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MAHAMAYA: WOMB OF THE UNIVERSE

BY

Yoganand Sinha

A DISSERTATION

Submitted to
Michigan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Department of Anthropology

1995

 

ABSTRACT
MAHAMAYA, THE WOMB OF THE UNIVERSE
By

Yoganand Sinha

South Asian Ethnographers have assumed that the worship of the Hindu goddess
Shakti has existed on the margins of Indian society. It has been assumed that Shakti and
goddess worship is part of the “little traditions” of Hindu society. My research on the
Mathil community of North Bihar, India, however, shows that the goddess is part of the
“great tradition” of Hinduism and she is the dominant textual deity of this region.

The reason that her role within Hinduism has been misunderstood by
anthropologists has to do with the complex symbolism and rituals associated with her
worship. During the course of Durga puja (the most important ritual of this area) the
goddess reveals herself as the “deconstructive” deity, who is closely associated with both
ends of several key oppositions within the Mathil community (including, culture verses
nature, self verses other, and most importantly, the transcendent verses the everyday).

BY being on either end of an opposition, the goddess effectively collapses or

—

deconstructs such oppositions and presents herself as a powerful symbol of the
transcendent.

Yet because of her ability to deconstruct oppositions, the goddess is closely
associated with the everyday problems of existence, including the problems of personal
identity, which in this society is expressed in the idiom of spirit possession. Indigenous
healers (called ojhas) use the symbol of the goddess to re-negotiate the identities of
individuals experiencing a crisis of identity.

It is my contention that the goddess is able to end the deferment of identity
formation, postulated in the psychological theories of J. Lacan, by grounding the identity
of the possessed individual. Healing rituals, in this society, set up an intersubjective
dialogue between the patient and the goddess which helps to ground the identity of the
patient because they are formally being recognized by the goddess, who’s reality is

beyond question. In this way the ojha helps re-negotiate the social roles of the patient in

a manner that makes emotional sense to the patient.

 

Copyright by
Yoganand Sinha
1 995

This work is dedicated to the memory of my mother Tara,
who’ 8 spirit sustained me throughout this project, and to my wife Jo for her
encouragement and love.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to thank my committee, John Hinnant, Kenneth David, Paul
Edwardo Muller-Ortega, and especially Robert McKinley for his insights, comments and
indulgence. Dr. Indranand Sihna’s help with Sanskrit translations and insights into
Hindu philosophy was invaluable. The help of David Perusek, Steven Zacks and Jo Ellen
Sperry in editing the manuscript was much appreciated. In addition there are several
people, too numerous to name, who’s support (both emotional and scholastic)
throughout this long process was crucial to its’ completion.

I would especially like to thank Hira and Binu Sinha and their families for
providing me with shelter and support during my fieldwork. Finally I would like to
extend my most sincere appreciation and thanks to all the men and women of
Charnpanagar who took the time and trouble to answer my seemingly endless and trivial

queries. Without their help and support this work would not have been possible.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction
Chapter One: thas

Chapter Two: The Hidden God,
An Analysis of the Siva-Lingum

Chapter Three: The Ritual Cycle

Chapter Four: Shree Durga Puga

Chapter Five: The Deconstructive Deity
Chapter Six: In The Wake of Durga Puga
Chapter Seven: Do Witches Have Hairy Palms
Chapter Eight: Kinship and Kingship

Chapter Nine: Possession and Personhood
Chapter Ten: Conclusion

Glossary

Appendix

Bibliography

vii

17

42

S3

68

96

128

140

163

207

229

233

242

293

INTRODUCTION

The first time I saw Champanagar, I was 14 years old. Having more or less
grown up in the American mid-west, my parents decided it was high time that we as a
family visit India and get back in touch with our family and roots. As fate would have
it, I got to Champanagar just in time for Durga puja. At the time what impressed me
most about this ritual was the Santhals (formally a hunting/gathering culture, native to N.
Bihar) who danced around the palace gates of Champanagar, sticking long sharp needles
through their tongues and checks, seemingly impervious to the pain. As a mid-westemer
I certainly knew about religious fanaticism, but I had never seen anybody express their
devotion in quite this way, nor had I ever seen a religious ceremony that was so
markedly sensual in nature. For the worship of the goddess Durga is nothing if not a
sensual experience. It engages every sense: the sense of sight, smell, taste, sound and
touch. But most importantly it engages ones heart. It is impossible to witness such a
ritual without understanding at the onset that such things are to be felt and not known.

This ethnography tries to understand the logic behind the passion that such rituals
elicit. At one level, my focus is on spirit healers and spirit possession. But it quickly
became obvious to me that such topics in Mathil society are intimately linked to goddess

worship and the philosophical tradition within Hinduism called Tantra. Consequently,

2
the focus of this ethnography, which started off by considering personhood in Mathil

society, shifted to include the nature and significance of goddess worship in the
community of Champanagar. By understanding the role of the goddess within this
community I was able to draw certain conclusions about the nature of personhood in this
culture.

Champanagar is a small town in the district of Pumea, which is located in the
northern part of Bihar, India. Unlike the dry hot weather that characterizes the southern
part of Bihar (Bihar south of the Ganges) this area is flat and semi-tropical. Wedged
between the Ganges to the south, and the Himalayas to the north, this lush green area
stands in marked contrast to the semi-arid regions of the Gangetic planes. The people
here are, by and large, paddy or jute farmers. There isn’t much in the way of industry or
even those conveniences one associates with modernity.

The ethnic group that dominates the region call themselves Mathil ( a group that
I myself belong to). Mathila is a truly ancient region, mentioned in such Hindu epics as
the Ramainaya (the father of Sita, Janake, was said to be a king of Mathila). These
people take pride in their glorious past, a past that links them to highly traditional Hindu
values and lifestyles. But this region has long been politically diminutive. They focus
their attention and self esteem on upholding religious and philosophical knowledge rather
than on political power. Consequently, for the past 100 years or more, Mathila has been
a taken for granted polis. It is one of the most backward areas in India. There is little

here in the way of roads or transportation, electricity or towns.

3
The real center of Mathila is the district of Dharbanga, and the true king of the

Mathil people use to live in the town of Dharabanga. Purenia is really at the hinterlands
of the Mathil world, but is none-the-less predominantly Mathil. The local kings of this
region were rivals to the king of Dharbanga, and we shall talk about them in Chapter 8.
The institution of kingship is crucial to understanding the religion of this area because it
is the king who undertakes the performance of all the major rituals of the community.
The king was also traditionally the patron of the priestly caste, the Brahmins. Thus
despite the waning of their political power, the king is still a central feature of the social
world of this community.

Mathila, through the centuries, has undergone several religious movements.
Patlaputra, the ancient capital of the Maurya empire, is still the site of the current
political center of Bihar (the modern day city of Patna). Buddhism certainly was once a
major sect of this entire region, but few signs of it remain today. The dominant religious
tradition of this area today can legitimately be called Tantric. Tantra, as a philosophical
movement within Hinduism, dates back to the 4th century AD but it was not until around
the 6th century that it had firmly established itself within the mainstream of Hinduism.
Thus it is one of the most modern Hindu philosophical movements. It was probably
around this era that Tantra established itself in Mathil society and has been the dominant
religious tradition of the area ever since. Here Tantra is synonymous with the Shakta
tradition of Hinduism. That is, here the dominant deity is the goddess Shakti. The major
rituals of this region, which we shall talk about in Chapters 3, 4, and 5, revolve around

the tantn'c worship of the goddess.

4
I started off my fieldwork with the idea that I would focus on indigenous healers

of this region, called ojhas, in an attempt to understand the concepts of personhood
within Mathil society. But the institutions that legitimate and justify healing and
personhood seem to be so closely related to the concepts of Tantra and goddess worship
that I found it impossible to say anything about ojhas without first understanding the cult
of the goddess. The link between the goddess and healing rituals were hammered into
me time and again by the ojhas I interviewed. Consequently, the emphasis of this work
shifted somewhat from trying to understand ojhas and healing to trying to understand the
role of the goddess and the religious systems of Mathil society. In the end, these two
topics certainly complement each other, and both must be addressed if one is to
understand personhood as it is defined within Mathil society.

I thought it might be useful to give a brief account of the way South Asian
ethnographers have dealt with goddess worship in the past, as such a review points out

some of the instructive oversights of South Asian ethnography.

THE GODDESS IN WESTERN SCHOLARSHIP

The Marginalized Goddess: What is interesting about the way South Asian
ethnographers have dealt with the role of the goddess within Hinduism is that, by and
large, they have viewed her as peripheral. This, I think, is attributable to the undue
influence that Redfield’s model of great vs. little tradition in peasant societies has had on
Indian ethnographies (Redfield, 1955). By and large, Indian ethnographers have treated

goddess worship as being part of the ‘little’ tradition of Hindu society.

5

This bias has extended to the treatment of Tantra itself. Because of the bias
introduced by the great/little tradition model of studying society, Tantra has been
relegated to the local traditions of Indian society. Thus it has been viewed as something
apart form the mainstream of Hinduism, or worse, it has been ignored altogether. This
tendency to see Tantra and goddess worship as part of the local tradition of Indian
society has caused Indian ethnographers to deal with Tantra in an unsystematic way.
This bias has its roots in some older ethnoghraphies, but has persisted to the present day,
and has flawed several otherwise excellent works.

L. Babb views the goddess (and the tantric philosophy associated with her) as
part of the little tradition of India (Babb, 1970, 1975). According to him, the goddess is
malevolent when unwed, but benevolent and part of the (textual) great tradition when
wed. “When female dominates male the pair is sinister; when male dominates female the
pair is benign” (Babb, 1975, pp. 226). In her unwed form she is associated with birth,
death, sex, disease, agriculture, etc; in other words with all the dynamic aspects of
existence that effect the everyday life of the community. Thus Babb is mistaken to call
the goddess the “sinister” force of the universe, she is rather the dynamic force of the
universe, and her name “Shakti” (power) implies this. She is always associated with her
consort Siva, the passive force of the universe. These forces are neither good or bad,
but rather a part of existence itself. Neither is complete or possible without the other.
Babb points out that the goddess is more ‘polluted’ than the ‘textual’ deities of
Hinduism, and thus is more approachable by everyday mortals. Pollution is definitely not

the right word to use when describing the goddess, but whatever we say of her could

6
equally well be said of her consort Siva (see Ch. 4 or 5). The “polluted” deities, Shakti

and Siva, mediated between the high textual gods and the local gods of the village (the
little tradition). Great tradition goddesses as well as local deities are closely linked to
Shakti, as Babb points out. Shakti and Siva are linked to the everyday problems of
existence, such as spirit possession, the problems of agriculture, etc. We can see that the
goddess and her consort offer a complex symbolic mediation between great and little
traditions. What is more, and is a point Babb neglects, Shakti and Siva are textual
d_eit_ie_s, and thus are well established within the great tradition of Hinduism. Yet Babb by
implying that they are only a part of the little tradition, is blind to the textual literature on
the goddess, and thus neglects to study her significance in a systematic way. A reading
of this textual tradition precludes any simple dichotomy between sinister and benevolent,
or between male and female deities.

Babb’s line of reasoning is taken up by J. Preston (Preston, 1980). Preston, in his
assessment of goddess worship in Cuttack Orissa, feels that goddess worship is part of a
“tribal” form of worship, but gives no evidence to back this up. Like Babb, Preston
views the goddess as sinister, but then goes on to discuss the fact that goddess’ such as
Durga are associated with caring for the ill, the possessed, and those afflicted by
misfortune. That is, the goddess looks after the everyday needs of her worshipers.
Preston states that the cult of the goddess (Tantra) is an “unorthodox interpretation” of
Hinduism (Preston, 1980, p.19). Tantra and goddess worship is viewed as non-
brahmanic. But according to Hindu tradition, Tantra is an orthodoy, as attested by the

various sacred texts that deal with the nature and qualities of the goddess (see for

7
instance Brown’s analysis of the Devi Bhagyat Puran, 1990, or Cobum’s translation of

the Devi-Mahatmya, 1991). It is the so called ‘lefi handed orthodox school’ of
Hinduism. To Preston, goddess worship is a way for marginal groups to integrate into
Hinduism, because it has remained a folk tradition that operates on the margins of
Hinduism. “Secular themes are easy to integrate in the goddess cult because it has
remained essentially a folk tradition, which has operated at the marginsof classical
Hinduism for thousands of years” (Preston, 1980, p.90). The goddess mediates between
tradition and modernity, as well as between different groups within Hindu society. Thus
despite her marginal nature, the goddess seems to serve a crucial role in Cuttack society.
Both Preston and Babb imply that the goddess is marginal to the great traditions of
Hinduism because of her association with the immediate realities of the community.

S. Kakar feels that although Tantra has a pan-Indian spread, it represents a,
“resurrection of the ancient pre-Aryan religion of the mother” (Kakar, 1982, p. 152). But
Kakar presents us with no evidence to link Tantra and goddess worship to pre-Aryan
religions. Kakar, like Preston and Babb, feels that Tantra and goddess worship has
tended to exist on the fringes of Indian society. He too assumes that the goddess is
sinister, and is associated with a fear of womanhood.

