This is a ceremony closely connected with the naming of a child, but

only performed after the second funeral (marvainolkedr) of a Tarthar

man. It seemed probable that at one time the name was actually given

during the tersamptpimi ceremony, but as the marvainolkedr of Tartharol

now occur only at considerable intervals, it has become the custom to

bestow the name in connexion with the ceremony of uncovering the face.

The ceremony of tersamptpimi is performed on the day after the funeral,

this day being called karvnol, and as in the ceremony of naming, the

chief part is taken by the child’s maternal uncle. The uncle comes to

the village where the child is living, bringing a stake of wood of the

wild rose [129] called kadakmän. He splits the piece of wood into two

pieces, each of which is called ketkark, and putting the hair of the

child between the two ketkark, he cuts off a lock. If the child is of

the Tarthar division, the hair is cut with a piece of sharpened iron

called kanab, [130] while the hair of a Teivali child is cut with an

ordinary knife (turi), but both kanab and turi on this occasion receive

the special name of tersampki. After cutting the lock of hair, the

uncle puts it on one side together with the ketkark and the tersampki,

and if the boy has not already been named, the name is now given by the

uncle and a calf promised.

Before this ceremony, the bangle of bone and stone, put round the wrist

of the child when it was shaved, is taken off and replaced by a piece

of creeper called peival. [131] After the ceremony the peival is

removed.

There was some doubt as to what was done with the lock of hair. Mr.

Natesa Sastri states [132] that the hair is carefully preserved, but my

informants did not confirm this, and it seemed as if they did not even

adopt the precaution of hiding the hair, which is generally practised

(see p. 268).

THE EAR-PIERCING CEREMONY

The ceremony of piercing the ears is called kevi kûtiti, and may be

done at any time from infancy up to even twenty years of age. The

ceremony is often delayed until it can be performed for several members

of a family at the same time in order to avoid the considerable expense

connected with it. The ceremony must be done on a Sunday or Wednesday,

and there must be no kedr in the clan, i.e., it must not be performed

if the funeral ceremonies of a member of the clan are still unfinished.

On the day appointed for the ceremony many guests assemble at the

village, and the boys whose ears are to be pierced are dressed in their

best clothing. The piercing is performed by two men, one for each ear.

One is the mother’s brother (mun) of the boy, while the other is a man

of the division to which the boy does not belong—a Teivali man if the

boy is one of the Tartharol and vice versa.

The piercing is done with a piece of a small ring, so fine that it is

like a needle. The ring used in this way may be of silver or gold, the

latter only being used by the richer members of the community.

Each boy then salutes (kalmelpudithti) all those present older than

himself, both male and female. Each man as he raises his foot to the

head of the boy says:—

Tânenmâ, târmâmâ, pathk mâ, peda mâ,

May it be well, may it be well, may he prosper, may he prosper,

îr anûr òl mâ, âr mokh pai mâ.

buffaloes 100 may he rule, six sons may he have.

Each man also gives four annas to the boy and each chief Toda may give

one rupee.

The salutation of their elders seems to be conditional on this gift of

money. One of the most recent cases in which the ceremony has been

performed was when the ears of six of the sons of Tikievan of Kuudr and

his brothers (56) were pierced. On this occasion Tikievan refused to

take any money from those present, and the boys only saluted those men

who had celebrated the occasion by giving buffaloes to their father.

As the kalmelpudithti salutation was omitted, the words given above as

usually said by each person were on this occasion said collectively by

all present while the six boys bowed down their heads to the ground.

The ears of these boys were pierced by Teikudr (63), the first cousin

of Sulnir, the mother of the boys, but regarded according to the Toda

system as elder brother of the mother.

The representative of the Tartharol who pierced the other ear was

Pidrvan (9), probably chosen because he was one of the oldest and most

influential of the Todas who lived at Pakhalkudr, not far from Peivòrs,

the home of the boys.

After the ceremony all those present receive two balls of the food

called ashkkartpimi, even a young child receiving his two balls of

food. Each person then makes a hole in his food, into which ghi is

poured, and all eat, washing their hands afterwards in water brought

from the ars nipa.

Only the ears of boys are pierced, and a boy may not enter upon the

more sacred offices of the dairy till this ceremony has been performed.

Among the Teivaliol, he cannot become palol, wursol, or kaltmokh, but

he may be palikartmokh. Among the Tartharol, a boy cannot become

palikartmokh at any kind of dairy till the ear-piercing ceremony has

taken place.

In the case of the ceremony for the sons of Tikievan I inquired into

the actual expenses of the day. These were as follows:—

grain 17 rupees

jaggery 10 ,,

rice 7 ,,

10½ kudi of ghi 21 ,,

tobacco and salt 2 ,,

amounting to 57 rupees.

On the other hand, six buffaloes were given to Tikievan; two by the

Badaga Monegar of Tuneri; one each from Perner and Tebner (68), whose

daughter Sinmokh had married Piliagar, one of the boys. The other two

buffaloes were given by Teikudr, the uncle of the boys who had taken

part in the ear-piercing.

Several of these buffaloes were either given in return for buffaloes

which Tikievan had previously given, or Tikievan would be expected to

give buffaloes in return when any suitable occasion arose in the

families of the donors.

CHAPTER XV

FUNERAL CEREMONIES

The funeral ceremonies of a Toda may be prolonged over many months.

Soon after death the body is burnt and the general name for the

ceremony on this occasion is etvainolkedr, the first day funeral

(literally, “first which day funeral”). After an interval which may

vary greatly in length, a second ceremony is performed connected with

certain relics of the deceased which have been preserved from the first

occasion. The rites on this occasion are more elaborate than at the

etvainolkedr. The Toda name for this second funeral ceremony is

marvainolkedr, the second day funeral, or “again which day funeral.”

The final scene, in which the relics are burnt and the ashes buried,

takes place before daybreak on the morning following the marvainolkedr,

and this part of the ceremony is known as azaramkedr, the name being

derived from the azaram, or circle of stones within which the final

cremation takes place.

The funeral ceremonies are open to all and visitors are often invited

by the Todas. In consequence, the funeral rites are better known, and

have been more frequently described than any other features of Toda

ceremonial. Like nearly every institution of the Todas, however, they

have become known to Europeans under their Badaga names. The first

funeral is called by the Badagas hase kedu, the fresh or green funeral,

and the term ‘green funeral’ has not only become the generally

recognised name among the European inhabitants of the Nilgiri Hills,

but has been widely adopted in anthropological literature. The second

funeral is called by the Badagas bara kedu, the ‘dry funeral,’ and this

term also has been generally adopted. I never heard these terms used by

the Todas themselves, who always spoke of the etvainolkedr and the

marvainolkedr, though it seemed that the first funeral might sometimes

be called karchokedr, which probably means fresh or green funeral.

The funeral ceremonies have undergone some modification in recent times

owing to the intervention of the Government. Formerly it was the custom

to slaughter many buffaloes at every funeral. This impoverished the

people and was prohibited by the Government about forty years ago, and

since that time the number of buffaloes killed at each ceremony has

been limited to two for each person. This has had most influence on the

second funeral ceremonies, which, largely owing to this prohibition,

are now much less elaborate and prolonged than in former times.

The funeral ceremonies are held at certain appointed places called

kertnòdr, different for each clan. Sometimes these places are at, or

close to, villages where the people are now living; sometimes they are

at places which were formerly inhabited; while in other cases, again,

there is no evidence that the funeral places have ever been inhabited.

In every case, whether inhabited or not, the place where a funeral is

held is called a mad, the same name as is used for a village.

Each clan has at least two funeral places, one for males and the other

for females, and in several cases a clan has more than one funeral

place for each sex. Some clans have different places for the two

funeral ceremonies, and the Piedrol, who have one outlying branch of

their clan at Kavidi in the Wainad, have special funeral places for the

first funeral of members of this branch, the second funeral, or

marvainolkedr, being held at the chief funeral place of the clan.

Others, again, have a special place for boys who have not passed

through the ear-piercing ceremony.

In general, a funeral hut (see Fig. 48) is specially built for the

reception of the dead body, this hut being usually erected within a

stone circle found at the funeral place. At the funeral of a male, this

hut is called kertnòdrpali or neilpali. It is left standing after the

funeral and may be used on a second occasion if it has not fallen into

too great disorder.

Five clans of the Tartharol possess special dairies, each with three

rooms which are used as funeral huts. These buildings are habitually or

occasionally used as dairies; but when a man of the clan dies his body

is laid in the outermost of the three rooms, either on the day of the

funeral or for two or three days before it. While a dead body is lying

in the dairy, women are allowed to enter the outermost room just as

they may go into any other funeral hut, but they may not pass beyond.

Men are allowed to enter the middle room, but the innermost room is

only entered by the dairyman, who carries on his dairy work as usual.

The five villages at which these three-roomed dairies now exist are

Nòdrs, Taradrkirsi (Kars), Keradr, Tim (Pan), and Akirsikòdri (Nidrsi).

At Taradr a temporary funeral hut with three rooms is constructed

within a circle of stones near the village. In the outermost room of

this hut the corpse is placed, and women may only enter this room,

while men may enter both outer and middle rooms as in the three-roomed

dairies. In the innermost room the palikartmokh of the village places a

vessel of the kind called mu, and he only is allowed to enter this

room.

This temporary building is almost certainly the representative of a

three-roomed dairy which at one time existed at this village; and it is

probable that at other male Tarthar funeral places the funeral hut

should be made with three rooms, though at present this is not done.

In every case the funeral hut which receives the body of a man is

called pali, or dairy, and it is probable that at one time among the

Tartharol it was the universal custom to place the body of a man in a

dairy before the last rites. It is possible that the stone circle

within which the funeral hut is built is the representative of the wall

surrounding a dairy which formerly existed on the spot. Among the

Teivaliol the funeral hut is also called pali, but there is no instance

among them of an actual dairy being used to receive the dead.

At the funeral place of women a hut is specially built for the

reception of the body, but it is always burnt down after each funeral.

This hut is called ars, or house, and has a different name for each

ceremony, being called nersars for the first funeral, and kursars for

the second. Each kind of hut is constructed within a circle of stones,

and the name seems to indicate that at one time the body of a woman was

placed in the house of the village. Here again the stone circle may

possibly be the representative of an actual house which once existed at

the funeral place.

If, for any reason, the funeral of a person is not being held at the

proper place, the funeral hut is not constructed within the circle of

stones; thus at the funeral of a girl, Sinerani (see p. 392), the hut

was placed by the side of the stone circle because her funeral was

being held at the kertnòdr of her father and not at that of her

husband.

At every funeral place there should be a second circle of stones

forming a tu, or buffalo-pen. These pens are now rarely, if ever, used,

and are a relic of the time when the ceremonies of the marvainolkedr

were prolonged over two days, the buffaloes being caught and penned on

the first day, and killed on the second. A third ring of stones is the

azaram, at the opening of which the ashes are buried at the final scene

of the funeral rites.

There are specially appointed days for the funeral ceremonies. These

days differ to some extent for different clans and for the two sexes.

Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday are the most general days for the

funerals of males, only two clans having Saturday as a funeral day for

men. For females Thursday and Saturday are most frequently chosen, two

clans only holding the funerals of women on Tuesdays. In no case could

I find that funerals are performed on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday.

These days are, on the other hand, the most usual days set apart as

madnol or palinol, [133] and villages which have their madnol or

palinol on Sunday or Tuesday do not appear to have their funerals on

these days. The general rule is that a funeral must not take place on a

madnol or palinol. In several cases I was told that if the mani, or

sacred bell, were used, the funeral must be on one day of the week;

thus for the Karsol, it must take place on Sunday; for the Kwòdrdoni

people, on Tuesday. These obligatory days of the funeral ceremonies

often involve the necessity of keeping the corpse for several days.

I did not make special inquiries into ceremonies of the deathbed, but

Marshall states (p. 171) that a man who is not expected to recover is

dressed in the ornaments and jewellery of his house, which he will wear

till he dies or recovers; and Marshall mentions an instance of a man

who had revived from what was thought to be his deathbed who paraded

about, wearing the finery with which he had been bedecked. In this

case, it was said that he would be permitted to carry the ornaments

till his death. Marshall also states that the relatives give the dying

man milk to drink when on the point of death.

After death the body should be wrapped in a dark cloth called än, which

is of the same material as the tuni worn by the palol and other

dairymen, and, like the tuni, is procured from the Badagas of Jakaneri.

It is doubtful, however, whether this custom of enwrapping the body in

the än is now kept up with any regularity. Outside the än should be an

ornamented mantle (pukuruputkuli) and then a mantle of the ordinary

kind.

The body of a woman is kept in the hut in which she has died till the

day of the funeral, and, with special exceptions, this is also done

with the bodies of men.

When a man dies at the village of Nòdrs, his body is taken into the

three roomed tarvali and placed on the right-hand bed (meitün) of the

outermost room. While the body is lying here, the building is still

used as a dairy, but women are allowed to enter the outermost room

except when the palikartmokh is actually engaged in the business of the

dairy. It is only when it is being used as a funeral hut that women are

ever allowed to enter a dairy, and then they may only sit on the

left-hand bed—the kitün.

