GAMES, SPORTS AND PASTIMES.
On festive days itinerant songmen amuse the village folk at open
places and greens; they keep time to a dance by skilfully whirling
metal-plates or small tambourines on their fingers or pointed stakes,
by striking together sticks, by tossing earthen pots up in the air
and catching them and they eulogize the hamlet and its people in
extempore couplets with the refrain, "tana tanamda tânênâ, tanâ,
tamda, tânênâ, tana tanamda, tana tanamda, tana tanamda, tânênâ."
The people also enjoy themselves on the merry-go-round (katuru
onchillâva)--a large revolving wheel on a tall wooden superstructure
with seats attached; at theatrical representations called kôlan netum,
rûkada netum, and nâdagam; at games of skill and at divers forms of
outdoor games.
Kôlan netuma is a series of mimetic dances of a ludicrous character
by actors dressed like animals and demons, wearing masks and sometimes
perched on high stilts.
The rûkada netuma is a marionette show of the ordinary incidents
of village life--usually of the adventures of a married couple,
a hevârala (a militia guard) and his wife Kadiragoda lamayâ; the
former goes to the wars and returns with his eyes and ears off only
to be beaten by his wife who soon after falls ill with labour pains,
and devil dancers are requisitioned to relieve her; Pinnagoda râla
is the clown of the show.
The nâdagama is a dramatic play and for its performance a circular
stage is erected with an umbrella-shaped tent over it; round it
sits the audience, who, though admitted free, willingly contribute
something into the collection-box brought by the clown (kônangiya)
at the end of the play. Before the drama begins, each of the actors,
in tinselled costume, walks round the stage singing a song appropriate
to his character. The piece represented is based on a popular tale
or an historical event.
Games of skill and chance are played on boards made for that
purpose. [21]
In Olinda Keliya a board having seven holes a side is used; only
two can take part in the game, and each in turn places olinda seeds
(abrus precatorius) in the holes and the object of the opponent is
to capture the other's seeds according to certain rules. [22]
In Pancha Keliya dice and six cowries are used; the latter are taken
into the player's hand and dropped, and the shells which fall on the
reverse side are counted and the dice moved an equal number of places
on the board and the game continues till all the dice reach the other
end of the board.
In Deeyan Keliya sixteen dice representing cows and four dice
representing tigers are placed on a board and the cows have to get
from one side to the other without being intercepted and captured by
the tigers.
Some of the outdoor games played by adults are of the ordinary kind,
and others of a semi-religious significance.
The ordinary outdoor games are Buhu Keliya, Pandu Keliya, Lunu Keliya,
Muttê, Hâlmelê and Tattu penille.
In Buhu Keliya there are several players who place their balls,
(made of any bulbous root hardened and boiled till it becomes like
rubber), round a pole firmly fixed to the ground; to this pole is
attached a string about 5 feet long held by a player whose endeavour
is to prevent the others getting possession of the balls without being
touched. The person touched takes the place of the guarding player
and when all the balls are taken away the last guard is pelted with
them till he finds safety in a spot previously agreed upon.
In Pandu Keliya the players form into two sides, taking their stand
100 yards apart with a dividing line between; the leader of one party
throws a ball up and as it comes down beats it with his open palm
and sends the ball over the line to the opposing side. If the other
party fails to beat or kick it back, they must take their stand where
the ball fell and the leader of their party throws the ball to the
other side in the same way. This goes on till one party crosses the
boundary line and drives the other party back.
In Lunu Keliya there are two sets of players occupying the two sides
of a central goal (lunu) about 30 or 40 yards from it; a player from
one side has to start from the goal, touch a player of the other
side and regain the goal holding up his breath; if he fails he goes
out and this goes on till the side which has the greatest number of
successful runners at the end is declared the winner.
In Mutté (rounders) a post is erected as a goal, and one of the players
stands by it and has a preliminary conversation with the others:--
Q.--Kîkkiyô.
A.--Muddarê.
Q.--Dehikatuvada batukatuvada--Is it a lime-thorn or a brinjal-thorn?
A.--Batukatuva--Brinjal-thorn.
Q.--Man endada umba enavada--should I come or would you come?
A.--Umbamavaren--you had better come.
As soon as the last word is uttered, the questioner gives chase, and
the others dodge him and try to reach the post without being touched;
the one who is first touched becomes the pursuer.
In Halmele there is no saving post, but the area that the players
have to run about is circumscribed; the pursuer hops on one leg and is
relieved by the person who first leaves the circle or is first touched.
Before starting he cries out--Hâlmelé A.--Kanakabaré.
Q.--Enda hondê? (May I come?).
A.--Bohama hondayi (All right).
In Tattu penilla also called Mahason's leap, a figure in the shape
of H is drawn; a player guards each line and the others have to
jump across them and return without being touched; it is optional to
leap over the middle line and is only attempted by the best players,
as the demon Mahason himself is supposed to guard it.
The outdoor games with a semi-religious significance are Polkeliya,
Dodankeliya and ankeliya.
In Pol Keliya the villagers divide themselves into two factions called
yatipila and udupila and the leaders of the two parties take a fixed
number of husked cocoanuts and place themselves at a distance of 30
feet and one bowls a nut at his adversary who meets it with another
in his hand. This goes on till the receiver's nut is broken when he
begins to bowl. The side which exhausts the nuts of the other party
is declared the winner.
Dodan Keliya is a game similar to the Pol Keliya the oranges taking
the place of the cocoanuts.
