Page:Castes and Tribes of Southern India, Volume 4.djvu/428

MALA placed in the middle at one side. The words repeated are in Tamil, and, roughly translated, are as follows: 'This is the mantram of Manar Nambi. This is the holy water of the sacred feet of ... . Nambi. This is the secret of holiness of the 108 sacred places. These are the means for obtaining heaven. They are for the saving of the sinner. This drawing is the seal of the saints. Countless sins have I committed; yet by thought on the saints is sin cleansed.' After the completion of the drawing, the officiating priest puts the holy mark of Vishnu on the foreheads of those who bring the vessels of cooked food. Then, to the east side of the drawing, he makes two little piles of millet. He then asks (in Tamil) for the pot containing the head, and for the toddy. The two bearers bring the pots, keeping exactly together, and, as they reach the Nambi, each must exchange places with the other. The priest then inscribes on one pot the wheel (chakra), and on the other the conch shell, these being the sacred symbols of Vishnu. Before doing so, he wets the leaves of the tulasi plant (Ocimum sanctum) in a rice plate, and places them in a brass vessel containing holy water by his side. Then, with the conch shell which he carries, he pours some of the holy water into each pot, afterwards placing the pots upon the heaps of millet. Next, a leaf plate is placed in the middle of the drawing. Upon it is placed some of each variety of food cooked, along with milk and ghī. Over all, another plate is placed as a cover. During this time, so that no one may see the ceremony, a sheet or blanket is held up before the Nambi as a screen. He then takes two little sticks with cotton-wool in a notch at the end, and puts them to steep in castor-oil. Whilst they are steeping, he takes a cocoanut, and, after breaking it, pours the