In addition to the observance of penances and fasting, Hindus of
all castes, high and low, make vows and offerings to the gods, with
the object of securing their good-will or appeasing their anger. By
the lower castes, offerings of animals--fowls, sheep, goats, or
buffaloes--are made, and the gods whom they seek to propitiate
are minor deities, e.g., Ellamma or Muneswara, to whom animal
sacrifices are acceptable. [159] The higher castes usually perform
vows to Venkateswara of Tirupati, Subramanya of Palni, Viraraghava of
Tiruvallur, Tirunarayana of Melkote, and other celebrated gods. But
they may, if afflicted with serious illness, at times, as at the
leaf festival at Periyapalayam (p. 148), seek the good offices of
minor deities.
"A shrine," Mr F. Fawcett writes, [160] "to which the Malayalis
(inhabitants of Malabar), Nayars included, resort is that of
Subramaniya at Palni in the north-west of the Madura district. Not
only are vows paid to this shrine, but men, letting their hair
grow for a year after their father's death, proceed to have it cut
there. The plate shows an ordinary Palni pilgrim. The arrangement
which he is carrying is called a kavadi (portable shrine). There
are two kinds of kavadi, a milk kavadi containing milk, and a fish
kavadi containing fish. The vow may be made in respect of either,
each being appropriate to certain circumstances. [Miniature silver
kavadis, and miniature crowns, are sometimes offered by pilgrims
to the god.] When the time comes near for the pilgrim to start for
Palni, he dresses in reddish-orange clothes, shoulders his kavadi,
and starts out. Together with a man ringing a bell, and perhaps
one with a tom-tom, with ashes on his face, he assumes the role of
a beggar. The well-to-do are inclined to reduce the beggar period
to the minimum, but a beggar every votary must be, and as a beggar
he goes to Palni in all humbleness and humiliation, and there he
fulfils his vow, leaves his kavadi and his hair, and a small sum of
money. Though the individuals about to be noticed were not Nayars,
their cases illustrate very well the religious idea of the Nayar
as expressed under certain circumstances. It was at Guruvayur (in
Malabar) in November 1895. On a high raised platform under a peepul
tree were a number of people under vows, bound for Palni. A boy
of fourteen had suffered as a child from epilepsy, and seven years
ago his father vowed on his behalf that, if he was cured, he would
make his pilgrimage to Palni. He wore a string of beads round his
neck, and a like string on his right arm. These were in some way
connected with the vow. His head was bent, and he sat motionless
under his kavadi, leaning on the bar, which, when he carried it,
rested on his shoulder. He could not go to Palni until it was
revealed to him in a dream when he was to start. He had waited
for his dream seven years, subsisting on roots (yams, etc.), and
milk--no rice. Now he had had the longed-for dream, and was about
to start. Another pilgrim was a man wearing an oval band of silver
over the lower portion of the forehead, almost covering his eyes;
his tongue protruding beyond the mouth, and kept in position by
a silver skewer through it. The skewer was put in the day before,
and was to be left in for forty days. He had been fasting for two
years. He was much under the influence of the god, and whacking
incessantly at a drum in delicious excitement. Several of the
pilgrims had a handkerchief tied over the mouth, they being under
a vow of silence. [At Kumbakonam in the Tanjore district, 'there
is a math in honour of a recently deceased saint named Paradesi,
who attained wide fame in the district some years ago. He never
spoke, and was welcomed and feasted everywhere, and was the subject
of many vows. People used to promise to break cocoanuts in his
presence, or clothe him with fine garments, if they obtained their
desire, and such vows were believed to be very efficacious.' [161]
At the Manjeshwar Temple in South Canara, there is a Darsana,
(man who gets inspired) called the dumb Darsana, as he gives signs
instead of speaking. Bishop Whitehead records [162] the case of
a Brahman, who had taken a vow of silence for twenty-one years,
because people make so much mischief by talking. He conversed
by means of signs and writing in the dust]. One poor man wore
the regular instrument of silence, the mouth-lock [163]--a wide
silver band over the mouth, and a skewer piercing both cheeks. He
sat patiently in a tent-like affair. People fed him with milk,
etc. The use of the mouth-lock is common with the Nayars, when
they assume the pilgrim's robes and set out for Palni. Pilgrims
generally go in crowds under charge of a priestly guide, one who,
having made a certain number of journeys to the shrine, wears a
peculiar sash and other gear."
In connection with kavadis, it may be noted that, at the time of
the annual migration of the sacred herd of cattle belonging to
the Kappiliyans (Canarese farmers in the Madura district) to the
hills, the driver is said to carry a pot of fresh-drawn milk within
a kavadi. On the day on which the return journey to the Kambam valley
is commenced, the pot is opened, and the milk is said to be found in a
hardened state. A slice thereof is cut off, and given to each person
who accompanied the herd to the hills. It is believed that the milk
would not remain in good condition, if the sacred herd had been in
any way injuriously affected during its sojourn there. The usual vow
performed at the shrine of Dandayudhapani or Subramanya near Settikulam
in the Trichinopoly district is to carry milk, sugar, flour, etc.,
in a kavadi, and offer it to the god. [164] A case is recorded [165]
from Ceylon, in which a man who was about to proceed with a kavadi to
a shrine was held by several men, while a blow with the palm of the
hand caught him in the middle of the back, to numb the pain created
by the forcing of sharp iron hooks into the fleshy part of the back.
Reference has been made (p. 137) to the offering of hair by devotees
at the Palni shrine. When people are prevented from going to a temple
at the proper time, hair is sometimes removed from their children's
head, sealed up in a vessel, and put into the receptacle for offerings
when the visit to the temple is paid. In cases of dangerous sickness,
the hair is sometimes cut off, and offered to a deity.
