to be of the nature of a thanksgiving, one

of its most important features being a feast, but in this feast people

may partake of the milk of sacred buffaloes, which is not ordinarily

used by them, and there is a suggestive resemblance to those religious

ceremonies in which communion is held with the divine by eating or

drinking the divine.

The salt-giving ceremonies seem to point to a time when salt was

difficult to procure. According to the Todas the object of these

ceremonies is to ensure a plentiful supply of milk. There is a belief

that salt is beneficial to the buffaloes, and the occasions on which

the salt is given have become religious ceremonies which at the ponup

of the ti have reached a high degree of elaboration with very special

relations to the chief gods of the dairy. The ceremonies of making new

pep are especially mysterious, and I will reserve some speculations as

to the general idea underlying them till later (see p. 242).

COMPARISON OF THE PROCEDURE OF DIFFERENT DAIRIES

One of the most striking features of the ritual in all its branches is

its increasing elaboration and complexity from the lowest to the

highest grade of dairy.

One of the details of the ritual which runs through the whole series of

dairies is the separation between the vessels and objects which come

into contact with the buffaloes or their milk, and those which come

into contact with the outside world, or with the products of the

churning which may go to the outside world.

In the proceedings with the milk of the ordinary buffaloes in the huts

where the people live, there is, so far as I know, no distinction of

this kind.

In the lowest grade of dairy we already meet with the separation. All

the vessels are kept in the same room, but in different parts of the

room, the patatmar and the ertatmar, and this distinction between the

two sets of objects is kept up in the migration ceremonies where they

are carried by different men.

There are no striking differences in this respect between the lower

grades of dairy, whether tarvali, kudrpali, or wursuli; in all, the two

sets of vessels are separated, but no strict measures are taken to

prevent a vessel of the patatmar from coming into contact with a vessel

of the ertatmar during the dairy operations. It is only on reaching the

kugvali of Taradr that we find an intermediate vessel, the kuvun, used

to transfer substances from a vessel of the more sacred to one of the

less sacred kind, and to prevent possible contamination of the former

by the latter.

It is in the ti dairy that these precautions reach their highest degree

of development. Here the two sets of vessels are kept in different

rooms, separated by a screen, and the dairy products are never

transferred directly from a vessel of one kind to a vessel of the

other, but always by means of an intermediate vessel. The butter and

buttermilk produced by the churning operations in the inner room are

transferred to the vessels of the outer room by means of the idrkwoi,

which is kept on the dividing line between the two compartments.

Similarly the vessels into which the butter and buttermilk are received

are never allowed to come into direct contact with objects from the

outside world, but their contents are transferred to vessels used

outside the dairy by means of intermediate vessels, the uppun or the

mòrpun.

In the migrations of the ti buffaloes this strict separation between

the two kinds of vessel is still kept up. The things of the inner room

are carried by the palol himself, while the things of the outer room

are carried by others. The idrkwoi, though carried by the palol on the

same staff as the things of the inner room, is kept apart from the

rest, and is not allowed to touch them.

The fires of the ti dairy furnish another interesting example of the

principle by which sacred objects are prevented from coming directly

into relation with objects which may have been contaminated by contact

with the outside world. The lamp is not lighted directly from the

tòratthwaskal, which is probably sometimes touched by the kaltmokh, but

fire is transferred from this fireplace to the pelkkatitthwaskal, from

which the lamp is lighted. Here, again, the use of an intermediary

object is limited to the ti dairy.

The principle of management by which the palol prevents the

contamination of the sacred by the profane in the dairy is adopted by

him in other ways. Whenever I paid any money to the palol at Mòdr, I

placed it on a stone from which it was taken by the kaltmokh and handed

to the palol. A similar procedure is generally adopted whenever

anything is brought to, or taken from, a ti dairy. The kaltmokh in the

above instance acts as the intermediate link between the palol and the

unclean.

In the ordinary procedure of the village dairy, except at the kugvali

of Taradr, no example occurs of this use of intermediate links, but

there is such an example during the ordination of the wursol. When the

palikartmokh gives the candidate milk from the ertatpun (p. 149), he

does not pour it directly into the leaf-cup from which the candidate

drinks, but first pours it into another leaf-cup and then from that

into the cup used by the candidate.

Other features of the ritual in which there are differences in

different grades of dairy are in the ceremonial touching of dairy

vessels, in the avoidance of turning the back towards the contents of

the dairy, in lamp-lighting, in the ritual connected with the bell, and

in the frequency with which the prayer of the dairy is recited.

At the tarvali and kudrpali, the dairyman touches ceremonially the

majpariv and the patat at the beginning of the afternoon churning,

while at the wursuli this is done both morning and afternoon. At the

ti, however, this ceremonial touching does not occur, or, at any rate,

I failed to obtain any account of its performance.

The method of carrying out the dairy procedure kabkaditi, in which the

back is never turned on the sacred vessels of the dairy, is not

followed in the tarvali, except at the irpalvusthi ceremony. I have no

record of it in the kudrpali, except on the same occasion, and it is

only followed regularly in certain dairies of the wursuli grade, viz.,

Nòdrs, Nasmiòdr, Òdr, and Kozhtudi. The first has a conical dairy, and

Nasmiòdr and Òdr are especially ancient and sacred places. At the

kugvali and the ti dairy, on the other hand, the dairy ceremonial is

always performed kabkaditi. At one ceremony, that of irpalvusthi, the

work of the dairy is performed kabkaditi in every dairy of whatever

grade.

The lamp-lighting is another feature which becomes more frequent and

more ceremonial in the higher grades of dairy. In all the village

dairies, including the kugvali of Taradr, [78] the lamp is only lighted

ceremonially at the afternoon churning, the lighting being made the

occasion of prayer. If the morning is dark, the lamp maybe lighted, but

it is clear that this is not done ceremonially, and the lighting is not

accompanied by prayer. At the ti we have already seen that the lamp is

lighted in a more ceremonial manner and in the morning as well as in

the afternoon.

Some of the details of the ritual are definitely associated with the

mani, and since the presence of a mani implies a higher grade of dairy,

this leads to an increase in the elaboration of the ritual. The mani is

treated in much the same way in all the grades of dairy which possess

this sacred object.

Another feature in which the increasing sanctity of the dairy is shown

is the frequency with which prayer is offered. At all the village

dairies the dairyman only prays at the afternoon ceremonial when

lighting the lamp, and when shutting up the buffaloes in their pen for

the night. As already mentioned, there is a definite association

between prayer and the ceremonial lamp-lighting.

In the ti dairy, prayer is offered both morning and evening; at the

morning ceremonial twice and in the afternoon three times. On both

occasions the first prayer begins when the lamp is being lighted and is

continued while the palol knocks on one of the persin with the

persinkudriki. The second prayer in each case is offered at the

conclusion of the milking, and the third prayer of the afternoon

corresponds to the second prayer of the village dairy, being offered

when shutting up the buffaloes for the night.