This tendency to marginalize the role of goddess worship in Hinduism has been a
major problem of Indian ethnography. T.N. Madan, in his discussion of Indian religion
pays no attention either to goddess worship or to Tantra (Madan, 1989). Unfortunately
the great/little tradition model that marginalized the role of Tantra, which, as I will

argue, mediates between the textual and regional traditions of Hinduism, has blinded

8
Indian ethnographers to the importance of this tradition. Authors such as Daniel, in his

excellent discussion of Tamil personhood (Daniel, 1984), discusses practices and
concepts that would legitimately be called tantric, but doesn’t focus on Tantra itself.
Because of this he misses the indigenous thoughts (philosophies) that deal with the
relationship between analytic and synthetic knowledge, a crucial focus of his work.
Tantric philosophy views the goddess Shakti as that which can be differentiated, that is,
Shakti is a symbol of analytic knowledge. Siva, her consort, is that which can not be
differentiated, a symbol synthetic knowledge. It is the relationship between these two
important ordering principles of Indian society that tantric philosophy takes up.
Therefore, Daniel’s work would have been much more complete had he paid closer
attention to what Tantra has to say about analytic and synthetic knowledge. Raheja talks
briefly about the role of the goddess (such as Kali) and the rituals associated with her,
but does not follow up on it (Raheja, 1988). This is a crucial mistake, as her
ethnography attempts to understand the logic of power and status in north India. The
work would have been much richer if she focused more on the role of Shakti (power) in
the ingestion of polluted substances. The status of the brahmin is to a great degree
dependent on his Shakti, and his consequent ability to ingest the pollution of a gift and
yet be unpolluted by it. In this he plays a role similar to the great god Siva, who drinks
the cosmic poison of the universe, and yet is unaffected by it. Raheja’s work focuses on
the status and ritual pollution of giving and receiving gifts. It is odd that she chose not
to explore the logic of Shakti worship and tantric philosophy which seems crucial to this

process. These omissions are due to the tradition within Indian ethnography that has

8

Indian ethnographers to the importance of this tradition. Authors such as Daniel, in his
excellent discussion of Tamil personhood (Daniel, 1984), discusses practices and
concepts that would legitimately be called tantric, but doesn’t focus on Tantra itself.
Because of this he misses the indigenous thoughts (philosophies) that deal with the
relationship between analytic and synthetic knowledge, a crucial focus of his work.
Tantric philosophy views the goddess Shakti as that which can be differentiated, that is,
Shakti is a symbol of analytic knowledge. Siva, her consort, is that which can not be
differentiated, a symbol synthetic knowledge. It is the relationship between these two
important ordering principles of Indian society that tantric philosophy takes up.
Therefore, Daniel’s work would have been much more complete had he paid closer
attention to what Tantra has to say about analytic and synthetic knowledge. Raheja talks
briefly about the role of the goddess (such as Kali) and the rituals associated with her,
but does not follow up on it (Raheja, 1988). This is a crucial mistake, as her
ethnography attempts to understand the logic of power and status in north India. The
work would have been much richer if she focused more on the role of Shakti (power) in
the ingestion of polluted substances. The status of the brahmin is to a great degree
dependent on his Shakti, and his consequent ability to ingest the pollution of a gift and
yet be unpolluted by it. In this he plays a role similar to the great god Siva, who drinks
the cosmic poison of the universe, and yet is unaffected by it. Raheja’s work focuses on
the status and ritual pollution of giving and receiving gifts. It is odd that she chose not
to explore the logic of Shakti worship and tantric philosophy which seems crucial to this

process. These omissions are due to the tradition within Indian ethnography that has

9

viewed Tantra and goddess worship as part of the little tradition, and thus has not
studied it in a systematic manner.

The exception to these omissions within anthropology has been the works of S.
Wadley and D. Kopf. Wadley sees Shakti and the tantric philosophy behind goddess
worship as a key ordering principle of Indian society (W adely, 1975, 1977). Wadley’s
work point out the importance of studying Tantra and goddess worship in more detail, as
it is an important aspect of Indian social structure. Kopf gives us a historical look at the
role of Tantra in Bengal. Tantra in Bengal played a key role in reasserting the status of
women. According to him,

“common features of the counter traditions were a softening of patriarchal
authoritarian values; a concept of love distinguished from lust and representing a
sanctified view of sexuality; an erotic vision of divinity or the use of sexual bliss as a
metaphor of spiritual bliss; a deepening interest in feeling or emotion; and a
sympathetic depiction of women as human beings” (Kopf, 1984, p.163).
Both these works begin to deal with Tantra in a more systematic manner. They provide
us with a good base on which to build a more detailed study on the role of Tantra in

Indian social structure.

Tantra in Refigious Studies: Although Indian ethnography has paid little attention to

 

Tantra and goddess worship, the field of religious studies has provided some excellent
translations and interpretations of certain key tantric works. This is because Sanskrit
scholars did not buy into the great/little tradition model that blinded anthropologists to
the importance of certain indigenous traditions. J .F . Stahl, in his classic article, pointed
out that things such as possession, which has been seen as part of the little traditions of

India, were actually part of the great textual tradition of Hinduism (Stahl, 1963). Thus,

10

it was important to study such things in a more systematic manner than most
anthropologists have done.

M. Eliade provides an excellent introduction to the philosophy of Tantra. He
points out that Tantra quickly became incorporated into the mainstream of Indian
thought and culture.

“We do not know why and under what circumstances it came to designate a great

philosophical and religious movement which, appearing as early as the fourth

century of our era, assumed the form of a pan—Indian vogue from the sixth
century onward. . . .It is a pan-Indian movement, for it is assimilated by all the

great Indian religions and by all the sectarian schools.” (Eliade, 1958, p.200)

It is a pan-Indian movement with a long and complex textual and philosophical tradition.
Eliade was among the first generation of contemporary scholars to study Tantra in a
systematic manner.

The works of Muller-Ortega (1989), Silbum (1988), Mackenzie Brown (1990),
Brooks (1990), Coburn (1991), etc., carry on this tradition. They give us detailed
translations and analysis of certain key tantric texts. These authors take Tantra at a deep
philosophical level and give the English speaking world the first real look at Tantra as a
system of philosophy. The problem with such works is that they are focused on a textual
and philosophical level, and do not attempt to understand Tantra as a social system.

The works of the above mentioned Sanskrit scholars provide a good background
by which to approach Tantra as a social system. They lay to rest the idea that Tantra and
goddess worship is marginal to mainstream Hinduism. In this work I will expand on the

background provided by such scholars by analyzing Tantra as a religious system. That

is, I will analyze Tantra not only from a textual or philosophical point of view, but also

11

as a social system. Tantra is a dominant ideology in Mathil society, not some marginal
esoteric philosophy. Rituals such as Durga puja are crucial to understanding the Mathil

psyche, and so we will devote much time to understanding their relevance.

THE ROLE OF TANTRA AND THE DEVI

The central reason for the misreading of goddess worship by so many bright and
insightful ethnographers has to do with the unique philosophy that Tantra presents.
Tantra is one of the many internal reform movements that took place in Indian society,
but unlike Jainism or Buddhism, Tantra insisted that it was an orthodox movement. This
meant that it did not reject the Vedas or the truths that are said to reside therein. None-
the-less, the Tantrics proposed a radically new perspective that represented a mature
philosophical rethinking of Hindu theology (see Sanderson, 1985). Even while insisting
on the absolute validity of the Vedas, they came up with a radical new liturgy and
philosophy that they felt was more suitable to the Kali yuga (the contemporary epoch).
As the Vedas were written at an earlier time, the truths that they contained were still
legitimate, but the path it recommended to achieve these truths were no longer feasible in
this corrupted era. Thus Tantric authors hoped to remedy some of the esoteric
shortcomings of earlier Hindu philosophy.

They did this by emphasizing, above all else, the practical. This is so at a
philosophical level as Tantra proposes a system of meditation that is supposed to give

the serious student enlightenment in their own lifetime. But for our purposes the more

12
important point is that Tantra did not shy away fi'om the everyday practical problems of

existence. J .C. Heesterman in a series of brilliant articles has delineated the central
problem of classical Hindu thought, namely, that Hindu philosophy saw a radical rupture
between the world of the transcendent (in other words, between the goals and worldveiw
of the ascetic) and the mundane world of everyday life (Heesterman, 1985). The ascetic
would traditionally extract him or her self from the everyday world completely. This
meant that the everyday world had no real link (ideologically) to the ultimate goals of
Hindu theology. Tantra on the other hand, seems to have found a way around this ‘inner
conflict’ of Hinduism by specifically linking the everyday world of power and politics to
the transcendent world of the ascetic. This is so because one of the hallmarks of tantric
philosophy is that it sees the path toward enlightenment in the everyday sensual
experiences of life. Sex, power, food, etc, are all used as meditations to achieve
transcendence. That is, in the very mist of the mundane world, there is the transcendent.
This is so because Tantra is, to an extent, an existential philosophy. The passions of
existence, far from being rejected, are seen as the only path toward a higher
consciousness. Ifchanneled properly, any human passion can be put to the service of
enlightenment. Thus Tantra proposed a philosophy that integrated the everyday world
of Indian society to the world of the ascetic.

The crucial point is that Tantra seems to deliberately mediate between ‘great’
traditions and ‘little’ traditions. The everyday non-textual traditions are made part of the
great traditions of Hinduism in this philosophy. As Tantra established itself as one of the

dominant movements of contemporary Indian philosophy, the distinction between great

13

and little traditions has become so murky as to be usefitl only as a heuristic device.
Consequently, any understanding of Mathil society has to be both textual and
ethnographic. This ethnography will show how closely related the textual tradition is to
the practical institutions of healing. The two are so closely related that one can not
really talk about healing ritual without first understanding the role of the textual goddess
in Mathil society.

By paying close attention to both the textual deity and how she is actualized in
practice, I have been able to draw certain conclusions about personhood in Mathil
society. The self in this society seems to fit the Lacanian model of personhood (Lacan,
1977, 1978). The self only exists or becomes manifest in its ongoing relationship with
others. That is, the self in Mathil society always implies the other of an intersubjective
moment. The self is only objectified by recognizing itself in the desire of the other. It is
when this relationship between the self and the other breaks down that the ojha (spirit
healer) must step in to try and reestablish a relationship between the self and the social; a
relationship that will ground the self by linking it to the goddess. It is significant that the
selfin Mathil society is so tied to the desire of the other, for desire is indeed a loaded
term in Hindu philosophy. Desire is the only explanation that Hindus seem to offer to
account for creation itself. “Desire entered the One in the beginning. It was the earliest
seed, of thought the product. The sages searching in their hearts with wisdom; Found
out the bond of being in non-being.” (Rg Ved, X. 129, as found in Radhakrishnan and
Moore, 1957). Thus the objectification of the universe itself resulted from desire. It is

desire that seems to sustain creation, the desire of Siva for Shakti and Shakti for Siva.

14

That is, the desire of the transcendent for the differentiated universe and the desire of the
differentiated universe for the transcendent. It is desire that unites the self to the other,
but most importantly, it is desire that unites the human self to the divine.

It is this last and most crucial play of desire, the mutual desire that unites the self
and the divine, that is made manifest in the rituals of Mathil society. Therefore, in order
to understand the concepts of personhood in Mathil society, it is crucial to understand
the relationship that is set up between the self and the divine. It is this relationship that
this work will explore.

The reason I have spent so much time discussing the nature of the Goddess in
Indian society has to do with the fact that spirit healers in Mathila justify their ability to
heal exclusively in terms of Goddess worship. More generally, ritual seems to be closely
tied to the expression and mediation of spirit possession. The ritual cycle, which is
discussed in chapter 3, specifies the time that possessed individuals are most likely to go
into an ‘active’ phase of possession. By conceptualizing summer as a time of disorder
and winter as a time of order, the ritual cycle delineates the legitimate expression of
personal trauma in the idiom of spirit possession. But without a doubt, the most
elaborate and significant rituals in this region revolve around the worship of the goddess,
especially the worship of the goddess in her most awesome form, when she is
worshipped as Durga. Consequently, in order to know anything about the nature of
spirit healers in Mathil society, we must first understand the significance of the Goddess
and Goddess worship in this society. Chapters four and five will give the reader a

general introduction to the nature and importance of Goddess worship in this culture.

15

But closely associated with the goddess is her consort, the great lord Siva.
Indeed, in many ways Siva and Shakti represent two aspects of the same divine principle.
This is expressed metaphorically by the fact that the divine couple is often represented in
the act of copulation. The two are seen as inseparable, and so to know one one has to
address the other. This crucial fact will be discussed in chapter two in my analysis of the
Siva-lingum. The Siva-lingum is the dominant symbolic representation of the great god
Siva, but as we shall show, the fact that this symbol is a graphic representation of the
eternal union of Siva and Shakti implies that wherever there is Siva there is Shakti and
vice versa. Spirit healers therefore consider themselves to be devotees of both deities.
But for philosophical and symbolic reasons, Siva is seen as the dormant partner while the
goddess Shakti is seen as the active. It is for this reason that spirit healers focus on
goddess worship, for it is she that is ultimately able to help a possessed individual.

The other institution that has a direct bearing on spirit possession is the central
institution of kinship. Mathila has a fairly sharply defined life-cycle trajectory. Changes
in an individual social status tend to be closely associated with the logic of kinship. For
an individual’s primary group of reference, in this society, is his or her kin network. By
understanding the nature of kinship in this society (discussed in chapter eight) we will be
in a position that allows us to predict the crisis moments in an individuals life. F or such
crisis moments tend to occur during periods of transition. The moment when an
individual is expected to change their status, say from youth to adulthood, or from
outsider to insider within a kin network, are the moments when they are most likely to

experience psychological trauma. And it is precisely at such moments that they are most

l6

likely to express such trauma in the form of spirit possession. Consequently, by
understanding something about kinship in Mathil society, we will be in a position to
predict the phases in an individuals life when they are likely to be attacked by spirits, an
idea we shall take up in chapter nine.

The focus of this work is on spirit healers (called ojhas) in Mathil society and the
nature of spirit possession. But as is always the case with social institutions any one
topic implies a multitude of related topics. One must attempt to understand the
interconnections between such related institutions if one is to gain any meaningful
understanding of a given institution. Therefore, the subject of ojhas and spirit possession
can’t be understood without first understanding other institutions such as ritual and
kinship which have a direct bearing on it.