On the day appointed for the elvainolkedr, the body is carried to the

funeral place. In some cases certain ceremonies are performed at the

village at which the death has taken place; thus, at Kars, the body of

a man is first laid in front of the kudrpali and then on one of the two

eminences called imudrikars (see Fig. 21), which stand near the dairy,

and from this it is taken to the other imudrikars, and after lying here

for a while it is borne to the special funeral village of Taradrkirsi.

At Kuzhu, another village of the Karsol, the body is taken from the hut

and laid by the side of the stone called menkars; then it is taken to a

stone called imudrikars in front of the kudrpali, and laid with the

head at the stone and the feet towards the dairy. A buffalo of the

ordinary kind (putiir) is then milked; the milk is put into a vessel

and from this poured into a leaf cup of kakud leaves, and from this cup

milk is poured three times into the mouth of the dead man.

In other villages at which there is no imudrikars, the body is laid in

front of the dairy and fed with milk in the same way.

The body is borne from the village to the funeral place on a wooden

bier, called mänpedrkudr (wood bier). It is taken by a specially

appointed route, and in some cases certain ceremonies are performed by

the way. Thus, when the body of a man is taken from Kars to

Taradrkirsi, earth is thrown at two places. We shall see shortly that

one of the most important features of the funeral of a man is that

earth is dug at the entrance of a buffalo pen at the funeral place and

thrown on the corpse and into the pen. On the way to Taradrkirsi this

is also done at two places, which are probably the situations of the

old buffalo pens of villages which have now disappeared. I did not hear

of any similar practices for any other clan, but Kars is probably not

exceptional in this respect.

Before the body arrives at the funeral place the people will have begun

to assemble, and when the funeral procession reaches its destination

all those present go one by one to the corpse, bow down by the side of

the bier, and touch the body with their foreheads. Those older than the

deceased and those related in certain ways (see Chap. XXI) bow down at

the head of the corpse. Those younger and those related in certain

other ways bow down at the foot. When all those present have saluted,

the body is placed in the funeral hut, or in the dairy if the funeral

is being held at one of the places where funeral dairies still exist,

and late-comers enter the hut or dairy to perform their salutations. As

soon as the body is placed in the hut or dairy, the female relatives

and friends of the dead person collect round the hut and lament

together in the characteristic Toda manner, arranging themselves in

pairs and pressing their foreheads together while they wail and weep

(Fig. 48).

While this is going on the men are busied in making preparations for

the cremation. A place is cleared in a wood near the funeral place—the

methkudi—and here a pyre is built of wood, some of which has been

brought by the funeral party, while the rest is found near the burning

ground. The wood used on this occasion must be of the kind called kers

[134] and the pyre is built of an oblong shape, rising about three feet

above the ground.

The first of the funeral ceremonies is different for the two sexes. At

the funeral of a male the ceremony of puzhutpimi, “earth we throw,” or

kedrpuzhutpimi, “funeral earth we throw,” is performed, while the

corresponding ceremony for a woman is to place certain leaves in the

armlet on the right arm of the corpse.

THE PUZHUTPIMI CEREMONY

In the puzhutpimi ceremony a man digs up a little earth in front of the

entrance to the buffalo pen. The digger must belong to the Tartharol,

if the dead man is one of the Teivaliol, and vice versâ; thus, at the

funeral of Pursevan (53) [135] of Kuudr, the earth was dug by Kedjeri

(6) of Nòdrs. In this case the Tartharol were told to send someone to

dig, and they selected Kedjeri.

At the funeral of a Tarthar man the earth is first thrown by the

wursol, who must be, on this occasion, one of the Teivaliol. A Melgars

wursol may not perform this office. After the wursol has thrown earth,

it is thrown by certain relatives of the deceased who are present. At a

Teivali funeral only the relatives perform this ceremony, no one

corresponding to the wursol taking part.

Before the people begin to throw earth, one of the dead man’s division

asks “Puzhutkina?”—“Shall I throw earth?” and a man of the other

division replies, “Puzhut!”—“Throw earth!” At the funeral of Pursevan a

Teivali man asked the Tartharol in this way, and the Tartharol

responded. At this funeral earth was thrown by the following: Punatvan

(53), a younger brother of the dead man; Kuriolv and Piliar (52),

Pöteners (54); Targners, Pungusivan and Tevò, the sons of the dead man,

and Pòl, the son of Punatvan. In this case all who threw earth were not

only Kuudrol—i.e., of the same clan as the dead man—but were also of

the same family, so that their relation to one another can be traced in

the genealogies. Kuriolv, Piliar and Pöteners would all have called

Pursevan “aia,” or father, and were first cousins once removed

according to our system of kinship. I do not know whether the

earth-throwing is usually limited to the nearer relatives in the same

clan. The family to which Pursevan belonged was unusually numerous, and

it is probable that in most cases other families of the clan are called

upon to take a part.

At a funeral seen by Mr. Walhouse [136] the earth was thrown into a

circle made of rough stones laid upon the grass with an opening on one

side, and Mr. Thurston [137] records a similar case in which the earth

was thrown into a circle of stones about a yard and a half in diameter,

which had been constructed for the occasion. This is probably done when

the funeral is held at a place where there is no tu, and it is possible

that these funerals were not being held at regular funeral places of

the clan, and that the circles of stones were intended to represent

buffalo pens. At the funeral seen by Mr. Walhouse the ‘priest’ handed a

bag to the nearest relatives, who tied it to the stick with which they

turned up the earth.

Each man, as he throws, kneels down, facing the opening of the pen, and

then bows down so that he touches the earth with his forehead, many

saying “Swami” as they do this. Three handfuls of earth are thrown into

the pen, and then three handfuls are thrown backwards on the corpse,

the man standing up as soon as he has done this. Each man covers his

head with his cloak before he throws, as shown in Figs. 49 and 50.

[138] Fig. 50 shows the special action employed in throwing backwards,

the hand being turned inward.

The earth-throwing ceremony is one of several funeral rites, in which

men of one division take part in funerals belonging to the other

division. Thus, at a Tarthar funeral the earth is dug by one of the

Teivaliol; the Tartharol then ask for permission to throw the earth,

and the permission (or order) is given by the Teivaliol—i.e., those who

have dug the earth have to give the word that the earth may be thrown.

THE TIVERI TÛR CEREMONY

At the funeral of a woman no earth is thrown, but a ceremony is

performed which is said to correspond to it. A woman goes in search of

the leaves of the tiveri plant, [139] the leaves being called tiveri

tûr. The woman who plucks the leaves must be the motvilth

(daughter-in-law) of the dead woman, but if it is a child who is dead

the leaves are plucked by the mother-in-law or potential mother-in-law.

If a dead woman has no daughter-in-law, it was said that her daughter

might pluck the leaves, but at the funeral of Kiuneimi (3), a childless

woman, the leaves were sought and plucked by Naburveli, the wife of

Mushkers (28), who would have called the husband of Kiuneimi “brother,”

being of the same family and generation, although only his second

cousin according to our system of kinship. In this case, therefore, the

leaves were plucked by a sister-in-law, or, more strictly, by the wife

of the ‘brother’ of the dead woman’s husband. In this case both

Kiuneimi and Naburveli were daughters of Nòdrs men, but this was

probably only a coincidence.

At the funeral of Kiuneimi, Naburveli was accompanied by a man and by

another woman, but it was quite clear that they would on no account be

allowed to touch the leaves, which must be plucked by the

daughter-in-law or other relative who is performing the ceremony. When

found, the tiveri leaves are put by the woman in the armlet on the

right arm of the dead woman. Then the men present say to the woman:—

“Parthûl ütchka, tiveri tûr parch pudthka?”

In the armlet is it put, tiveri leaves plucking have you come?

and the woman replies:—

“Tiveri tûr parch pudthpimi, parthûl ûtchpimi,

Tiveri leaves plucking we have come, in the armlet we have put,

îr patz!”

the buffalo catch!

The woman thus announces that this ceremony has been completed, and

that they may proceed to the next event of the funeral rites, that of

catching the buffalo.

The tiveri tûr ceremony of a woman’s funeral was said to correspond to

the earth-throwing ceremony of a man’s funeral, but this correspondence

may only mean that each is the first of the actual funeral ceremonies.

Since, however, a woman belongs to the clan of her husband, the leaves

are always put into the armlet by a woman of the same clan as the

deceased. In this respect the ceremony resembles that of

earth-throwing, but my informants laid stress on the fact that the

ceremony should be performed by a motvilth or other relative-in-law,

and no reference was made to the fact that they would be of the same

clan. This makes it probable that there is no real correspondence

between the two ceremonies.

THE SLAUGHTER OF THE BUFFALOES.

The next stage in the proceedings is the catching and killing of the

buffalo or buffaloes. At the present time the Todas are only permitted

by the Government to kill two of these animals, and if the family of

the dead person is poor only one may be killed. At the funeral of a man

it is customary that one of the animals killed shall be an ordinary

buffalo (putiir) and the other a sacred buffalo; one of the pasthir in

the case of the Teivaliol, and usually one of the wursulir in the case

of the Tartharol. At least one sacred buffalo must be killed at one or

other funeral ceremony for every man, but this may be done either at

the etvainol- or the marvainolkedr. Sacred buffaloes are only killed at

the funerals of men, never at those of women.

When it was the custom to slaughter more than two buffaloes, there was

often a rule that these should be of certain kinds; thus, at Nòdrs, it

was once the custom to kill seven buffaloes at a man’s funeral—viz.,

two wursulir, two putiir, and one each of the following kinds:

nashperthir, pineipir, and persasir.

If the family possess no sacred buffalo, they must procure one by

exchange, and it is customary to give two ordinary buffaloes for one of

the sacred kind.

There is a definite spot appointed for the slaughter of each kind of

buffalo. The ordinary buffalo is usually killed near the funeral hut,

and sometimes there is a stone marking the spot at which the animal is

to die. The wursulir are killed at a place usually marked by a stone

called teiks. In cases where there is no stone the spot is marked by a

wooden post (see Fig. 51), which has the same name, and I was told that

it should be made of teak. [140]

In some cases there are other appointed stones or unmarked spots where

buffaloes of other kinds are slaughtered; thus, at Nòdrs there are

seven stones, at each of which a buffalo used to be killed, and the

people of Pan have two stones called teiks, one for each division of

the clan.

The catching of the buffalo is one of the most exciting incidents of a

Toda funeral. When only one or two buffaloes are to be killed it is

usual to take about four buffaloes from the village of the dead person

to the neighbourhood of the funeral place. When the preliminary

ceremonies are over, all those who are attending the funeral move

towards the place at which the buffaloes are standing, while several of

their number are chosen to catch the appointed animal or animals. At

the same time, the buffaloes, which are usually standing in some hollow

so that they cannot be seen from the funeral place, are driven towards

the people. As soon as they appear the appointed men drop their cloaks

and race to meet the buffaloes. The buffaloes are driven on from behind

in a more vigorous manner than that to which they are accustomed, are

more or less infuriated, and often rush wildly about in their efforts

to avoid the racing Todas, one of whom succeeds in catching the

appointed animal, seizing it by the horns, and then hangs round its

neck with one hand and seizes the cartilage of the nose with the other.

Another of the men seizes a horn and also hangs round the neck of the

animal, and both men put their whole weight on the neck of the buffalo

and bear it to the ground. Often they are carried many yards before

they succeed in getting the infuriated animal under control, and when

catching the horns they are sometimes severely gored, though this

rarely happens now, and I could hear of no case in which there had been

fatal consequences.

The men who are appointed to catch the buffalo belong to the Tartharol

at a Teivali funeral and to the Teivaliol at a Tarthar funeral. They

are usually chosen from among the younger and more agile of the

community, but at an important funeral the older and more experienced

men may undertake the duty. The catching of the buffalo is critically

watched, and some men have acquired great reputations for the

adroitness with which they perform the feat.

I have some reason to think that it is the custom to catch the

buffaloes at different places at the funerals of males and females (see

p. 393), but my information on this point is not satisfactory.

The captured buffalo has next to be led to the spot appointed for its

slaughter. The people of both divisions drive the animal, beating it

with sticks, while the course taken by the animal is directed by the

two men hanging on its horns and round its neck. The buffalo is beaten

much more vigorously than ever happens on ordinary occasions, and it

has seemed to many who have watched a Toda funeral that this vigorous

beating must have some significance, and the idea of vicarious

punishment is naturally suggested. I could obtain no information from

the people on this point, and I am doubtful whether the beating means

more than that, under the exceptional conditions, the animal requires

much more vigorous driving than usual. Ordinarily the buffalo follows

out its daily routine with little interference; it goes to its usual

pasture, and, as I have seen myself, it may return to the dairy of its

own accord at the proper time.