The increasing sanctity of the different grades of dairy is shown very

clearly by the increasing stringency in the rules of conduct of the

dairyman. The tarvalikartmokh may sleep in the living hut on any night

in the week, and there are no restrictions on his intercourse with

women. The kudrpalikartmokh may only sleep in the hut on Sundays,

Wednesdays and Saturdays, and is prohibited from intercourse with

Teivali women. The wursol is limited to two nights, Sunday and

Wednesday, and, though himself a Teivali man, is prohibited from

intercourse with Teivali women. The kugvalikartmokh has similar

restrictions, but the pohkartpol of Kanòdrs must avoid women

altogether, and this is almost certainly the case with the palol also.

The tarvalikartmokh takes his buttermilk and food without any ceremony.

The kudrpalikartmokh must hold his food in his hands throughout his

meal and must not put it on the ground.

In the case of the wursol we meet first with the ceremonial drinking of

buttermilk, which must in this case be poured into the leaf-cup from

the vessel called ertatpun. The kugvalikartmokh drinks buttermilk

sitting on the seat outside his dairy and pours from the ertatpun,

drinking three times only and saying “Oñ” each time.

The pohkartpol of Kanòdrs has to take his food with very special

precautions. He sits on the wall of his dairy and his hand must not

touch his mouth nor the leaf-cup his lips. At the ti the drinking of

buttermilk has become a definite ceremony in which the kaltmokh pours

out drink for the palol with prescribed formulæ, but, strangely enough,

the palol does not suffer from the same restrictions against touching

his mouth as the pohkartpol of Kanòdrs, though the latter holds an

office which in most ways is distinctly less sacred than that of the

palol.

The clothing of each grade is also regulated. Perhaps the most

important feature here is the use of the garments called tuni. These

are made of dark grey cloth of a quite different kind from that of the

ordinary clothes worn by the Todas. The garments are procured from the

Badagas, and cloth of the same kind, called än, is used to enwrap the

corpse in the funeral ceremonies. It is mentioned as the ordinary

clothing of a woman in the legend of Kwoten, and is almost certainly

the ancient clothing of the Todas still persisting in ceremonial in

connexion with the dead and in the dairy ritual.

The tuni is only worn by the higher grades of the dairyman-priesthood

and by the palikartmokh of the Teivaliol. The palol wears tuni only,

both his loin-cloth and his mantle being of this material. The kaltmokh

has no need for a tuni, for when he is engaged in his work at the ti he

has to be naked, and when away from the ti and in the sleeping hut he

wears a small piece of tuni, the petuni, in his girdle, the piece of

cloth marking the difference between the full kaltmokh and the

perkursol.

The wursol, the kugvalikartmokh, and the Teivali palikartmokh only wear

the tuni when actually engaged in the dairy work and leave it inside

the dairy at other times. I am doubtful whether the pohkartpol of

Kanòdrs resembles the palol or the lower grades in this respect.

Although the palikartmokh of the tarvali and the kudrpali never wear

the tuni, a small piece of this cloth is put in the girdle during the

ordination ceremonies, and this may be a relic of a time when every

dairyman wore the tuni. [79] In the secret language (see Chap. XXV) the

word petuni is used in one place as the equivalent of ‘uniform,’ and

this seems to indicate that the petuni is regarded as the badge of a

dairyman.

The use of the leaves and bark of the sacred tudr tree is another

feature which distinguishes different dairies. In the tarvali it is, so

far as I know, not used at all. In the kudrpali it is only used in the

pepeirthti ceremony. The wursol uses tudr in his ordination ceremonies,

but not in the ordinary ritual of his dairy, nor is it used in the

daily ritual of the ti dairy, though largely used in the purification

of the dairy and of the dairy vessels, and in the ordination ceremonies

of the palol.

The use of tudr in the ordination ceremonies is only allowed to the

members of the Teivali division and of the Melgars clan of the

Tartharol.

Special kinds of dairy or special dairies may have features peculiar to

themselves; thus the pepeirthti ceremony, in which the dairyman beats

on the patat with a piece of tudr bark, is only performed at the

kudrpali; the prescription of nakedness when milking is confined to the

kudrpalikartmokh; the special method of wearing the putkuli open in

front when going to the buffaloes is only practised by the wursol, and

the method of taking food sitting on the wall of the dairy and throwing

the food into the mouth is peculiar to the pohkartpol of Kanòdrs.

One feature of interest in the dairy organisation is the existence of

different names at different dairies for the dairy products, and for

the various objects used at the dairy or in connexion with the dairy

ceremonies. The chief differences are found on comparing the village

dairy with the ti, nearly every object having a different name in the

two places, though occasionally a peculiarity of nomenclature may be

confined to one dairy, as at Kanòdrs, where milk is called persin, the

name of the churning vessel of the ti. As a general rule it seems that

the name used in the village dairy is the same as that in ordinary use;

thus, the dairy vessels used in the house for the milk of the ordinary

buffaloes are known by the same names as those of the village dairy.

The use of special names in the more sacred dairies is probably

connected with their high degree of sanctity. The names of the dairy

vessels of the village are in common use, and it would doubtless seem

sacrilegious that the names of the vessels of the ti should be thus in

everyone’s mouth. Consequently nearly every object used in the

ceremonial of the ti dairy has a special name, and in the ordinary life

of the Todas these words are probably never uttered.

One striking feature of the dairy ritual is the use of the syllable Oñ.

With one exception (p. 177) this word is always uttered thrice, and it

seems to be especially connected with the act of putting curds or milk

on the bells. It has a suggestive resemblance to the mystical syllable

Om of the Hindus. It is also possible that it may be a form of the name

of the god Ön, or, again, it may be a corruption of the word mani, of

which the initial letter has been dropped, a process of which other

examples have been given.

It is doubtful how much significance is attached to the right and left

sides in the dairy ritual. There is no doubt that in the most sacred

acts of the ritual, such as saluting the buffaloes and the sun, or

feeding the bell, it is the right hand which is used. This preference

of the right hand is emphasised by the action of the palol in washing

out his mouth, when he takes the water into his mouth from the left

hand, because it is his right hand which has most to do with the sacred

objects. In the migration ceremonies the dairy vessels are carried on

the left shoulder, but at the ti the choice of this shoulder by the

palol is obviously due to the fact that either the mani or

churning-stick is carried in the right hand, and in other cases it is

probable that the choice of the left shoulder is due to the necessity

of leaving the right hand free. When the candidate drinks in the

ordination ceremonies he holds the cup in the right hand, and this hand

certainly has the preference throughout the dairy ritual. On the other

hand, the petuni is worn on the left side of the waist-string, both by

the kaltmokh, as a sign of his full rank, and by the palikartmokh

during his ordination ceremonies.

In the ordinary dairy the side which is on the right hand in entering

seems to be the more sacred, and the platform on this side is the

meitün or superior bed. In the ti dairy, on the other hand, there was

some doubt as to the more sacred side. At Mòdr it seemed that the mani

is on the left hand side of the palol as he is performing his duties,

but it is doubtful whether this is so at other places, and it may be

that my account of the Mòdr dairy is wrong in this respect.