It is for this reason that I have structured this work the way that I have. Chapter
one gives the reader an introduction, a first look at ojhas and what they do. But before
we can consider the implications of the healing rituals that the ojha performs, we must
look at other related institutions. Therefore I do not directly take up the topic of spirit
possession and ojhas again until the final chapter (chapter nine). The intervening
chapters are meant to give the reader the necessary background by which to make sense

of what spirit possession and personhood in Mathil society is about.

CHAPTER ONE: OJHAS

thas are part-time medical specialists. They are usually small-scale farmers, or
farm laborers who have undertaken a period of training under a tantric adept or an
established healer. thas are usually the first people that a villager will consult during a
time of medical crisis.

Because of the flexible nature of this institution, there are no clear boundaries
between a healer and a non-healer. It is more a matter of degree than any absolute criteria
that distinguishes an ojha from a non-ojha. Since just about everyone has seen or is
familiar with the indigenous healing rituals of this area, and as such healing rituals are
justified within the idiom of “magic”, (i.e. something that results automatically from the
performance of certain actions, and consequently, the individual performing the action
need not be anyone special) anyone is at liberty to try their hand at healing. It is not at all
unusual for a neighbor or a relative to be the first person to try to heal a possessed
individual. It is only when such local efforts fail that a ‘real’ ojha (i.e. one who accepts
money, or has a reputation for healing) is called . The following example taken from my
field notes may help to illustrate this point. '

Kilisri Devi was a woman in her mid fifties. She was possessed one day
shortly after her neighbor died. According to her, she went to cut some shinghi (a
type of vegetable) and a tree one night, when she was attacked by a spirit being.
She didn’t realize what had happened till the following morning, at which time she

began to rave about being possessed. “I was not conscious [or in my right mind],”
she told me.

The local villagers gathered around her and debated what course of action
should be taken. It was agreed that her neighbor ( the one that had died) was the one
who had possessed her. The ghost of the neighbor had been ‘tied’ to a tree (bhano in
Mathli, literally to tie) by a local ojha. Now the ghost lives in the tree, the very same

17

18

tree she had gone to cut down. 1 No ojha was called. Instead a neighborhood
boy by the name of Sanjay (age 16 or 17) along with other villagers decided to
take matters into their own hands. They took a few burning embers and put
peeple leaves, hair and chili peppers on them. The smoke that resulted from this
action was then allowed to engulf the patient (Kilisri Devi). Despite her raving,
the villagers forced her to inhale the smoke. Now in case you have never been
around an Indian kitchen, chili pepper smoke is quite unpleasant indeed. It is sort
of like inhaling black pepper. As she breathed in the smoke, Kilisri Devi raved
even more, but eventually the experience was so unpleasant that the ghost
decided to leave her body. I asked Sanjay, “how did you know about the
peppers?” He said, “I have seen it done around here. When we put the smoke,
she went to the tree (where the ghost lives) and fell down. We splashed water on
her head and the ghost lefi. Some Mohammadian ojha was called to nail the
ghost to the tree. I can’t remember his name. The ghost is nailed to the Boa
tree.”

This example illustrates the casual nature of such healing rituals. Anyone who
has seen such a ritual is welcome to try their hand at it. In fact, this was to become a
major obstacle in my own work, because the more questions I asked about such rituals,
the more my reputation as a ‘healer’ flourished. Mind you, this was totally beyond my
control; despite my insistence that I was only a student of anthropology who was trying
to understand the nature of such things, the villagers assumed that because I was
studying such rituals, I too must be a powerful ojha. Consequently, after the first month
or so of my stay in Champanagar, I could not go to see any such rituals without myself
being asked to help cure the patient (on reflection, I rather think that my refusal to help
was interpreted as a sign of stinginess or ill will by many of the locals). Even the ojhas

that I interviewed tended to assume that my ‘guru’ had sent me to Purenia to find out

 

’ thas usually get rid of troublesome ghosts by ‘tying’ them to either a tree or an old dilapidated house.
This is done by first calling upon the spirit (i.e. inducing an active phase of possession in the patient )
then chasing the ghost out of the patient. Once the ghost has left, the ojha will use various mantras
(usually quite non-nonsensical little rhymes recited in the local language) to ‘hold’ the ghost. Once the
ghost is captured in this way, the ojha ties it permanently by driving an iron nail into a tree.

19
new techniques of healing. They mostly treated me as a fellow ojha. For by the logic of

such things, why else would anyone spend so mush time and trouble learning about it?
This points out an important element of such rituals. Namely that they are first
and foremost a practical response to a medical emergency. Unlike the brahmin priest,
who performs rituals for the general well being of the community or the world at large,
the ojha performs rituals to help solve a specific problem. Thus the old distinction
between magic and religion seems to work fairly well here, Van Baal sums up this
distinction by defining magic as, “simple rites performed for the purpose of concrete
ends,” while religion is defined as, “all explicate and implicate notions and ideas,
accepted as true, which relate to a reality which cannot be verified empirically” (Van
Baal, 1971, p6 and p3). But it is important to keep in mind the that both ojhas and
Brahmins are working within the same over-all fi'ame of reference. This is a point we
will consider in detail at another time, but for now it is enough to say that both legitimate
themselves by referring to exactly the same world view. This also helps us to understand
the difference between an ojha proper and a local villager, like Sanjay in our above
example, who responds to an emergency by performing a healing ritual; an ojha
establishes him (or her) self as such by the reputation they gain through healing people.
That is, an ojha is someone villagers recognize and identify as a healer. There are no
clear and fast boundaries between an ojha and a regular individual, the only thing that
distinguishes one from the other is the ephemeral nature of reputation. What this points

out again is the practical nature of such institutions. Because a person only gains his or

19
new techniques of healing. They mostly treated me as a fellow ojha. For by the logic of

such things, why else would anyone spend so mush time and trouble learning about it?
This points out an important element of such rituals. Namely that they are first
and foremost a practical response to a medical emergency. Unlike the brahmin priest,
who performs rituals for the general well being of the community or the world at large,
the ojha performs rituals to help solve a specific problem. Thus the old distinction
between magic and religion seems to work fairly well here, Van Baal sums up this
distinction by defining magic as, “simple rites performed for the purpose of concrete
ends,” while religion is defined as, “all explicate and implicate notions and ideas,
accepted as true, which relate to a reality which cannot be verified empirically” (Van
Baal, 1971, p6 and p3). But it is important to keep in mind the that both ojhas and
Brahmins are working within the same over-all frame of reference. This is a point we
will consider in detail at another time, but for now it is enough to say that both legitimate
themselves by referring to exactly the same world view. This also helps us to understand
the difference between an ojha proper and a local villager, like Sanjay in our above
example, who responds to an emergency by performing a healing ritual; an ojha
establishes him (or her) self as such by the reputation they gain through healing people.
That is, an ojha is someone villagers recognize and identify as a healer. There are no
clear and fast boundaries between an ojha and a regular individual, the only thing that
distinguishes one from the other is the ephemeral nature of reputation. What this points

out again is the practical nature of such institutions. Because a person only gains his or

20

her 2 reputation as a healer by healing. The more successful an ojha is, the greater his
reputation.

Given this state of affairs, it makes sense that the majority of ojhas I interviewed
spent a good deal of time telling me just how powerful they are. They are prone to
shameless barging, because such boasting only adds to their reputation as fearless healers
who do not shy away from confrontations with ghosts. Not only does this vanity add to
their reputation, but I think, it also helps them deal with situations that any sane person
(in this society) would run away from.’ thas, like everyone else, seem to firmly believe
in the reality of ghosts or dines (witches) who are said to have the power to seriously
harm individuals. Therefore it seems psychologically necessary for ojhas to convince
themselves of their own power in order to confront such malevolent entities. An
example might help the reader understand the hyper-confidence that such individuals
possess.

I was talking to Pharabho Mondal, an ojha of some repute, about a

Muslim woman who had been possessed. I told him that the spirit was a

particularly powerful one. His response was: “No matter how powerful a ghost,

if my true guru ’s blessings are with me, it can be controlled. . .It doesn’t matter if
it is a Hindu ghost who has promised to be there or a Muslim ghost who has
promised on the Koran, it will come under my control. I am the daroga (police-
inspector) of ghosts. It doesn’t matter if its night or day, they will run away after
seeing me. But if he doesn’t, I will just take some salt and read mantras over it

and no matter where he [the ghost] goes, I will vanquish him. I am the daroga of
ghosts. If I feel like it, I will let him go, or bind him to a tree or bury him.”

 

2 In theory women can become healers. I have heard many stories of powerful female healers, but I
never actually met a woman who was considered to be an ojha.

3 This in not all that different from doctors, especially surgeons etc. in our own society. Such people
have to convince themselves of their own omnipotence if they are to perform the stressful task of cutting
Open a persons chest or brain.

2 1
Individuals like Pharabho even seem to feel that their reputations spill over to the

world of spirits. The very act of consulting such an individual will make the ghost run
away. Pharabho is an especially boastfirl individual, but just about every ojha I met took
pains to assure me (or was it themselves?) that they were indeed powerful people, who
were feared by witches and ghosts.

Now in Mathil society, just about everyone (except perhaps for the ‘modern’
educated elite) believes in the power of the ojha. It is not even so much a matter of
belief, ojhas, like ghosts and witches, are simply a fact of life. People may be skeptical
about an individual ojha and his powers, but no one really questions the fact that some
ojha ’5 really do have the ability to do battle with spirit beings. But Champanagar, along
with the rest of India, is in the process of re-inventing itself. “Modernity” is finally
having an impact on even such remote areas of Indian. Consequently, along with
electricity (which is irregular at best) video huts, TVs and the like, Champanagar also
has two bio-medical doctors, one homeopathic doctor, and a compounder (a
compounder is a pharmacist in the local language). I thought it would be interesting to
interview such people to see what they think about ojhas.

The first doctor I interviewed, A.K. Singh, was very hostile toward ojhas.
Throughout the interview, he seemed very tense and ill at ease by my line of questioning.
I think he was trying very hard to appear ‘modern’, especially since he knew I had come
from America, the promised land of modernity. This would tend to cast doubt on the
sincerity of his responses, but I include them none-the-less. In keeping with his modern

persona, the good doctor kept speaking to me in broken English (which was very

22
difficult to understand), or Hindi, and not Mathili, the local, but apparently lower status

language of the area.

At first he denied that any ‘possessed’ person had ever visited him. He kept
insisting that there is no such thing as possession. When I pressed him on this point, he
finally said that there are certain people, mostly young women who pretend to be
possessed. According to him, such people usually are experiencing some kind of
domestic problem, problems with their husbands or in-laws. In such cases, he said,

“I give them a painful injection, or I give them “water” [an IV.) to make
sure they stop pretending. [that is, he gives them a deliberately painful treatment
to make sure they will stop coming to him] For example, there is a young
woman from Jagni who kept fainting every few weeks. She came [to his clinic]
three times. Each time I gave her a painfiil injection and water" After the third
time she complained about the cost of the treatment, so I yelled at her. I told her,
‘ Why are you wasting your husbands money when you know you are not sick!’
She never returned after this. . .The big problem is when they [ojhas] try to cure
snake bites. 70-75% of snakes are not poisonous so then jhar phoor (literally to
sweep, the act of ritual healing that ojhas perform) is effective. However, when
it is a poisonous snake, and the patient is near death, then the ojha refers them to
us. Usually too late.”

As we can see, the good doctor does not much care for ojhas. Dr. Singh felt that
all ojhas are charlatans, and he did not feel that there is any such thing as a ‘mental’
disease. He felt that all problems, including the ‘hysteria’ of young women, were at
heart medical (or biological) problems. As there is no such thing as ghosts, peOple can

not be possessed by them, and anyone who claims to be or anyone who claims to do jhar

phoor to get rid of ghosts, is obviously a fake.

 

4 Giving people saline water IVs is a very popular cure for just about any illness, but especially for
‘nervous’ or mental illness. Patients will measure the seriousness of their illness and the power of the
cure by the number of bottles they were given. E. g. “It was a powerful illness, the doctor gave me 5
bottles.” I have asked around and still haven’t found any connection between saline IVs and mental
disorders. But just about everyone in this society, educated or not, believes in their efficacy.

23
The other doctor in town, Dr. J.P. Singh, was a little more generous. At first he

too denied ever having dealt with a possessed person. But then told me that most of his
patients were lower class, and lower caste individuals. The majority of them, he said,
were illiterate, and so tended to believe in ojhas. According to Dr. Singh, such people
will go to an ojha first and only come to him if the ojha has failed. The ojhas themselves
recommend their clients come visit the doctor in cases they know they can not cure.
They tend to send the ‘physical’ cases to him.

I asked if he had ever sent one of his patients to an ojha. At first he said he had
never done so, but when I asked him specifically about ‘hysterical’ patients, he said that
in cases of hysteria he knew that the illness will get better by itself. In his opinion, the
majority of such cases can be cured by marrying the woman off or by sending for her
husband to come back and live with her. “Hysteria” seems to be a catch-all phrase that is
used by the educated elite of this area to describe any mental problem. It is most closely
associated with young women who are thought to be sexually fiustrated. In such cases,
Dr. Singh will give the person a saline IV, or a sedative, but if this doesn’t help, or if
the patient is too poor to afford the treatment, then he tells them to go see an ojha! The
doctor’s reasoning for this is that whatever else they may do, ojhas don’t hurt the patient
in any way, and in such cases (i.e. in cases of hysteria) they seem to be successfiil. So
Dr. Singh told me that ojhas recommend patients to him, and he recommends patients to
them.