"The sacrifice of locks," Mr A. Srinivasan writes, "is meant to
propitiate deceased relations, and the deity which presides over
life's little joys and sorrows. It is a similar intention that
has dictated the ugly disfigurement of widows. We meet with the
identical fact and purpose in the habit of Telugu Brahmans and
non-Brahmans in general, sacrificing their whole locks of hair to
the goddess Ganga of Prayaga, to the god Venkatesa of Tirupati,
and other local gods. The Brahman ladies of the south have more
recently managed to please Ganga and other gods with just one or
two locks of hair."
Sometimes, in performance of a vow, Patnulkaran (Madura weaver) boys
are taken to the shrine at Tirupati for the tonsure ceremony. [166]
Married couples desirous of offspring make a vow that, if a child be
granted to them, they will perform the ceremony of the first shaving
of its head at the temple of the god who fulfils their desire. [167]
It is said [168] that Alagarkovil in the Madura district is such a
favourite place for carrying out the first shaving of the heads of
children, that the right to the locks presented to the shrine is
annually sold by auction.
Writing in 1872, Mr Breeks remarked [169] that "about Ootacamund,
a few Todas have latterly begun to imitate the religious practices
of their native neighbours, and my particular friend Kinniaven, after
an absence of some days, returned with a shaven head from a visit to
the temple of Siva at Nanjengudi" (in Mysore).
A Toda who came to see me had his hair hanging down in long tails
reaching below the shoulders. He had, he said, let it grow long because
his wife, though married five years, had borne no child. A child had,
however, recently been born, and he was going to sacrifice his locks
as a thank-offering at the Nanjengod temple. By the Badagas of the
Nilgiris, the fire-walking ceremony is celebrated to propitiate the
deity Jeddayaswami, to whom vows are made. In token thereof, they grow
one twist or plait of hair, which is finally cut off as an offering
to Jeddayaswami.
By some Gavaras (a cultivating caste) of Vizagapatam, special reverence
is paid to the deity Jagganathaswami of Orissa, whose shrine at Puri is
visited by some, while others take vows in the name of the god. On the
day of the car festival at Puri, local car festivals are held in Gavara
villages, and women carry out the performance of their vows. A woman,
for example, who is under a vow, in order that she may be cured of
illness or bear children, takes a big pot of water, and, placing it on
her head, dances frantically before the god, through whose influence
the water which rises out of the pot falls back into it, instead
of being spilt. The class of Vaishnavite mendicants called Dasari
claims descent from a wealthy Sudra, [170] who, having no offspring,
vowed that, if he was blessed with children, he would devote one to
the service of the deity. He subsequently had many sons, one of whom
he named Dasan, and placed entirely at the service of the god. Dasan
forfeited all claim to his father's estate, and his descendants are
therefore all beggars. [171] In a note on the Dasaris of Mysore,
[172] it is stated that "they become Dasas or servants dedicated
to the god at Tirupati by virtue of a peculiar vow, made either by
themselves or their relatives at some moment of anxiety or danger,
and live by begging in his name. Among certain castes (e.g., Banajiga,
Tigala, and Vakkaliga), the custom of taking a vow to become a Dasari
prevails. In fulfilment of that vow, the person becomes a Dasari,
and his eldest son is bound to follow suit."
It may be noted that, in the Canarese country, a custom obtains among
the Bedars and some other castes, under which a family which has no
male issue must dedicate one of its daughters as a Basavi. [173]
The girl is taken to the temple, and married to the god, a tali
(marriage badge) and toe-rings being put on her. Thenceforward she
becomes a public woman, except that she should not consort with any
one of lower caste than herself. It may be added that a Basavi usually
lives faithfully with one man, and she works for her family as hard
as any other woman.
Married couples, to whom offspring is born after the performance of
a vow, sometimes name it after the deity whose aid has been invoked,
such as Srinivasa at Tirupati, Lakshminarasimha at Sholingur, or some
other local god or goddess. At Negapatam, some Hindus make vows to
the Miran (Muhammadan saint) of Nagur, and name their child after
him. The name thus given is not, however, used in every-day life,
but abandoned like the ceremonial name given prior to the Hindu
upanayana ceremony. In the Telugu country, the poorer classes of
Hindus sometimes promise that, if a son is born to them, they will
call him after a Muhammadan Fakir, and, consequently, it is far from
uncommon to find a Hindu named Fakirgadu or Fakirappa, with a Hindu
termination to a Muhammadan commencement. [174]
It has been noted (p. 138) that some pilgrims to the shrine at Palni
have a skewer piercing both cheeks. It is recorded by Bishop Whitehead
[175] that "devotees go to the shrine of Durgamma at Bellary with
silver pins about six inches long thrust through their cheeks, and
with a lighted lamp in a brass dish on their head. On arriving before
the shrine, they place the lamp on the ground, and the pin is removed,
and offered to the goddess."
The Bishop was told that the object of this ceremony is to enable
the devotee to come to the shrine with a concentrated mind.
A common form of vow made to Mariamman at Pappakkalpatti in the
Trichinopoly district is a promise to stick little iron skewers into
the body. In performance of vows, the Sedans and Kaikolans (weaver
castes) pierce some part of the body with a spear. The latter thrust
a spear through the muscles of the abdomen in honour of their god
Saha-nayanar at Ratnagiri.