THE SANCTITY OF MILK

The different degrees of sanctity attaching to the different dairies

are associated with differences in the rules regulating the use of

milk, and these rules seem to show clearly that the milk of buffaloes

belonging to the more sacred dairies has a higher degree of sanctity

than that churned in the lower grades.

The milk of ordinary buffaloes may be drunk by anyone, man, woman, or

child. The Todas do not ordinarily sell milk, but if they do so, they

may only use the milk of ordinary buffaloes for this purpose. I have a

note that anyone may also drink the milk of buffaloes belonging to the

tarvali, but I suspect that this only applies to men who must drink it

at the dairy.

The milk of the kudrpali may only be drunk by the kudrpalikartmokh

himself. It is believed that any other person or animal who should

drink milk from this dairy would die.

At the wursuli milk may be given to men at the dairy, but it must be

mixed with buttermilk. At the kugvali of Taradr the milk of the

kugvalir themselves is not drunk by anyone, the dairyman having certain

ordinary buffaloes for his own use, and this is also the case at the

ti. I believe that not even the palol would drink the milk of the

persinir, the sacred buffaloes of the ti.

There is one exception to the rule that ordinary people may not use the

milk of the sacred buffaloes of the village dairies (except in the form

of butter and buttermilk). At the irpalvusthi ceremony at all the

village dairies, including the kugvali, food is prepared with the milk

of one of the sacred animals and this food is given to the people of

the clan to which the dairy belongs and also to members of other clans.

In the case of the wursuli, I was especially told that this is the only

occasion on which the milk of wursulir is used by people in general. At

the kugvali, people of other clans are only given this food on the

second day of the proceedings, and the distribution of the food is

preceded by a ceremony in which some of the food is thrown into the

fire. The milk used on this occasion is the milk of the buffalo which

has recently calved, the ceremony being in celebration of this event.

At the wursuli it is noteworthy that the food is cooked by the wursol

himself, the ceremony of irpalvusthi being the only occasion on which a

dairyman of this grade prepares food. Thus, when the milk of the

wursulir is used ceremonially as a food by ordinary people, the food is

prepared by the dairyman-priest. One feature of the irpalvusthi

ceremony is that the work is performed kabkaditi in every dairy, and it

is possible that this sign of increased respect is intended to

counteract the desecration which is about to take place in the use of

the milk by the profane. As I have already pointed out, the irpalvusthi

ceremony has a strong resemblance to a sacrificial feast, in which

people partake of the sacred animal, but in this case it is the milk of

the animal and not the animal itself which is taken.

A further indication of the sanctity of milk is given in the

prohibition against the drinking of milk by a widower or widow during a

period which, as we shall see later, may extend to many months.

The restrictions on the use of the milk of the sacred animals have the

general characters associated with taboos, and the whole daily ritual

of the dairy would seem to be designed to remove the taboo. It is

possible that at one time the milk of the sacred buffaloes was not used

at all, and that these animals only suckled their calves. If then the

Todas had begun to milk the sacred buffaloes, it is natural that the

milking and churning should have been accompanied by ritual designed to

counteract the evils to be expected from the profanation of the sacred

substance and the breaking of the taboo. In certain circumstances even

now the Todas do not milk their sacred buffaloes, but allow them to

suckle their calves only. If a ti dairy, or even one of a lower grade,

has no dairyman, the buffaloes are not milked, though they are still

tended by some unsanctified person and are kept ready to take their

part in the dairy ritual if a dairyman should again be appointed.

SPECIAL DAIRY CUSTOMS

The general method of treating the milk in the dairy procedure seems to

be the same as that generally followed in India and other hot

countries. The milk is allowed to coagulate and the curd is churned.

The butter so obtained differs from that of European countries in

containing the proteid as well as the fat constituents of milk. This

butter is then clarified, but in this respect there is an important

difference between the ordinary Hindu procedure and that of the Todas.

The usual Hindu method is to heat slowly over a fire without the

addition of any other substance. The Todas add grain or rice to the

butter before clarification, and this sinks to the bottom of the vessel

and forms a substance called by the Todas al, which is one of their

chief foods. This deposit of grain or rice will carry down with it

some, possibly all, of the proteid constituents, and the al will,

therefore, be a nourishing food.

The only other detail in which the Toda procedure is peculiar [80] is

in the addition of buttermilk from a previous churning to the

newly-drawn milk, the buttermilk or pep being put into the vessel

before milking. This addition probably hastens the process of

coagulation, but its chief interest is derived from the fact that it

has become the nucleus of some of the most interesting features of the

dairy ceremonial.

This addition of buttermilk seems to be regarded as forming a thread of

continuity in the dairy ritual, and the ceremony of pepkaricha, or

making new pep, is held whenever this continuity is broken. The pep is

connected with a dairy vessel of the kind called mu, which is buried in

the buffalo pen, and if any evil befalls the mu, it is held to be a

cause for making new pep—i.e., the usual course of the dairy procedure

will be interrupted, in some cases for months.

The buried dairy vessel seems to be linked in some mysterious way with

the fortunes of the dairy, and especially with the buttermilk which

forms the element of continuity in the dairy procedure. The buried

dairy vessel, or mu, is not one which is now generally used to hold

buttermilk. There are two kinds of mu in the dairy, one which contains

the butter added during the churning, while the other is used, partly

as a receptacle for the milk which is about to be churned, and partly

to fetch water from the stream. It is highly probable that there was at

one time a third mu in the dairy, which was a receptacle for the

buttermilk added before milking.

At the especially sacred dairy of Kanòdrs, where ancient procedure is

likely to have lingered, the buried mu is still used as a receptacle

for buttermilk. When this dairy is unoccupied, a certain amount of

buttermilk is kept in the buried mu, and when the dairy is again

occupied, this buttermilk is used to add to the milk. In this case the

continuity of the dairy procedure is directly kept up by means of the

buried vessel, and this procedure of the Kanòdrs dairy is strongly in

favour of the view that the buried vessel was formerly a receptacle for

the pep.

There are other indications that the mu is the most sacred of the dairy

vessels. It is this vessel which is touched by the wursol the

kugvalikartmokh of Taradr and the pohkartpol of Kanòdrs, as the final

act which gives them their full status at the ordination ceremonies,

and we shall see later that in the funeral ceremonies at Taradr a

temporary building is made to represent a dairy by placing in its inner

room a mu. In this last case, it would seem that the mu is regarded as

the emblem of the dairy, and that placing a mu in the inner room of the

temporary building makes it a dairy.

The representative of the mu at the ti dairy is the peptòrzum, but it

does not seem that this vessel is specially distinguished from the

rest, and it does not appear to have the sanctity and importance which

attaches to this kind of vessel at the village dairy.

There seem to be two chief possibilities in explaining the existence of

the buried mu. It may be that it was at one time the custom to bury the

pep while the village was unoccupied, and that this custom now only

persists at Kanòdrs, the mu at other places being no longer used for

this purpose, though it has continued to be of ceremonial importance.