When I asked him to tell me more about ojhas, he went on to say that hysteria is

often associated with sexual traumas. It is a disease like any other, but a ‘mental’

24
disease. He said that the jahar phoor that the ojha does is a kind of psychotherapy, a

local (desi) version of therapy. So in a way, the ojha is the equivalent of a therapist, and
this is what makes them successfirl. As we see, the bio-medical doctors in Champanagar
seem to be split in their opinion of ojhas. One discounts them entirely, while the other
feels they do have some effect in treating mental problems.

I asked the homeopathic doctor in town, a individual by the name of Ram Singh
about ojhas and specifically about the case of Kalanand’s sister a woman in her early
twenties who was actively possessed, as I knew beforehand that he had been consulted
on her behalf. At first Ram denied that he ever had any dealings with ojhas, or ever
recommended such people to his patients. But then he said that patients, especially
young people often come to him with ‘hysterical’ symptoms. In such cases a doctor
would give them ‘water’ (i.e. an IV.) then recommend to them that they seek the kind of
cure that they find most comfortable. It is a matter of their choice which cure they find
most appealing, literally what he said was it is a matter of taste, “what they wish to eat is
what will satisfy them.”

When he saw that I agreed with him, he gained confidence and went on. He said
that homeopathy cures both mental and physical ailments and he gets patients who suffer
from both. But often times when one deals with hysteria, a medicine will be given that
cures it, but two days later the symptoms return. So it is good to give the patient a
‘medical’ treatment and then encourage them to get whatever kind of ‘mental’ treatment
they find helpfiil. After all, in cases which involve mental symptoms, the patient will only

respond to mental approaches to treatment. Hence they will not be satisfied (or firlfilled)

25

unless they are given the treatment they believe in. Because most of the people in this
area believe in jhar phoor the doctor should encourage them to go to an ojha, if it looks
like that is what they need. Consequently, the doctor had no hesitation in recommending
ojhas in cases that involved mental symptoms.

The compounder (or pharmacist) in town is related to the homeopathic doctor.
His name is Sanjeev Singh and he probably deals with more patients than any of the
other three individuals we have so far considered. This is so because patients often by-
pass the doctors in town altogether and come directly to him or one of his assistants. I
talked to him on several occasions, and of all the people I talked to, he seemed to be the
most sympathetic toward ojhas and their abilities. He said he had no hesitation in
recommending them, and they often tell their patients to consult him, especially in cases
that involve infections etc. According to Sanjeev, people often have ‘mental’ problems,
problems that involve their sexuality or their family. All that a doctor can do in such
cases is give them ‘water’ (an IV.) or a sleeping pill. This may or may not help.
According to him, curing such mental problems is a matter of belief, and this is where
ojhas have a useful part to play in the medical system of the area. Because people
believe in ojhas and their ability to heal them, ojhas ar_e effective in healing them.
Sanjavee’s view is that ojhas and doctors must be integrated into an overall system that
divides illness into categories that are best treated either by medicine or by healing
rituals.

The ojhas I interviewed were generally in agreement with the above view. They

seem to have no hesitation in labeling certain diseases (khusts or suffering) as being

26

purely somatic and so within the domain of doctors. Other khusts, on the other hand, are
caused by spirit attacks and so in such cases the ojhas brand of healing would be more
effective. Here is an excerpt from an interview with Pharabho Mondal.

Me: So when people experience illness (khust) it is because of a dine (witch) ?

PM: No. There is also illness. Ifthere is an illness of the body, then I will be told

[i.e. by my spirit or familiar]. I will know that jhar phoor [jhar phoor is the act

of exorcism by which the ojha heals individuals] will not work. Take him to a

doctor and get an injection or pills, or whatever. But if it says [i.e. his spirit

familiar] that jhar phoor will work, that I can help you [withjhar phoor], then it

[the illness] will end right there. They will find relief [aram, that is, they will be

cured].

In fact toward the end of my stay at Champanagar, one of my most useful ojha
informants, Basudev Yadav, had a rather serious stomach flu (which is not at all unusual
in these parts, I myself had been stricken by it on several occasions). When I suggested
to him that I pick up some medicine for him from the compounder, he was more than
grateful. He had no hesitation is using bio-medical treatments in cases of somatic illness,
but this did not mean that he did not believe in his own abilities to cure possessed
individuals.5

Before we turn our attention away fiom the relationship between ojhas and the
bio-medical systems in Champanagar, there are a few sociological factors we must
consider. These revolve around the profoundly different role that a doctor assumes
when compared to other healers. Doctors tend to set themselves apart from the local
community, as can be seen by the initial hesitation that each expressed when asked about

possession. Their first reaction was to deny that possessions exist at all, yet if my

experiences at Champanagar is any indication of the realities of that community, than

 

’ I’m not sure if the pills helped or not, as I had to leave town before B.D. got better.

27

doctors deal with possession on a regular basis. In the ‘explanatory model’ (to use
Kleinman’s term) of local villagers, who are after all the audience that the doctor
addresses, possession is a regular and widely used medical category. To deny it exists at
all indicates just how alien the explanatory model of the doctor is from that of the patient
( it is interesting as well that doctors insist on speaking in English or Hindi and not the
local language of the community). This is not surprising. Doctors tend to see
themselves (as do all of the educated elite of this community) as ‘modern’ and thus as
someone no longer taken in by the ‘superstitions’ of the local community. We will have
the opportunity to talk more about the relationship between ‘modern’ educated people
and ojhas at a later point. The thing that concerns us here is the fact that doctors, unlike
ojhas; do not try to integrate their medical models into the existing social structure.
Therefore, doctors tend to be apart or alienated from the local community. thas on the
other hand, are very much a part of the immediate community, and present their patients
with explanatory models that can be readily understood.

Moreover, the community of Champanagar has had its problems in the past with
government doctors. I certainly do not wish to imply that the current doctors in town
are in any way unscrupulous, but in the past, the doctors who have practiced here tended
to be more concerned with money than with healing. The last doctor who was stationed
in Champanagar would not even look at a patient unless he was paid first. As a
government doctor, the medicine he received was to be given out for free, so the fact
that he charged people for it was his way of milking the system. This practice got him

into trouble eventually, for he refused to treat the son of a local villager who had been

28

bitten by a snake. All government doctors in this area carry snake anti-venom and are
supposed to treat snake-bite victims for free. But this particular doctor would only treat
snake bite victims if they gave him a substantial fee up front. The villager who had come
with his son was too poor to pay the fee and while he pleaded with the doctor to save his
son’s life, the boy died (the son had been bit by a kerait, which, unlike cobras, have a fast
acting poison. You really have to act quickly if you are unfortunate enough to be bitten
by one. Unfortunately both keraits and cobras abound in this region).

The villager was understandably irate. He gathered up his fiiends and that night
they broke into the doctors house. They beat the doctor to within an inch of his life. I
was told that if it hadn’t been for his wife’s pleas to spare his life, the villagers would
have killed the hapless man.

This example points out the tension that exists between the ‘modern’ doctors and
the lifeway of local villagers. But for our purposes the crucial point to be made about
doctors is that they seem to offer next to nothing for pe0ple who are suffering from
‘mental’ problems, or what the locals would call possession (bhoot Iagm’, to be taken by
a ghost). As possession and belief in the reality of ghosts and witches is quite prevalent
in this region, this blind spot in the bio-medical system of healing is quite significant in
explaining the prevalence of ojhas. The doctors seem to be able only to offer the
individual inflicted by such an aliment placebo treatments (sedatives or IV. ’8, which
incidentally, the villagers, if not the doctor, seem to believe in firmly), while the ojha
performs specific healing rituals tailor made to the needs of the individual. Therefore,

even though villagers firmly believe in the efficacy of bio-medicine, they will still turn to

29
ojhas when the need arises. The popularity of bio-medicine in no way threatens the

existence of ojhas.

It is time now to focus our attention on what ojhas actually do. thas generally
deal with two categories of illness. Firstly they heal snake bite victims. Snakes are
closely associated with the goddess Bisari (also called Mansa Devi). Consequently,
ojhas make a point of praying to the goddess Bisari, especially during the summer time
when her annual puja takes place. As one of the ojhas told me,

“Sarkar, Bisari is the goddess of snakes. You know the nag [cobra] around

Shankar-jee [another name of Siva], we do puja to it.... If you don’t do that puja,

you can’t jharo [sweep or heal] snake bites. You ofl’er milk and popcorn to get

rid of the poison, but if you don’t get the Shakti once a year [i.e. during Bisari
puja] the poison won’t come down.”6
In fact Bisari puja is quite important in this area, and many people will make offerings to
the goddess Bisari during this time. But Mansa Devi is closely associated with the lord
Siva. According to the origin myth that is told about her, she is the black cobra that is
constantly wrapped around the neck of Siva.

Initially I was confused by this, because I knew that the lord Siva is closely
associated with snakes. Thus I assumed that he must be the god that is ‘in charge’ so to
speak, of snakes. But this is not the case. Siva is closely linked to all goddesses, but it is
the goddess who is the active party in each case, while Siva plays a distant or passive

role. What I mean by this is that Siva is closely linked to snakes (every representation of

Siva will show him covered by snakes) but when trying to control snakes (or cure snake

 

6 There are two meanings to the expression “won’t come down.” On the one hand, in Mathili an illness
is said to ‘rise’ as it progresses and ‘come down’ as it breaks. On the other hand, ojhas tend to feel that
snake venom rises within the patient until at length it reaches the head. If this should happen the
patient is sure to die. The ojha attempts to bring down (physically) the poison until it is discharged
from the body altogether. The act of jharoing (to sweep) is the act by which the ojha achieves this end.

30

bites) it is the goddess that must be worshipped. This is true of possession as well,
which is the other category of illness that ojhas deal with.

Along with snake bites, ojhas specialize in healing people who have been
attacked by spirit beings. Such beings can be generally divided into ghosts and witches.
In such cases, the ojha will do a prayer to the goddess Shakti, either in the form of
Durga or Kali, though Kali seems to be more preferred. Actually, the offering is made
simply to the goddess (Shakti), the mantra used while jharoing people (that is, while the
ojha ‘brushes’ or strokes the body of the victim) specifies which goddess is being
evoked. Thus the offerings that are most commonly used, sindur (red verrnilion), a red
sari, ganja (which is closely linked to Siva, the consort of Shakti) and a pigeon, would
be appropriate for any form of the goddess. Consequently, the ojha (like anyone else
who wishes to gain power) is required to perform special rituals during the armual
worship of the goddess, a ten day ritual that I detail in chapter four. They emphasize
Nisa puja ( or midnight puja) that takes place during the course of this ten day ritual.
Some ojhas also feel that special care and praying must be undertaken on the night of
Kali puja (which takes place shortly after Durga puja, and is dealt with in chapter five).
Again the power to heal is closely linked to appeasing the goddess. Unless a person
makes his or her mantra siddhi (active, or pure) during the appropriate ritual time set
aside for the worship of the goddess, it is thought their mantra will lose it’s
effectiveness, and be powerless to heal people.

But again Siva ends up being the ‘hidden god’ when dealing with possession. As

the lord of the underworld, Siva is the god of ghosts, one of his names is “Maha Bhoot”

3 l
or “great ghost”. As the lord of death and the lord of the underworld, one would think

that he would be the god most closely linked to the healing of a possessed individual.
But this is not the case; rather it is his consort Shakti (in the form of Durga or Kali) that
is invoked when dealing with spirit beings. What this points out is that Shakti and Siva
are closely linked deities, and it is often hard to know where one ends and the other
begins. Here is a long excerpt from an interview I conducted with seven ojhas (and a
few field hands) :

“Me: One thing I don’t understand. They say that ghosts and parriats [a kind of
ghost or spirit being] are all the duits [minions or servants] of Kali. ..

BD: They are all the minions of Durga and Kali.

PM: There are other kinds of ghosts. Durga and Kali have their jogr‘n ’s [yogim'es
or female attendants of the goddess. They are depicted as a great ghost army
that surrounds the goddess] but there are others; banaia bhoots [or wild ghosts]
that don’t belong to them.

BD: They are the ones that live in the forest. Or in the trees.

PM: They [ i.e. the banaia bhoots] can’t compete with them [i.e. the jogr'n ’s].
Me: Oh, because they are...

PM: The jogin’s can conquer them. Those are Kan-Kali [the skeleton form of
Kali], and it is that jogin; Kali and Durga don’t come themselves, they send the
jogin. So if one sits down to do jog [yoga or meditation] to the jogin, then Ma-
Durga herself will not come, but her jogin will. It is the jogin that is giving
protection from above. Once the jogin is engaged, it will chase it [the ghost]
away. It is the jogin that gives the order; it will take away it’s [i.e. the ghost’s]
form and replace it, by its maya [a concept closely linked to the goddess, in fact
her name is ‘Maha-Maya’ or great maya, that is often translated as illusion. But
here it is used not as illusion but as the power to manipulate the physical world]
with its own form [i.e. it will replace the wild ghost with itself].

Me: But what I’m asking is this, Siva is the god of ghosts, right?

BD: Yes.

Me: But when someone is possessed or attacked by a ghost, everyone says that
Kali-mar“ is the goddess of ghosts, right?

General: Yes.

Me: When someone is possessed they do puja to Kali-Mai. But why is this?
Why don’t they worship Siva bhagwan [god]?

PM: Yes. Siva bhagwan, without Mahadev [another name of Siva], sarkar, I
mean Shankar [yet another name of Siva]; the Ganga [Ganges] itself flows from
his head, so all things are under his domain. Without praying to him, no mantra

32

will work. You have to pray to him. To Mahadev, to Siva, to Shankar, to these
three. Me: What about Rudra [a name of Siva], or is it the same thing?

PM: Yes, it’s the same. People say different things depending on what they
know, I say Shankar.

Me: O.K., these three. But what I’m saying is why don’t people worship
Shankar when they are possessed. After all he is...