At the annual festival of the goddess Gangamma at Tirupati, a Kaikolan
devotee dances before the goddess, and, when he is worked up to the
proper pitch of frenzy, a metal wire is passed through the middle
of his tongue. It is believed that the operation causes no pain or
bleeding, and the only remedy adopted is the chewing of margosa
(Melia Azadirachta) leaves and some kunkumam (red powder) of the
goddess. If, during a temple car procession, the car refuses to move,
the Viramushtis (Lingayat mendicants), who are guardians of the idol,
cut themselves with their swords until it is set in motion. There is
a proverb that the Siva Brahman (temple priest) eats well, whereas
the Viramushti hurts himself with the sword, and suffers much. The
Viramushtis are said, in former days, to have performed a ceremony
called pavadam. When an orthodox Lingayat was insulted, he would
swallow his lingam, and lie flat on the ground in front of the house
of the offender, who had to collect some Lingayats, and send for a
Viramushti. He had to arrive accompanied by a pregnant Viramushti
woman, priests of Draupadi, Pachaiamman, and Pothuraja temples, some
individuals from the nearest Lingayat mutt, and others. Arrived at the
house, the pregnant woman would sit down in front of the person lying
on the ground. With his sword the Viramushti man then made cuts in his
scalp and chest, and sprinkled the recumbent man with the blood. He
would then rise, and the lingam would come out of his mouth. Mondi
mendicants, when engaged in begging, cut the skin of the thighs with a
knife, lie down and beat their chest with a stone, vomit, roll in the
dust or mud, and throw ordure into the houses of those who will not
contribute alms. It was noted, in a recent report of the Banganapalle
State, that an inam (grant of rent-free land) was held on condition
of the holder "ripping open his stomach" at a certain festival.
A vow performed in honour of the village goddess at Settikulam in
the Trichinopoly district is for the votaries, male and female, to
fling themselves on heaps of thorns before her. This vow is generally
fulfilled by those cured of disease. It is called mullu padagalam, or
bed of thorns. [176] At the annual fire-walking festival at Nuvagode
in Ganjam, the officiating priest sits on a seat of sharp thorns. It
is noticed [177] by the missionary Gloyer that, on special occasions,
some Dombs in Vizagapatam fall into a frenzied state, in which they
cut their flesh with sharp instruments, or pass long, thin iron bars
through the tongue and cheeks, during which operation no blood must
flow. For this purpose, the instruments are rubbed over with some
blood-congealing material. They also affect sitting on a sacred swing,
armed with long iron nails. Mr G. F. Paddison informs me that he once
saw a villager in the Vizagapatam district sitting outside the house,
while groans proceeded from within. He explained that he was ill, and
his wife was swinging on nails with their points upwards, to cure him.
In the Tanjore district, persons afflicted with disease promise that,
if they are cured, they will brand their bodies, go round a temple
a certain number of times by rolling over and over in the dust, and
offer a pregnant goat by stabbing it through the womb. Sometimes vows
of self-mortification are taken in anticipation of relief. Such are
undertaking to go without salt in one's food, or to eat without using
the hands, until a cure is effected. [178] At Palni in the Madura
district, there is an annual feast at the Mariamman temple, at which
people, in performance of a vow, carry in their bare hands earthen
pots with a bright fire blazing inside them. They are said to escape
burns by the favour of the goddess, but it is whispered that immunity
is sometimes rendered doubly sure by putting sand or rice-husk at
the bottom of the pot. [179] Some Dasaris (religious mendicants) go
through a performance called Panda Servai, which consists in beating
themselves with a flaming torch all over the body. I am informed by
Mr Paddison that some Dombs are reputed to be able to pour blazing
oil all over their bodies, without suffering any hurt; and one
man is said to have had a miraculous power of hardening his skin,
so that any one could have a free shot at him without hurting him.
In the Melur taluk of the Madura district, it is stated that women
who are anxious for offspring vow that, if they attain their wish,
they will go and have a cocoanut broken on their head by a priest
at the temple of Sendurai. [180] At an annual festival in honour of
the god Servarayan on the Shevaroy hills in the Salem district, those
Malayalis who wish to take a vow to be faithful to their god have to
receive fifteen lashes on the bare back with a stout leather thong,
administered by the chief priest.
The annual festival at the temple of Karamadai in the Coimbatore
district is visited by about forty or fifty thousand pilgrims,
belonging for the most part to the lower classes. In case of sickness
or other calamity, they take a vow to perform one of the following:--
(1) To pour water at the feet of the idol inside the temple. Each
devotee is provided with a goat-skin bag, or a new earthen pot. He
goes to the tank, and, after bathing, fills the receptacle with water,
carries it to the temple, and empties it before the idol. This is
repeated a number of times according to the nature of the vow. If the
vow is a life-long one, it has to be performed every year until death.
(2) To give kavalam to Dasaris (religious mendicants). Kavalam consists
of plantain fruits cut up into small slices, and mixed with sugar,
jaggery (crude sugar), fried grain, or beaten rice. The Dasaris
are attached to the temple, and wear short drawers, with strings of
small brass bells tied to their wrists and ankles. They appear to be
possessed, and move wildly about to the beating of drums. As they go
about, the devotees put some of the kavalam into their mouths. The
Dasaris eat a little, and spit out the remainder into the hands of
the devotees, who eat it. This is believed to cure all disease, and
to give children to those who partake of it. In addition to kavalam,
some put betel leaves in the mouths of the Dasaris, who, after chewing
them, spit them into the mouths of the devotees. At night the Dasaris
carry torches made of rags, on which the devotees pour ghi (clarified
butter). Some people say that, many years ago, barren women used
to take a vow to visit the temple at the time of the festival, and,
after offering kavalam, have sexual intercourse with the Dasaris. The
temple authorities, however, profess ignorance of this practice.
On the last day of the Gangajatra festival at Tirupati, a figure is
made of clay and straw, and placed in the tope (grove), where crowds
of all classes, including Paraiyans, present food to it. Buffaloes,
goats, sheep, and fowls are sacrificed, and it is said that Brahmans,
though they will not be present, send animals to be slaughtered. At
the conclusion of the festivities, the image is burnt during the
feast, which last over ten days, the lower orders of the people
paint themselves, and indulge in much boisterous merriment. Those
who have made a vow to Ganga fast for some days before the festival
begins. They wear a structure made of bamboo in the form of a car,
which is decorated with paper of different colours, and supported by
iron nails pressed into the belly and back. They go about with this
structure on their heads. Those who have been attacked by cholera,
or other serious disease, make a vow to Ganga, and perform this
ceremonial.