At one funeral at which I was present the buffalo was so alarmed or so

infuriated by the proceedings that it lay down and absolutely refused

to move, and the efforts of all present were insufficient to drag the

animal to the slaughtering place. This incident will be described more

fully later, but I mention it here to show that it may often be

difficult to drive the buffalo, and that the unaccustomed vigour with

which the animal is beaten may have a natural and not a ceremonial

reason.

Before the buffalo is killed two things have still to be done. A bell

or its substitute has to be hung on the neck of the buffalo, and butter

rubbed on its back, head and horns.

If one of the wursulir is to be killed there is hung on its neck the

sacred bell called mani, while the ordinary buffalo or putiir is given

only the kwungg or household bell. A mani may also be used for the

varieties of sacred buffalo called nashperthir, persasir, &c. Probably

at one time there was a mani for each kind, but some of the sacred

bells have been lost, and it is only in some clans that a bell can now

be used. Those clans which have no mani do not use an ordinary bell,

but they tie the sacred buffalo to the teiks by means of a piece of the

creeper called kakhudri, about two yards in length. This is the case

with all the Teivaliol except the people of Piedr and with the

Melgarsol among the Tartharol. The kakhudri is said to be used in place

of the mani.

The details as to the use of the mani differ somewhat in different

clans. The Nòdrs people have two mani, called Kòdj and Kagur, which are

now kept at Òdr. When a Nòdrs man dies these bells are fetched from Òdr

by the wursol and one is hung on the neck of one of the mersgursir and

the other on the neck of one of the nashperthir. [141] After the

etvainolkedr these bells are kept outside the conical dairy at Nòdrs in

a special hole in a stone called karsalb. The people of Kars similarly

take their mani to Taradrkirsi for the first funeral and keep it there

till the funeral ceremonies are completed.

Among the Teivaliol the Piedrol are the only clan to possess a mani,

which is called Kerâni. It is kept in a wood or shola near the funeral

place and lies in an earthenware pot buried in the ground. At the

funeral of a Piedr man the bell is hung on the neck of a buffalo

belonging to the kudeipir (the special name for the pasthir of this

clan). It is dug up by the Teivali palikartpol and given by him to a

Nòdrs man, who ties it on the neck of the buffalo. The Nòdrs man chosen

for this office must bathe on the morning of this day and must go

without food till after the funeral.

Just before the buffalo is killed butter is smeared on the back of the

animal, on the horns and on the part of the head between the horns.

This should be done by a man of the same clan as the dead person.

The killing of the buffalo is called îrkîpti. It is done by striking

the animal on the head with the back of an axe (masth). The animal is

usually killed by one blow, though in some cases more are necessary.

The wursulir are killed by the wursol and the ordinary buffaloes by men

of the same division as the deceased, but of a different clan. Certain

clans appear to have a prescriptive right to kill the buffalo; thus,

among the Teivaliol, a Kuudr man kills at the funerals of members of

all other clans, while at the funeral of a Kuudr man a member of one of

the other clans performs this function. Among the Tartharol, the

members of the Nòdrs and Kars clans appear to occupy the most

privileged position, but the relations are more complicated than among

the Teivaliol. At a Kars funeral the ordinary buffalo is killed by a

man of Nòdrs, Taradr or Pan. At a funeral of a member of any of these

three clans, a Kars man kills. At funerals in other clans, the buffalo

is usually killed by men either of Kars or Nòdrs, but in the case of a

Kwòdrdoni funeral, it seemed that the killing might also be done by a

man of Päm or Nidrsi. Each buffalo is killed at the appointed stone or

post, and the teiks at which the wursulir are killed is at some

distance from the funeral hut, and a woman is not allowed to approach

the spot lest she should see the sacred bell.

Though there is no definite landmark for the killing of the putiir,

each buffalo is killed at an appointed spot; thus, at the funeral of

Sinerani (see p. 392), the buffalo at the etvainolkedr was killed on

the left-hand side of the funeral hut.

As soon as the buffalo is felled, the corpse is brought up and placed

by the head of the dying animal (Fig. 53). At the funeral of a man, the

covering of the body is unfolded and the right hand of the dead man is

made to clasp one of the horns. At the funeral of a woman, the body is

laid with its feet by the mouth of the buffalo. [142] At the funeral of

a Pan man, Kwoten’s ring is placed on the finger of the deceased before

his hand is made to clasp the horn. Then the men present come to the

buffalo and salute it by bowing down and placing their foreheads on the

horns and on the head between the horns.

The people then group themselves round the buffalo and corpse and cry

together by placing forehead to forehead so that their tears and cries

mingle. In the case of the sacred buffalo, wearing the mani, this

circle is composed of men only. The lament [143] usually consists in

calling first the name of the buffalo and then speaking of the dead

person, not by his name, but by the term expressing the bond of kinship

between the lamenter and the dead. Thus at a funeral at which the

buffalo killed was called Pundrs, one man would cry:

“Pundrsia, en potch aia ivanersia, en potch aia”

O Pundrs, O my father.

I could not ascertain the meaning of ivanersia, except that its latter

part is the word for buffalo with the vocative termination ‘ia.’

For a son, a man would cry after the name of the buffalo, “en mokh

ûpa”; for an elder brother, “en potch anna”; and similarly for other

relatives. For a wife a man would cry “iza kughia”, and for a husband a

woman cries “iza mókhia” (iza is merely exclamatory).

It might appear from the form of lamentation that the buffalo itself

was regarded as the father, son, &c., of the lamenter, and I could not

satisfy myself as to what the people really had in their minds when

they were lamenting in this way. It has been supposed that the

lamentation is for the slaughtered buffalo, and I am unable positively

to say that this is not the case. It is probable that the people grieve

for the departure of one of their much-loved buffaloes, but I do not

think that there is any decisive evidence that they are lamenting for

the buffalo rather than for the dead person.

Within the group of mourners there is much going hither and thither.

After two people have mourned together for a while they separate, and

each seeks a new partner with whom to lament. When separating, the

salutation of kalmelpudithti often takes place, and, as in general, it

is the younger of each pair who bows down his head and raises each foot

of the other so that it touches his forehead. It seemed to be the duty

of everyone to salute certain of the older men in this way; and round

these men there would be a continual coming and going, each person

saluting by placing his head beneath the feet of the elder. At times

the band of mourners would form a confused mass of struggling people,

some crying forehead to forehead, others saluting head to foot, while

others would be struggling through the mass to seek partners with whom

to mourn (Fig. 55).

THE CLOTH-GIVING CEREMONY

During or after the lamentation a ceremony is performed which is known

as kachütthti [144] (kach, cloth, ütthti or ütiti, he puts). The

essential feature of this ceremony is that a cloth is given by a near

relative of the dead person to those who have married into his family,

and the cloth is placed on the dead body by the wives of those to whom

it is given. This ceremony takes place at the funerals of both sexes

and for members of all clans. It is an inconspicuous ceremony, and with

one exception [145] has escaped the observation of all those who have

previously witnessed and recorded the procedure of Toda funerals. It

takes place in the middle of a crowd, who gather round the corpse

possibly while the lamentation is still going on or while other

ceremonies are in progress. In the first funeral I witnessed the

ceremony took place while dancing was going on, and I missed it

entirely, though I was told afterwards that it had taken place as

usual, and was able to obtain the names of the chief actors.

In the ceremony of kachütthti, a man belonging to the clan of the

deceased gives a cloth to one of his paiol, or brothers-in-law. The

latter gives the cloth to his wife or wife’s sister, or to some woman

whom he would be allowed to marry, and the woman places the cloth on

the corpse. The man who originally gave the cloth then takes it from

the body and gives it to another paiol, and the ceremony is repeated

till the cloth has been given to all the paiol present.

The man who gives the cloth should belong to the same clan as the dead

person. At the funeral of a male, the proper person is the father of

the deceased, if he is alive, or some other elder of the clan. At the

funeral of a woman, a man of the clan of the woman’s husband is chosen.

Thus, at the funeral of Kiuneimi (3 and 28), a widow of Kanòdrs, the

cloth was given by Neratkutan (28), who was of the same family as the

husbands of the dead woman and the eldest representative of their

generation. At the funeral of Sinerani (52), the cloth was given by

Tebkudr (68), who was the younger brother of the father of Keinba, the

husband of the dead child.

The men called paiol, to whom the cloth is given, seem to include all

those who have married women of the same clan as the giver of the

cloth. Thus, at the funeral of Kiuneimi the cloth was given to Pepob

(44) of Melgars, and to Nelkush and Tevò (3) of Nòdrs, who had all

married women of Kanòdrs.

At the funeral of Sinerani, the cloth was given to Kuriolv (52), who

was the father of the dead child, not, however, for this reason, but

because he was the husband of Sintharap, Tebkudr’s sister. At this

funeral the only other man to whom the cloth was given was Piliag (52),

who received it in the place of his brother, Piliar (52), who was not

present. The latter, like Kuriolv, was the brother-in-law of Tebkudr

(68). If there is no paiol present the cloth may be given to a

matchuni, [146] and this may also happen even when paiol are present.

Thus at one funeral at which I was present, the marvainolkedr of

Pursevan (53), the cloth was given by Piliar (52) to Teikudr (63), his

matchuni. Piliar was the son of Mutevan and Teikudr was the son of

Kavani, the sister of Mutevan.

If neither paiol nor matchuni be present, it was said that the cloth

might be given to a brother, i.e., a man of the same clan, but this

probably never happens and the statement is possibly an error.

The man who receives the cloth hands it to his wife, if she is present;

if she is not present, he may put it on the corpse himself, and I saw

this done more than once. On one occasion a man gave it to a woman who

was not his wife, but in this case he was acting as a substitute for

the husband of the woman.

This ceremony is one in which a man of the same clan as the deceased

person gives a cloth to a man who has married into his family. The

latter hands on the cloth to his wife, who was, before her marriage, of

the same clan as the giver of the cloth, and it is this woman who

places the cloth on the dead body.

The father of each woman who places the cloth on the body receives a

fee of one rupee called kachkars, or cloth-rupee, but the sum is not

paid till the woman has attended twenty funerals. An account is kept

and twenty rupees are paid when the number is completed. The money is

paid by the husband of the woman.

In the ceremony of kachütthti, the men who have married into the family

of the dead person have to perform this ceremony and have to pay a fee

to the family of the dead person. As we shall see later, the chief

mourner at a funeral should receive a buffalo from each of his

sons-in-law, and we see here that this tribute is supplemented by an

addition to the account kept of the times the cloth is given. The

cloth-giving ceremony involves a payment to the family of the dead man

of certain fees from those members of other clans who have married into

the family.

The cloth used is a red loincloth of a kind which is never worn by the

Todas, but, so far as I could ascertain, it is only an ordinary cloth

procured in the bazaar.

THE CREMATION

After the kachütthti ceremony the body is replaced on the wooden bier

and borne to the methkudi, where the funeral pyre has been erected

within the wood, usually at no great distance from the funeral hut.

The bier is laid by the side of the pyre, and the dead person is then

supplied with the various necessaries for the other world. Many of the

things are placed in the large pocket, or kudsh, between the two folds

of the cloak in which the body is enclosed.

The things supplied are chiefly food, ornaments, and money. The food

includes grain, rice, jaggery, limes, and honey. Some of the food is

put directly into the kudsh, while some of the grain, rice, and honey

are mixed together and put in a metal bowl. Tobacco, coconuts, ghi, or

articles of food from the bazaar may be added.

A number of square boxes made of rattan and called pettei [147] are

also placed on the bier. They are procured from Mitur in the Wainad,

and are often called miturpettei or mitudpettei. Jaggery and other

things are put into each of the boxes, and they are covered with cloth,

tied with thread, and adorned with cowries.

The ornaments placed on the corpse included rings for the fingers,

armlets, necklaces, and earrings.

The money is collected from all present and put in rolls into long

purses, called tinkani. Most of the money used for this occasion is old

with Arabic inscriptions and is known by the Todas as irajkars, the

more recent coinage being called englishkars. In one collection of

coins which I was allowed to inspect many bore the date 1780, and among

the more recent coins were included two Japanese yen. The rolls of

coins are placed within the cloak, often near the feet of the dead

person.

Meanwhile the pyre has been lighted. At the funeral of a man this must

be done by means of fire made by friction. I have not recorded whether

the fire is made by any special relative of the deceased or other

special person. At the funeral of a woman, the fire is started by means

of a lighted rag which has been soaked in ghi. The rag is lighted by a

man, who at present uses matches for the purpose. Though lighted by a

man the fire is applied to the funeral pyre by a woman, usually of the

same clan as the dead person. The pyre is lighted on the top, where

small pieces of wood have been placed, and butter is poured on the fire

which gradually spreads downwards. The progress of the fire is very

slow, and at every funeral at which I was present the fire was far from

strong when the body was placed upon it.

At the funeral of a male, imitation buffalo horns of wood (tebkuter or

petkuter, see Fig. 35) are placed on the fire and burnt. This was also

done at the funeral of the girl Sinerani, but it seemed clear that this

was unorthodox and was done by Kuriolv, the father of the dead girl, on

account of his great sorrow at her death.

