Page:Castes and Tribes of Southern India, Volume 3.djvu/506

KORAVA Bantru, or robbers. The last Muhammadan prince who reigned over Mysore is said to have employed a regular battalion of these men in time of war, not for the purpose of fighting, but to infest the enemy's camp in the night, stealing away the horses and other necessaries of the officers, and acting as spies. They were awarded in proportion to the dexterity they displayed in these achievements, and, in time of peace, they were despatched into the various States of neighbouring princes, to rob for the benefit of their masters." It is possible that the Kaikadis of the Central Provinces are identical with Koravas, who have migrated thither. A section of Koravas, called Koot (dancing) or Kōthee (monkey) Kaikaries, is referred to by Mr. Paupa Rao Naidu as "obtaining their living by prostitution. They also kidnap or sell children for this purpose. Some of the women of this class are thriving well in the Madras Presidency as experts in dancing. They are kept by rich people, and are called in the Telugu country Erukala Bogamvaru, in Tamil Korava Thevidia. They also train monkeys, and show them to the public."

The household god of the Korava, which is as a rule very rudely carved, may be a representation of either Vishnu or Siva. As already noted, it is stated in the Census Report, 1901, that the Koravas worship Subrahmanya, the son of Siva, while the Yerukalas worship Vishnu in the form of Venkatēswara and his wife Lakshmi. They worship, in addition to these, Kolāpuriamma, Perumālaswāmi, and other appropriate deities, prior to proceeding on a depredatory expedition. Kolāpuriamma is the goddess of Kolhapūr, the chief town of the Native State of that name in the Bombay Presidency, who is famous in Southern India. Perumālswāmi, or Venkatēwara, is the god of Tirupati, the