Gond-Gowari. [96]--A small hybrid caste formed from alliances between
Gonds and Gowaris or herdsmen of the Maratha country. Though they must
now be considered as a distinct caste, being impure and thus ranking
lower than either the Gonds or Gowaris, they are still often identified
with either of them. In 1901 only 3000 were returned, principally
from the Nagpur and Chanda Districts. In 1911 they were amalgamated
with the Gowaris, and this view may be accepted as their origin is
the same. The Gowaris say that the Gond-Gowaris are the descendants
of one of two brothers who accidentally ate the flesh of a cow. Both
the Gonds and Gowaris frequent the jungles for long periods together,
and it is natural that intimacies should spring up between the youth
of either sex. And the progeny of these irregular connections has
formed a separate caste, looked down upon by both its progenitors. The
Gond-Gowaris have no subcastes, and for purposes of marriages are
divided into exogamous septs, all bearing Gond names. Like the Gonds,
the caste is also split into two divisions, worshipping six and
seven gods respectively, and members of septs worshipping the same
number of gods must not marry with each other. The deities of the
six and seven god-worshippers are identical, except that the latter
have one extra called Durga or Devi, who is represented by a copper
coin of the old Nagpur dynasty. Of the other deities Bura Deo is a
piece of iron, Khoda and Khodavan are both pieces of the kadamb tree
(Nauclea parvifolia), Supari is the areca-nut, and Kaipen consists of
two iron rings and counts as two deities. It seems probable, therefore,
from the double set of identical deities that two of the original ones
have been forgotten. The gods are kept on a small piece of red cloth
in a closed bamboo basket, which must not be opened except on days of
worship, lest they should work some mischief; on these special days
they are rendered harmless for the time being by the homage which is
rendered to them. Marriage is adult, and a bride-price of nine rupees
and some grain is commonly paid by the boy's family. The ceremony
is a mixture of Gond and Maratha forms; the couple walk seven times
round a bohla or mound of earth and the guests clap their hands. At a
widow-marriage they walk three and a half times round a burning lamp,
as this is considered to be only a kind of half-marriage. The morality
of the caste is very loose, and a wife will commonly be pardoned any
transgression except an intrigue with a man of very low caste. Women
of other castes, such as Kunbis or Barhais, may be admitted to the
community on forming a connection with a Gond-Gowari. The caste have
no prescribed observance of mourning for the dead. The Gond-Gowaris
are cultivators and labourers, and dress like the Kunbis. They are
considered to be impure and must live outside the village, while other
castes refuse to touch them. The bodies of the women are disfigured
by excessive tattooing, the legs being covered with a pattern of dots
and lines reaching up to the thighs. In this matter they simply follow
their Gond ancestors, but they say that a woman who is not tattooed
is impure and cannot worship the deities.