The body on the bier is now taken up and swung three times over the

fire, while a small wooden framework resembling a miniature bier is

held under the larger bier. As the body is swung over the fire in this

way the bearers say:—

“Kedr tütth tâzâr mud tirk tûkitth tâthi.”

Funeral fire over three times lifted must.

These words seem to be connected with the small wooden framework held

under the body, for this is called tütth tâzâr tûkitth kûrs, or “fire

over lifted (or lifting) stick.”

The bier is then replaced on the ground and nearly all the objects of

value are removed from the bier or from the pocket of the cloak. In one

case I observed that the bangles were taken from the arms, all the

rings except one were taken from the fingers, and the coins were

removed and redistributed to those who had given them. The people told

me that when the body was swung over the fire, the dead person went to

Amnòdr with all the ornaments and objects then on the bier, and that

the removal of the things afterwards would not deprive the dead person

of their use in the next world.

It would seem as if this ceremony of swinging the body over the fire

was directly connected with the removal of the objects of value. The

swinging over the fire would be symbolic of its destruction by fire,

and this symbolic burning has the great advantage that the objects of

value are not consumed and are available for use another time.

This is probably the real explanation of the ceremony, but it is not

the explanation given by the Todas themselves. They say that long ago,

about 400 years, a man supposed to be dead was put on the funeral pyre,

and, revived by the heat, he was found to be alive and was able to walk

away from the funeral place. In consequence of this the rule was made

that the body shall always be swung three times over the fire before it

is finally placed thereon. I could not discover the significance of the

small wooden framework held under the body. Its appearance suggests

that it is a miniature bier.

The objects of value having been removed, the body is now burnt.

Formerly it was put on the pyre face downwards, and in the accounts of

funerals given by Marshall [148] and Walhouse [149] thirty years ago,

this was done, but it is no longer the custom, and in recent funerals

attended by Mr. Thurston and myself the body was put on the fire with

the face upwards. I was told that Teikirzi ordained that the body

should be consumed face downwards, and it was believed that if this

were not done, the dead person would have to make the journey to Amnòdr

backwards. This seems to imply that the world of Amnòdr is below this

world and that the dead person should be burnt in such a way that his

face is set towards his future abode.

At some time during the day, Kotas will have arrived, some to act as

musicians (Fig. 56), others to take the flesh of the slaughtered

buffaloes. The musicians play on their instruments, which may include a

clarionet, a drum, tambourine, and brass horn, though usually I saw

only the clarionet and drum. The musicians become especially active

while the body is consuming. The other Kotas, who carry sharp sticks on

which to carry away the flesh, begin to cut up the buffaloes as soon as

the people have left the neighbourhood of the funeral hut. On more than

one occasion I noticed Tamil women sitting not far from the funeral

scene, and was told that they had come to buy some of the flesh from

the Kotas, and I believe that it is not unknown for the flesh to find

its way to the bazaar at Ootacamund.

Before the body is finally placed on the fire, a lock of hair is cut

from the head to serve as one of the relics for the second funeral. It

is cut by a near relative of the dead person; in the case of Sinerani,

it was cut off by her boy-husband. According to Breeks, [150] one of

the nails should also be removed, but I could not hear of this being

done at the present time, and similarly I heard nothing of the practice

of keeping the knee-cap bone, which is said by Hough [151] to have been

preserved. When the burning is over, a piece of the skull is sought

from among the ashes, and this, together with the hair, is put within

two pieces of bark and wrapped in a cloak to be kept for the

marvainolkedr.

The remainder of the ashes are left on the burning-ground till they are

dispersed by wind and rain.

SOME SPECIAL FUNERAL CEREMONIES

In the previous account certain ceremonies which may be performed by

special individuals have been omitted. In general, at the funeral of a

man, the part of chief mourner and director of the ceremonies is taken

by a brother or son of the deceased. At the funeral of a woman the

husband takes the chief place.

While the mourning is going on, a ceremony will have been performed if

the dead person should be a man or woman whose spouse is still alive.

The husband of a dead woman goes to one of his paiol, most commonly to

his father-in-law, if he is living, and the paiol draws up the cloak of

the widower so that it covers his head. The man who has his head

covered in this way is called mad âr mitch nidvai, “head on covered who

stands” (see Fig. 61). The widower keeps his head covered in this way

as a sign of mourning and does not take off the cloak till the end of

the second funeral. When the paiol has arranged the cloak of the

mourner, the two men cry together with forehead to forehead.

Similarly the wife of a dead man has her cloak drawn over her head as a

sign of mourning, and this is done for her by her own father or someone

of his clan who takes his place. This ceremony is performed by a

relative of the woman, whether it is husband or wife who is dead.

It is the duty of the widower or widow to mix the grain and honey which

is put into a bowl on the bier.

Other special ceremonies fall to the lot of the mokhthodvaiol or

sedvaitazmokh of the dead person if there should be such. The

mokhthodvaiol of a woman is the recognised lover whom she may have in

addition to her husband or husbands. The sedvaitazmokh is the name of

the woman in this Toda institution. The mokhthodvaiol of a dead woman

goes to the funeral wearing his ring on the ring finger of the left

hand. Before the buffalo is caught he pays the kalmelpudithti

salutation to the father of the woman; bows down before him and raises

each foot to his head. He then puts into the pocket of the cloak of the

woman some limes, three handfuls (mudteir) of patcherski and one large

piece of jaggery. He also puts a piece of the dark cloth called än into

the pocket of the cloak, this act being called än kudshk it pudithti.

The mokhthodvaiol asks the husband of the woman three times “än kudsh

idukina?” (“Shall I put än into the kudsh?”) and the husband answers

each time “idu!” In putting the various things into the pocket, the

mokhthodvaiol has to use his left hand throughout.

When a man dies his sedvaitazmokh, if there be one, goes to the funeral

ceremony wearing a ring on the ring finger of her left hand, and

similarly puts limes, grain, jaggery, and a piece of än into the pocket

of the dead man’s mantle. Before doing this the brothers of the dead

man do kalmelpudithti to the father of the woman, and this was said to

be done in order to obtain permission from him for his daughter to put

things into the cloak.

At the funeral of a girl, or of a childless woman, there are performed

the ceremonies of urvatpimi and pursütpimi which are usually performed

during pregnancy. In life the urvatpimi, or hand-burning ceremony, is

performed before that of pursütpimi, but after death the order may be

reversed. These ceremonies are most frequently performed at the

funerals of children, and a full description may be reserved till a

later section (see p. 391).

In the case of an adult the ceremony is only performed if it has not

been performed in life. If a woman dies in the later months of

pregnancy after these ceremonies have taken place, they would not be

performed at the funeral.

If an unmarried boy dies, a girl who should be the matchuni of the dead

boy, is chosen to act as his wife. It seemed that the girl might be of

any age, but she must be unmarried, and therefore must nearly always be

young. One of the elder brothers of the dead boy performs the

salutation of kalmelpudithti to the girl’s father, or if there are no

brothers this will be done by the boy’s father. The head of the girl is

then covered with her mantle by her father and the girl puts food into

the pocket of the mantle of the dead boy. Thus, there is no pursütpimi

ceremony in the case of an unmarried boy, but a girl is chosen to act

as his widow would have done if he had been married.

At the funeral of a Teivali or Melgars male who has not held any dairy

office, a piece of tudr bark is placed in the right hand of the

deceased by a man of the Tartharol. Every male of the Teivaliol or

Melgarsol who has been a dairyman of any grade will have been purified

with tudr bark during the ordination ceremonies, and the piece of bark

is only given after death to those who have not been so purified.

THE INTERVAL BETWEEN THE TWO FUNERALS

As soon as the body is consumed at the etvainolkedr, the people go

home, the near relatives taking with them the relics of the deceased.

These relics are enclosed in two pieces of bark called pitûdri, taken

from the tree called mûtmän. I was once told that tudr bark was used,

but this is unlikely. The relics and bark are covered with plain cloth,

and the whole is enclosed in a mantle of the kind ordinarily worn.

The relics, which are known as the kedr, are not taken to the chief

village (etudmad) of the clan, but to other villages, usually to a

definitely appointed village for each clan. If the clan should only

have one village, or if the appointed village should be inconveniently

distant, a small hut may be especially built in which to keep the

relics till the second funeral. The near relatives of the dead person

may not go to the chief village in the interval between the first and

second funerals. If they are living at the chief village at the time of

the death, they must leave it and live elsewhere till the second

funeral is over.

The term kedr is not only applied to the relics of the dead person, but

also to the period between the two funerals, or rather the people say,

“There is kedr in his family,” or “So and so, or such and such a clan,

has kedr,” so that the same word is used for the funeral, for the body

of a dead person, for the relics, and for the condition of persons or

clans while funeral ceremonies are uncompleted.

All those who go near the corpse at a Teivali funeral become

ichchiloivichi, usually abbreviated to ichchil, and the same is true of

anyone who goes to a Teivali village where the relics are being kept.

The whole family in which the death has occurred is spoken of as being

ichchil. If anyone wishes to attend a funeral and yet avoid becoming

ichchil, he must sit at some distance and take no part in the funeral

proceedings. At several funerals I have seen people sitting apart from

the rest in order that they might not incur the disabilities associated

with the condition of ichchil, the chief of which is that it is

forbidden to approach or salute a palol.

A person who has incurred ichchil remains so till the next new moon.

Those in the family of the dead person remain ichchil till the new moon

after the marvainolkedr, owing to the fact that between the two

funerals they probably either live at or visit the village where the

relics are kept.

The condition of ichchil arising from attendance at a funeral is

regarded as of the same nature as that incurred by a visit to the

seclusion-hut after childbirth.

Both Teivaliol and Tartharol may become ichchil at a funeral of one of

the Teivaliol, but there is no ichchil due to attendance at a Tarthar

funeral. All those who throw earth at a Tarthar funeral, however, are

called puzhut, and incur the same disability as those who are

ichchil—i.e., they may not approach or salute a palol.

Melgars people incur the same disabilities as other Tartharol, and it

is probably for them that the restrictions are of most importance, for

they lose their special privileges as mòrol while they are in the

condition of ichchil or puzhut.

During the condition called ‘kedr,’ all the men of the clan in which

the death has occurred must tie their hair in a knot in front, as is

shown in the case of the second man in Fig. 61. This method of wearing

the hair is called mad tutvai, or “head (or hair) who rolls.” When the

people of a clan are in this condition they must not hold any of the

feasts in which the food called ashkkarthpimi is used, but they may

attend as guests at feasts held in the villages of other clans.

A person who is keeping the funeral ceremonies should not traverse the

path by which the ti buffaloes go from one grazing ground to another.

The ostensible reason why the buffaloes of the Nòdrs ti did not journey

to Anto at their usual time in 1902 (see p. 131) was that Teitnir,

whose wife had died, had passed over the road. The ti buffaloes, also,

may not pass a place where the relics of a dead person are being kept

between the two funerals. In 1902 the relics of the dead wife of

Teitnir were removed from the village of Karia in order that they

should not be in the way of the buffaloes. On this occasion the relics

were followed by a procession of people and Teitnir gave a feast. This

was said to be very unorthodox, and on cross-examination it was found

that the procession and the feast were not connected with one another,

the latter being part of another ceremony which was being performed on

the same day. [152]

There are special regulations for widowers and widows—i.e., for those

who have their heads covered at the etvainolkedr. While they wear the

mantle over the head they must never put out their hand or arm from

above the mantle, but always from below. When they salute by raising

the hand to the forehead (kaimukhti), they must do so by putting out

their hand below the cloak, and in eating and all other acts they must

do the same. When the mantle is over the head, it is probably most

convenient to put the hand out of the mantle from below rather than

from above, but it was quite clear that it was now regarded as wrong to

do the latter.

When a man crosses the Paikara or Avalanche rivers he must usually do

so kevenarut, with his right arm outside his mantle, but if he has the

mantle over his head as a sign of mourning he merely protrudes his

right hand, so that it can be seen below the mantle. Similarly, the

throwing of water done by matchuni (see p. 501), when they cross these

rivers on certain days, is not done by people of a family in which

there has been a death—i.e., not between the two funerals—but they only

chew the grass, which is the preliminary act of the ceremony.

The mourner who has his head covered has certain restrictions in regard

to his food. A widower is not allowed to eat rice nor drink milk, and

on every return of the day of the week on which his wife died he takes

no food in the morning and only has his evening meal. The same holds

good for a widow. This fasting on each weekly return of the day of

death suggests that some rite is, or used to be, performed on this day,

but I did not obtain an account of any such ceremony. The day of the

week on which a man dies is always observed by his children, and is

called arpatznol.

The wursol who attends to kill the sacred buffalo loses his office by

so doing, and becomes perol. Similarly, if a palol, wursol, or kaltmokh

wish to attend the funeral of a relative, he can only do so by giving

up his office, and this is a common cause of change in the various

dairies. The dairyman who has thus given up his office often resumes it

when the funeral ceremonies are completed, and if he expresses his

intention of returning, the temporary occupant is often said to be

doing the work for the other.