A festival, which is attended by huge crowds of Hindus of all
classes, takes place annually in the month of Audi (July-August)
at the village of Periyapalayam, about sixteen miles from Madras,
where the goddess Mariamma is worshipped under the name of
Periyapalayaththamman. According to the legend, as narrated by the
Rev. A. C. Clayton, [181]
"there was once a Rishi (sage), who lived on the banks of the
Periyapalayam river with his wife Bavani. Every morning she
used to bathe in the river, and bring back water for the use of
the household. But she never took any vessel with her in which
to bring the water home, for she was so chaste that she had
acquired power to form a water-pot out of the dry river sand,
and carry the water home in it. One day, while bathing, she saw
the reflection of the face of the sky-god, Indra, in the water,
and could not help admiring it. When she returned to the bank of
the river, and tried to form her water-pot out of sand as usual,
she could not do so, for her admiration of Indra had ruined her
power, and she went home sadly to fetch a brass water-vessel. Her
husband saw her carrying this to the river, and at once suspected
her of unchastity, and, calling his son, ordered him to strike
off her head with a sword. It was in vain that the son tried to
avoid matricide. He had to obey, but he was so agitated by his
feelings that, when at last he struck at his mother, he cut off
not only her head, but that of a leather-dresser's wife who was
standing near. The two bodies lay side by side. The rishi was so
pleased with his son's obedience that he promised him any favour
that he should ask, but he was very angry when the son at once
begged that his mother might be restored to life. Being compelled
to keep his word, he told the son that, if he put his mother's
head on her trunk, she would again live. The son tried to do
so, but in his haste took up the head of the leather-dresser's
wife by mistake, and put it on Bavani's body. Leather-dressers
are flesh-eaters, and so it comes about that, on days when her
festival is celebrated, Bavani--now a goddess--longs for meat,
and thousands of sheep, goats, and fowls, must be slain at her
shrine. This legend bears marks of Brahmanic influence. Curiously
enough, the priest of this Paraiya shrine is himself a Brahman."
The vows, which are performed at the festival at Periyapalayam,
are as follows:--
(1) Wearing a garment of margosa (Melia Azadirachta) leaves, or wearing
an ordinary garment, and carrying a lighted lamp made of rice-flour
on the head.
(2) Carrying a pot decorated with flowers and margosa leaves round
the temple.
(3) Going round the temple, rolling on the ground.
(4) Throwing a live fowl on to the top of the temple.
(5) Throwing a cocoanut in front, prostrating on the ground in
salutation, going forward several paces and again throwing the
cocoanut, and repeating the procedure till three circuits of the
temple have been made.
(6) Giving offerings to the idol Parasurama, cradle with baby made of
clay or wood, etc., to bring offspring to the childless, success in a
lawsuit or business transaction, and other good luck. In addition,
pongal (boiled rice) has to be offered, and by some a sheep or
goat is sacrificed. If a vow has been made on behalf of a sick
cow, the animal is bathed in the river, clad in margosa leaves,
and led round the temple. The leaf-wearing vow is resorted to by
the large majority of the devotees, and performed by men, women
and children. Those belonging to the more respectable classes go
through it in the early morning, before the crowd has collected in
its tens of thousands. The leafy garments are purchased from hawkers,
who do a brisk trade in the sale thereof. The devotees have to pay a
modest fee for admission to the temple precincts, and go round the
shrine three or more times. Concerning the Periyapalayam festival,
a recent writer observes that, "the distinctive feature is that the
worshippers are clad in leaves. The devotees are bound to wear a
garment made of fresh margosa twigs with their leaves. This garment
is called vepansilai. It consists of a string three or four yards
long, from which depend, at intervals of two to three inches apart,
twigs measuring about two feet in length, and forming a fringe of
foliage. This string being wound several times round the waist, the
fringe of leaves forms a kilt or short petticoat. Men are content to
wear the kilt, but women also wear round their neck a similar garment,
which forms a short cloak reaching to the waist. To impress on devotees
the imperative obligation imposed on them to wear the leaf garment
in worshipping the goddess, it is said that a young married woman,
being without children, made a vow to the goddess that, on obtaining
a son, she would go on a pilgrimage to Periyapalayam, and worship her
in accordance with the ancient rite. Her prayer having been answered,
she gave birth to a son, and went to Periyapalayam to fulfil her
vow. When, however, it was time to undress and put on the vepansilai,
her modesty revolted. Unobserved by her party, she secretly tied a
cloth round her waist before putting on the vepansilai. So attired,
she went to the temple to worship. On seeing her coming, the goddess
detected her deceit, and, waxing wroth, set the woman's dress all
ablaze, and burnt her so severely that she died."
It is noted by Bishop Whitehead [182] that it was formerly the
custom for women to come to the shrine of Durgamma at Bellary clad in
twigs of the margosa tree. But this is now only done by children, the
grown-up women putting the margosa twigs over a cloth wrapped round the
loins. At a festival of the village goddess at Kudligi in the Bellary
district, the procession is said by Mr F. Fawcett to be headed by a
Madiga (Telugu Pariah) naked save for a few margosa leaves. The wearing
of these leaves on the occasion of festivals in honour of Mariamma is a
very general custom throughout Southern India. Garments made of leaves
are still worn by the females of some tribes on the west coast, e.g.,
the Thanda Pulayans, Vettuvans, and Koragas. Concerning the Koragas,
Mr Walhouse writes [183] that they "wear an apron of twigs and leaves
over the buttocks. Once this was the only covering allowed them, and
a mark of their deep degradation. But now, when no longer compulsory,
and of no use, as it is worn over the clothes, the women still retain
it, believing its disuse would be unlucky."