PM: But we do, we say his name.

Me: Yes, you say his name, but you do Kali puja.

PM: We do puja to all the devatas [gods]. Fifty six corares of devatas [a corore
is a hundred million] are worshipped. Fifty six coreores, not just one. Or sixty
four corores, we have to worship them all Not just Kali or Durga, we have to
worship all the forms.

BD: Say there are five people sitting, like now. You call them to do work, but
not all of them will speak [i.e. I had called the ojhas to be interviewed. Basu Dev
is saying that although there were seven ojhas (not 5) present, only he and
Pharabho actually spoke]. You call them all, but only a few do the work, but you
still call us all.

PM: In the end, you have to take Siva’s name when doing a puja. The work will
not be done till you take his name.

BD: No. [i.e., no, it won’t get done]

PM: He is the lord of all.

Nirpain (a field hand): You have to take Mahadev’s name in all things.

PM: Yes.

Me: But you also have to take Shakti’s name in all things? I mean in all these
pujas, you have to mention the bhagwati [goddess] at least once.

General: Yes.

Me: So what you are saying is that Mahadev is more emphasized when doing
snake puja, while the bhagwati is more emphasized in ghost puja? [i.e. pujas to
get rid of ghosts]

General: Yes.

Me: That’s what I’m asking, why is Mahadev more important to snakes and
Shakti to ghosts? [note that this was a mistake on my part. It is Mansa Devi that
is emphasized in the healing of snakes, as I found out later]

PM: Bhagwati, Basari... I mean, is to Siva... What I mean to say is, you have to
worship Shankar-jee to make the Bhagwati appear, it is within Es power. The
Bhagwati is in every “lane”, not just one lane”. but Shankar-vice is in one “la_n_e”
Shankar-ice isn’t in event lane. [emphasis mine]

BD: Yes his name is said.

PM: Yes we will do puja to everyone, but we will take Shankar-jee’s name.

Me: But he doesn’t do many things?

PM: He brings peace [or makes, bestows peace]

Me: He makes things peacefiil?

PM: He is the master of peace during a puja. He is a thing of truth. With truth
comes stability. With that word, stability cs to all.”

33

What the above conversation points out are some of the crucial features of the
world view of this region. On the one hand, we have a hierarchy of power set up, with
ghosts being controlled by the jogin ’s of the goddess, and the jogins are in turn
controlled by the goddess. So if one wishes to control a ghost one must worship the
goddess, but it is‘herjogins who will be sent to actually control the ghost. But the
goddess herself is closely linked to the lord Siva. In order to activate her, you must
worship him. However, the relationship between the god and the goddess is not a simple
one. Siva doesn’t directly control the goddess.

The relationship between Siva and Shakti is a complex matter, and one we shall
endeavor to unravel in this work. Siva is the supreme lord who has control over all
creation. “Bhoot” means not only ghost, but in the Sanskrit it refers to “what has
already existed” (or what is actualized, as opposed to what remains unmanifest). That is,
it refers to all physical beings. Thus as the “Maha-bhoot”, Siva has dominion over all
creation. Yet as Pharabho says, he is only in one “lane”. He is the bestower of peace
and tranquillity, but not the person to inculcate when one is faced with the actual
problems of existence. It is rather the goddess, who works in every “lane”, that must be
consulted, when dealing with a practical problem of existence.

This may strike the reader as odd (it certainly took me quite some time to figure
out what the above conversation was referring to). But what is crucial to understanding
the role and function of ojhas in this society is the fact that ‘Hinduism’ in Mathil society
means Tantric Hinduism. Tantra, the esoteric philosophy of enlightenment, is here part

and parcel of everyday life and everyday worship. It is not a remote philosophical

34

movement confined to the discourses of seldom seen ascetics; rather it is the dominant
religion of this area. Consequently, it is the goddess that is the dominant Hindu deity of
Mathil samaj (society, or world). She is not seen as being part of a ‘little tradition’, or a
vestige of some remote tribal past, but rather she is worshipped as part of the ‘great
tradition’ of Hinduism. By ‘great tradition’, I mean that the goddess is clearly part of the
textual tradition of Hinduism and her worship is done as a vedic yuga (that is, as part of
the prescribed procedure of puja mentioned in the sacred textual literature of Hinduism).
Therefore, if we wish to understand what ojhas and the notion of personhood is
about in this society, we must first understand what the role of the goddess is in this
society. Briefly, the goddess is seen as the principle which underlies the active universe,
as part of the dynamic principle of life. She is therefore in charge of all that transpires
within the world of existence. It is for this reason that she is ‘in every lane.’ But, in
keeping with Tantric philosophy, the goddess is always seen as being united with her
consort Siva. The two are different sides of the same coin, and thus one always implies
the other. Siva is the complement of the goddess, and so is seen as the principle that
underlies the passive (or transcendent) universe. It is for this reason that he is only in
‘one lane,’ the lane that implies shanti (peace or tranquillity, i.e. transcendence). We will
have occasion to take up each of these issues by turn. The point to keep in mind here is
that the ojha can be seen as a low level Tantric adept. Consequently, every ojha, just
like every ascetic, has to spend a period of time training under a guru (or master), who is
usually a Tantric ascetic or someone known to have Shakti (which, more or less amounts

to the same thing). Each of the ojhas I interviewed were able to give me lineage of their

35
guru’s spiritual line. This is really no different fiom the way ascetics gain knowledge,

and so, power. In the conversation I quoted above, the reason that only two ojhas were
speaking, while the other five remained silent, was that the other five were the disciples
of Pharabho Mondal, and so were not inclined to speak in their guru’s presence. As
Pharabho once told me, “without a guru there is no knowledge.” The ojha then
legitimates his power and his practice by referring to a Tantric world view.

This link between the ojha and the ascetic will be discussed in detail in chapter
six. For now the important point is that the ojha explains healing, and so implicitly
personhood, in terms of a tantric philOSOphy. The notion of personhood here is
profoundly Hegelian; the self in this society is always a social self that exists only in
relation to the other of a social encounter. Thus the concept of the self is a dynamic one
and one that can only be understood as it manifests itself in an ongoing social process.
We will take this issue up in our final chapter, but to briefly indicate what I mean, the self
in this society always implies the other. This is true not only of the divine self (Siva and
Shakti unite to form the transcendent self of Bhrama), but also of the human self. People
in this society exist only in relationship to others, and if something threatens the links
that unite the self to the other, the resulting crisis of personhood is expressed in terms of
possession and spirit attack. As I said, we will look more deeply at the relationship
between the self and the other in our final chapter, but before we can get there we must
look closely at what Siva and Shakti mean in this society, and how they relate to

personhood.

36
The model of personhood embedded within this system of healing seems to be

fairly prevalent and uniform within Mathil society. Not only the local villager and under
class of this community prescribe to it, but everybody in this society believes it to some
extent. This society, especially during the time of my fieldwork, is extremely divided.
There are the perennial conflicts between Hindus and Muslims, between the high castes
(who generally support the Bharati J anta Party, or B.J.P. political party, which is a semi-
fascist Hindu fundamentalist party) and the low castes (who generally support the Janta
Dal party, in fact Bihar was the only state in India that retained a Janta Dal government
during the time of my fieldwork), between the rich and the poor ( especially the ‘modern’
rich and the ‘traditional’ or ‘backward’ poor). Yet all these divisions seem to be
transcended when we begin to consider personhood and the belief systems perpetuated
by ojhas.

At one point I asked Basu Dev about the kinds of people who most frequently
consults ojhas. His response was:

“BD: everyone comes, sarkar.

Me: Men, women?

BD: Everyone comes.

Me: Children?

BD: Everyone. Everyone! Children, women, those [pointing to Champanagar]

sitting at home. The rich, the rich!

Me: The rich?

BD: Yes. Your grand-father, Majhala Sarkar [or “middle Sarkar”, a cousin of

my grandfather, and so by this kinship system, my grandfather. Also one of the

‘princes’ or royalty of the local community], he had a toothache, he left the world

[i.e. he has since passed away], but he called someone to jharo him. My name is

known to Bara Sarkar [“big Sarkar”, the older brother of the man in question]

and he said ‘call him, he will jharo you.’...

Me: Do Muslims come?
BD: Everyone, everyone, absolutely.”

37

Basu Dev wasn’t exaggerating. I was surprised to learn that despite the recent
hostilities between Hindus and Muslims, both groups equally believed in the legitimacy
of ojhas. One of my key informants, Mu’in, told me (and in fact took me to see for
myself) that Muslims have no hesitation in inviting a Hindu ojha, if they think that such a
person can help. When such ojhas are invited, the ojha, with the approval and support
of the Muslim villagers, will do prayer to the (Hindu) goddess! Conversely, Hindu
villages seem to have no hesitation in inviting a Muslim healer, and such healers too
make offerings to the goddess.

I had the good fortune to speak to a mullah (a Muslim priest) in the town of
Pumeia. This man had a reputation of being a very good ojha. His views, as a religious
man, were a little more doctrinaire than that of the local Muslim ojhas I talked to. It is
important to point out that the tensions between Hindus and Muslims had reached a
crescendo only months prior this interview. Some of the bloodiest rioting had taken
place in the town of Bhagalpur, only 60 miles south of Purenia.

Consequently, Mohmood Alium was quite tense during our interview. For one
thing, he refused to speak in Mathili (a language he knew perfectly well) insisting instead
on speaking in Urduised Hindi (my informant Mu’in, who had arranged the interview,
spoke even worse Hindi than I did. Consequently, he could follow nothing of our
conversation and decided to take a nap during the interview). At any rate, despite the
hostility that existed between Hindus and Muslims, Mohmood Alium told me that healing

is a matter of belief. Praying to the goddess will help heal a possessed individual, just as

38
surely as praying to Allah. He himself prays to Allah when healing an individual, but he

did not discount the effectiveness of praying to the goddess.

At a local level, as I said, Muslim healers will often offer prayers to the goddess.
Actually, the ojha often makes prayer to the gram devata (village or local deity). But
such deities are seen as the minions of the goddess. So in order to secure their help in
healing a possessed individual, one offers them sindur (red verrnilion), saris, etc; things
that please the goddess. When Mu’in’s village was plagued by a spirit being, they tried
several ojhas until finally it was a Hindu ojha that was able to help them. He determined
that the problem resulted from the fact that the Muslim villagers had cut down a tree
sacred to the goddess, a tree that stood in front of what was once a goddess temple
(although how he knew this is anybody’s guess, as no sign of the temple is visible today).
The Muslim villagers then made offerings to the Devi to appease her and this finally got
rid of the malevolent entity.

The prevalence of the belief in ojhas seems to cut across class lines. The vast
majority of the ‘educated elite’ of this area responded to my inquires about ojhas the
same way that the doctors at Champanagar did (actually, I did not really initiate
interviews with such individuals. Rather when they heard about the topic of my
research, they tended to seek me out). At first they all would say that ojhas are a bunch
of charlatans. At any rate, Bihar doesn’t have any ‘real’ ojhas, as we are no longer so
‘backward.’ If I really wanted to see some magic, I should go to Madha Pradase. Once
such disclaimers had been stated (and as a rule, I nodded politely to the ‘advice’ that

such august individuals would give me), the real fim started. Because almost to the man,

39
each individual after having told me emphatically that they didn’t believe in ojhas, and

didn’t even think any existed in this area, would then proceed to tell me a story about a
spirit possession and a healing ritual that they themselves had witnessed. In each case,
some ‘respectable’ persons child or relative had been attacked by a ghost (by the logic of
such things, because they were ‘respectable’ they obviously weren’t faking it), and a low
caste servant in the community was called in to heal them.

Here is an example of one such story:

Arun Prasad is a professor of Chemistry at Pumea college. I met him at a
wedding reception in the town of Pumeia. Actually, he approached me, as he had
heard that I had come from America to research ojhas (several people that night
approached me for this reason. People seemed to be fascinated that anyone would
be interested in such a topic). Arun started out by telling me that he didn’t believe in
ojhas, etc. But presently he said that there was one time when he himself had
witnessed a healing (jhar phoor) ritual.

A relative of his, a young girl surprised everyone one day by saying that she had
seen a headless woman in their yard the previous night. The parents dismissed the
story, but the girl kept insisting on its validity. As the days passed, she insisted that
the headless woman kept appearing to her. Finally the parents decided to consult an
ojha. The ojha was a servant of a friend.

The ojha knew right away what the problem was. He did jhar phoor to make the
ghost appear. The ghost took possession of the child’s body and talked through her.
The ghost insisted that she was the mother of the child in a previous life time (Arun
Prasad witnessed this healing ritual first hand). The ojha commanded the ghost to
leave the child alone, and threatened that if the ghost did not leave, he would have to
capture it (i.e. nail it to a tree). At length, the ghost said that it would leave. The
ghost said that it had another daughter (again from a pervious life) who lived in
England. The ghost said that it would go visit this daughter and leave the child alone.
The child was saved and experienced no further attacks.

This is just one of several such stories related to me by such educated skeptics.
They all follow the same form. People who insist they don’t believe in ojhas or ghosts,
then turn around to tell of spirit attacks they have witnessed first hand. Inevitably the

ojha is of lower class, and usually of a lower caste (often the servant of a fiiend).

40
This story points out some key features of the healing system that ojhas are a

part of. Firstly, they do tend to be low class and low caste individuals, thus they are part
of the ‘folk’ traditions of the area. Rich people who tend to be (or think of themselves)
as more educated, will only turn to ojhas as a last resort, while the local villagers of the
area turn to ojhas first. High caste individuals or well to do individuals who dabble in
the occult tend to label themselves (and get labeled) as ‘Tantric’ yogies. In practice, they
do much the same sort of thing, as the philosophy of Tantra says that power (Shakti) is
power. Power can be used to fitrther spiritual ends, or it can be used for practical ends,
like healing people possessed by ghosts (or any other afflictions). And while rich people
may not believe in ojhas, nobody questions the validity and power of an ascetic. This is
a crucial point, because ojhas legitimate their practices by referring to exactly the same
concepts and world view that is part of the dominant religious system of this area.
Concepts such as yoga, shakti, or reincarnation and the like, are widely believed in.