Between the two funerals it is the duty of every Toda who was not

present at the etvainolkedr to salute the remains. When anyone visits

the village where the remains are kept for this purpose the cloth

containing the relics is brought out and the visitor bows down and

touches the cloth with his forehead, just as is done with the body at

the funeral. When I visited the village at which the kedr of Olidzeimi

was being kept my Toda guide took the opportunity of performing his

duty to the remains, and I was able to witness the reverent way in

which the duty is performed. While I was on the hills, Tersveli, the

wife of Teitnir, died while Sintagars was in the seclusion-hut after

the birth of her first child, and on the morning on which Sintagars

went from the puzhars to the aliars (see p. 327), she visited Karia to

salute the kedr of Tersveli. Her first act after her period of

seclusion was to show her respect to the remains of her dead relative.

If anyone is too ill or feeble to visit the village the remains may be

taken to them for salutation.

CHAPTER XVI

FUNERAL CEREMONIES—continued

THE MARVAINOLKEDR

The second funeral may be held little more than a month after the

etvainolkedr, or there may be an interval of a year or more, and in the

case of a child both funeral ceremonies may be performed on one day. In

the old days the marvainolkedr was a great occasion. The proceedings

lasted for two whole days, and were prolonged till daybreak of the

third. Many buffaloes were slaughtered; they were caught on the first

day, when they were shut up in the circular pen and bells put on their

necks. On the second day they were taken from the pen to the

slaughtering place, and various ceremonies took place in connexion with

and after their deaths. This kind of funeral was called tuütthkedr,

meaning “the putting in buffalo-pen funeral.” In the old days this

putting into the pen was sometimes omitted, especially in the case of

poor or unimportant people, and the catching and killing of the

buffaloes were both carried out on one day, and this kind of funeral

was known as marppitkedr. At the present time the Todas only have the

marppitkedr, owing to the restrictions on the number of buffaloes

killed. The Todas seem now to believe that the Government have actually

prohibited them from putting the buffaloes into the pen at the

funerals, but I could not find that this was the case.

It is now the custom, and seems long to have been so, to hold the

marvainolkedr of several people at the same time. The Government allows

two buffaloes to be killed for each person, and if two or more funerals

are held simultaneously it gives an appearance of the olden times. So

far as I could ascertain, however, the funerals of two or more people

only take place together when they belong to the same clan.

In some cases, however, the funeral places of two or more clans are

very near one another. In such a case there might be a certain amount

of combination of the different ceremonies, but some of the rites would

be carried out at different spots for each clan. Something of this kind

appears to have happened at the funeral ceremonies recorded by Mr.

Thurston (Bull. i., p. 176). Similarly the marvainolkedr of a man or

woman of the same clan may be held simultaneously owing to the fact

that the funeral places for the two sexes are usually close to one

another. The buffaloes would, however, be killed at different places,

and the remains would not be burnt and buried at the same azaram.

Owing to the custom of having the marvainolkedr of several people

simultaneously, it has often been supposed that the Todas have a kind

of anniversary ceremony for all those who have died during the year,

but there is no doubt that this is wrong. There was a large

marvainolkedr soon after I left the hills (in January, 1903), but it

was a ceremony for two women only, Narskuti (63 and 56), and Tersveli

(63 and 52), both belonging to the Kuudrol, and it was held at

Kurkalmut, the proper funeral place for the women of Kuudr. It is quite

possible that owing to the restrictions on the slaughter of buffaloes

it may become more and more the custom to hold several marvainolkedr

simultaneously, and that this custom may develop into an anniversary

ceremony. This could only come about, however, by throwing over the

custom that the funerals of each clan should be held at a definitely

appointed place, and there is no doubt that this has not yet happened.

At the second funeral ceremony the relics are placed in a special hut,

and at a man’s funeral the hut has the same name as at the

etvainolkedr, and apparently it may sometimes happen that the same hut

is used at both ceremonies. The second funeral is not always held,

however, at the same place as the first, and the interval between the

two ceremonies may be so great that it may have become necessary to

rebuild the hut. At the only marvainolkedr at which I was present a new

hut had been built for the occasion.

The hut at the second funeral of a woman differs in name from that of

the first funeral, being called kursars instead of nersars. After the

second funeral the kursars is burnt down, but my notes do not make it

clear whether the nersars is always burnt down after the first funeral,

or whether it may not sometimes be kept for the second ceremony. The

difference of name, however, makes this improbable.

If the marvainolkedr of two or more people are held simultaneously, a

hut is built for the remains of each; thus, at the ceremony in January,

1903, there were two huts, one for Narskuti and the other for Tersveli.

The relics, now called the narskedr, are brought to the funeral place

on a bier made of bamboo, and called kailpedrkudr instead of

mänpedrkudr (wood bier) as at the first funeral. The narskedr is

wrapped in an embroidered mantle (pukuruputkuli) and placed in the hut,

and then all the women of the dead person’s division who are present

cry together, forehead to forehead, in the usual manner. The chief

things to be burnt with the remains are also placed within the hut.

At a funeral witnessed by Mr. Thurston the relics were taken from a

hole cut at the base of a tree, and the hair was unwrapped from off the

skull, burnt in an iron ladle, and anointed with clarified butter

before being placed in its cloth. This was probably a ceremony which

should have been performed on the following morning at the azaramkedr

(see p. 379).

As on the former occasion, a man’s funeral begins with the ceremony of

earth-throwing, which is carried out in the same way as at the

elvainolkedr. The narskedr is laid at the entrance of the buffalo pen,

and earth is thrown into the pen and on the remains in the manner

already described. There is nothing corresponding to the tiveri tur

ceremony of the woman’s first funeral.

At the present time the driving, catching, and killing of the buffaloes

are carried out in very much the same way as at the etvainolkedr. At

the funerals of Teivaliol the buffaloes are caught by Tartharol and

killed by Teivaliol of a clan different to that of the deceased. At the

funerals of the Tartharol the buffaloes are caught by Teivaliol, and

killed by the wursol or by a Tarthar man of a different clan, according

as they are of the sacred or ordinary kind.

As the buffalo dies, the narskedr is brought up and laid by the head of

the animal, and the lamenting and saluting take place around the

buffalo and the remains, exactly as at the first funeral.

Sometimes a ceremony occurs immediately before the buffalo is caught. A

man takes a ring of the creeper called kakhudri and throws it at one of

the driven buffaloes. It should fall on the horns or neck of one of the

buffaloes, but it does not matter whether on a buffalo which is to be

killed or on another.

This throwing of the creeper, which is called kakhudri erspimi, or

kudri erspimi, [153] “we throw the creeper,” is done by the wursol at a

Tarthar funeral, while at the funeral of the Teivaliol it is done by a

palikartmokh of the same clan as the deceased. This ceremony used not

to be performed at those funerals which lasted two days, when the

buffaloes were shut into a pen on one day and killed on the next, but

it should always be performed when the funeral ceremonies are limited

to one day. It seems possible that the circular ring of creeper may be

intended to represent the act of putting the animals in the circular

pen, but the Todas could give me no information on this point. It

seemed clear that it is only done at those funerals in which the

buffaloes are not put into the pen.

THE KOÒTITI CEREMONY

Among the Tartharol, with the exception of the people of Melgars, a

ceremony is performed at the funeral of a male which is called koòtiti.

In this ceremony blood is used which in the present day is drawn from

one of the slaughtered buffaloes, but formerly a special buffalo was

killed for this purpose.

According to the old custom the buffaloes were killed about four

o’clock in the afternoon. About an hour later another buffalo of the

ordinary kind was brought to the funeral place and killed by striking

it on the head with a stone, and not with the back of an axe, as in the

case of the other buffaloes. It might be killed by any Tarthar man, and

then the wursol made a cut in the right side of the animal at the part

called kegampkwûdr (over the ribs near the forelegs). The blood which

ran from the wound was received into a cup made of tudr leaves, and

powdered tudr bark was mixed with the blood in the cup. It is to this

part of the ceremony that the name koòtiti (“blood he takes”) is

properly applied. At the present time the blood is drawn from one of

the buffaloes killed in the ordinary course of the ceremony. However

the blood may be obtained, the next step is to bring a female buffalo

calf less than one year old. The mantle with which the remains have

been covered is taken off, and is worn by a Teivali man who has adorned

himself with many ornaments, including those ordinarily worn by women,

such as the chain (tagars), necklace (keiveli), earrings (kevthveli),

and bracelet (pulthi). He also holds a long pole called tadri. The

remains, which are now covered with a loincloth (tadrp) only, are

carried by two women to the place where the calf is standing.

The wursol and Teivali man then walk to the calf, the former throwing

before and behind him as he walks the mixed blood and tudr bark from

the cup. When the wursol comes to the calf he throws down the leaf cup,

and the Teivali man then hangs on the neck of the calf a bell of the

kind called tukulir mani, and, taking a bow and arrow in his hand, he

says three times to the Tartharol, “purs adikina?”—“Shall I touch with

the bow?” Each time the Tartharol reply, “Purs ad!” The Teivali man

then touches the remains with the bow and arrow. He puts down the tadri

on the ground, and the calf is driven away from the spot on which it

had been standing. As soon as it begins to move all present, Tartharol

and Teivaliol, cry out, “ua! ua!” and fall down and touch the earth

with their foreheads. The bell is then removed from the calf, which is

not killed, but is allowed to go free. The bell (tukulir mani) is kept

by the Kotas or Badagas till it is required by the Todas for another

funeral.

The assumption of the cloak covering the remains by the Teivali man is

called ârtûrverutiti, and the throwing of the mixed blood and bark by

the wursol is called kedrkarchiti—i.e., funeral (or remains) purifying.

Either at this stage or later the blood and tudr bark are rubbed on the

piece of skull and hair which form the narskedr.

One of the most important features of this koòtiti ceremony is that the

sacred tudr bark is used. The ceremony is not performed at the funerals

of the Teivaliol or of the Melgarsol, because they may use tudr in the

ordination ceremonies for the offices of palol, wursol, or kaltmokh.

The object of the ceremony appears to be that members of those clans

who have no chance of being purified with tudr during life shall be

purified with this substance before they go finally to Amnòdr. A

Teivali or Melgars man, however, has only used tudr if he has been

ordained to one of the three offices above mentioned. If the dead man

has not been through an ordination ceremony, however, the purification

does not take place at his second funeral, but a Tarthar man puts a

piece of tudr bark into his right hand at the first funeral (see p.

367).

In the account which Breeks gives of this ceremony he states that

certain formulæ are said, including “Karma odi pona,” “May the sin run

away.” I could not confirm this, and I do not believe that karma is a

Toda word. It is probable that the use of these or other formulæ is an

innovation.

The Badagas of the Nilgiris let loose a calf at a funeral to bear the

sins of the deceased. [154] It is possible that the calf in this Toda

ceremony may have the same significance. If so, the practice has not

improbably been borrowed, and the fact that the bell which is hung on

the neck of the calf is kept by Kotas or Badagas suggests that the

whole incident may have been borrowed by the Todas from one or other of

these races.

After the buffalo is killed dancing takes place at the funeral of a

male. The men only dance and they may begin soon after the killing of

the buffalo, while other ceremonies are still in progress. In the

dancing the same tall pole (tadri or tadrsi) is used as is carried by

the Teivali man who wears the cloak of the narskedr. It is a tall pole

which, it was said, might sometimes be as much as 39 feet in length. I

only saw a tadri at one funeral, when it was much smaller. It is

decorated with rings of cowries, which are called nîrpul, the ornaments

in general being called tadri asteram (see Fig. 67).

The pole is procured from Malabar through the Kurumbas. It is used at

the funeral of males only of both the Teivaliol and Tartharol, and is

burnt at the end of the azaramkedr.

In the only dance which I had the opportunity of seeing, the men danced

within the circular wall surrounding the funeral hut. In this case the

floor of the enclosure was below the general level of the ground. The

men formed a circle and danced round in slow step; one man said the

name of the slaughtered buffalo—in this case, Purkirsi—and another

repeated this name; then the first man said “hau! hau!” which was

repeated by the second man.

After a time one of the men took the tadri and they danced round in a

similar way, taking the pole with them as they danced (i.e., they did

not dance round the pole).

After the dancing is over, food is distributed to all the people

present and most return to their homes, while the remainder wait at the

funeral place till the following morning, when are held the final

ceremonies, which are known as the azaramkedr.

THE AZARAMKEDR

This is the name applied to the ceremonies connected with the final

burning of the remains and burial of the ashes. After food has been

distributed at the marvainolkedr, many of those attending the funeral

return home. The remainder stay at the spot during the evening, those

nearly related to the deceased lamenting in the usual fashion almost

continuously. At a funeral attended by Samuel, the people took the

setting of Kadsht and the appearance of Keirt [155] as the indications

that the final ceremonies were to begin, and this was about two o’clock

on the following morning.