"Kuvvakkam in the South Arcot district is known for its festival
to Aravan (more correctly Iravan) or Kuttandar, which is one of
the most popular feasts with Sudras in the whole district. Aravan
was the son of Arjuna, one of the five Pandava brothers. Local
traditions says that, when the great war which is described in the
Mahabharata was about to begin, the Kauravas, the opponents of the
Pandavas, to bring them success, sacrificed a white elephant. The
Pandavas were in despair of being able to find any such uncommon
object with which to propitiate the gods, until Arjuna suggested
that they should offer up his son Aravan. Aravan agreed to yield
his life for the good of the cause, and, when eventually the
Pandavas were victorious, he was deified for the self-abnegation
which had thus brought his side success. Since he died in his
youth, before he had been married, it is held to please him if men,
even though grown up and already wedded, come now and offer to
espouse him, and men who are afflicted with serious diseases take
a vow to marry him at his annual festival in the hope of thereby
being cured. The festival occurs in May, and for eighteen nights
the Mahabharata is recited by a Palli (Tamil agriculturist), [184]
large numbers of people, especially of that caste, assembling to
hear it read. On the eighteenth night, a wooden image of Kuttandar
is taken to a tope (grove) and seated there. This is the signal
for the sacrifice of an enormous number of fowls. Every one who
comes brings one or two, and the number killed runs literally into
thousands. While this is going on, all the men who have taken vows
to be married to the deity appear before his image dressed like
women, make obeisance, offer to the priest (who is a Palli by
caste) a few annas, and give into his hands the talis (marriage
badge worn by women) which they have brought with them. These
the priest, as representing the God, ties round their necks. The
God is brought back to his shrine that night, and, when in front
of the building, he is hidden by a cloth held before him. This
symbolises the sacrifice of Aravan, and the men who have just
been married to him set up loud lamentations at the death of
their husband. Similar vows are taken and ceremonies performed,
it is said, at the shrines of Kuttandar, two miles north-west
of Porto Novo, and Adivarahanattum (five miles north-west of
Chidambaram), and, in recent years, at Tiruvarkkulam (one mile
east of the latter place); other cases probably occur." [185]
I am informed by Mr R. F. Stoney that, in the Madura district, iron
chains are hung on babul (Acacia arabica) trees, and dedicated to
the rustic deity Karuppan. At Melur Mr Stoney saw large masses of
such chains, which are made by the village blacksmiths. They are very
rough, and are furnished at one end with what is said to be a sickle,
and also a spear-head. I gather further [186] that, in the Melur taluk,
the shrine of Karuppan may usually be known by the hundreds of chains
hung outside it, which have been presented to the god in performance of
vows. The deity is said to be fond of bedecking himself with chains,
and these offerings are usually suspended from a kind of horizontal
bar made of two stone uprights supporting a slab of stone placed
horizontally upon the top of them. The god is also fond of presents
of clubs and swords.
"Sometimes," a recent writer states, "a big chain hangs suspended
from a tree, and the village panchayats (tribunals) are held in
the Aiyanar (or Sangali Karuppan) temple. The accused is made to
submit to an ordeal in proof of innocence. The ordeal consists in
his swearing on the chain, which he is made to touch. He has such
a dread of this procedure, that, as soon as he touches the chain,
he comes out with the truth, failure to speak the truth being
punished by some calamity, which he believes will overtake him
within a week. These chains are also suspended to the trees near
the temples of village goddesses, and used by village panchayats
to swear the accused in any trial before them."
It is narrated [187] by Moor that he "passed a tree, on which were
hanging several hundred bells. This was a superstitious sacrifice
by the Bandjanahs, [188] who, passing this tree, are in the habit
of hanging a bell or bells upon it, which they take from the necks
of their sick cattle, expecting to leave behind them the complaint
also. Our servants particularly cautioned us against touching these
diabolical bells; but, as a few were taken for our own cattle, several
accidents that happened were imputed to the anger of the deity to
whom these offerings were made, who, they say, inflicts the same
disorder on the unhappy bullock who carries a bell from this tree as
he relieved the donor from."
At Diguvemetta in the Kurnool district, I came across a number of
bells, both large and small, tied to the branches of a tamarind tree,
beneath which were an image of the deity Malalamma, and a stone bull
(Nandi). Suspended from a branch of the same tree was a thick rope,
to which were attached heads, skulls, mandibles, thigh-bones, and
feet of fowls, and the foot of a goat.
Mr Fawcett once saw, at a Savara village in Ganjam, a gaily ornamented
hut near a burning-ground. Rude figures of birds and red rags were
tied to five bamboos, which were sticking up in the air about eight
feet above the hut, one at each corner, and one in the centre. A
Savara said that he built the hut for his dead brother, and had
buried the bones in it. [189] It is noted by the Rev. J. Cain [190]
that, in some places, the Lambadis fasten rags torn from some old
garment to a bush in honour of Kampalamma (kampa, a thicket). On
the side of a road from Bastar are several large heaps of stones,
which they have piled up in honour of the goddess Guttalamma. Every
Lambadi who passes the heaps is bound to place one stone on the heap,
and make a salaam to it. It is further recorded by Mr Walhouse [191]
that, when going from the Coimbatore plains to the Mysore frontier,
he saw a thorn-bush rising out of a heap of stones piled round it, and
bearing bits of rag tied to its branches by Lambadis. In the Telugu
country, rags are offered to a god named Pathalayya (Mr Rags). On
the trunk-roads in the Nellore district, rags may be seen hanging
from the babul (Acacia arabica) trees. These are offerings made to
Pathalayya by travellers, who tear off pieces of their clothing with
a vague idea that the offering thereof will render their journey
free from accidents, such as upsetting of their carts, or meeting
with robbers. Outside the temple of the village goddess at Ojini in
the Bellary district, Mr Fawcett tells us, [192] "are hung numbers
of miniature cradles and bangles presented by women who have borne
children, or been cured of sickness through the intervention of the
goddess. Miniature cows are presented by persons whose cows have been
cured of sickness, and doll-like figures for children. One swami (god)
there is, known by a tree hung with iron chains, hooks--anything iron;
another by rags, and so on. The ingenious dhobi (washerman), whose
function is to provide torches on occasions, sometimes practises
on the credulity of his countrymen by tying a few rags to a tree,
which by and by is covered with rags, for the passers-by are not so
stiff-necked as to ask for a sign other than a rag; and under cover
of the darkness, the dhobi makes his torch of the offerings."