In An Keliya a trunk of a tree is buried at the centre of an open space
of ground; a few yards off is placed the log of a cocoanut tree about
20 feet high in a deep hole large enough for it to move backwards and
forwards and to the top of it thick ropes are fastened. The villagers
divide themselves into two parties as in Pol Keliya, and bring two
forked antlers which they hook together and tying one to the foot of
the trunk and the other to that of the log pull away with all their
might till one of them breaks.
In all these semi-religious games the winning party goes in procession
round the village and the defeated side has to undergo a lot of abuse
and insult intended to remove the bad effects of the defeat.
Children in addition to their swings, tops, bamboo pop-guns, cut water,
bows and arrows, water squirts, cat's cradles and bull roarers have
their own special games.
They play at hide and seek, the person hiding giving a loud 'hoo'
call that the others may start the search; or one of them gets to an
elevated place and tauntingly cries out "the king is above and the
scavenger below" and the others try to drag him down.
Several children hold their hands together forming a line and one of
them representing a hare comes running from a distance and tries to
break through without being caught; or one of them becomes a cheetah
and the rest form a line of goats holding on to each other's back. The
cheetah addresses the foremost goat saying "eluvan kannayi man âvê." (I
have come to eat the goats) and tries to snatch away one of the players
at the back; who avoids his clutches singing "elubeti kapiya sundire"
(go and eat the tasty goat dung); if one is caught he has to hold
on to the back of the cheetah and the game continues till all are
snatched away.
When the children are indoors they amuse themselves in various ways.
They hold the backs of each other's hands with their thumb and
fore-finger, move them up and down singing "kaputu kâk kâk kâk,
goraka dên dên dên, amutu vâv vâv vâv, dorakada gahê puvak puvak,
batapandurê bulat bulat, usi kaputâ, usî," and let go each other's
hold at the end of the jingle, which means that "crows swinging on a
gamboge-tree (goraka) take to their wings when chased away (usi, usi),
and there are nuts in the areca-tree by the house and betel-creepers
in the bamboo-grove." They also close their fists and keep them one
over the other, pretending to form a cocoanut-tree; the eldest takes
hold of each hand in turn, asks its owner, "achchiyé achchiyé honda
pol gediyak tiyanavâ kadannada?" (grandmother, grandmother, there is a
good cocoanut, shall I pluck it); and, when answered, "Oh, certainly"
(bohoma hondayi), brings it down. A mimetic performance of husking
the nuts, breaking them, throwing out the water, scraping the pulp
and cooking some eatable follows this.
They twist the fingers of the left hand, clasp them with the right,
leaving only the finger-tips visible and get each other to pick out
the middle finger.
They take stones or seeds into their hands and try to guess the number,
or they take them in one hand, throw them up, catch them on the back
of the hand, and try to take them back to the palm.
They keep several seeds or stones in front of them, throw one up and
try to catch it after picking up as many seeds or stones as possible
from the ground.
They hold the fingers of their baby brothers saying "this says he
is hungry, this says what is to be done, this says let us eat, this
says who will pay, this says though I am the smallest I will pay"
and then tickle them saying "han kutu."
They keep their hands one over the other, the palm downwards, and
the leader strokes each hand saying, "Aturu muturu, demita muturu
Râjakapuru hetiyâ aluta genâ manamâli hâl atak geralâ, hiyala getat
bedâla pahala getat bedâlâ, us us daramiti péliyayi, miti miti daramiti
péliyayi, kukalâ kapalâ dara pillê, kikili kapalâ veta mullê, sangan
pallâ," (Aturu muturu demita muturu; the new bride that the merchant,
Râjakapuru, brought, having taken a handful of rice, cleansed it
and divided it to the upper and lower house; a row of tall faggots;
a row of short faggots; the cock that is killed is on the threshold;
the hen that is killed is near the fence; sangan pallâ); one hand is
next kept on the owner's forehead and the other at the stomach and
the following dialogue ensues:--
Q.--Nalalé monavâda--What is on the forehead?
A.--Le--Blood.
Q.--Elwaturen hêduvâda--Did you wash it in cold water?
A.--Ov--Yes.
Q.--Giyâda--Did it come off?
A.--Nê--No.
Q.--Kiren hêduvâda--Did you wash it in milk?
A.--Ov--Yes.
Q.--Giyâda--Did it come off?
A.-Ov--Yes.
(The hand on the forehead is now taken down).
Q.--Badêinne mokada--What is at your stomach?
A.--Lamayâ--A child.
Q.--Eyi andannê--why is it crying?
A.--Kiri batuyi netuva--For want of milk and rice.
Q.--Kô man dunna kiri batuyi--Where is the milk and rice I gave?
A.--Ballayi belalî kêvâ--The dog and the cat ate it.
Q.--Kô ballayi belali--Where is the dog and the cat?
A.--Lindê vetuna--They fell into the well.
Q.--Kô linda--Where is the well?
A.--Goda keruvâ--It was filled up.
Q.--Kô goda--Where is the spot?
A.--Ândiyâ pela hittevvâ,--There ândiyâ plants were planted.
Q.--Kô ândiyâ pela--Where are the ândiyâ plants?
A.--Dêvâ--They were burnt.
Q.--Kô alu--Where are the ashes?
A.--Tampalâ vattata issâ--They were thrown into the tampalâ
(Nothosocruva brachiata) garden.
Then the leader pinches the other's cheek and jerks his head backward
and forward singing "Tampalâ kâpu hossa genen (give me the jaw that
ate the tampalâ).