At every funeral place used for the marvainolkedr, there is a circle of

stones, smaller than that in which the hut is built, with an opening

which in some cases faces the east. This circle of stones is the

azaram, and before the ceremonies begin, a man digs a hole by the

opening in its side. The various objects to be burnt with the remains

are now brought from the hut in which they had been placed on the

previous day, and are laid outside the azaram and the narskedr is laid

by their side. As the remains are removed from the hut, the wailing

becomes louder and the people cry bitterly. Outside the stone circle a

fire is made of the wood called kidmän, [156] upon which clarified

butter is poured. This fire, which is known as the puntüt, is lighted

by a man of the same clan as the deceased. At the funeral of a male,

there is burnt on this fire the dairy vessel called ertatpun which had

belonged to the dead man, and the imitation buffalo horns called

petkuter, about ten in number for a man and five for a boy. At the

funeral of a woman, I think that a majpatitthpun is burnt, viz., a

vessel used for fetching buttermilk from the dairy, but I am not

certain of this.

There now follows the ceremony called narsatipimi, i.e. “the nars we

rub,” in which the leading part is taken by a person of the same sex as

the deceased. I only have a full record of this ceremony at a woman’s

funeral, and in this case a woman took the relics out of their

covering, and threw away the pieces of bark in which they had been

enclosed. She rubbed butter on the pieces of skull and the hair, put

the hair between two pieces of skull, tied them together with thread,

and replaced them in the ornamented cloak (pukuruputkuli). She then

bowed down and touched the remains with her forehead, and then this

salutation was performed by all those present.

At a funeral seen by Mr. Thurston, [157] this ceremony was performed on

the previous day at the marvainolkedr, and in this case the hair was

burnt in an iron ladle before the clarified butter was applied.

This ceremony of narsatipimi is performed by the daughter-in-law of a

woman, or by the mother-in-law of a girl or woman who has no

daughter-in-law. At the funeral of Narskuti (56 and 63) it was

performed by Piliurs, the wife of Tüliners (56), the son of the dead

woman. At the funeral of Tersveli (52 and 63), a much younger woman,

who had no daughter-in-law, the relics were anointed by Muteimi (52 and

69), the mother of Teitnir, Tersveli’s husband. I have no record of the

person who performs this ceremony at the funeral of a man.

The next step in the proceedings is to light a fire within the circle

of stones, this fire being called the azaramtüt. Firewood is put within

the azaram and the narskedr in its covering is placed on the wood. If

the azaramkedr is being held for two or more people simultaneously, the

remains of all are put on the wood together. [158] In the pockets of

the mantles forming the coverings are placed grain, jaggery, and coins.

The azaramtüt is then lighted by taking three firebrands in succession

from the puntüt. The firebrands are placed on the firewood and on the

remains by the daughter-in-law or mother-in-law of a female as in the

last ceremony. [159] Then all the people take up the burning wood from

the puntüt and place it within the azaram over the remains. The various

objects previously brought from the funeral hut are now placed on the

fire and burnt, and the special food known as ashkkarthpimi may be

thrown into the fire. Then all the people cry together, forehead to

forehead.

The following are the objects burnt with the remains on the azaramtüt,

at the funeral of a male:—

(a) In the pocket of the cloak, jaggery, the husked grain called

patcherski, husked barley (kodjerski), and rupees in two bags, one

called tinkani, made by the Todas themselves, and the other called

katshiram, procured from Hindus.

(b) Sticks of the following kinds of wood: pars, karneizi tavat, kali,

toarsmitch, kar.

(c) A nanmakud, a club or stick cut from the pars tree (Fig. 67).

(d) A tadri, or long pole used in the dance and in the koòtiti ceremony

of the previous day.

(e) Several wak, bamboo vessels filled with grain, butter, ghi, honey,

&c., usually ten in number for adults and five for children.

(f) A tek, a basket made by the Kotas in which barley or poppy heads

are put.

(g) A bow (purs) and three arrows (ab) (Fig. 67).

(h) A kafkati, or knife, called on ordinary occasions kudrval.

(i) A masth, the axe used to kill the buffaloes on the previous day,

called on this occasion îrkîpmasth.

(j) A miturkwadr, the palm-leaf umbrella, so called because procured

from Mitur in the Wainad.

(k) A kudshmurn, a special kind of sieve made by the Kotas and not used

in ordinary life.

At the funeral of a woman boxes called pettei or miturpettei are burnt

instead of the wak. These are small boxes made of rattan, covered with

cloth and adorned with cowries. There are also burnt the three objects

especially connected with women, the pounder (wask), sieve (murn), and

broom (kip), but the pounder is only burnt after the following ceremony

has taken place.

As soon as the things have been placed on the fire, there follows the

ceremony [160] called îrsankâti. At the funeral of a male, the

matchuni, or cousin, of the dead man puts on the woman’s ornaments

known as tagars, keiveli, and pulthi, and stands at the opening in the

circle of stones with his right arm outside his cloak (kevenarut). He

is joined there by the man who has lighted the fire, and they cry

together, both standing at the entrance of the azaram, where they

remain till the fire is extinguished. Owing to the fact that the fire

is lighted by a man of the same clan as the deceased, the two men who

cry together will also be matchuni—thus, at the funeral of Karspisti

(12), the fire was lighted by his half-brother Karzo. Pakhwar (16), who

performed the irsankati ceremony, was the matchuni of both Karzo and

Karspisti, being the son of the brother of Tedjveli, the mother of

Karzo and stepmother of Karspisti.

At the funeral of a female, the woman who stands at the entrance should

also be a matchuni of the deceased. She is decorated with ornaments, in

this case proper to her own sex, and she stands at the entrance of the

azaram holding the pounder. She is joined by a woman closely related to

the deceased and the two women cry together. After crying together for

a while, they go round the circle and then put the pounder on the fire,

after which they take off their ornaments.

At the funeral of Narskuti (56 and 63), Mutkadrk (56 and 72) stood in

front of the circle holding the pounder, and was joined by Munat, the

daughter of the dead woman.

At the funeral of Tersveli (52 and 63), Edjog (56) stood at the

entrance; she was the matchuni of the dead woman, being the daughter of

Tüliners, the brother of Tersveli’s mother. She was joined by Teimidz

(52), the sister of the dead woman’s husbands.

The fire is now extinguished by pouring on water (kêdr tüt ârs

kudrchi). Some of the food put into the pocket of the putkuli and in

the various vessels may now be taken out [161] and given to the Kotas,

who up to this time have been playing the special funeral tunes called

sagerthkwelv.

The ashes are now swept into the hole which had been dug at the opening

in the stone circle. They are covered with earth dug from elsewhere and

the spot is covered with a stone.

At the funeral of a male, a man of the same clan as the deceased then

brings a bell (kwungg) and goes round the burial-place three times

ringing the bell, while another man goes with him holding him by the

waist. The man who rings the bell then takes a new pot, ordinarily used

for carrying water, and, raising it over his head, brings it down and

breaks it on the stone covering the ashes. He bows down and touches the

stone with his forehead, gets up, and goes away to the funeral hut

without looking back toward the azaram. All the others present bow down

to the stone in the same way and go away from the spot without looking

back. The ceremony of bell-ringing and stone-saluting is called kwungg

tûki kârs nersatiti, “bell lift, stone he salutes.”

At the funeral of a woman, the bell is rung and the pot broken by her

husband or by one of his brothers if he be dead. If it is the husband,

he will have been wearing the cloak over his head [162] up to this

time, and he takes it off just before he bows down to salute the stone.

At the funeral of her husband, a widow will similarly remove the cloak

from her head before she salutes the stone.

After saluting at the azaram, all go to the funeral hut, where they

take food, having fasted during the night. Each person cuts a lock of

hair from the head as a sign of mourning and then all return home.

At the funeral of a woman, the funeral hut is burnt before the people

leave, this being called ars pon atipimi, “house up we send.” It is the

duty of the woman who first lighted the azaramtüt to set fire to the

hut.

The foregoing account of the second funeral ceremonies is that of the

proceedings at the present time. When the marvainolkedr was prolonged

over two days, the proceedings of the first day opened with the capture

of the buffaloes, which were put in the pen, and then followed a scene

in which the Todas entered the pen, flourishing heavy clubs. The

animals were belaboured and driven round and round the pen, and at

intervals several men would catch and hold down a buffalo. According to

some accounts the bells were hung round the necks of the buffaloes

during this performance, but at a funeral witnessed by Mr. Walhouse

[163] this was not done, and he believed that the object of the fray

was that the men might exhibit their agility and skill. There is little

doubt, however, that the bells were put on the buffaloes at some time

on this day. The remainder of the first day was occupied with dancing,

singing, and feasting. On the second day, the proceedings began again

in the middle of the day with more dances and with a repetition of the

driving and catching within the pen. In the afternoon, after the

earth-throwing ceremony, the buffaloes, now wearied and subdued, were

dragged from the pen and killed, and then followed the ceremonies which

have already been described.

At the funeral witnessed by Mr. Walhouse, part of the second day was

occupied by the proceedings of a diviner, and divination seems to be a

frequent feature of funerals, having been also seen both by Mr.

Thurston and myself. In the latter case, the occasion of the divination

arose directly out of the proceedings, but it is probable that the

gatherings are used as opportunities of consulting the gods on other

matters. A funeral may also be used as an occasion for settling

disputes, especially those which concern the people especially

connected with the funeral.

FUNERAL LAMENTS

At some stage in both funeral ceremonies laments for the dead may be

sung or said which consist of sentences praising the virtues of the

deceased and recounting incidents of his or her life. To these

sentences the same term kwarzam is applied which is used for the words

and clauses of the prayers. I am not certain at what stage of the

proceedings the recital of these laments takes place, but it is

certainly after the killing of the buffaloes, probably in many cases

during the general wailing round the buffalo and the remains. At the

second funeral of a male, however, I believe that the lament is recited

during the dancing.

I did not succeed in obtaining any examples during my visit, but soon

after my departure Samuel sent me two laments, one composed by Teitnir

(52) and uttered by him at the second funeral ceremony for his wife

Tersveli. The other was also composed by Teitnir for the first funeral

ceremony of Pidrvan (9) of Kars.

The Toda name for these laments is kunedstkin or kunedsti, and certain

men have great reputations as composers both for funerals and on other

occasions, and Teitnir was one of these. The following is the lament

for Tersveli:—

Iza kûgh ia, [164] iza kutei, atâth atia, pervoth

O woman oh! O woman, not born before you were born, renowned

perpia, pûv îrsimitch ia pûv elet ia,

you were born, flower lime oh! flower (a bush) oh!

kavath kud katethik, patath kud patiathenk,

proper husband (?) found you married, proper wife found I married,

tevukhk nurs îr notei kadrthenk,

(kwarzam of Piedr) to beautiful buffalo looked I gave,

âtthkark nurs mokh notei patiathenk, kuteia mun

(kwarzam of Kuudr) to beautiful woman looked I married, built house

kutenathuk, kokiji [165] kis narsiathûk kûter

we built, imitation bracelets made we played, imitation buffalo horns

kis narsiathûk, âr mokh puchiathûk, âr îr tû

made we played, six children we would produce, six buffalo pen

odethûk, orppasan (?) oithîk pudrkwadr ners oithîk,

we would enjoy, liberal you were, umbrella tree shade you were,

irom ed ithotkûk, pukkom ed peithûk, kalav

we will live that we thought, we will go together that we went, strong

îr kadathûk, pûa tadri pusiathûk tudm athi ed kadrtethûk, udi

buffalo we bought, ? pole we beat, fine it is that we gave, have

athi ed kadrtethûk, kutei ath kotei peithûk, keirtith

it is that we gave, built bungalow we went, running waters

keir peithûk, ö katcheri peithûk, ö kapel peithûk

reservoir we went, seven courts (law) we went, seven ships we went,

pedrk muri ituthûk, pash it pudth kisthûk pudth

Tamil to complaints we spoke, words spoke prize we won (made), prize

it pudth kisthûk, ûkudrem ed thûk, kan

spoke prize we won, we will not be shaken that we said, eye

udjem ed thûk, mûn ânem ed thûk, en it

we will not fear that we said, face ? that we said, me here

puchvînia, en it pîshvînia, purs kan nîr pîrevînen, purs

keep you went, me here leave you went, right eye water I shed, right

metûvi kurseivînen, patnenk kanânen, pesoduthenk

nostril I smart, I bewailed I could not find, I called out

kanânen, enk ud swâmi aivînen. [166]

I could not find, to me one god I have.

The free translation of this is as follows:—

“O woman of wonderful birth, renowned were you born, O flower, lime, O

flower, tree. Having found a proper husband you married; having found a

proper wife I married. I gave my best buffalo to Piedr for you. I took

you as a beauty to Kuudr. A house we built, bracelets and buffalo horns

we made in sport. I thought we should have had many children and many

buffaloes should we have enjoyed. Liberal you were and refreshing like

the shade of the umbrella tree. We thought that we should live long. We

went together as we willed. We bought strong buffaloes and we prevailed

over injustice. Peacefully we paid our fine. We lent to those that had

not. We went to see the bungalows and the reservoir. Many courts we

visited and ships also. We laid complaints before the native

magistrate; we made bets and we won. We said that we would not be

shaken and would fear the eye of no one. We thought to live together,

but you have left me alone, you have forsaken me. My right eye sheds

tears, my right nostril smarts with sorrow. I bewailed but could not

find you. I called out for you and could not find you. There is one God

for me.”

