Chapter VIII · TOTEMISM AND FETISHISM.

The worship of totems, or Devaks, prevails among Hindus in Western India. The term Devak is applied to the deity or deities worshipped at the beginning of a thread or a marriage ceremony. The ceremony is as follows: A small quantity of rice is put into a winnowing fan, and with it six small sticks of the Umbar tree, each covered with mango leaves and cotton thread. These are worshipped as deities. Near the winnowing fan is kept an earthen or copper vessel filled with rice, turmeric, red powder, betelnuts, sweet balls made of wheat flour, ghi and sugar; and on the top of the vessel is a small sprig of mango and a cocoanut covered with cotton thread. This vessel is also worshipped as a deity, and offerings of sweet eatables are made to it. After the worship of this vessel, the regular ceremony of Punyáhavachana is performed. Twenty-seven Mátrikás, or village and local deities, represented by betelnuts are consecrated in a new winnowing fan or a bamboo basket. Seven Mátrikás are made of mango leaves, six of which contain durva grass, and the seventh darbha grass. Each of them is bound with a raw cotton thread separately. They are worshipped along with a Kalasha or a copper lota as mentioned above. This copper lota is filled with rice, betelnuts, turmeric, etc., a sprig of mango leaves is placed on the lota, and a cocoanut is put over it. The lota is also bound with a cotton thread. Sandalpaste, rice, flowers, and durva grass are required for its worship. An oil lamp called Arati is waved round the devak, the parents, and the boy or the girl whose thread or marriage ceremony is to be performed. A Suwásini is called and requested to wave this Arati, and the silver coin which is put into the Arati by the parents is taken by her. The father takes the winnowing fan and the mother takes the Kalasha, and they are carried from the mandap to the devak consecrated in the house. A lighted lamp is kept continually burning near this devak till the completion of the ceremony. After completion of the thread or marriage ceremony the devak is again worshipped, and the ceremony comes to an end. The deity in the devak is requested to depart on the second or the fourth day from the date of its consecration. No mourning is observed during the period the devak remains installed in the house.

There are some people among the Hindus in Western India whose surnames are derived from the names of animals and plants, such as Boke, Lándage, Wágh, Dukre, Káwale, Garud, More, Mhase, Rede, Keer, Popat, Ghode, Shelár, Gáyatonde, Wághmáre, Shálunke, Bhende, Padwal, Wálke, Apte, Ambekar, Pimpalkhare, Kelkar and Kálke.

The Hindus believe that a cow, a horse, and an elephant are sacred animals. The cow is treated with special respect by the Hindus in general, and the bull by the Lingáyats and oilmen. The milk, the urine, and the dung of a cow are used as medicines, and they are also given as offerings to the god in sacrifices.

Hindus do not eat the flesh of the animal respected by them, and those who offer any fruit to their guru as a token of respect do not eat that fruit in future. Some Hindus do not eat onions, garlic and the fruit of a palm tree. The fruit of a tree believed to be the devak of a family is not eaten by the members of that family.

The horse is connected with the worship of the god Khandoba because this animal is sacred to that deity, being his favourite vehicle. For this reason all the devotees or Bhaktas of Khandoba take care to worship the horse in order that its master, the god Khandoba, may be pleased with them.

It is well known that the cow is considered as most sacred of all the animals by the Hindus, and the reason assigned for this special veneration is that all the deities dwell in the cow.

The Nandi, or a bullock made of stone, consecrated in front of the temple of Shiva, the Vágh or a tiger at the temple of a goddess and cows and dogs in the temple of Dattátraya are worshipped by the Hindus.

The mouse, being the vehicle of Ganpati the god of wisdom, is worshipped by the people along with that god.

In the Konkan cattle are worshipped by the Hindus on the first day of Kártika, and they are made to pass over fire.

The mountains having caves and temples of deities are generally worshipped by the Hindus. The Abucha Pahád, the Girnár, the Panchmadhi, the Brahmagiri, the Sahyádri, the Tungár, the Jivadancha dongar, the Munja dongar at Junnar, the Tugábáicha dongar, the Ganesh Lene, and the Shivabai are the principal holy mountains in the Bombay Presidency.

Mount Abu, known as the Abucha Pahád, is believed to be very sacred, and many Hindus go on a pilgrimage to that mountain.

Hills are worshipped at Ganpati Pule and Chaul. At Pule there is a temple of the god Ganpati, the son of Shiva, and at Chaul in the Kolába District there is a temple of the god Dattátraya.

