Page:Castes and Tribes of Southern India, Volume 2.djvu/276

GADABA successful, they have their revenge upon the women in another way. The chief deities (though spoken: of generally under the term Dēvata or Mahāprabhu) are Ganga Dēvi or Tākurāni, Iswara or Mouli, Bhairava, and Jhankara. It is Iswara or Mouli who is worshipped at Chaitra. Jhankara is the god of land, rainfall and crops, and a cow is sacrificed to him. There are not, as a rule, temples, but the pūja (worship) place consists of a sacred grove surrounded with a circle of stones, which takes the name of Jhankara from the god to whom pūja is performed. Ganga Dēvi, Iswara and Mouli have temples at certain places, but as a rule there is no building, and the site of pūja is marked by trees and stones. To Iswara a she-buffalo is sacrificed at Chaitra. To the other Devatas cocks and goats are sacrificed. Ganga Dēvi or Tākurāni is the goddess of life and health, both of men and cattle; to her pigs, goats, and pigeons are sacrificed. There are one or two curious superstitions. If a member of the caste is supposed to be possessed of a devil, he or she is abused and beaten by other members of the caste until the devil is cast out. In some parts the superstition is that a piece of wild buffalo horn buried in the ground of the village will avert or cure cattle disease." Some-times a sāl or kōsangi tree is planted, and surrounded by a bamboo hedge. It is worshipped with animal sacrifices at harvest time, and the Kīrasāni acts as priest. "There is," Mr. G. F. Paddison writes, "rather a curious custom in connection with a village goddess. Close to her shrine a swing is kept. On this swing, once a year at the great village festival, thorns are placed, and the village priest or priestess sits on them without harm. If the pūjāri is a male, he has been made neuter. But, if the village is not fortunate enough