The other possibility is that, as the pep acquired increased importance

in the dairy ritual, the sanctity of the buttermilk was transferred to

the vessel which contained it, and the sanctity of the vessel became so

great that it was not thought right to leave it exposed to the dangers

it might incur in the dairy, especially in the various migrations, and

it was therefore buried in the buffalo pen of the chief village of the

clan. It is probable that the custom arose in the way suggested by the

procedure of the Kanòdrs dairy, but that the full development of the

custom has been largely due to the belief in its special sanctity.

The obscure observance of having a ball of food larger than can be

eaten at one sitting occurs twice in the various dairy ceremonials. It

is a feature of the ceremonies which the kaltmokh has to undergo on the

day after the migration of the Nòdrs ti to Anto, and the superabundant

portion of food has also to be eaten by the candidate for the office of

palol in the preliminary ceremony called tesherst. In each case the

food is of the ceremonial kind called ashkkartpimi. I can offer no

suggestions as to the meaning of the observance, nor do I know of any

parallel for it.

PURITY AND IMPURITY

The idea of ceremonial purity is one running through the whole of the

dairy rites. Many of the details of the ritual, the purification of new

vessels and of dairies revisited after a period of disuse, the

ordination ceremonies of the dairyman, the elaborate ceremonies

accompanying the making of new pep, all show a very deeply engrained

idea that men and things have in themselves some degree of impurity,

and that in order to be made fit for the service of the gods, they must

be purified and sanctified by appropriate ceremonies.

As regards man two grades of impurity are recognised: (i.) the impurity

of the ordinary man which is perhaps an absence of ceremonial purity

rather than actual impurity; and (ii.) the special impurity which is

the result of certain events and especially of those accompanying birth

and death.

The impurity of the ordinary man does not prevent him from visiting the

dairies of the lower grade, but it prohibits him from taking any part

whatever in the actual dairy operations. With certain exceptions, he is

rigorously excluded from actual contact either with dairies or dairymen

of the higher grades. He is perhaps regarded as unsanctified rather

than impure. The definite impurity which is the condition of those who

have attended funeral ceremonies or have been in relation with a woman

in the period of seclusion after childbirth is something very

different. Such a man is not merely unsanctified, he is unfit to hold

any sacred office; even the prolonged ceremonies of ordination would

not fit him to hold office in the dairy or to perform any part in the

tendance of the sacred buffaloes, and he is not allowed even to

approach the members of the higher grades of the dairyman-priesthood.

WOMEN AND THE DAIRY

Women take no part in the dairy ritual, nor in the milking and churning

operations which are carried on in the hut. It is said that at one time

the women took charge of the buffaloes at the time of calving, but this

is not the case at the present time.

Women go to the dairy to fetch buttermilk, using an appointed path and

standing at an appointed spot to receive it.

Females enter, dairies under two conditions only. They may enter the

outermost rooms of those dairies which are used as funeral huts while

the bodies of men are lying in them. Here they may sit only on one side

of the room, and only when the dairy operations are not in progress.

Women also enter the temporary funeral huts of men, which are called

pali, or dairies.

The other condition under which a female enters a dairy is at the

migration ceremony of the village, in which a girl, seven or eight

years of age, is given food in the dairy of the village which the

buffaloes are leaving, and sweeps the front of the dairy of the village

to which they are going. This ceremony is one in which a girl seems to

take a definite part in dairy ceremonial, but the girl chosen for this

office must be below the age of puberty.

The relations of women with the different grades of dairymen have

already been considered; a point which may again be mentioned is that

the emblems of womanhood, the pounder, sieve, and broom, may be removed

from the hut while the dairyman is present, though the women themselves

remain.

During certain dairy ceremonials, women must leave the village

altogether, and during the passage of the buffaloes of the Nòdrs ti

near the village of Kiudr, the women leave the village, taking with

them the pounder, sieve, and broom.

Although women are thus excluded from all participation in the dairy

ceremonial, we shall see later (Chapter XIV) that an artificial dairy

plays a part in some of the ceremonies connected with pregnancy and

childbirth.

HISTORY OF THE DAIRY

The Todas can give very little information which throws any light on

the development of this complex organisation of the dairy with its

elaborate ritual. According to tradition, the most sacred dairies, and

especially that of the Nòdrs ti, date back to the time when the gods

were active on earth and were themselves dairymen.

Beyond the belief that buffaloes of different kinds were assigned to

the different clans by Teikirzi, I could obtain no account of beliefs

about the origin or growth of the other grades of dairy. One fact as to

the past which seemed clear was that ti dairies were at one time more

numerous than at present, and several places now possessing village

dairies of the ordinary kind are said to have been at one time the

seats of ti dairies. Thus it is believed that Kiudr was formerly a ti

place, and the old weatherworn stones shown in Figs. 31 and 32, which

are still called neurzülnkars, seem to provide evidence that tradition

is here correct. The village of Teidr is said to have been at one time

a ti, and here again two stones called neurzülnkars are to be seen

about a quarter of a mile from the village.

There is another feature of the Kiudr dairy which suggests that it may

at one time have been a ti dairy. It contains six bells called mani,

which clearly differ in nature from the mani of the other village

dairies, especially in the fact that they are not used at funerals.

They are also distinguished as patatmani and ertatmani, a distinction

not met with in any other village dairy. It seems probable that they

are the representatives of the two kinds of bells of a ti, the mani

proper and the kudrsmani. The ertatmani of Kiudr are ‘fed’ with

buttermilk, a procedure not followed, so far as I know, in any other

dairy, but it may be that this is a feature of the procedure of the ti

dairy which escaped me. Certainly the most likely explanation of the

existence of these bells at Kiudr is that they are survivals of its

former position as a ti dairy.

The villages of Kiudr and Teidr both belong to the Teivaliol, and this

raises the question whether this division of the Todas may not have

possessed ti herds and ti dairies of their own at one time, and may not

always have had to be content with providing dairymen for institutions

belonging to the Tartharol. No information could be given on this

point, but it seems unlikely that dairies and places belonging to a

Tarthar clan should have been handed over to the Teivaliol when they

were no longer used as ti dairies and ti places.

Certain Tarthar villages are also said to have had at one time ti

dairies, especially the sacred places of Nòdrs and Òdr. This probably

means that there is a tradition that the buffaloes of the Nòdrs ti were

at one time kept at these places which, as we have seen, are still

visited by the palol during his ordination ceremonies.

The process of extinction of ti institutions can be seen in progress at

the present time. The Nidrsi ti is not now in working order; there has

been no palol for some years and its dairies are unoccupied. It is said

that a palol would have to be appointed temporarily if it was desired

to perform the second funeral ceremonies of a Nidrsi man, but in the

present condition of the Nidrsiol, it seems to me not at all unlikely,

either that the rule will be disregarded, or that the second funeral

ceremonies will not be performed, and that the Nidrsi ti will become

absolutely extinct, possibly dragging down another institution into

extinction with it.