Thus one may question the legitimacy of an ojha, but no one that I met seriously
questioned the validity of such concepts, and so, the ability of some individuals (such as
a Tantric yogi) to actually perform magical feats.

We see then that despite the apparent need of the educated elite to distance
themselves fi'om the ‘backward superstitions’ of this area, they themselves tend to
believe in such superstitions at some level. There is almost a need on their part to
believe that such things could happen. The thing that unites the ‘uneducated villagers’
with the urban ruling class is the concepts and beliefs embedded within Tantric

Hinduism, and especially within the concepts and beliefs that revolve around the worship

41
of the goddess. For the goddess, in Mathil society, addressed every segment of the

society. Belief in her power and her reality is shared by all, regardless of class or even
(apparently) religion.

This is, I think, why ojhas persist in this region. Their legitirnization of their
abilities is just too plausible to Mathil sensibilities for people to reject them outright.
Therefore, it is crucial for us to understand what exactly the role of the goddess is in
Mathil society.

Consequently, the next few chapters will be devoted to understanding the nature
of Siva and Shakti in Mathil society. It is only after we have understood something
about the importance and relevance of these two deities that we will be able to
understand anything about ojhas and how they are able to help people experiencing spirit

possession.

CHAPTER TWO: THE HIDDEN GOD. AN ANALYSIS OF THE SIVA-

LIN GUM

Although the Goddess is the dominant deity in Mathil society, her consort Siva is
also considered an important god. Indeed, at some levels Siva and Shakti seem to be
equally important, or rather the two are so closely linked that they may be seen as
different aspects of one supreme divine form. This can be seen in the fact that they share
many of the same qualities, their close association to snakes, ghosts, asceticism, and
finally and most importantly, the mediation of pollution and transcendence.

Consequently, before proceeding to a discussion of the major ritual cycle of this
area, it might be illuminating to discuss the Sivaling, one of the 'dominant symbols' of
this culture. Using the insights of V. Turner, one is led to the conclusion that the
worship of Siva does not represent a cult or a sect that is separate from the worship of
the Goddess (that is, it does not, like the Vasinivates, represent a rival sect). There is an
ideological continuity between the representation of Siva and the logic of Goddess
worship.

The Siva Temple
Siva temples are scattered throughout the region, and tend to come in a uniform
style. These temples can come in very elaborate forms (such as the main Siva temple of

this region, which is located at Deva-Ghar, which we shall have occasion to talk about in

42

43

the next chapter), representing great temple complexes; or they can be simple one room
affairs that are found near ponds in just about every village. At any rate, the central
focus of such temples, no matter how elaborate, is the Sivaling. In elaborate temples,
which have shrines to many gods, the Sivaling is housed in the inner sanctum and is the
focus of the temple complex (e. g., the temple at Deva-Ghar).

The shrine that houses the lingum (or phallus of Siva) tends to be a rather small
room without windows. The room is either round or octagonal and the lingum is housed
at its center. Such shrines are claustrophobic, often damp (with the water used to
worship the lingum) and often have soot covered walls. The lingum itselfis made of
black stone that is two thirds higher than its base. The base is a circular structure that
has a lip at its end and a canal fi'om which the water poured over the lingum is

channeled. (see diagram)

, [MTJLM
lingum \
/ Cami - Cawxi
£0.36 buSe. L/

V lewd from tap

These three elements, the base, the protruding cylindrical stone, and the canal on
the base are the three definitive elements of the Sivalr'ng. In Sanskrit these are called

Rudrangsha (the protruding stone), Vedi (the base) and Ambupranali (the canal for the

44
water, From J. Mishra, 1959). But the point I would like to make here is that at the

symbolic level, these elements have a sensory imagery that is undeniable (and one
incidentally that some, though by no means all of my informants recognized).

At the sensory level, the protruding stone is referred to as a lingum, the lingum
of Siva. That is, it is meant to represent Siva's phallus. The base then becomes the yoni
of Shakti, literally her womb or vagina. The stone is worshipped by pouring water
(amrit or nectar) or a mixture of water, milk, honey, etc. over the top of it and allowing
this mixture to trickle down to the base, where it flows to the lip of the structure. Here
it is collected by the priest and used as Chandrograt (or Chandra dat, which literally
means ‘fluid that has touched the feet of a god,’ or a liquid sacrament that is used during
the course of a puja), the sacrament that is given to the devotee, who, after swallowing
it, smears what is left over his head. Flowers or other offerings may be placed on top of
the stone, again becoming sanctified by their association with the symbol.

What I am suggesting is that at the sensory pole of the symbol, a blatant
expression of sex and sexuality is being represented. The phallus of Siva and the vagina
of Shakti are represented in eternal union. The sacrament (Chandrogat, the liquid
sacrament given to the devotee after a puja) that the devotees incorporate into
themselves is the sexual fluids that result from the union of Siva and Shakti. Normally
sex and sexuality is thought to be pollution in Hindu society, but here it becomes the
medium that links humans to the divine. But the symbol is more than just a
representation of the sexual union of Siva and Shakti; the focus is on the perspective of

the devotee, which has been clearly defined. The devotee seeing the Sivaling, is viewing

45

the act of cosmic union from the 'inside', as it were. What I am suggesting is that the
shrine itself is a representation of a womb; the womb of Shakti. Thus, the devotee, is
like a child within a womb, seeing the act of union of his mother (Shakti) with his father
(Siva). Hence the enclosed circular design of the shrine. The devotee is 'enveloped' by
Shakti, just as the Goddess‘ yoni envelopes Siva. The only point of contact between the
devotee and Siva is from the sexual contact between him and his consort. In a strange
inversion then, the Siva temple becomes a representation of Shakti's womb.

A psychologist may be content with such an exegesis. But one of the central
insights of Turner is that symbols can not be reduced down to a biological level of
meaning. Unlike the Freudians, who see symbols as a universal process that can be
reduced down to a root anatomical level of meaning, Turner focuses on the relationship
between the physiological, affect laden sensory pole of a symbol, and its ideological
content (Turner, 1967, P.30). Symbols thus do not have any one root meaning, and so
must be understood as having both sensory and ideological content. It is at the level of
the ideological that one can clearly see how the worship of Siva relates back to a Shakta
world view (Shakta are tantric worshipers of the goddess, the dominant religious sect in
Mathil society), and why Siva and Shakti are so closely linked in this brand of Hinduism.

At the ideological level, Shakti is defined as "name and form" (Saraswati-
Rahasyopanishad, Shloka 23) while Bhrarna is defined as "existence, consciousness and
bliss. " Shakti here is defined as the kinetic energy of the universe, the force behind the
manifest universe. She is defined in terms of difi’erentiation and flux. She is prikriti, the

force that manifests the universe. Her active nature is further implied by the fact that she

46

is often represented as the active partner sexually (i.e., she sits on top of her consort
Siva). Symbolically then, she represents the world of form, the world of flux, which is
ruled( at a philosophical, physical, and social level) by power.

The point of all this is that we are all part of this dynamic manifest world. We
are all 'born' into the world of Shakti. Hence, by extension, she becomes the
representation of the supreme mother. She is thus called the "womb of the universe"
(see Brown, 1990; pp. 129). It is her role as the supreme mother that defines her
relationship to creation. We are all the 'children' of Shakti. That is, at the level of
ideology, the world around us (the manifest world) is the 'obvious' or given reality of
everyday existence, the world we were born into. It requires no extension of ordinary
consciousness to know this world, the world that is defined through differentiation,
defined, in other words, by our senses. And this empirical world is the world of Shakti,
the world of power.

Her consort, Siva, is also called Bhrama, the transcendent. "Maya is prikriti, the
possessor of Maya is Maheshwara [Siva]. This whole creation, as his extension, fills up
this universe" (Shawetashwatara—Upanidshad, 4.9-10). He too is the force behind the
universe, but he, as Bhrama, is dormant, passive. As the transcendent, he becomes the
non-differentiated universe. As purusa (the inert principle of the universe, or that which
is beyond nature), he is spirit, that which is outside of time and space, that is, outside of
that which can be felt or known through the senses. So he symbolizes the underlying
unity or the 'oneness' that lies under the differentiated universe. As the undifferentiated

universe, he is without qualities, and thus, this aspect of the universe makes no

47
distinctions between things. He literally lies under Shakti. As the dormant and inactive

principle of the universe, he is symbolically represented as the passive sexual partner of
Shakti. The woman is here on top because she is active. This says less about sex roles
or the ambivalent nature of women in Indian society, than about the nature of the
universe, as defined in Tantric philosophy. That is, the activity of Shakti (and her
sexual/physical dominance) has more to do with the symbolization of philosophical
assumptions than sex roles. The reason Shakti becomes active has to do with the fact
that she is linked to the idea of motherhood or creation, the manifest universe into which
we are born.

We are born into the manifest universe, and so its reality is immediate. The
world of the undifferentiated universe, on the other hand, is not immediate. We do not
'naturally' see the unity or the oneness of the universe or the logic that ties together all
reality. This is the logic of transcendence, and so, by definition, it is not part of the
everyday reality that we live in. Thus the world of Siva is not 'obvious.‘ It requires a
different state of consciousness to be realized. And this consciousness must necessarily
pass through the manifest universe to be attained. That is, the 'natural' state of
consciousness is formed in the everyday consciousness of the differentiated universe, but
this universe is linked to the undifferentiated universe by the act of divine play, the act of
divine sexuality.

If we wanted to, we could put a Freudian spin on the exegesis. Here the central
point would be that the connection between the child and the mother is primary. ' The

first 'world' (psychological reality) that the child knows is the world dominated by the

48
child/mother relationship. She is the first object of desire. But this relationship is

juvenile and in order to gain an adult personality, the child must establish a relationship
with the father. This connection between the child and the father is not a given, it
requires several stages of psychological grth to be completed. Most importantly, the
child must successfully undergo the oedipal complex in order to establish a mature adult
relationship with the father. And this complex drives home the fact of the erotic
relationship between the father and the mother. It is only by realizing the erotic bond
between father and mother, and accepting this bond as legitimate, that the child is in a
position to enter adulthood. Something similar is perhaps being said in the Siva/Shakti
ideology as represented by the Sivaling. However, this symbol speaks of a
soteriological, and not a psychological journey. The difference then, between a strictly
psychological interpretation of the lingum, and a cultural interpretation, has to do with
the added level of complexity imposed upon the psychological by the religious assertion
that ultimately Siva and Shakti are one reality. The cultural interpretation has to work at
the psychological and the ideological levels simultaneously. Something more than stages
of psychological development is being implied.

At a higher level of consciousness, the Sivalr'ng is implying the unity of Siva and
Shakti. This is symbolized by the act of sexual union; neither is complete without the
other, and so both imply the other. Rather than postulating an absolute binary
opposition, the idea here is that elements of the undifferentiated universe are already
present in Shakti and vice versa. So in the midst of the manifest universe (the universe

that is Shakti) there is the unmarrifest universe (the universe that is Siva). And

49

conversely, in the unmanifest universe, which in this society is represented by a dot called
Chinchini Shakti, there is already present the manifest universe, which is why the symbol
that represents it is called Shakti (or a form of Shakti) and not Siva. This dot is found at
the center of all mandala designs; the mandala represents the unfolding universe or the
manifest universe. The dot at its center is the potential or unmanifest universe; that from
which the universe is actualized. It is only because of this way that any leap of
consciousness from the world of Shakti to the world of Siva is possible. This ultimate
unity or collapse of opposition is represented by the act of conjugal union; Shakti and
Siva are inseparable. No priority (at least at a philosophical level) can be given to either
order, or rather, both realities are necessary for the existence of the other, and for the
existence of the universe. Since Siva and Shakti are always joined, it follows that to
know the ultimate essence of Shakti, that is, to 'know’ anything in this world as it really
is, to get to its root or essence, is also to know Siva or the transcendent universe. At the
heart of the differentiated universe (or was it the vagina?) is the undifferentiated
universe. So the possibility of transcendence exists in the pursuit of all physical
phenomenon. "Tantrics base their claims for both metaphysical unity and diversity in
creation by appealing to a theistic notion that literally conceives of the universe as a
product of Siva and Shakti's conjugal union"( Brooks, 1990; pp.67). This is a crucial
linking of the profane with the sacred, because it opens up the possibility that the 'inner
conflict' of Heesterman can be gotten around (Heesterman, 1985). That is, and we shall
talk more about this later, it links the everyday world of political and mundane reality to

the transcendent reality. Sex, intoxication, power, etc. all the things that a renouncer

50

turns his back on, here are valorized as the path toward transcendence. Because they are
aspects of Shakti (the everyday mundane world) they must have, at their root, Siva. And

it is @ relationship between the two worlds that is being symbolized by the Sivaling.

The Durga Temple

The other prevalent temple style of this region is the Durga-stan, or the temples
dedicated to the goddess Durga. Such temples are noteworthy because of the striking
contrast between them and Siva temples. Unlike the Siva temple which houses the
Sivaling, the Durga temple has no central symbol. Durga temples are rectangular
buildings divided into three sections. The central section is the entrance to the temple
and is twice as large as the two adjoining rooms. Such temples are not part of temple
complexes (at least none that I saw were) as many Siva temples are. They tend to be
very plain buildings with little or nothing in the way of elaborate architectural designs or
artwork (as we shall see, the art that such temples house revolves around ritual, that is, it
is the temporary or performance art of puja).

