Note 8 — G

The Perumāl Mādukkārans, or Perumāl Erudukkārans, both of which names indicate those who lead bulls about, are found chiefly in the Chingleput, North and South Arcot districts. “Every now and then,” Mr. S. M. Natesa Sastri writes,8 “throughout Madras, a man dressed up as a buffoon is to be seen leading about a bull, as fantastically got up as himself with cowries (Cypræa arabica shells) and rags of many colours, from door to door. The bull is called in Tamil Perumāl erudu, and in Telugu Ganga eddu, the former meaning Vishnu’s bull and the latter Ganga’s bull. The origin of the first is given in a legend, but that of the last is not clear. The conductors of these bulls are neatherds of high caste, called Pū Idaiyan, i.e., flower neatherds (see Idaiyan), and come from villages in the North and South Arcot districts. They are a simple and ignorant set, who firmly believe that their occupation arises out of a command from the great god Venkatāchalapati, the lord of the Venkatāchala near Tirupaddi (Tirupati) in the North Arcot district. Their legend is as follows. Among the habitual gifts to the Venkatāchala temple at Tirupaddi were all the freaks of nature of the neighbourhood as exhibited in cattle, such as two-tailed cows, five-legged bulls, four-horned calves, and so on. The Pū Idaiyans, whose original duty was to string flowers for the temple, were set to graze these abortions. Now to graze cows is an honour, but to tend such creatures as these the Pū Idaiyans regarded as a sin. So they prayed to Venkatāchalapati to show them how they could purge it away. On this, the god gave them a bull called after himself the Perumāl bull and said: ‘My sons, if you take as much care of this bull as you would of your own children, and lead it from house to house, begging its food, your sin will be washed away.’ Ever since then they have been purging themselves of their original sin. The process is this. The bull leader takes it from house to house, and puts it questions, and the animal shakes its head in reply. This is proof positive that it can reason. The fact is the animal is bought when young for a small sum, and brought up to its profession. Long practice has made its purchasers experts in selecting the animals that will suit them. After purchase the training commences, which consists in pinching the animal’s ears whenever it is given bran, and it soon learns to shake its head at the sight of bran. I need hardly say that a handful of bran is ready in its conductor’s hands when the questions are put to it. It is also taught to butt at any person that speaks angrily to it. As regards the offerings made to these people, one-sixth goes to feeding the bulls, and the remaining five-sixths to the conductors. They look upon it as ‘good work’, but the village boys and girls think it the greatest fun in the world to watch its performances, and the advent of a Vishnu’s bull is hailed by the youngsters with the greatest delight.”