The Kwòdrdoni ti is now only active for a short time once every year in

order to satisfy a ceremonial requirement of the Kotas, and this

institution may possibly soon become little more than a name. If it

were not for the Kotas, it would undoubtedly be as near extinction as

the ti of Nidrsi. One palol of the Pan ti has recently ceased to be

appointed, and the same difficulty which has led to his disappearance

will probably sooner or later vacate the other office, and Pan will

follow in the footsteps of the other clans. Many of the dairies

belonging even to the more prosperous ti institutions are now disused,

and some have completely vanished. The legend of Kwoto preserves a

tradition of ceremonial accompanying the migration of the buffaloes of

the Kars ti which has now entirely disappeared, and nothing is known of

the special features of ritual which were practised at many ti dairies

which have become extinct.

Of dairies of other grades, the poh of Kanòdrs is now only occupied for

a short time once a year, and its ceremonial may soon also become

extinct. The conical poh of Kars and the seven-roomed kudrpali of Nòdrs

are dairies which have ceased to exist, and with the extinction of the

latter have gone completely all traces of the ritual which was

practised in this kind of dairy, and nothing is known as to the meaning

of the seven rooms.

Some of these changes are recent, and due to the altered conditions

produced by the general invasion of the Nilgiris, but others date back

to a time before Europeans came to the hills, and were due to intrinsic

conditions, chiefly the hardships connected with the ritual practised

in certain of the dairies. The altered surroundings of the Todas are

undoubtedly hastening the process of decay, and institutions which

would probably have lasted for centuries will now almost certainly

disappear in a few decades.

CHAPTER XII

DIVINATION AND MAGIC

This chapter will furnish a very good example of specialisation of

religious and magical functions among the Todas. We shall find that

certain Todas have the power of divination, others are sorcerers, and

others again have the power of curing disease by means of spells and

rites, while all three functions are quite separate from those of the

priest or dairyman. The Todas have advanced some way towards

specialisation of function in this respect, and have as separate

members of the community their prophets, their magicians and their

medicine-men in addition to their priests.

DIVINATION

Certain men among the Todas are reputed to have special powers as

diviners, and are known as teuòdipol, “god-gesticulating men,” or more

commonly as teuol. Samuel, my interpreter, always spoke of their

performances as devil-dancing and evidently regarded the teuol as like

those whom he called the devil-dancers of his own people.

In several cases these men are said to have inherited their powers from

some near relative, often a grandfather, but it seems that anyone who

showed evidence of the necessary powers might become a teuol. All but

one of the present diviners are Teivaliol, but the divining power is

not limited to this division. There is no relation between the various

offices of the dairy and the power of divination, and, in fact, a

diviner necessarily gives up his divining if he becomes a palol. [81]

Each of the teuol is believed to be possessed by a special god when he

falls into the divining frenzy, and when in this state it is said that

the diviner does not, as a rule, speak in his own language, but in some

other, most commonly in Malayalam, or one of its dialects. The

following are those who are at present credited with the power of

divination:—

Midjkudr (63) of Piedr, who is inspired by the gods Kulinkars and

Petkon. He speaks in Malayalam, and he does not appear to have

succeeded anyone else as teuol. He is the most successful of those who

are at present practising the art, and played the chief part in all the

divining which took place during my visit.

Tadrners (60) of Kuudr, inspired by Ethrol and Arivili, succeeded his

mother’s father, Kasorivan (66) of Kusharf. He is said to speak the

language of people whom the Todas call Mondardsetipol living in the

Wainad, a language which appears to be a dialect of Malayalam.

Pangudr (66) of Kusharf, also succeeded Kasorivan, his grandfather, and

is inspired by Petkon and Meilitars. There was some doubt as to the

language used by him.

Ethgudr (52) of Kuudr is inspired by Arivili, and, like Tadrners,

speaks the language of the Mondardsetipol.

Terkudr (63) of Piedr, inspired by Teipakh, the river god, succeeded

his grandfather Keitolv. When inspired, his speech is like the babbling

of a running river, “like the river’s voice,” and cannot be understood.

Kangudr (62) of Piedr, who lives at Kavidi in the Wainad, is inspired

by Meilitars and speaks Malayalam. He succeeded Tarsvan (62), his

father, and Tarsvan had succeeded his father Keithiolv.

Kobuv (61) of Kuudr, is inspired by Meilitars and Kuderol and speaks

Malayalam.

Pöteners (54) of Kuudr, is inspired by Petkon and speaks the language

of the Mondardsetipol.

Karkievan (63), the palol of the Nòdrs ti, was formerly a teuol, but

gave up divining when he became palol.

All the above belong to the Teivaliol, and the only Tarthar diviner at

the present time is Mongudrvan (13) of Kars. He is said to be inspired

by the god of Miuni village, and to speak the Toda language. The

village of Miuni belongs to the Teivaliol, so that the only Tarthar

diviner is inspired by a god connected with the division to which the

majority of the diviners belong.

Two other Tarthar men, Kerveidi (5) and Tevò (3), both of Nòdrs, are

said to have been teuol at one time, but they have ceased to divine.

They succeeded another man of their clan. Kangudr, who is inspired by

Meilitars, has to ‘dance’ or divine before the Kurumbas, and when he

does so he dances as a lame man. This custom is reputed to have come

down from the time of Meilitars (see p. 210), who danced as a lame man

before the Kurumbas, and promised that whenever he came in the future

he would dance to the Kurumbas first and then to the Todas.

It will be noticed that many of the deities by whom the diviners are

inspired are not true Toda gods. Petkon, who inspires Midjkudr,

Pangudr, and Pöteners, is said to be a hunting god. According to some

he was a son of Teikirzi, but is almost certainly not a true Toda

deity.

Arivili inspires Tadrners and Ethgudr, who are both reputed to speak

the language of the Mondardsetipol, and he is probably a god of these

people, a tribe of the Wainad. Ethrol, who also inspires Tadrners, is

probably another deity of the same people. I do not know anything about

Kuderol, by whom Kobuv is believed to be inspired.

It is noteworthy that the only existing Tarthar teuol speaks the Toda

language when divining, and is believed to be inspired by a local Toda

god; while the diviners belonging to the Teivaliol seem to speak

dialects of Malayalam, and many are believed to be inspired by gods who

are almost certainly not true Toda deities.

The teuol are consulted whenever any misfortune befalls a Toda. The

following are various instances in which I have records of resort to

divination: sickness or death of a Toda or of any of his family;

sickness or death of a buffalo; failure of milk in a buffalo and

persistent kicking of its calf; failure to make a buffalo go to the

spot at which it is to be killed during a funeral ceremony; failure of

milk to coagulate; burning down of a dairy; disappearance of the bells

of a dairy; loss of a tukitthkarsor lifting stone. In this last

instance the stone at the village of Nidrsi was carried away some years

ago by a party of English people who came to picnic near the village

while the people were away. They carried the stone for some miles and

then threw it down. The Nidrsi people could not find it, and consulted

Midjkudr and Mongudrvan, who were able to reveal where the stone was to

be found, and it was restored to the village, where it can now be seen.