On the road to the temple at Tirumala (Upper Tirupati) in the
North Arcot district, the goddess Gauthala Gangamma has her abode
in a margosa or avaram (Cassia auriculata) tree, surrounded by a
white-ant hill. Passers-by tear off a piece of their clothing, and
tie it to the branches, and place a small stone at the base of the
ant-hill. Occasionally cooked rice is offered, fowls are sacrificed,
and their heads and legs tied to the tree. In the Madura district,
bits of rag are hung on the trees in which a deity named Sattan
is believed to reside. [193] It is noted by Mr W. Francis [194]
that, "in some places in the South Arcot district, for example,
on the feeder road to the Olakkur station in Tindivanam taluk and
near the eighth mile of the road from Kallakurchi to Vriddhachalam,
are trees on which passers-by have hung bits of rag, until they are
quite covered with them. The latter of the two cases had its origin
only a few years back in the construction by some shepherd boys of a
toy temple to Ganesa formed of a few stones under the tree, to draw
attention to which they hung up a rag or two. The tree is now quite
covered with bits of cloth, and beneath it is a large pile of stones,
which have been added one by one by the superstitious passers-by."
It is recorded by the Abbe Dubois [195] that "at Palni, in Madura,
there is a famous temple consecrated to the god Velayuda, whose
devotees bring offerings of a peculiar kind, namely large sandals,
beautifully ornamented, and similar in shape to those worn by the
Hindus on their feet. The god is addicted to hunting, and these shoes
are intended for his use when he traverses the jungles and deserts in
pursuit of his favourite sport. Such shabby gifts, one might think,
would go very little way towards filling the coffers of the priests of
Velayuda. Nothing of the sort: Brahmins always know how to reap profit
from anything. Accordingly the new sandals are rubbed on the ground
and rolled a little in the dust, and are then exposed to the eyes of
the pilgrims who visit the temple. It is clear enough that the sandals
must have been worn on the divine feet of Velayuda; and they become
the property of whosoever pays the highest price for such holy relics."
Mr Walhouse informs us [196] that the champak and other trees round
the ancient shrine of the Trimurti at the foot of the Anaimalai
mountains are thickly hung with sandals and shoes, many of huge
size, evidently made for the purpose, and suspended by pilgrims
as votive offerings. The god of the temple at Tirumala is said to
appear annually to four persons in different directions, east, west,
south and north, and informs them that he requires a shoe from each
of them. They whitewash their houses, worship the god, and spread
rice-flour thickly on the floor of a room, which is locked for the
night. Next morning the mark of a huge foot is found on the floor,
and the shoe has to be made to fit this. When ready, it is taken in
procession through the streets of the village, conveyed to Tirumala,
and presented to the temple. Though the makers of the shoes have worked
in ignorance of each others' work, the shoes brought from the north
and south, and those from the east and west, are believed to match and
make a pair. Though the worship of these shoes is chiefly meant for
Paraiyans, who are prohibited from ascending the Tirupati hill, as a
matter of fact all, without distinction of caste, worship them. The
shoes are placed in front of the image of the god near the foot of
the hill, and are said to gradually wear away by the end of the year.
"At Belur in the Mysore Province," Mr Lewis Rice writes, [197] "the
god of the temple is under the necessity of making an occasional
trip to the Baba Budan hills to visit the goddess. On these
occasions he is said to make use of a large pair of slippers kept
for the purpose in the temple. When they are worn out, it devolves
upon the chucklers (leather-workers) of Channagiri and Bisvapatna,
to whom the fact is revealed in a dream, to provide new ones."
In order to present the slippers, they are allowed to enter the
courtyard of the temple.
On the way leading up to the temple at Tirumala, small stones heaped
up in the form of a hearth, and knots tied in the leaves of young
date-palms may be seen. These are the work of virgins who accompany
the parties of pilgrims. The knots are tied to ensure the tying of the
marriage tali string on their necks, and the heaping up of the stones
is done with a view to ensuring the birth of children to them. If
the girls revisit the hill after marriage and the birth of offspring,
they untie the knot on a leaf, and disarrange one of the hearths. Men
cause their name to be cut on rocks by the wayside, or on the stones
with which the path leading to the temple is paved, in the belief that
good luck will result if their name is trodden on by some pious man.
At Tirupati, a number of Balijas are engaged in the red sanders
(Pterocarpus santalinus) wood-carving industry. Figures of deities,
mythological figures, miniature temple cars, and domestic utensils,
are among the articles turned out by them. Vessels made of red
sanders wood carry no pollution, and can be used by women during the
menstrual period, and taken back to the house without any purification
ceremony. For the same reason, Sanyasis (ascetics) use such vessels
for performing worship. The carved figures are sold to pilgrims and
others who visit Tirupati, and are also taken for sale to Conjeeveram,
Madura, and other places, at times when important temple festivals
are celebrated. Carved wooden figurines, male and female, represented
in a state of nudity, are also manufactured at Tirupati, and sold
to Hindus. Those who are childless perform on them the ear-boring
ceremony, in the belief that, as the result thereof, issue will be
born to them. Or, if there are grown-up boys or girls in a family,
who remain unmarried, the parents celebrate the marriage ceremony
between a pair of figurines, in the hope that the marriage of their
children will speedily follow. They dress up the dolls in clothes
and jewelry, and go through the ceremonial of a real marriage. Some
there are who have spent as much money on a doll's wedding as on a
wedding in real life.
