The religion of the Kawars is entirely of an animistic character. They
have a vague idea of a supreme deity whom they call Bhagwan and
identify with the sun. They bow to him in reverence, but do no more
as he does not interfere with men's concerns. They also have a host
of local and tribal deities, of whom the principal is the Jhagra
Khand or two-edged sword, already mentioned. The tiger is deified as
Bagharra Deo and worshipped in every village for the protection of
cattle from wild animals. They are also in great fear of a mythical
snake with a red crest on its head, the mere sight of which is
believed to cause death. It lives in deep pools in the forest which
are known as Shesk Kund, and when it moves the grass along its track
takes fire. If a man crosses its track his colour turns to black
and he suffers excruciating pains which end in death, unless he is
relieved by the Baiga. In one village where the snake was said to
have recently appeared, the proprietor was so afraid of it that he
never went out to his field without first offering a chicken. They
have various local deities, of which the Mandwa Rani or goddess of
the Mandwa hill in Korba zamindari may be noticed as an example. She
is a mild-hearted maiden who puts people right when they have gone
astray in the forest, or provides them with food for the night and
guides them to the water-springs on her hill. Recently a wayfarer
had lost his path when she appeared and, guiding him into it, gave
him a basket of brinjals. [420] As the traveller proceeded he felt
his burden growing heavier and heavier on his head, and finally on
inspecting it found that the goddess had played a little joke on him
and the brinjals had turned into stones. The Kawars implicitly believe
this story. Rivers are tenanted by a set of goddesses called the Sat
Bahini or seven sisters. They delight in playing near waterfalls,
holding up the water and suddenly letting it drop. Trees are believed
to be harmless sentient beings, except when occasionally possessed by
evil spirits, such as the ghosts of man-eating tigers. Sometimes a
tree catches hold of a cow's tail as the animal passes by and winds
it up over a branch, and many cattle have lost their tails in this
way. Every tank in which the lotus grows is tenanted by Purainha, the
godling who tends this plant. The sword, the gun, the axe, the spear
have each a special deity, and, in fact, in the Bangawan, the tract
where the wilder Kawars dwell, it is believed that every article of
household furniture is the residence of a spirit, and that if any one
steals or injures it without the owner's leave, the spirit will bring
some misfortune on him in revenge. Theft is said to be unknown among
them, partly on this account and partly, perhaps, because no one has
much property worth stealing. Instances of deified human beings are
Kolin Sati, a Kol concubine of a zamindar of Pendra who died during
pregnancy, and Sarangarhni, a Ghasia woman who was believed to have
been the mistress of a Raja of Sarangarh and was murdered. Both are
now Kawar deities. Thakur Deo is the deity of agriculture, and is
worshipped by the whole village in concert at the commencement of the
rains. Rice is brought by each cultivator and offered to the god,
a little being sown at his shrine and the remainder taken home and
mixed with the seed-grain to give it fertility. Two bachelors carry
water round the village and sprinkle it on the brass plates of the
cultivators or the roofs of their houses in imitation of rain.