The diviners usually work in pairs, though occasionally it would seem

that one only may be consulted. If they are asked for an explanation of

some misfortune which has befallen a man, the teuol usually find either

that the sufferer has committed an offence against the dairy or that he

is the subject of spells cast on him by a sorcerer. In the former case,

they prescribe the ceremony which must be performed in order to expiate

the offence. In the latter case, they name the sorcerer so that the

sufferer may know with whom to make his peace.

I have already said that towards the close of my visit a number of

misfortunes befell the Todas; one man fell ill, the wife of another

died, and the dairy of a third was burnt down, and these events kept

the diviners busy, but probably because I was implicated I was not

allowed the chance of observing the diviners at work.

The only occasion on which I saw the process of divining was at a

funeral. The buffalo which was to be killed had been caught at some

distance from the place appointed for its slaughter. The animal was

unusually refractory and at length lay down and all the natural efforts

of the Todas failed to make it move. Midjkudr and Mongudrvan were then

called upon to discover the cause of the obstinacy of the buffalo.

Mongudrvan first began to dance slowly to and fro, away from and

towards the buffalo. He had taken off his cloak and was only wearing

the tadrp. As I already knew the man, I was able to observe that his

general appearance was unaltered and that he did not appear to be in

any abnormal mental condition. He was soon joined by Midjkudr, who

danced up and down much more wildly (Fig. 36). His general appearance

was very different to that usually presented by a Toda man. His hair

seemed to stand out from his head, although it shook with each of his

violent movements; his eyes were abnormally bright and his face gave

every appearance of great mental excitement. I had not previously known

the man, but when he came to see me a few days later I could hardly

believe that the quiet, self-possessed man whom I saw before me was the

same individual whom I had seen dancing at the funeral. It was obvious

that he had been in a distinctly abnormal condition of frenzy during

the divining process. After dancing for a time Midjkudr began to utter

broken sentences in a loud and almost chanting voice, while Mongudrvan

remained silent throughout. After Midjkudr had in these sentences given

the reason for the obstinacy of the buffalo, and had prescribed what

was to be done, he took a red cloth and dancing more violently than

ever waved the cloth before the buffalo and pushed against the body of

the animal. Then after the people had dragged the buffalo a little way,

it rose and went quietly to the place where it was to be killed.

I had much difficulty in finding out exactly what Midjkudr had said.

When he came to see me a few days later he stated that he did not know

at the time what he was saying, and that his only knowledge was derived

from those who had heard him, and I am inclined to believe that he was

speaking the truth. His appearance during the divining was remarkably

different from that of ordinary days, and strongly suggested a

semi-hypnotic state, during which he might well have had no knowledge,

or only a very vague knowledge, of anything he said. [82] In his

ordinary condition he professed to be ignorant of Malayalam, the

language which he was said to use in his frenzied condition.

My ignorance of Malayalam, and the obvious difficulties of the

investigation, make me hesitate before expressing any decided opinion

as to the real nature of Midjkudr’s condition when divining, but I have

a very strong leaning towards the idea that the man was in a genuinely

abnormal condition, allied to the hypnotic state, and I am disposed to

accept the statement of the Todas that he was speaking in a language of

which he had only a very vague knowledge when in a normal condition. It

is, of course, quite possible that the abnormal appearance of Midjkudr

was merely due to the exercise of dancing and to mental excitement, and

that he knew perfectly well what he was doing and saying. I can but

record my impression that there was something more, and I only commit

myself to this extent in regard to the special occasion on which I saw

Midjkudr divining; even if I saw a genuine hypnotic or semi-hypnotic

phenomenon, it does not follow that all Midjkudr’s performances are

wholly, or even partly, of this nature, and still less does it follow

that the performances of all the teuol are of this kind. Nothing struck

me more than the contrast between the frenzied condition of Midjkudr

and the calm, ordinary demeanour of Mongudrvan, his fellow diviner.

In the case I have described the necessity for the intervention of the

diviner arose out of the funeral proceedings, but it appears to be not

uncommon for divination to be practised during funerals. Both Mr.

Walhouse and Mr. Thurston have seen the process of divining going on at

funerals. In Mr. Thurston’s case he notes that the diviners talked in

Malayalam, and offered an explanation of a gigantic figure which had

suddenly appeared and as suddenly disappeared some time previously.

SORCERY

I met with greater difficulties in discovering the methods of sorcery

than in any other branch of my work. It was quite certain that there

were men called piliutpol (sorcery praying people), or pilikòren, who

had the reputation of possessing magical powers, comprised together

under the title piliutvichi or piliutiti. I was able to obtain the

names of these people from several sources, but when I approached any

one of them on the subject he professed total ignorance and usually

suggested that I should apply to some other man, who, he said, was a

real piliutpol. Occasionally someone would give me a fragment of

information, but would impress on me carefully that he had heard it

from somebody else and did not know whether it was true or false.

One or two men, who were certainly not sorcerers, told me that they

hoped that I should succeed in finding out the methods and would tell

them, for they said that the Todas who had no magical powers were

always trying to find out the methods of the sorcerers and were never

successful.

I was told by two men that they believed that a sorcerer, by merely

thinking of the effect he wished to produce, could produce the effect,

and that it was not necessary for him to use any magical formula or

practise any special rites.

It was not until my last week on the Nilgiris that I was told of some

of the magical rites by Teitnir, who had previously denied all

knowledge, though he was said by others to be a sorcerer, and he knew

that I was aware of his reputation. He was not a trustworthy informant,

but his account was consistent in itself and was in agreement with

fragments which I had picked up elsewhere, and I believe it is correct,

though I cannot guarantee its accuracy with the same degree of

confidence which I feel in regard to most of my information.

The following men were said by various people to be pilikòren:—

Kaners, Kudrievan, and Teikudr (63), Ishkievan (60), Keinkursi (54),

Puthion (64), and Teitnir (52), among the Teivaliol; Keitan (6),

Mudrigeidi (1), Kiunervan and Usheidi (14), and Karseidi (8), among the

Tartharol. Pushteidi, the elder brother of Keitan, was a noted sorcerer

who paid for the belief in his magical powers with his life. It will be

noted that magical powers appear to be fairly evenly distributed

between the two divisions and do not greatly predominate in one as in

the case of divination.

The power of sorcery was said to belong to certain families, and I was

told that it was inherited. It seemed probable that a sorcerer only

communicated his methods to his sons, and usually only to one of his

sons, or if he communicated his knowledge to all, it was often one of

them only who obtained the credit for magical powers.

