Volume 2 / Part 2 — Chitāri
Reading edition
List of Paragraphs
1. Origin and traditions.
2. Social customs.
3. Birth and childhood.
4. The evil eye.
5. Cradle-songs.
6. Occupation.
1. Origin and traditions.
2. Social customs.
The caste is a mixed occupational group, and those of Marātha, Telugu and Hindustāni extraction marry among themselves. A few wear the sacred thread, and abstain from eating flesh or drinking liquor, while the bulk of them do not observe these restrictions.
Among the Jīngars women accompany the marriage procession, but not with the Chitāris.
Widow-marriage is allowed, but among the Mahārānas a wife who has lived with her husband may not marry any one except his younger brother, and if there are none she must remain a widow. In Mandla, if a widow marries her younger brother-in-law, half her first husband’s property goes to him finally, and half to the first husband’s children. If she marries an outsider she takes her first husband’s property and children with her. Formerly if a wife misbehaved the Chitāri sometimes sold her to the highest bidder, but this custom has fallen into abeyance, and now if a man divorces his wife her father usually repays to him the expenses of his marriage. These he realises in turn from any man who takes his daughter. A second wife worships the spirit of the dead first wife on the day of Akhātij, offering some food and a breast-cloth, so that the spirit may not trouble her.
3. Birth and childhood.
A pregnant woman must stay indoors during an eclipse; if she goes out and sees it they believe that her child will be born deformed. They think that a woman in this condition must be given any food which she takes a fancy for, so far as may be practicable, as to thwart her desires would affect the health of the child. Women in this condition sometimes have a craving for eating earth; then they will eat either the scrapings or whitewash from the walls, or black clay soil, or the ashes of cowdung cakes to the extent of a small handful a day. A woman’s first child should be born in her father-in-law’s or husband’s house if possible, but at any rate not in her father’s house. And if she should be taken with the pangs of travail while on a visit to her own family, they will send her to some other house for her child to be born. The ears of boys and the ears and nostrils of girls are pierced, and until this is done they are not considered to be proper members of the caste and can take food from any one’s hand. The Chitāris of Mandla permit a boy to do this until he is married. A child’s hair is not shaved when it is born, but this should be done once before it is three years old, whether it be a boy or girl. After this the hair may be allowed to grow, and shaved off or simply cut as they prefer. Except in the case of illness a girl’s hair is only shaved once, and that of an adult woman is never cut, unless she becomes a widow and makes a pilgrimage to a sacred place, when it is shaved off as an offering.
4. The evil eye.
In order to avert the evil eye they hang round a child’s neck a nut called bajar-battu, the shell of which they say will crack and open if any one casts the evil eye on the child. If it is placed in milk the two parts will come together again. They also think that the nut attracts the evil eye and absorbs its effect, and the child is therefore not injured. If they think that some one has cast the evil eye on a child, they say a charm, ‘Ishwar, Gauri, Pārvati ke ān nazar dur ho jao,’ or ‘Depart, Evil Eye, in the name of Mahādeo and Pārvati,’ and as they say this they blow on the child three times; or they take some salt, chillies and mustard in their hand and wave it round the child’s head and say, ‘Telin kī lāgi ho, Tamolin kī lāgi ho, Marārin kī ho, Gorania (Gondin) kī ho, oke, oke, parparāke phut jāwe,’ ‘If it be a Telin, Tambolin, Marārin or Gondin who has cast the evil eye, may her eyes crack and fall out.’ And at the same time they throw the mustard, chillies and salt on the fire so that the eyes of her who cast the evil eye may crack and fall out as these things crackle in the fire.
If tiger’s claws are used for an amulet, the points must be turned outwards. If any one intends to wish luck to a child, he says, ‘Tori balayān leun,’ and waves his hands round the child’s head several times to signify that he takes upon himself all the misfortunes which are to happen to the child. Then he presses the knuckles of his hands against the sides of his own head till they crack, which is a lucky omen, averting calamity. If the knuckles do not crack at the first attempt, it is repeated two or three times. When a man sneezes he will say ‘Chatrapati,’ which is considered to be a name of Devi, but is only used on this occasion. But some say nothing. After yawning they snap their fingers, the object of which, they say, is to drive away sleep, as otherwise the desire will become infectious and attack others present. But if a child yawns they sometimes hold one of their hands in front of his mouth, and it is probable that the original meaning of the custom was to prevent evil spirits from entering through the widely opened mouth, or the yawner’s own soul or spirit from escaping; and the habit of holding the hand before the mouth from politeness when yawning inadvertently may be a reminiscence of this.
5. Cradle-songs.
The following are some cradle-songs taken down from a Chitrakār, but probably used by most of the lower Hindu castes:
1. Mother, rock the cradle of your pretty child. What is the cradle made of, and what are its tassels made of?
The cradle is made of sandalwood, its tassels are of silk.
Some Gaolin (milkwoman) has overlooked the child, he vomits up his milk.
My baby is making little steps. O Sunār, bring him tinkling anklets!
The Sunār shall bring anklets for him, and my child will go to the garden and there we will eat oranges and lemons.
2. My Krishna’s tassel is lost, Tell me, some one, where it is. My child is angry and will not come into my arms.
He has bangles on his wrists and anklets on his feet, on his head a golden crown and round his waist a silver chain.
The jhumri or tassel referred to above is a tassel adorned with cowries and hung from the top of the cradle so that the child may keep his eyes on it while the cradle is being rocked.
The little mangoes are hanging on the tree; the rope is in the well; sleep thou till I go and come back with water.
I will hang your cradle on the banyan tree, and its rope to the pīpal tree; I will rock my darling gently so that the rope shall never break.
The last song may be given in the vernacular as a specimen:
4. Rām kī Chireya, Rām ko khet. Khaori Chireya, bhar, bhar pet. Tan munaiyān khā lao khet, Agao, labra, gāli det; Kahe ko, labra, gāli de; Apni bhuntia gin, gin le.
or—
The field is Rāma’s, the little birds are Rāma’s; O birds, eat your fill; the little birds have eaten up the corn. The surly farmer has come to the field and scolds them; the little birds say, ‘O farmer, why do you scold us? count your ears of maize, they are all there.’
This song commemorates a favourite incident in the life of Tulsi Dās, the author of the Rāmāyana, who when he was a little boy was once sent by his guru to watch the crop. But after some time the guru came and found the field full of birds eating the corn and Tulsi Dās watching them. When asked why he did not scare them away, he said, ‘Are they not as much the creatures of Rāma as I am? how should I deprive them of food?’