Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 23, 1912.djvu/52

38 upon, a bow is at once made to the ancestors and to Wulligan and Kuttichâthan, promising the sacrifice of a cock and offerings of other food when all has concluded satisfactorily, [Wulligan, a Malabar "devil," is accused of causing pains to men and women, pressing their necks while sleeping, and calling out and frightening people,—all for the fun of the thing,—while Kuttichâthan, an exceedingly mischievous spirit, sets fire to thatched houses and straw ricks, and is specially annoying to small boys.] The Muppans believe that these two unpleasant beings lord it as gods over their ancestors. So familiar are they in Malabar that anyone will tell you what they look like, even to the length of their hair. Most fearsome to look upon, it is, indeed, mainly by their hair that one is distinguished from the other, for they do not observe the same fashion, one dressing his in a curious crown arrangement some five cubits above his head, while the other adopts a style resembling the Prince of Wales' feathers, the centre pinnacle reaching to 20 cubits in height. These weird spirits, to whom are imputed almost every possible kind of personal calamity which cannot be accounted for at once and obviously throughout the low country, the littoral in Malabar, are the gods of the Muppans' ancestors. It is to be noted that neither the ancestors nor their gods are ever consulted as to whether the particular offence in question deserves punishment by death; they are simply invoked for help under promise of fresh blood and other food in case of success.

The best days for ôḍikal are Sundays, Tuesdays, and Fridays, the luckiest days. The man to be killed is watched, and opportunity is taken by the plotters, who are as a rule three to five in number, to come upon him while alone in the forest. He is brought to the ground by a well-aimed blunt arrow (Plate I.), striking him on the back of the head. This shot is easy of accomplishment, as the Muppans wear no turbans, but one directed