This translation is based partly on the literal meanings of the

kwarzam, partly on explanations and renderings given to Samuel by

Teitnir. The dead wife was a Piedr woman and the husband a Kuudr man.

The mention of injustice refers to trouble which arose when other men

wished to take his wife from Teitnir. The visits to bungalows, &c.,

probably refers to a time when Teitnir and his wife lived in Ootacamund

under the protection of the Zenana Mission. The ships must be purely

imaginary on Teitnir’s part, unless he is referring to boats on the

lake at Ootacamund. The numbers six and seven are those generally used

for ‘many’ under ordinary conditions, and there is a clause towards the

end which probably refers to the evil eye. Teitnir was under, or

pretended to be under, missionary influence, and his reference to “one

God” at the end is certainly due to this.

The following is the lament composed by Teitnir for Pidrvan:—

Epukers ia! elipukers ia! Pedth tedshk îr ia! Pekh

Kwarzam of maiir oh! kwarzam of maiir oh! rattan ring buffalo oh! ?

kudeik kinim ia! peivalei muk ia! keiveli mêdr ia! kapasth kal ia!

? plate oh! ? ? oh! necklace neck oh! trousers leg oh!

kûdukatith kûdr ia! âna metu ia! arshan mudr ia! etamâv ia!

car horn oh! elephant foot oh! European walk oh! sambhar oh!

nurs îrk kan âkithenk, kalochikum ed thînk,

beautiful buffalo to eye I kept, old woman to (?) that they said,

kalòlkum ed thînk inâtvidshti inâtvan, iza kâra ö

old man to (?) that they said, kwarzam of Kars clan, O chief seven

vûr kada, pûrvunkâra! pudrvantol [167] ia! kavatkâra!

village chief, conqueror oh! peace-loving man oh! strong man oh!

Kavanadi pali put oia! tû vut tüli ia! atâth ud

Kavanadi dairy carried oh! pen carried posts oh! not born before one

atithîk, pervoth ud pertithîk, pûa kûtm paneithîk

you were born, renowned one you were born, ? council you held,

saver òkithîk, ter ud òlk edstethîk mokh ud

money fine you imposed, buffalo fine one man to you told, girl one

òlk kisethîk, maiîr kodtk peithîk, pîrer

to man you made, barren buffaloes in the midst you went, buffalo

nòdik peithîk pudr òdichi peithîk, pan

to the neck you went, chosen number beat you went, chosen number

ertevîthîk, kal òt òdithîk peiveli pileidik ninth ud

you ran before, leg dance you danced ? ? your one

kalvi kisethîk, ninth ud kek kisethîk, id kan mûn

new things you made, your one invention you made, to-day eye face

âvini, Kars kazun podstha? parsners podstha?

I saw, Kars kazun has it come? kwarzam of kazun has it come?

methkûdis mai kooisivini âzâratrs kargh patevini. [168]

burning-place at ashes heaped, azaram at grass grew up.

The first part of this lament begins with the kwarzam of the maiir, or

barren buffalo, slaughtered at the funeral. It is not quite clear which

of the clauses at the beginning refer to the buffalo and which to the

man. I do not know the meaning of the second clause. The free rendering

of the third and fourth was said to be, “Your horns crept so well; your

horns crept well to the front.” The general sense of the other clauses

was said to be as follows: “O, your leg like trousers, your horns like

a car, your foot is like that of an elephant, you walk with a step like

a European soldier, your appearance is like that of a sambhar. I saw

you were the most beautiful buffalo of all.” It seems probable that the

lament so far refers altogether to the buffalo. Then follows, “They

said that you would be the parent of the dead, but now you are dead

yourself”; or, “When old people are yet alive, why are young ones

taken?” Then follows the kwarzam of the Kars clan, and the rest

obviously refers to Pidrvan himself: “O chief of many villages,

conqueror, peace-loving and yet strong man. You were like Kavanadi, who

carried the posts of the buffalo-pen. [169] O man of wonderful birth,

renowned you were born; you held councils; you fined some by money and

some by buffaloes; you settled who should marry the women. In the midst

of barren buffaloes you went; you caught the throats of the buffaloes;

you ran first and caught the buffaloes before the chosen men; well you

danced and shouted finely; you invented new things. To-day for the last

time I saw your face. Has the angel of death come to you? I see nothing

but ashes in your burning-place. In your azaram place I see nothing but

grass growing.”

PURIFICATION CEREMONIES

Certain further ceremonies are performed about the time of the first

new moon after the marvainolkedr.

At one or both of the funerals of a Tarthar man a sacred buffalo will

have been killed by the wursol and the sacred bell (mani) will have

been used. By his acts at the funeral the wursol loses his office, and

by its use on the same occasion the mani is defiled. On the day before

the new moon following the funeral all the things in the dairy of the

wursol are thrown away. Either a new dairyman is appointed and goes

through the usual rites, or the old wursol is re-appointed and has to

repeat his ordination ceremonies. This is done on the Sunday after the

new moon, which is the proper day for the ordination of a wursol,

exactly the same ceremonies being performed as those described in

Chapter VII. The old wursol puts the mani in the dairy stream (pali

nipa), and if he is not re-appointed, his duties then cease. The new

wursol, or the old wursol who has undergone new ordination ceremonies,

takes the mani from the stream and purifies it by rubbing it all over

with pounded tudr bark and water. He then takes the bell to the dairy,

which is now empty, finds a new stick on which to hang it, and puts

both stick and bell in their proper place on the patatmar. Then the new

dairy vessels are purified and put in their places in the usual manner.

This purification of the dairy is not done by the Teivaliol, and seems

to be only necessary when the mani and the dairyman who looks after it

have been defiled by the funeral ceremonies. In the case of the

Nòdrsol, the mani between the two funeral ceremonies is kept at Nòdrs,

and is taken back to Òdr on the Sunday after the new moon following the

second funeral, and it is at Òdr that the purification takes place.

Similarly the Kars mani is returned from Taradrkirsi to Kars on this

day. I was told that the pepkaricha ceremony of making new pep is

performed after the funeral of a man among the Tartharol, and it seems

as if this new appointment of a dairyman and this use and purification

of new dairy vessels are regarded as a form of the pepkaricha ceremony.

Another ceremony which takes place after the marvainolkedr is designed

to purify the places used during the funeral rites and especially the

azaram. This ceremony is called kertnòdrkarchpimi “funeral place we

purify,” or mutnolnòdrvusthpimi, “new moon day place (or ceremony) we

keep.” On the day of the new moon following the second funeral two men

of the same clan as the deceased take a buffalo in the early morning

from the pen to a spot about half a mile from the village. They wait

there till about eleven o’clock, and then kill the buffalo by striking

it on the head with a stone. They draw blood from one side of the

animal and mix the blood with earth in a basket. The Teivaliol and

Melgarsol add tudr bark to the earth and blood. The mixture is then

taken to the funeral places and scattered over the spots where the

buffalo was caught and killed, where the dead body or the narskedr had

lain at the two funerals, at the methkudi and the azaram. If the places

for the etvainol- and marvainol-kedr are different and far distant from

one another, the spots used at the former may be omitted, but the most

important place which must always be purified in this way is the

azaram. In any case this place is the last to be purified, and the men

then throw away the basket and go straight back to their village, where

they bathe and take food, having fasted till this time.

This ceremony is only performed after the funerals of males. The

buffalo killed is called the nòdrvusthpir. The Teivaliol and Melgarsol

use a male buffalo calf for the purpose; the Tartharol, other than the

Melgarsol, use an adult female buffalo.

No use is made of the flesh of the animal; the body is left where it

falls and is not given to the Kotas.

After a funeral, the members of the Tarthar clans, except the

Melgarsol, shave their heads, but this is not done either by the

Melgarsol or Teivaliol. I did not inquire fully into this matter, and

do not know what regulations there are in connexion with the practice,

or whether it is regarded as purificatory.

THE FUNERALS OF CHILDREN

The body of a still-born child is buried at the same time as, and

together with, the afterbirth, without any ceremonial. In one case

which occurred during my visit, this was done by the woman who assisted

at the delivery. The body was buried in the early morning on the day on

which the mother underwent the ceremonies attending removal to the

seclusion-hut.

If a child less than two years of age dies, both funerals are held on

one day. The etvainolkedr takes place in the morning, the marvainolkedr

in the afternoon; a buffalo is killed at each, and the azaramkedr is

held on the following morning as usual. If the child is very young,

less than a month old, a male buffalo only may be killed, but if the

father chooses, two buffaloes may be killed as at the funeral of an

adult.

Thus, the child of Piliag and Sintagars (52) died while the mother was

in the seclusion-hut, and two ordinary buffaloes were killed. On this

occasion, the two funerals were held on the same day as that on which

the child died, owing to the death having taken place on one of the

appointed days for a funeral of the clan. When the youngest child of

Podners (47) died, only one male buffalo was killed for both

ceremonies.

When a male child dies who has not cut his teeth nor been through the

ear-piercing ceremony, the funeral is not held at the usual funeral

place for males, but at another. Thus the Karsol do not take the body

of such a child to Taradrkirsi but to a place called Punpali.

When I attended the funeral of a girl named Sinerani (52), the daughter

of Kuriolv of Kuudr, both ceremonies were performed on the same day,

and a number of incidents occurred which were very interesting as

illustrations of many of the practices which have been described

throughout this chapter. The child was about two years old and had not

yet been betrothed, but as soon as she was dead it was arranged that

she should marry her matchuni, Keinba (68), a little boy about four

years of age, the son of her mother’s brother, and this boy occupied a

prominent position among those taking part in the funeral rites. Owing

to the marriage of the dead child to this boy, the dead child would

come to be one of his clan, the Keadrol, and there seemed to be no

doubt that, according to strict custom, the funeral should have been

held at the funeral place of this clan. Kuriolv, however, arranged that

the funeral should take place at Kurkalmut, the funeral place for women

of the Kuudrol, but as the girl did not properly belong to this clan

the funeral hut was not erected within the circle of stones at this

place, but outside it.

The beginning of the funeral ceremonies was delayed for some time

because the little boy, Keinba (Fig. 57), had to be taken by his

father, Perpakh, in search of the wood and grass out of which to make

the bow and arrow to be used in the pursütpimi ceremony, and they had

to go far to find the proper plants for the manufacture of the mimic

weapon.

After this delay the ceremonial took its natural course till the

buffalo which had been caught by the Taradr men was being taken to the

place appointed for its slaughter by the side of the funeral hut. The

people had great difficulty in making the buffalo move, and at last it

lay down on a boggy piece of ground, and the efforts of all failed to

make it go further. The diviners, Midjkudr and Mongudrvan, were then

called upon to ascertain the cause of the obstinacy of the buffalo, and

then followed the performance which I have already described (see p.

252).

The reasons given by Midjkudr were not very clear, and there seemed to

be a good deal of doubt as to what he had really said, but the

following appeared to be the chief reasons given:—

The buffalo, Kursi, which had delayed the proceedings, was the property

of Kuriolv and was descended from a buffalo which had belonged to

Teitchi, Kuriolv’s grandfather. Since this buffalo was thus family

property, it should go to the sons, and ought not to be killed for a

daughter, and especially for one who now belonged to another clan.

Kuriolv ought to have used a buffalo which he had acquired in his own

lifetime. Midjkudr went on to say that Kuriolv, having done wrong, must

pay compensation to the dead, and told him to give the buffalo named

Perov. As a sign that he would do so, Kuriolv performed the

kalmelpudithti salutation to Perner, the grandfather of Keinba and also

through Sintharap, of the dead girl.

Another reason given was that the buffalo had been caught at the wrong

place—viz., at the place where it ought to be caught at the funeral of

a male. I only heard of this reason a few days later, and I do not know

whether it was one of the reasons given by Midjkudr or whether it was a

later surmise. A third reason was that Perner and Tebner, his brother,

had been on bad terms; and to put this right Tebner, the younger,

performed the kalmelpudithti salutation to Perner.

The next special feature of the ceremony took place after the buffalo

had been killed and before the kachütthti ceremony. Keinba knelt down

before Kuriolv and Piliag and the two men touched the head of the boy

with their feet, thus accepting him as the husband of Sinerani. Then

followed the pursütpimi ceremony. The mantle covering the dead child

was opened, her right hand unclenched, and Keinba placed the little bow

and arrow in the hand, and the fingers of the dead child were closed

over the bow so that they held it as they would have done in life. Then

the bow was taken out of the hand, placed on the breast of the child,

and the mantle was again folded over her. Teitnir, the half-brother of

Kuriolv, who had now become the paiol of Keinba, came up and covered

the head of the boy with his putkuli as a sign that he was a widower,

and then Teitnir and Keinba put their foreheads together and cried.