The simplest form of offerings consists of fruits, such as plantains
and cocoanuts. Without an offering of fruit no orthodox Hindu
would think of entering a temple, or coming into the presence of a
Native of position. The procession of servants and retainers, each
bringing a gift of a lime fruit, on New Year's Day is familiar to
Anglo-Indians. By the rules of Government, framed with a view to
preventing bribery, the prohibition of the receipt of presents from
Native Chiefs and others does not extend to the receipt of a few
flowers or fruits, and articles of inappreciable value, although even
such trifling presents should be discouraged.
As a thanksgiving for recovery from illness, votive offerings
frequently take the form of silver or gold representations of the
part of the body affected, which are deposited in a vessel kept for
the purpose at the temple. They are kept for sale in the vicinity of
the temple, and must be offered by the person who has taken the vow,
or on whose behalf it has been taken. When a person has been ill all
over, a silver human figure, or a thin silver wire of the same length
as himself, and representing him, is sometimes offered.
Of silver offerings from temples in the Tamil country, the Madras
Museum possesses an extensive collection, in which are included the
face, hands, feet, buttocks, tongue, larynx, navel, nose, ears,
eyes, breasts, genitalia, etc.; snakes offered to propitiate the
anger of serpents, snakes coiled in coitu, sandals, flags, umbrellas,
and cocoanuts strung on a pole.
When litigation arises in Malabar in connection with the title
to a house and compound (grounds) in which it stands, a vow is
sometimes made to offer a silver model representing the property,
if a favourable decree is obtained. Some time ago, a rich landlord
offered at the temple a silver model representing the exact number
of trees, house, well, etc., and costing several hundreds of rupees,
when a suit was decided in his favour.
In connection with the temple at Guruvayur in Malabar, Mr Fawcett
writes as follows [198]:--
"I visited the festival on one occasion, and purchase was made of
a few offerings such as are made to the temple in satisfaction
of vows--a very rude representation of an infant in silver, a
hand, a leg, an ulcer, a pair of eyes, and, most curious of all,
a silver string which represents a man, the giver. Goldsmiths
working in silver and gold are to be seen just outside the gate
of the temple, ready to provide at a moment's notice the object
that any person intends to offer, in case he is not already in
possession of his votive offering."
A Nayar examined by Mr Fawcett was wearing a silver ring as a vow,
which was to be given up at the next festival at Kottiur in North
Malabar. Another was wearing a silver bangle. He had a wound in his
arm which was long in healing, so he made a vow to the god at Tirupati
(Tirumala) that, if his arm was healed, he would give up the bangle
at the temple.
A few years ago, a shrine was erected at Cochin for a picture of the
Virgin and Child, which attained to great celebrity for its power of
working miracles. "Many stories," Mr Fawcett writes, [199] "of the
power of the picture are current. A fisherman, who had lost his nets,
vowed to give a little net, if they were found. The votive offerings,
which are sometimes of copper or brass, take strange forms. There are
fishes, prawns, rice, cocoanut trees, cows, etc. A little silver model
of a bridge was given by a contractor, who vowed, when he found his
foundations were shaky, to give it if his work should pass muster. The
power of the picture is such that the votaries are not confined to the
Christian community. There are among them many Hindus and Mahomedans."
In South Canara, silver rats and pigs are offered to protect the crops
from destruction by these animals. Silver rice-grains are offered when
children do not take their food properly, and silver sheaves of grain
if the crop is abundant. At Pyka, brass or clay figures of the tiger,
leopard, elephant, wild boar, and bandicoot rat, are presented at the
shrine of a female bhutha [200] named Poomanikunhoomani, to protect the
crops and cattle from the ravages of these animals. The figures must
be solid, as the bhuthas would be very angry if they were hollow. A
brass figure of Sarabha, a mythological eight-legged animal, which is
supposed to be the vehicle of the god Virabhadra, is presented as an
offering to some Siva temples in South Canara in cases where a person
is attacked with a form of ulcer known as Siva's ulcer. Sometimes a
silver lizard is offered at temples, to counteract the evils which
would result from a lizard falling on some unlucky part of the body,
such as the kudumi (hair knot) of a female. The lizard, associated with
the name of Siva, is regarded as sacred. It is never intentionally
killed, and, if accidentally hurt or killed, an image of it in gold
or silver is presented by high caste Hindus to a Siva temple. [201]
In Malabar, a Brahman magician transfers the spirits of those who have
died an unnatural death to images made of gold, silver, or wood, which
are placed in a temple or special building erected for them. It is said
by Mr F. Fawcett, "to be a sacred duty to a deceased Tiyan in Malabar,
who was of importance, for example, the head of a family, to have a
silver image of him made, and arrange for it being deposited in some
temple, where it will receive its share of worship, and offerings of
food and water. The temples at Tirunelli in Wynad and Tirunavayi, which
are among the oldest in Malabar, were generally the resting-places
of these images, but now some of the well-to-do deposit them much
further afield, even at Benares and Ramesvaram. A silver image is
presented to the local Siva temple, where, for a consideration,
worship is done every new moon day. On each of these days, mantrams
are supposed to be repeated a thousand times. When the image has been
the object of these mantrams sixteen thousand times, it is supposed
to have become eligible for final deposit at Tirunavayi or elsewhere."