The place which produces sound when water is poured over it is considered to be holy, and is worshipped by the people.

Stones of certain kinds are first considered as one of the deities, or as one of the chief heroes in the family, and then worshipped by the people. Many such stones are found worshipped in the vicinity of any temple.

The red stones found in the Narmada river represent the god Ganpati, and are worshipped by the people.

No instances of human sacrifices occur in India in these days, but there are many practices and customs which appear to be the survivals of human sacrifices. These survivals are visible in the offerings of fowls, goats, buffaloes, and fruits like cocoanuts, brinjals, the Kohále or pumpkin gourd and others.

Human sacrifices are not practised in these days, but among the Karháda Bráhmans there is a practice of giving poison to animals in order to satisfy their family deity. It is said that they used to kill a Bráhman by giving him poisoned food.

It is believed that the people belonging to the caste of Karháda Bráhmans used to offer human sacrifices to their deity, and therefore nobody relies on a Karháda Bráhman in these days. There is a proverb in Maráthi which means that a man can trust even a Kasái or a butcher but not a Karháda.

In the Bombay Presidency, and more especially in the Konkan districts, fetish stones are generally worshipped for the purpose of averting evil and curing diseases. In every village stones are found sacred to spirit deities like Bahiroba, Chedoba, Khandoba, Mhasoba, Zoting, Vetál, Jakhái, Kokái, Kalkái and others. The low class people such as Mahárs, Mángs, etc., apply red lead and oil to stones, and call them by one of the above names, and ignorant people are very much afraid of such deities. They believe that such deities have control over all the evil spirits or ghosts. It is said that the spirit Vetál starts to take a round in a village on the night of the no-moon day of every month, accompanied by all the ghosts. When any epidemic prevails in a village, people offer to these fetish stones offerings of eatables, cocoanuts, fowls and goats.

The Hindus generally consider as sacred all objects that are the means of their livelihood, and, for this reason, the oilmen worship their oil-mill, the Bráhmans hold in veneration the sacred thread—Yadnopavit,—and religious books, the goldsmiths consider their firepots as sacred, and do not touch them with their feet. In case any one accidently happens to touch them with his foot, he apologises and bows to them.

It is believed by the Hindus that the broom, the winnowing fan, the páyali—a measure of four shers—the Samai or sweet-oil lamp, a metal vessel, fire and Sahán or the levigating slab should not be touched with foot.

The metals gold, silver, and copper, the King’s coins, jewels and pearls, corns, the Sháligrám stone, the Ganpati stone from the Narmada river, conch-shell, sacred ashes, elephant tusks, the horns of a wild ox (Gava), tiger skin, deer skin, milk, curds, ghi, cow’s urine, Bel, basil leaves or Tulsi, cocoanuts, betelnuts, and flowers are considered as sacred by the Hindus, and no one will dare to touch them with his foot.

Hindus worship annually on the Dasara day the arms and all the instruments or implements by which they earn their livelihood. The corn sieve, the winnowing basket, the broom, the rice-pounder, the plough, the Awuta or wood bill, and other such implements are worshipped on this day. The agriculturists respect their winnowing fans and corn sieves, and do not touch them with their feet.

A new winnowing fan is considered to be holy by the Hindus. It is filled with rice, fruits, cocoanuts and betelnuts, and a Khana—a piece of bodicecloth—is spread over it. It is then worshipped and given to a Bráhman lady in fulfilment of certain vows, or on the occasion of the worship of a Bráhman Dampatya or married pair.

The broom is considered to be holy by the Hindus. Red powder—Kunku—is applied to a new broom before it is taken into use. It should not be touched with the feet.

Fire is considered to be holy among the high class Hindus. It is considered as an angel that conveys the sacrificial offerings from this earth to the gods in heaven. It is considered as one of the Hindu deities, and worshipped daily by high class Hindus. A Bráhman has to worship the fire every day in connection with the ceremony Vaishwadeva—oblations of boiled rice and ghi given to the fire. It is also worshipped by the Hindus on special religious occasions.

Fire is worshipped at the time of Yadnas or Sacrifices. Sacrifices are of five kinds. They are:—

Among the lower classes fire is worshipped on the Mahálaya or Shráddha day. They throw oblations of food into the fire on that day.

The fire produced by rubbing sticks of the Pipal or Shevari tree is considered sacred, and it is essentially necessary that the sacred fire required for the Agnihotra rites should be produced in the manner described above.