We have already seen that when a man sustains a misfortune of any kind,

he consults the diviners, and they find whether the misfortune is due

to a fault committed by the sufferer or whether it is the result of

sorcery. In the latter case, they say by whose magic the misfortune has

been produced, and the sorcerer is then propitiated and removes the

spell, the nature and details of the process varying according to the

method of sorcery used and the offence which had led the sorcerer to

exert his powers. Thus when Pirsners (9) fell ill, he consulted

Midjkudr, who said that Kudrievan had bewitched him. Pirsners went to

Kudrievan and gave him food, and asked him to remove the spell, and

Pirsners became well soon after.

There are two chief reasons which induce a sorcerer to work his magic

on another. One is when a request by the sorcerer for assistance has

been met by deception. If the sorcerer asks a rich man for a buffalo,

or for money, and the rich man refuses point-blank, it does not appear

that the sorcerer proceeds farther; but if the rich man promises a gift

and does not give it, or if he delays giving a positive answer and puts

off a decision from day to day, it is a clear case for the application

of occult measures. The other chief motive for sorcery is a quarrel

with a sorcerer. The methods are different in the two cases. In the

first case the sorcerer procures some human hair—it may be the hair of

any one, even his own hair. It is not the hair of the man he wishes to

injure because it would be impossible to get it. Five small stones are

taken and tied together by means of the hair, and both hair and stones

are tied up in a piece of cloth. Then, holding the stones and hair in

his hand, the sorcerer utters the following incantation:—

Pithioteu Ön idith, Teikirzim Tirshtim idith; â teu sati

those gods power

udâsnûdr; an nòdr nòdr udâsnûdr; an kar warkhi peu mâ;

if there be; his country country if there be; his calf sleep go may;

an îr têrgi pûti pâr mâ; ath on nîr ud puk âthm

his buffaloes wings grow fly may; he I water drink as he also

nîr un mâ; on nîkh as puk âthm nîkhai mâ; on eirt puk

water drink may; I thirsty am as he also thirsty be may; I hungry as

âthm eirth mâ; en mokhm ödrth puk an mokhm ödr mâ; en

he also hunger may; my children cry as his children cry may; my

tazmokh kûtm pût puk an tazmokhm kûtm pûv mâ.

wife ragged cloth wear as his wife ragged cloth wear may.

This incantation was freely rendered by Teitnir as follows: For the

sake of Pithioteu, Ön, Teikirzi, and Tirshti; by the power of the gods

if there be power; by the gods’ country if there be a country; [83] may

his calves perish; as birds fly away may his buffaloes go when the

calves come to suck; as I drink water, may he have nothing but water to

drink; as I am thirsty, may he also be thirsty; as I am hungry, may he

also be hungry; as my children cry, so may his children cry; as my wife

wears only a ragged cloth, so may his wife wear only a ragged cloth.

When he has uttered the incantation, the sorcerer takes the hair and

stones in their cloth to the village of the man upon whom he wishes

these misfortunes to fall, and hides them secretly in the thatch of the

roof of the man’s hut.

It seemed that this method of sorcery is only justified when the

sorcerer is a poor man, and the references in the incantation to the

poverty of the sorcerer confirm this.

When a man who has prevaricated with the request of a sorcerer suffers

any evil fortune, he consults the diviners, and they may tell him not

only who has produced the misfortune, but why the sorcerer has brought

the misfortune upon him and they may advise the sufferer to become

reconciled with his enemy and to give him what he has asked. The man

goes to the sorcerer, who is usually only too ready to take the credit

of the affair, and it is arranged that he shall come to the village of

the sufferer. Whenever he comes a third person must be present, who is

called the nedrvol, or intermediate man. [84] The nedrvol brings about

the reconciliation, and arranges the terms, and then the sufferer bows

down before the sorcerer and performs the kalmelpudithti salutation.

The sorcerer then utters the following formula while his foot is

resting on the head of the man:—

â teu udâsnûdr, an nòdr udâsnûdr; taned peu mâ; term

Those gods if there be, his country if there be; cold go may; mercy

ai peu mâ; in îr kark elm ultâmâ; en mans elm

become, go may; this buffalo calf to all be well; my mind all

tülsvîshpini, tan mansm tüli mâ.

cleared from guilt have I, his mind also clear may.

Teitnir rendered this freely as follows:—

By those gods if there be gods, and by their country if there be a

country; as water is cold, so goes my anger; as mercy comes, may my

anger go; may his buffaloes and calves be well; I have now nothing evil

in my mind, you must also have no evil in your mind.

Food is then given to the sorcerer, who also obtains the object for

which he had originally asked. Later the sorcerer goes secretly to the

hut of the man and takes out the stones and hair which he had hidden in

the thatch.

In removing the spell the sorcerer does not mention the names of the

four gods, but speaks of them as “those gods.” The object of this is

that the names of the four gods whom the sorcerer invokes shall not

become generally known.

If any one quarrels with a sorcerer, the method adopted by the latter

is different. He obtains a bone of a man, buffalo, or some other

animal, or if unable to obtain a bone, he may use a lime. He sits,

holding the bone or lime in his right hand, and utters the following

incantation:—

Pithioteu Ön idith, Teikirzim Tirshtim idith; a teu sati udâsnûdr,

an nòdr udâsnûdr; ank pudra pîrsk pat mâ; ank ud

to him will destroy disease come may; to him one

ultâkhâth pun pâ mâ; an kal muri ûmâ; an kai mûri ûmâ;

incurable sore come may; his leg broken may be; his hand broken may be;

an kan pudri ûmâ; an ârs ulrsh an kûdûpel ûvòdink sakötam

his eye destroyed may be; his house into his family to all trouble

pâ mâ; âth enk sakötam kasvai agi ankm sakötam

come may; he to me troubles did who accordingly to him also troubles

ö mâ; an nòdr udi ed ariken â teu udi

occur may; his country there is that we shall know those gods there is

ed kanken; i elv nels alaiu ai

that we shall see; this bone into the ground what happens, that

òlkm alâ mâ.

man to also happen may.

The only clause of this incantation of which the meaning is not clear

is the penultimate, and the free rendering of this was said to be “as

there are undoubtedly gods, we shall see all this happen”; it seems

that ariken, which means literally “we shall know,” is often used in

the sense “without doubt.” If he is using a lime, the sorcerer

substitutes îrsimitch for elv in the last clause.

The bone or lime is then buried in a wood near the village of the man

who is to suffer the misfortune.

When the misfortune comes, and the diviners have discovered its cause,

the matter is arranged by a nedrvol as in the other kind of sorcery,

and it is usually settled that the sufferer shall give a one- or a

two-year-old calf to the sorcerer. When the matter is arranged, the

sorcerer visits the village of the bewitched man, who does

kalmelpudithti to the sorcerer, and the spell is removed with the

following words:—

teu udâsnûdr, an nòdr udâsnûdr; taned peu mâ; term ai peu mâ [85]; mokh

son

madrik an kûdûpel elmk; in mel en mans elm

children to his family all to; this after my mind all

tülsvînem in uli agi mâ; nûv put, nudri

cleared from guilt (as I) this well be may; disease leave, troubles

put peu mâ.

leave go may.