Now what is interesting about such temples is the fact that the central room,
which is the main part of the temple, houses no image. In fact for most of the year the
central room is empty! It is the room to the left of the main room that houses the
permanent image of the goddess. This image is usually a small stone statue of Durga.
The room to the right of center houses a permanent image of another god (sometimes
another goddess, like Kali, sometimes an image of Vishnu). The architecture

underscores something significant about the relationship of the Goddess to the world of

51

humans. The central part of the temple, where one would expect the image of the
Goddess to be housed is empty, except on the occasion of specific pujas. That is, the
Goddess is contextual and 'made' by men (manifest) only at the time of puja.

The central room comes alive during Durga puja. It is at this time that an image
of the goddess Durga, along with Laksnri, Saraswati, Kali and any other deities that
relate to her, like Skanda, Siva, Ganesha etc. (depending on the fortunes of the
community) are made of clay and housed in the central room. The puja itself slowly
manifests the goddess in her full form, that is, this is a gradual process involving many
rituals (to be discussed in another chapter). At the end of the puja, the images are
ceremonially discarded in the local river. The point is that the Goddess becomes
manifest in ordinary, everyday objects, such as clay, grass, certain kinds of fruit, etc. By
performing the appropriate rituals, humans can activate the true nature of such objects,
such that they, for a brief period become the Goddess, the supreme deity.

This idea of an irnperrnanent representation of divinity seems to be a general
trend in Hinduism (see Waghome and Cutler ed. 1985, esp. the articles by Preston and
Courtright). The emphasis is on the process of manifestation, which intimately links the
world of the divine with the world of humans. In other words, imperrnanence allows for
an immediate connection between the divine and the human world, a connection driven
home by the process of perpetual creation and destruction. This immediacy once again
buttresses the ideology found in the Sivaling. Namely that the Goddess is the manifest
universe, and so has a direct connection to humans, while her consort Siva is distant.
This theme is, I think, the reason Durga temples have no permanent dominant symbol

contained within them. Unlike the Sivaling, which is a representation of the permanent

52

transcendental order and its intrusion into the everyday contextual world, the Durga
temple represents the contextual world, which is joined to the transcendental only by an
act of human labor. Only at specific ritual moments, and only with a great deal of ritual
care, can the everyday contextual world of humans manifest its link to the transcendental
world, which is beyond context. This points out the fluid nature of the manifest
universe, a universe of changing contexts. While the Sivaling points out the permanent
nature of the undifferentiated universe. What we have then are representations of the

Goddess and the god Siva that buttress each other to form a consistent world view.

CHAPTER THREE: THE RITUAL CYCLE

The ritual cycle of Maithila is a complex structure that defies any simplistic
generalizations. Having said this, I would none-the-less like to point out certain features
of this cycle that may shed light on the way time is defined in this society and the
significance of time to personhood. It must be stated at the onset that the ritual cycle is
far more complicated than I could hope to present here (for a more complete discussion
see, R. Jha, 1982). What I would like to focus on in this chapter are the major rituals
performed in the region. What we find by such an analysis is the fact that the ritual cycle
sets up an opposition between winter as a time of social order and summer as a time of
disorder. By so doing the ritual cycle legitimates times when individuals can vent their
personal or psychological fi'ustrations.

Of course in this society as in any other, it is up to individuals to decide just how
devout they wish to be. So it is possible for an individual to spend their entire existence
focusing on nothing but ritual. There are indeed many such individuals (mainly widows
or widowers, high cast individuals, or individuals who, all told, have too much time on
their hands!) Such individuals perform rituals on a daily basis and there are enough
‘minor’ rituals to go around to keep a person busy for a lifetime. When I say minor, I do
not mean to downplay the importance of such rituals, especially to the life and
sensibilities of such devote individuals. What I mean rather is that such rituals are not
performed by the community at large. They thus tend to be private in nature, and so

53

54
have not been included in this work. As Pharabho said there are fifty four or sixty four

hundred million gods that should be worshipped, but not all of these gods are central or
even commonly known to all. I felt it was important to discuss the ritual cycle, even in
this simplistic and generalized way, as a means of situating the major ritual of this area,
namely Durga puja, which shall be discussed in detail in the next chapter.

The ritual cycle seems to be structured around the seasons. The major
opposition is between winter and summer. Summer is the time of pollution. The gods
are said to be asleep at this time, consequently, it is a time of great danger. It is at this
time that the major healing rituals take place, because it is during this season that ghosts,
snakes and infectious diseases abound (although it was my experience that snakes and
disease have no seasons!) All such afflictions are under the domain of the goddess and
so all healing rituals revolve around her worship. But such rituals are personal and not
part of the ritual cycle of the community. Indeed, summer is a time of little or no ritual
activity, aside from Rama-nami (a ritual devoted to the worship of the god Ram),there
are no major rituals performed during this period. So Grishma (summer) is marked as a
time of ritual silence, social disorder and personal anguish.

Winter is the opposite of summer and considered a time of bounty. The gods are
awake and so firlly active in the social world of men. Few rituals of affliction take place
at this time, ghosts etc. are thought to be inactive. Interestingly enough, this means that
few, if any rituals take place during this season (the months of Pusa and Magha). This is
because the major ritual cycle of Durga puja has just been performed, and as I will argue,

the balance of nature and society has been restored. Thus, there is no need to perform

55

any major rituals at this time. The main point that this opposition between summer and
winter (Grishma and Shishira) brings up is the fact that the major rituals tend to clump
around these seasons, between the disorder of summer and the order of winter.

The major ritual season begins in early autumn, during the season of Shishira,
which includes the months of Bhadava and Aswina (see diagram). The cycle is started
by Bisari puja (worship of the snake goddess, also called Mansa devi) which marks the
beginning of the "ritual season" and the cycle of goddess worship. The major ritual of
Deva-Utthana Ekadashr’ or "waking the gods" takes palace at this time. This initiates a
hectic ritual time where rituals follow each other in quick succession. The waking of the
gods is followed by Churthi Chandrama Shashti (worship of the sun god) which is
closely followed by the major ritual of Navratri ("nine nights") or Dharasha. This is the
Durga puja ritual (which shall be discussed in detail elsewhere). Durga puja is followed
by Laksnri puja, Dwali and Kali puja (which take place on the same day). In fact this is a
period of non stop ritual activity, which overflows into the season of late autumn-early
winter (Hemant, which includes the months of Krairtika and Agrahana). These major
rituals (as I will argue in the next chapter) recreate the ordered world of society. Once

this act of creation is complete, we are in winter, and there is a marked lull in the ritual

world.

Seasons

Bhadava (or the rainy season) Varsha

Aswina

Kartika

Agrahana
Pausha

Magha

Phalguna

C haitra

Vaishakha

Jayshtthya

Asharha

Shravana

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Sharad or
Autumn

Hemant or
late Autumn

Shishir or Winter

Vasant or Spring

Grishma or Summer

Varsha or rainy season

Rituals

Janmasthami (or the birth

of Krsna)
Lakshmi puja
Anant puja

Dashmi (Nava-Ratri or
Durga puja)
Kojagra (Lakshmi puja)

Shyama Puja
Govardhana
Bhratri-Divitiya
Devo-ththana

None

None

Ganash puja
Saraswati puja

Shiva-Ratri
Holi

Nava-Ratra
Laksnri puja
Rama-Navami
Akshaya-triteya
Pumima

None

Ratha-Yatra

Manasa Devi puja
Madhu-Shravani
Raksha-Bhandan

57

Springtime brings to an end the major rituals involving the goddess. Late winter is the
time of Saraswiti puja, which is the last ritual of the long goddess worship cycle. There
is a gap between Kali puja (which takes place in Hemant or late autumn) and Sarasawiti
puja (which takes place in Shishir, the end of winter and the beginning of spring). I think
this gap is significant. Winter, the auspicious season, is bounded by the worship of the
goddess, Durga puja at its onset, and Saraswaiti puja at its close. Winter is thus framed
by order; the major rituals to the goddess which re-establish the ordered world. It is
interesting that autumn is not a time of bounty. During Durga puja, people have not as
yet harvested the winter crop, so this is not really a time of plenty, although this is the
time of the major rituals of this area that involve considerable financial investments by
the community. Winter, by contrast, is a time of plenty, but as the order of society has
been established, no major rituals take place during this time. Springtime brings to an
end the influences of the order created by Durga puja, and consequently it is the
beginning of the disordered world of summer.

This disorder is reflected in the nature of the two major rituals of spring. In
contrast to the solemn and high rituals of Durga/Kali puja, Saraswiti puja which takes
place at the onset of spring is wild and disorderly. Every community within a village will
perform their own puja; that is, the puja doesn't center around the temple. Each
community has its own image of the goddess made and there is much drinking and rough '
housing involved in the local worship of Saraswiti. Cars and taxies are stopped on the
road by young men and a 'contribution' to the cost of the local puja is demanded of all

who travel on this day (nothing of the sort takes place during Durga puja which is a

58

much more elaborate and expensive affair). The drinking in particular seems significant
as it stands in such marked contrast to the formal behavior displayed during other
goddess rituals. Now the older informants that I talked to (including my father) were
shocked by this observation. According to them, Saraswiti puja is as formal and austere
a ritual as any of the other goddess puja's. They insisted quite strongly that the demand
for 'toll' or the drunkenness of young men on this day was a 'corruption' of the puja, and
they assured me that when they were young no such behavior took place. If this is true,
it is significant. The change in the context of Saraswiti puja seems consistent with the
way the ritual cycle as a whole is structured. It makes sense that out of all the pujas that
could have been 'corrupted' it should have been Saraswiti puja that was. Not because
Saraswiti (the goddess of knowledge and creativity) is in any way bawdy or lowly, in fact
she is just the opposite, as she is clearly a goddess of the ‘great' tradition, but because her
worship falls at the onset of springtime.

The other major ritual that comes toward the end of springtime is Holi, the
"festival of love" as Marriott put it. Actually Marriott does a good job describing the
mood of this ritual of reversal (Marriott, 1966). Certain points need to be elaborated
upon before we can understand what this ritual is about. The day starts out by people
chanting bura na mano Holi but ("don't take offense, it's Holi") or other such framing
chants that define the day as a day of license. Special festive foods are prepared and
eaten. People in this area drink thundai (a milk and almond drink) laced with large
quantities of bhang (pureed marijuana). This puts everyone in the mood for the days

activities. Large buckets of colored water are to be found everywhere and people use

59
phuschkaries (large syringe like squirt guns, the original super soakers!) to dose each

other with the colored water. There is much sexual license, normally tabooed people
openly 'play' Holi; that is, avoidance relationships etc. are suspended on this day. The
license extends to the entire community, so on this day anyone may (in theory) come into
contact, even members of different casts who normally avoid each other. It is perhaps
significant that Holi is "played" and not performed, like other ritual (people can perform
a puja, but you have to "play" Holi). The importance of this, I think, is that the ritual is
framed in such a way that it already implies a meta communication. That is, the normal
rules of social order are suspended, or being played around with. On this day, social
rules are defined by the rules of the game of Holi. Thus, on this day, proper conduct is
defined in terms of the game and not in terms of standing societal norms. This 'play' is
closely associated with sex and sexuality, not only because bawdy behavior abounds but
because artistically the play of Holi is associated with the divine play of the god Krsna
with his consort Radha. This is a common enough motif in north Indian art, and it
extends to music as well. Ragas that are sung during the Vasant season are often about
coquettish lovers who complain about the revelry of Holi going too far. Often too such
songs are linked to Krsna, who is the singer’s tormentor. The mood of such songs, if I
may be so bold as to gloss them is this way, is of innocent but sexually charged love play.
The songs (as so many erotic songs of Indian classical and light classical music) are thus
devotional, as they represent the ideal bhakt (devotee) who give themselves completely

to the lord Krsna. And this attitude of devotional love-play characterizes Holi.

60
What is this ritual about? The first thing to be noted is that this is the time of

harvest, and harvesting points out the opposition between life and death. The harvesting
of the plant is also the death of the plant. So in the cycle of agriculture, which is
necessary for the life of humans, as it produces food, implies death for the plant. But as
agriculture is a cycle (the planting of the summer crop is not too far off) death also
implies rebirth. At the level of material culture, the festival implies something about the
link between life and death, birth and rebirth (a concept central to Hindu cosmology).
Death is essential for life, and the festival points out that the cycle of life and death is not
a great tragedy, but the divine play of the gods. The festival thus mediates between life
and death.

The lirninality of the festival is pointed out by the use of color. Color in Indian
society has implications for social order, a metaphor for classification. The term varna,
used in the Bhagavad-Gita to describe the stratification necessary for social order (i.e.,
the caste system) literally means color (Bhagavad-Gita, Ch. 1, 43). Each segment of
society is thought to be of a different color, and it is only by keeping such colors separate
and discreet that social order is possible. Indeed all creation is viewed as different
combinations of the gunas (or qualities) of prakn'ti, and each of these gunas are
represented not only by a different goddess, but by different colors. Ragas, the system
by which classical music is classified is another term for color. Each raga is thought to
represent a different mood and so a different color (although as far as I know the specific
color of each raga, as the specific color of each caste, hasn't been specified). The point

isn't the colors themselves, but the fact that color is being used m metaphor for order.

61

This use of color points out one of the central features of the Holi festival, namely the
random mixing of colors. The squirting of colored water has the effect of mixing up
discreet colors in haphazard fashion. The net efi’ect is a psychedelic mix of colors
literally all over ones body. The body itself is used as a symbol of the breakdown of
social order. It is significant that it is the body (the individual) that is thus employed,
because it points out the central tension between the individual and the social order, a
tension so crucial to the critical philosophy of Freud (Freud, 1961, see also Marcuse,
1955). The body here is used to symbolize the fact that the discreet categories of social
groups are broken down in the erotic play of Holi; that is, different castes are allowed to
interrningle freely in this play of colors. The squirting of colored water then is
symbolically pointing out the breakdown of normal social order, the lirrrinality of the
festival.