After crying together for a while, Teitnir touched Keinba’s head with

his foot. Then Sintharap, the mother of Sinerani, gave grain and

jaggery and limes to Keinba, who put them in the pocket of the mantle

of the dead child. Sintharap and Keinba then cried together, and

Sintharap touched Keinba’s head with her foot.

After the cloth-giving ceremony, the body was taken to the burning

place, and Keinba mixed honey and grain in a metal bowl; when Keinba

began to stir the grain and honey he put his right arm out from above

his cloak as usual, but was speedily corrected and made to put out his

hand from below the cloak in the manner proper for a widower.

The wrists of the girl were burnt as in the urvatpimi ceremony, the

burning being done by Silkidz (53), the wife of a younger brother of

Perpakh, Keinba’s father, and, before her marriage, like Sinerani, one

of the Kuudrol. Silkidz also lighted the pyre.

In spite of the results of his previous infringement of funeral law,

Kuriolv made a further departure from orthodox custom in burning on the

pyre imitation buffalo horns, which should only be burnt at the

funerals of males. Then after being swung over the flames as usual, the

body was placed on the pyre.

Less than half an hour later, and long before the body could have been

consumed, the marvainolkedr began, and passed off without any special

incident. Another buffalo was caught and killed and laid by the side of

a mantle containing hair which had been cut from the head of the dead

child by Keinba. The mantle should also have contained a piece of

skull, but the body had not been sufficiently consumed to procure this,

and so the hair alone was held to be sufficient.

Later a distribution of grain took place, and those who were to take no

part in the azaramkedr on the following morning went to their homes.

At another funeral of an unmarried girl, Olidzeimi (21), the ceremony

of pursütpimi was performed by the boy Pulgudr (38), who had been

married in infancy to the girl. He was her matchuni, being the son of

Teijer, the sister of Parkeidi, Olidzeimi’s father. On this occasion

Pulgudr said to his father-in-law, Parkeidi, three times,

“pursadikina?”—“Shall I touch (with the) bow?” and Parkeidi replied

each time, “Pursad!”—“Touch with the bow!” Then Pulgudr put the bow and

arrow into the hand of the dead girl, and Parkeidi covered Pulgudr’s

head with the cloak, and the boy put grain, jaggery, and limes into the

pocket of the cloak of Olidzeimi. At the funeral of Sinerani, Keinba

did not say the proper formula, probably because he was too young.

FUNERAL CONTRIBUTIONS

In the old days, when a large number of buffaloes were slaughtered at

the funerals, and especially at the marvainolkedr, it was the rule that

every manmokh, or sister’s son, should supply a buffalo, while in the

case of a child it seemed that buffaloes were sometimes given by the

mun or mother’s brother.

Buffaloes were also given by the husbands of the daughters of a man,

whether they were the manmokh of the man or not. They might be given by

other relatives, but it seemed that the gift was especially a duty of

the manmokh and paiol. The mokhthodvaiol of a woman should also

contribute a buffalo for her second funeral.

At the present time the limitation of the number of buffaloes which may

be slaughtered has removed the necessity for these gifts, but it still

remains the custom for one of the buffaloes to be supplied by the

manmokh or some corresponding relative, or, at any rate, it seems to be

usual for one buffalo to be supplied by relatives of a man on the male

side, and the other by relatives on the female side; thus, at the

funeral of Sinerani (52) one buffalo was given by Kuriolv, the father

of the dead child, and the other by Perner (68), the father of the

child’s mother, and also the grandfather of her husband.

Contributions in money may be made by any relative, and all those who

have married into the family of the deceased, even if only boys, should

contribute eight annas or a rupee towards the general expenses, this

custom being called tinkanik panm ûtpimi. The mokhthodvaiol of a woman

should contribute at least five rupees to the expenses of the second

funeral.

The ceremony of kachütthti (see p. 358) also involves a payment from

his sons-in-law to a man of the same clan as the dead man. The money is

not paid, however, till the woman who places the cloths on the body has

attended twenty funerals and is, therefore, probably not paid at all in

many cases, but it may be regarded as tribute from those who have

married into a family at each death in the family.

The contributions of buffaloes and money from a man to the relatives of

his wife are called pòdri.

Contributions of food are received from various relatives, who also

contribute certain of the objects used for the adornment of the body.

Each relative gives a waist-string called pennar, made of black and

white thread, which is put round the body of the corpse. That given by

a manmokh is exceptionally honoured in that it is tied round the body

inside the mantle together with that given by the son of the deceased,

those given by other relatives being put outside the mantle.

Many of the necessaries for the funerals are provided by the Kotas. The

part they take as the musicians has been already mentioned. In addition

they provide for the first funeral the cloak (putkuli) in which the

body is wrapped, and grain (patm or samai) to the amount of five to ten

kwa. They give one or two rupees towards the expenses, and if they

should have no grain their contribution of money is increased.

At the marvainolkedr their contributions are more extensive. They

provide the putkuli, together with a sum of eight annas for the

decoration of the cloak by the Toda women. They give two to five rupees

towards the general expenses and provide the bow and arrow, basket

(tek), knife (kafkati), and the sieve called kudshmurn. The Kotas

receive at each funeral the bodies of the slaughtered buffaloes, and

are also usually given food. The method by which these contributions

from the Kotas to the Todas are regulated will be considered in Chapter

XXVII.

AMNÒDR

Amnòdr [170] is the other world of the Todas to which the dead go. It

lies to the west and is lighted by the same sun as this world. The sun

goes there when it sinks to the west so that when it is dark on the

Nilgiris it is light in Amnòdr, and when it is dark in Amnòdr it is

light on the Nilgiris. When Kwoto tied down the sun it was dark in both

worlds and the people of Amnòdr complained (see p. 206) and joined with

those of this world in the request that the sun should be restored to

its proper place. Amnòdr is considered to be below this world, and this

was given as the reason why the dead used to be burnt face downwards.

It will be remembered also that Ön was looking downwards when he saw

his son Püv in Amnòdr (see p. 185).

Amnòdr is presided over by the god Ön, who went there after the death

of his son Püv, and it is often called Önnòdr after him, while this

world, presided over by the goddess Teikirzi, is known as Inanòdr or

Eikirzinòdr. [171] The people of Amnòdr or Önnòdr are known as the

Amatol. Formerly the Todas used to go freely to and fro between Amnòdr

and Eikirzinòdr, but this was stopped owing to the behaviour of Kwoto,

and since his time only the dead go to Amnòdr and they do not return.

The Amatol live in much the same way as the inhabitants of this world.

They have their buffaloes and their dairies, and the daily life of the

people appears to be much like that of the living Todas. As the people

walk about, however, they wear down their legs. They have to walk every

day, and when a man has worn down his legs as far as the knees Ön sends

him back to this world as another man.

Ön will not allow any pigs or rats to enter Amnòdr, as they would root

up and spoil the country.

Dead people travel to Amnòdr by well-defined routes, which are

different for Tartharol and Teivaliol, while the Taradrol have a

separate Amnòdr for their clan.

The dead do not set out for Amnòdr till after the second funeral,

taking with them the things burnt at the azaramkedr. Both Tartharol and

Teivaliol journey westwards towards the Kundahs and cross the Pakhwar

or Avalanche river at the same spot.

The paths for the two divisions then diverge. The Tartharol go by a

place called Katchâr, while the Teivaliol go by Kusheigûdr, situated by

the bridle path now leading from Avalanche Bungalow to Avalanche Top.

Whenever a Teivali man passes this spot for the first time he throws

three stones called oviônikârs. Similarly, a Tarthar man passing

Katchâr for the first time throws three stones in the same way. At the

top of the hill there is a spot at which every Toda salutes (kaimukhti)

in all directions.

The two paths meet again at a stone called Nidzmûtkârs (hot knock

stone). When the dead Todas reach this stone they knock on it, and in

so doing lose all their love of this world. They proceed and reach the

stone called Panîpikârs, on which also they knock, and by so doing lose

all their diseases and become strong again, so that they are sound and

vigorous when they reach Amnòdr.

After knocking on Panîpikârs, the dead pass a wood called Katiârnpül,

in which there is a tree called main, and as they go they make a cut on

this tree with the kafkati or knife burnt with them, and Todas who pass

by Katiârnpül on the day after a funeral have often seen the newly made

cut on the main tree. For women there is another place in the wood

called Patkadipem, and here the woman pounds with the wask burnt at her

azaramkedr.

On proceeding the dead Todas come to a ravine and river called

Püvûrkin, near Sisapara. Across this river there is a thread bridge,

and those who have been bad Todas during life fall into the river and

are bitten by leeches (püv or püf). The people who cross the thread

bridge successfully go straight to Amnòdr, but those who fall are

helped out of the river by the people of Padrmukhteir (crowd plain

swamp), who belong to all tribes and live on the further bank of

Püvûrkin. The people of Padrmukhteir may keep the offending Todas in

their country for some time. The greater their offences, the longer are

they kept, but all, however bad, reach Amnòdr sooner or later.

The following are the people who fall into Püvûrkin:—(a) the karainol,

selfish people; (b) the kashtvainol, jealous and grudging people; (c)

the kaspivainol, those who have committed any offences against the

dairy, whether pali or poh.

The danger of falling into Püvûrkin does not seem to have much

influence on the people. It has been spoken of as the Toda Hell, but it

is rather a mild variety of Purgatory, and only involves some

discomfort and delay on the journey to the next world. The people of

Kavidi in the Wainad may travel direct to Amnòdr without going over

Püvûrkin at all, and they run no danger from this source, however bad

they may have been.

The people of Taradr are said to have a separate Amnòdr near Külvari or

Perithi, and they do not travel by Nidzmûtkârs or by Panîpikârs, nor do

they cross Püvûrkin. They have no dangers by the way, and however

wicked they may have been they go to their Amnòdr in security. Men,

women and buffaloes all follow the same path.

ORIGIN OF FUNERAL CUSTOMS

The various funeral customs are said to have been partly ordained by

Teikirzi. The following story is given as the account of their origin:—

At first no Toda died. After a time a Piedr man died at the village of

Erparskòdr. He died in his hut and the Todas took his body to the

funeral place, but on the way they laid it by a heap of stones between

Erparskòdr and Umgas. The stones are still to be seen, and are called

Möditikars. [172] While the body lay by these stones, some of the

people were weeping bitterly; others were dancing and singing, and

others were going to drive buffaloes. Teikirzi, who saw the people

weeping, took pity and came to bring the dead man back to life. When

she came to the place she found that though some of the people were

crying, others seemed quite happy. She liked what she saw, and decided

not to raise the dead man, so she went away and ordained that in the

future some should cry at funerals and others should be happy, and her

laws as to the conduct of the funeral ceremonies have been followed

ever since.

Then the people took up the dead body and went on to Kûrûvòrs, near

Umgas, where they performed the funeral ceremonies.

In the various complicated ceremonies described in this chapter there

are certain features which may be briefly discussed.

There is no doubt that the buffaloes killed at the funeral are supposed

to go to Amnòdr with the dead person. Sacred buffaloes are only killed

at the funerals of men, for they would be useless to women, who, in the

next world as in this, have nothing to do with dairies at which the

sacred buffaloes must be tended. There is no evidence that the

slaughter of buffaloes is in any way a propitiatory sacrifice, and

there seems to be a very marked absence of anything resembling prayer

or other forms of appeal to higher powers in the funeral ceremonies.

[173]

Dairymen take part in the funeral ceremonies, but chiefly in connexion

with the sacred buffaloes. The highest kind of dairyman, the palol, has

no duties whatever, and loses his office if he takes part merely as a

visitor. At Tarthar funerals the wursol has important duties, chiefly

connected with the sacred buffaloes and with the mani, which is hung

round their necks. He also takes the chief part in the koòtiti and

accompanying ceremonies of the second funeral, probably because the

sacred tudr bark is used. In one rite there is no obvious reason why

the wursol should play a part—viz., in that of throwing earth. As this

ceremony, however, is of especial importance, it suggests that formerly

dairymen may have had more to do with funeral ceremonies than is the

case at present.

Among the Teivaliol, the palikartmokh has less important functions. He

probably kills the sacred buffaloes, though on this point I am not

certain. Only one Teivali clan possesses a mani which is used at a

funeral, and it is noteworthy that, though the bell is removed from its

hiding place (see p. 354) by the palikartmokh, it is taken to the

funeral and hung on the neck of the buffalo by a Tarthar man belonging

to the Nòdrs clan.

The facts that the wursol takes part in the funerals of men; that

sacred buffaloes are killed; that dairies are used in these funerals,

and that the funeral hut of a man is always called pali or dairy, even

when built for the occasion, all bring the funeral ceremonies of men

into connexion with the religious dairy ceremonial of the Todas. On the

other hand, even in those cases in which a dairy is used as a funeral

hut, the dairyman of that dairy has nothing to do with the funeral

ceremonies; thus, at Nòdrs the dairy in which the body of a dead man is

laid is the tarvali, but the tarvalikartmokh has no duties in connexion

with the funeral, and does his dairy work as usual, while it is the

dairyman of the conical poh, the wursol who takes an active part in the

funeral rites.