If a Muhammadan suffers from severe pain in the hand or foot, a vow
is sometimes taken to the effect that a silver hand or foot will be
taken to the grave of some saint, and put into the treasury which
is kept there to meet the expenses of the annual ceremonies of the
saint. At Vizagapatam [202] there is a celebrated Muhammadan saint,
who lies buried by the Durga on the top of the hill overlooking the
harbour. He is considered to be all potent over the elements of the
Bay of Bengal, and many a silver dhoni (native boat) is presented at
his shrine by Hindu ship-owners after a successful voyage. A suit
once arose between a Komati boat-owner and his Muhammadan captain
during settlement of the accounts. The captain stated that, during a
storm off the coast of Arakan, he had vowed a purse of rupees to the
saint, and had duly presented it on his return. This sum he charged to
the owner of the vessel, whose sole contention was that the vow had
never been discharged; the propriety of conciliating the saint in a
hurricane he allowed. At Timmancherla in the Anantapur district there
is a tomb of a holy Muhammadan named Masthan Ali, in whose honour a
religious ceremony is held annually in April, which is attended by
both Muhammadans and Hindus. The latter make vows at the tomb, which
has a special reputation for granting offspring to the childless. The
headman of the village, who is a Hindu, brings the first offerings
in procession with much ceremony. [203]
At the annual festival at the temple at Nedamangad in Travancore, which
is attended by large numbers of the lower classes, the worshippers are
said by the Rev. S. Mateer [204] to "bring with them wooden models of
cows covered, in imitation of shaggy hair, with ears of rice. Many of
these images are brought, each in a separate procession from its own
place. The headmen are finely dressed with cloths stained purple at
the edge. The image is borne on a bamboo frame, accompanied by a drum,"
and carried round the temple. The Gudigars (wood-carvers) at Udipi in
South Canara make life-size wooden buffaloes and large human figures as
votive offerings for the Iswara Temple at Hiriadkap, where they are set
up in a row. By the Savaras of Vizagapatam, rudely carved and grotesque
wooden representations of human beings, monkeys, lizards, parrots,
peacocks, guns, pickaxes, daggers, etc., are dedicated to the tribal
deity. They would not sell them to the district officer who acquired
them on my behalf, but parted with them on the understanding that
they would be worshipped by the Sirkar (Government). In like manner,
the fishermen of the Ganjam coast objected to specimens of the gods
which are placed in little shrines on the sea-shore being sent to me,
till they were told that it was because the Government had heard of
their devotion to their gods that they wanted to have some of them
in Madras. The gods, which are made in clay and wood, include Bengali
Babu riding on a black horse, who is believed to bless the fishermen,
secure large hauls of fish for them, and protect them against danger
when out fishing. It has been observed that this affinity between the
Ganjam fishermen and the Bengali Babu, resulting in the apotheosis
of the latter, is certainly a striking example of the catholicity
of hero-worship, and it would be interesting to know how long, and
for what reasons the conception of protection has appealed to the
followers of the piscatory industry. It was Sir George Campbell, the
Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal, who compelled his Bengali officials,
much against their inclination, to cultivate the art of equitation.
I am informed by Mr G. V. Ramamurthi Pantulu that the Savaras attend
the markets or fairs held in the plains, or at the foot of the ghats,
to purchase salt and other articles. If a Savara is taken ill at
the market or on his return thence, he attributes the illness to a
spirit of the market called Biradi Sonum. The bulls which carry the
goods of the Hindu merchants to the market are supposed to convey the
spirit. In propitiating it, the Savara makes an image of a bull in
straw, and, taking it out of his village, leaves it on the footpath,
after a pig has been sacrificed. Owners of cattle take the animals
when sick round the sacred hill at Tirukazhukunram in performance of
a vow, in the belief that their health will be thus restored.
"A Brahmini bull," Mr A. Srinivasan writes, "is dedicated to the
god Venkateswara of Tirupati, for the benefit of the living in
fulfilment of vows. The act of dedication and release is preceded
by elaborate rituals of marriage, as among men and women. The
bride, which should be a heifer that has not calved, is furnished
by the father-in-law of the donor. The heifer is united in holy
wedlock to the bullock, after formal chanting of mantrams, by the
tying of the tali and toe-rings to the neck. In this sham marriage,
the profuse ornamentation of the couple with saffron (turmeric) and
red powder, the pouring of rice on their heads, and a procession
through the streets with music, are conspicuous features."
I am told that, if the devotee cannot afford a live animal, a mimic
representative is made in rice.
Painted hollow images are made by special families of Kusavans
(potters) known as pujari (priest), who, for the privilege of making
them, have to pay an annual fee to the headman, who spends it on
a festival at the caste temple. When a married couple are anxious
to have female offspring, they take a vow to offer figures of the
seven virgins (Saptha Kannimar), who are represented all seated
in a row. If a male or female recovers from cholera, smallpox, or
other severe illness, a figure of the corresponding sex is offered. A
childless woman makes a vow to offer up the figure of a baby, if she
brings forth offspring. Figures of animals--cattle, horses, sheep,
etc.--are offered at the temple when they recover from sickness,
or are recovered after they have been stolen. Horses made of clay,
painted red and other colours, are set up in the fields to drive
away demons, or as a thank-offering for recovery from sickness, or
any piece of good luck. The villagers erect these horses in honour
of the popular deity Ayanar, the guardian deity of the fields, who
is a renowned huntsman, and is believed, when, with his wives Purna
and Pushkala, he visits the village at night, to mount the horses,
and ride down the demons. Ayanar is said [205] to be the special
deity of the Kusavan caste. Kusavans are generally the pujaris at his
temples, and they make the earthenware, and brick and mortar horses
and images, which are placed before these buildings. The pupils of
the eyes of the various images are not painted in till they are taken
to the temple, where offerings of fruit, etc., are first made. Even
the pupils of a series of images which were specially made for
me were not painted at the potter's house, but in the verandah of
the traveller's bungalow where I was staying. A very interesting
account of the netra mangalya, or ceremony of painting the eyes
of images, as performed by craftsmen in Ceylon, has been published
by Mr A. K. Coomaraswamy. [206] Therein he writes that "by far the
most important ceremony connected with the building and decoration
of a vihara (temple), or with its renovation, was the actual netra
mangalya or eye ceremonial. The ceremony had to be performed in
the case of any image, whether set up in a vihara or not. Even in
the case of flat paintings it was necessary. D. S. Muhandiram, when
making for me a book of drawings of gods according to the Rupavaliya,
left the eyes to be subsequently inserted on an auspicious occasion,
with some simpler form of the ceremony described."