The sorcerer is then given food and goes away with his calf, and later

he goes secretly and takes the bone or lime out of the ground.

I have already mentioned that these methods of casting and removing

spells were obtained with great difficulty and only from one man. This

man, Teitnir, was one of the most intelligent of the Todas, but was not

a very trustworthy guide. In this case, however, the account he gave

was so consistent in itself and with the general character of Toda

customs and beliefs that I have no doubt that his methods are those

actually in use. It is more than probable, however, that other

sorcerers may use other methods, and even that Teitnir’s account is not

a wholly accurate description of the methods of any one sorcerer. The

other Todas had told me that Teitnir was himself a sorcerer, but even

after he had given me the above account, he denied that he had himself

magical powers, but said that he had learnt the methods from Ishkievan.

I had been told of one instance in which Teitnir had practised sorcery

on Teikudr (63), but Teitnir gave a different account of this event.

Teitnir and Teikudr had quarrelled and in consequence Teitnir had been

angry with Teikudr, a condition which the Todas call murthvichi.

Teitnir belonged to the chief family of the Kuudrol, which is known as

the mani kudupel; “it is a bad thing for one of so important a family

to have murthvichi” and any one who has been the cause of such a state

of things is liable to suffer misfortunes. When therefore some of

Teikudr’s buffaloes died and Teikudr consulted the teuol, these

diviners gave as the reasons for the misfortunes the murthvichi, not

the piliutvichi, of Teitnir. According to Teitnir, Teikudr was himself

a sorcerer and there were reports that the recent death of Teitnir’s

wife was due to the piliutvichi of Teikudr, and just before I left the

hills, I was told that the teuol had arrived at the conclusion that

Teikudr had had a hand in her death.

The Toda sorcerers are not only feared by their fellow Todas but also

by the Badagas, and it is probably largely owing to fear of Toda

sorcery that the Badagas continue to pay their tribute of grain.

The Badagas may also consult the Toda diviners. In one recent case a

Badaga consulted Mongudrvan, who found that the misfortune from which

the man was seeking relief was due to the sorcery of Kaners. Kaners

was, no doubt, propitiated by the Badagas, and it is probable that the

belief of the Badagas in the magical powers of the Todas is turned to

good account by the latter.

In some cases Todas have been killed by the Badagas owing to this

belief. About ten years ago Pushteidi of Nòdrs (6), the elder brother

of Keitan, was a very notable sorcerer, much dreaded by both Todas and

Badagas. He visited the Badaga village of Nanjanad on the occasion of a

feast, and soon after a Badaga child died and its death was at once

ascribed to the sorcery of Pushteidi. Not long after, Pushteidi’s dead

body was found near his village, and there seemed to be no reason to

doubt that the Badagas had killed him, but owing to the fact that the

Todas held the funeral and burnt the body before they made a report to

the police, the crime could not be thoroughly investigated nor the

murderers brought to account.

One of the events which the Todas ascribe to sorcery is failure of the

milk to coagulate. If there is much trouble in getting the milk to form

adrpars, the teuol are consulted, and they sometimes find that it is

due to sorcery and sometimes that some offence against the dairy has

been committed. I have no information, however, as to the method which

the sorcerer uses to prevent the coagulation of the milk of any one who

has offended him.

The only other indication of Toda methods of sorcery came to me from a

Badaga source. A Badaga maistri said that he had been given an account

by a Toda. According to this account, the sorcerer takes three leaves

of each of the plants which the Badagas call jakalmul, pemmul, and

tupumul (evidently varieties of the muli of the Todas), puts the nine

leaves in a new earthenware pot and buries the pot in a wood after

saying certain formulæ in which he wishes evil to a given man whom he

mentions by name. When the man falls ill and the diviners say by whom

his illness has been produced, a reconciliation is effected and the

sorcerer digs up the pot of leaves when the sufferer again becomes

well. This information came from a Badaga source and I could not obtain

confirmation of it from the Todas but it is possibly an approximation

to the method employed in one form of Toda sorcery.

The Todas dread the sorcery of the Kurumbas more than that of their own

pilikòren. The latter can be remedied, but the sorcery of the Kurumbas,

called kurubudrchiti (Kurub = Kurumba), is much more dangerous and

cannot be remedied. If it is found that a Kurumba has made a man ill,

the only thing to be done is to kill the Kurumba (see p. 641).

When Kutadri became ill while he was with me in the Kundahs, the first

suggestion was that the Kurumbas were responsible. Soon after this I

went to Kotagiri, and Kòdrner, Kutadri’s brother, who was to accompany

me, said that as the Kurumbas were very numerous in that part he did

not like to go alone with me and made a stipulation that while I was on

that side of the hills I was to provide him with a companion. Mr.

Thurston [86] describes a similar experience in which his guide was

afraid to walk from Ootacamund to Kotagiri lest he should come to grief

at the hands of the Kurumbas. In this case it seemed that the man was

using his fears as an excuse, and in my case the fear may have been

used as a lever to provide occupation for a friend, but that there was

a very real fear of Kurumba sorcery I have no doubt.

It is easy to see how this belief in the magical powers of the Kurumbas

may have arisen, or, more probably, how its existence may have been

maintained. The slopes of the hills on which the Kurumbas live are

extremely malarious, and it must often have happened that a visit to a

Kurumba village was followed by an attack of fever of a severe kind. We

probably have here a good example of a vicious circle. Whenever two

tribes of different degrees of culture live near one another, the

members of the lower usually acquire the reputation of being sorcerers.

For this and other reasons they are driven to a less healthy district,

and the unhealthiness of the district helps to maintain and reinforce

their reputation for magical powers.

THE EVIL EYE

Various misfortunes may befall a man if any one says that he is looking

very well or is very well dressed. It is also unlucky that any one

should look at a man when he is eating. Similarly it is unlucky for

anyone to say that a buffalo is giving much milk; she will probably

kick her calf or will suffer in some other way soon after.

This kind of misfortune is usually called kanarvaznudr, which was

translated, “if looking anxiously.” It is also often known now by the

Tamil name konduti or kontushti or evil eye. One of the commonest

effects of kanarvaznudr is indigestion. When anyone is suffering from

evil effects of this kind, he calls in one of certain people called

utkòren, or “praying people,” or, probably more correctly, “saying

incantations people.” Piutolvan (10), Keitazvan (15), and a woman,

Sinpurs (7), are utkòren of repute. Any one of the male utkòren may be

spoken of as an utpol, but I was doubtful whether this name would also

be used for a woman.

The utpol rubs the belly of the sick person, holds one corner of his

cloak in his left hand, and, putting some salt on the cloak, strokes

the salt with a thorn of the plant called pathanmul. [87] The thorn and

some of the salt are then put into the fire, and the utpol utters the

following incantation:—

Pithioteu Ön idith, Teikirzim Tirshtim idith, tan âv kan pudrs kan

his mother eye perish eye

pudri ûmâ; tan in kan pudrs kan pudri ûmâ;

be destroyed may; father