This collapsing of the normal order is not confined to the level of the social. The
emphasis on sexuality, I think, reflects the idea of collapsing boundaries at the level of
the individual. Sex, in Tantric philosophy, is used as a metaphor for the collapse of the
boundaries between the self and the other. "Tantrism thus shows how the supreme
experience encompasses all the levels of reality, how oneness suddenly arises in the very
midst of duality " (the duality of male/female, transcendental/mundane etc, Silburn
1988, p.138). Of course, Tantric sexual practices are not just sex. The point is not that
the opposition between the self and the other is being collapsed literally, any more than
the order of the caste system is being rejected, rather sex, like color becomes a 31m

that points to the possibility of such a transcendence. Sex here is a symbol of individual

62

transcendence, the self which is isolated can bridge the gap between the self and the
other and in the process, between the mundane and the transcendent universe. This is so
because the first step towards transcendence is the recognition that there is a unity that
underlies the apparent separation of things. That is, underneath the manifest universe
(the world of Maya or Shakti) there exists the unmanifest universe of Bhrama (or Siva).
The collapse of the opposition between the self and the other is a crucial step by which
the consciousness of the individual begins to see the underlying unity that is Bhrama (see
Silbum, 1988).

Sexuality becomes the link that unites the world of men to the transcendental
order of the divine. And this central symbol of Tantric philosophy is being played
around with in the festival of Holi . This notion of sexuality as collapsing opposition was
pointed out in our discussion of the Siva-lingum. Purus (that which is beyond nature)
and prakriti (that which is nature) are inseparably united and this unity is symbolized by
representing them in the act of sexual union. This would explain the erotic nature of the
songs sung to Krsna, which are closely associated with the festival of Holi. The act of
personal devotion (the complete surrender of body and soul) to the divine is the
definition of the true bhakt. As Brooks points out, binary duality in Hindu philos0phy is
postulated only to reveal the deeper unity of transcendent consciousness mrooks, 1990,
p.69-70). In tantra, sex can be used as a sacflrana (discipline or meditation) to achieve
transcendence. In the Krsna dominated Bhakti movement, sex becomes a metaphor for
the proper attitude of the devotee toward the divine. We are to see the transcendent as a

lover sees the object of his or her desire.

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This theme of glimpsing the transcendent, the ananda (bliss) of the divine, by

altering the normal rules of conduct, by reversing the rules of mundane reality, is firrther
enforced by the ritual use of drugs. The drinking of bhang as a sadhana (discipline or
practice) to achieve transcendence is another Tantric innovation. Bhang is closely
associated with Siva, and the intoxication that alters the everyday consciousness of the
devotee, holds out the possibility of glimpsing the ananda of the divine. Again bhang is
being used as a symbol of the collapse of everyday reality at the level of consciousness
itself.

So the Holi festival works on at least four levels. The opposition and the
collapse of the opposition between life and death is being pointed out, the social order is
collapsed, as is the order that differentiates the self from the other. Finally, the order of
normal consciousness is collapsed. The collapse of each of these orders implies the
transcendent. So what is being specified is the relationship between the divine world and
the world of humans, a relationship that is ideally sustained in the act of personal
devotion. At each level an aspect of subjective experience is being addressed; whether it
be life verses death, everyday consciousness verses altered states of consciousness or self
verses the other, each of these has something to say about the personal experience of
being alive. The festival then emphasizes the person, more than the community. And
this is significant because the end of Holi ushers in the harsh months of summer. We
have said that summer is a time of disorder. This is not quite accurate. Like Holi,
summer is a time that focuses social attention on the individual as opposed to the social;

that is, it is at this time that people experiencing personal problems are likely to be

64

possessed by a spirit. It is a time of madness, as it were, a time when society sanctions
the venting of personal problems or allows the directed expression of what Freud would
call phantasy. The societal response to such personal crisis is to perform a healing ritual
that re-establishes a relationship between the individual and the Goddess (a point we
shall return to elsewhere). This opposition between summer and winter was pointed out
to me by the ojhas I interviewed. I was curious as to why so few people seemed to
experience spirit possession after Durga puja. I was told that this was so because after
the puja the Goddess, who controls spirit beings, was fully active in the social world.
Consequently the balance between the spirit world and the world of humans had been
restored and so spirits were unlikely to trouble humans at this time. By contrast, summer
was the time when the services of the ojha was most in demand.

The point is that rituals like Holi are about a personal link between the individual
and the divine. The rituals that frame winter are about social order and the link between
the divine and the social world. In Holi, the emphasis is on the devotion or the personal
love of individuals that links them to the transcendent, while in the rituals of healing that
dominate the summer months, the emphasis is on the love that the divine (the Goddess as
caring mother) manifests toward the individual by taking a personal interest in their
mundane existence. The rituals that frame summer are about personal order or the link
between the divine and the individual. But the individual can only be manifest when the
social order is stripped away, or rather, momentarily suspended. The opposition

between summer and winter is not really about disorder verses order, but rather about

65

the transcendental nature of the divine that asserts itself at a personal and at a social
level. Either way it is love or desire that unites the transcendental world to the mundane.

It is this emphasis on personal devotion, personal love that defines Holi's role in
the ritual cycle. As I said, summer is framed on either side by rituals that define its
character. Holi initiates summer, while the great pilgrimage of Sravana marks the end of
summer. Again the pilgrimage emphasizes the personal devotion of the individual, a
devotion that unites him or her to the transcendent. This important event takes place
during the season of Varsha, the rainy season, the end of summer. People from all parts
of the region (and even from adjoining states) gather at the town of Sultangunj (my
home town). Here, on a rocky island, in the middle of the Ganges stands the ancient
Siva temple of Ajagaivinath. At this auspicious place, the pilgrims fill up two containers
of Ganges water which are carried on a bamboo stick, and walk some sixty miles south
to the temple of Deva-Ghar. This temple is considered one of the twelve joti-lingums of
Siva (ioti means light, but here the connotation is more to power, hence joti-Ir'ngum
could be translated as ‘a lighted phallus’ or a ‘power phallus’).

What is interesting about this pilgrimage, is that, once again, the social order is
suspended for an act of personal devotion. The pilgrims wear simple saffron colored
clothes, an indication of the fact that they have been stripped of social status and social
markers. They are called "bhol Bums" (or “say Bum”), and they refer to each other as
Bum 's (Bum-Bum being a name of Siva). That is, they are stripped of their social
identity, their clothes and their name. They are not allowed to wear shoes and must trek

the sixty miles at great personal hardship through mountains and, formerly tiger infested

66

forest areas (actually, most of the forest area and tigers have vanished in recent times).
The point is that the social markers of caste and gender are here suspended. The
emphasis is on the personal hardship that the pilgrim displays as a sign of his or her
personal devotion to the divine (hardship indeed, see Daniel's description of what such
pilgrimages are like; Daniel, 1984). Love or the act of devotion, links the divine to the
human world. Once the pilgrim reaches Deva-Ghar, he or she pours the Ganges water on
the Siva-lingum, the joti lingum, there (usually, as the crowds are so big, the water is
given to a priest who actually does the pouring). As we have seen, the lingum is a
symbol of the divine copulation between Siva and Shakti. By pouring water over it the
community is being reminded of the link between the manifest and the unmanifest
universe. To be Freudian about it, the transcendent (and so dormant) principle of the
universe is literally 'ejaculating' into the manifest universe, thus linking the two in an act
of cosmic passion. It is significant that this link is sustained by desire, the desire of the
divine that created the universe in the first place, and equally, the desire that links the
pilgrim (individually) to the divine. And this link, once established, ends the period of
summer.

So as we have seen, the periods of summer and winter are framed by rituals in
such a way as to define their social meaning. Taking a que from Freud, we could say
that what this opposition is addressing is the tension between social needs and individual
wants. Sununer is the time for the free (though directed) expression of individual needs
or desires (phantasies). It is framed by rituals that emphasize the personal relationship

between humans and the divine. Winter on the other hand, is a time for social order,

67

when the needs of the community for order take precedence over the needs of the
individual. But unlike the analysis that Freud offers for western society (Freud, 1961),
here both ends of the opposition are made legitimate and meaningfirl by Mathil social
structure (see Obeyesekere, 1981, especially pp. 165-167).

This society does not ignore individuals and their desires, but rather gives such
emotional needs a legitimate time and structure for expression. Summer is defined as
such a time, a time when the phantasy life of the individual is allowed to surface and is
channeled by the structure of healing rituals into a socially acceptable form. Winter, on
the other hand, emphasizes the necessity of social order. It is the great ritual of Durga
puja that frames winter as a time of order, and it is upon this ritual that we shall now

focus our attention.

CHAPTER FOUR: SHREE DURGA PUJA

Durga puja is the most dramatic moment in a long ritual cycle devoted to the
goddess. The cycle begins with Bisari puja (puja to the snake goddess) and ends with
Saraswiti puja (puja to goddess of creativity and knowledge). In between, other aspects
of the goddess are also worshipped, including Durga, Laksmi, and Kali. But by far the
most spectacular and intense puja is reserved for the goddess Durga. If the ritual cycle
of Mathila can be viewed as a work of art, then Durga puja represents the denouement of
that work, the point at which the dramatic tensions of the plot collapse.

In this chapter I would like to present a preliminary description and analysis of
Durga puja. It is preliminary because the puja itself is so complex as to require a book
unto itself. The central theme of this puja, I believe, is the revelation of the
transcendental nature of the goddess. We have had occasion (in our discussion of Holi
and the symbolism of the Siva-lingum) to point out the fact that in this society
transcendence is closely related to the collapse or mediation of opposition. This is
especially true of tantric Hinduism, although it may represent a more general theme
within Hindu culture. If modern western philosophy began with the Kantian assumption
that all concepts must presuppose time and space, serious Hindu philosophy began with
the assumption that pm the divine (i.e., Bhrama) transcends time and space. This is the

logic behind the mystical nature of Upnadishadic writing. One can not manifest (even in

68

69

words) the transcendent, and so one is forced to turn to ritual to try and approximate
symbolically the nature of the divine. Hence the puja can not be reduced down to the
text of the puja. The text is important, but the act of ritual is equally important. In
Mathil society, the transcendent is represented by the Devi.

It is difficult to think of Indian society without thinking of structure and
hierarchy. Models of India that emphasize these concepts are fine, as far as they go, but
they are incomplete. Hindu culture itself seems to have reflected upon such models and
played around with the notion of binary opposition. If, as some ethnographers have
argued, Indian society is fiamed around the opposition of purity and pollution (Dumont,
1970), male and female (Babb,l970 and 1975), or even giver and receiver (Raheja,
1988), then the Indian notion of divinity and puja becomes the deconstructive moment
that collapses such oppositions. It neither rejects nor negates such opposition, but rather
'plays' with them in such a way that ultimately they are transcended. At this point I am
simply making certain assertions as a way to guide the reader through the significant
events of Durga puja. As we proceed, it may be useful to keep these assertions in mind.

I have broken down the following section into two chapters. The first part
considers the puja as a performance, focusing on how the performers (priests) and
audience (villagers and myself) acted or reacted to the events. The second part considers
the text of the puja, the libretto as it were. Here the emphasis shall be more on the
analysis or the thematic of the event. It will be usefirl to refer to the text of the puja as
we try and draw out its major themes, and so I have provided a translation of the text in

an appendix.

70
THE FIRST DAY

In Champanagar, Durga puja is commissioned by the local royal family, the
Sinha's of Raj Banalr'. They have taken care to preserve all the pomp and ceremony that
this puja entails for the past 150 years.7 The puja is performed simultaneously at three
locations in town. It is performed at the ghosain ghar ("divine house") or family temple
within the palace at Champanagar, and it is also performed at the Devi-stan (or
‘goddess’ place’, i.e. goddess temple) in town (also built and maintained by this family).
As the Devi-stair has a permanent image of the goddess, the puja must be done at two
separate locations within this temple. It must be performed before the permanent image
(a small statue of a ten armed Durga in the left room of the temple), as well as in the
central room of the temple, which houses the imperrnanent and life sized statue of Durga
and her family. The general rule is that all images of the goddess Durga _m_ust be
worshipped at this time.

On the first day of the puja, a whole barrage of brahmin priests are formally
invited by the royal family and must formally agree to do the puja to the goddess Durga
for the next ten days. After this the priests split up to perform the puja at the three
different goddess images. Each puja involves at least two people, a priest who takes on
the role of pujagarr' or yagman (i.e., the one performing the puja, actually he is a stand
in for a family member, as ideally a member of the family should perform this role) and a

priest who takes on the role of prohit or the ritual specialist who directs the yagman.

 

7. ItseernssignifieamflratofafltherinralsthatldngshipusetoentaiLtluspujaistheoneeventthatthe
royalfamilyhastakenthetroubleandexpensetomaimain

71
In addition to the three Durga pujas that are done, there are also pujas performed

to the god Siva, the consort of the Devi. Ten thousand small clay Siva's are made at the
gossain ghar and at the Siva temple in town (it would be a stretch to call these images,
they are really just lumps of clay that are treated as though they were murtis or statues of
Siva). The images at the gossain ghar are worshipped for the benefit of the patron
family (i.e., the Sinha's). Here a prayer is done for each living family member by turn.
This includes all living women of the family, even those who have married out. For each
family head, a supari (betel nut) is offered to the deity, and after the puja is performed,
he must eat it.

In the meantime, at the main Durga-stan in town, the imperrnanent image of the
goddess has been put into the central room of the temple. At this point, the murti is said
to be incomplete; slowly she will be given jewelry, clothes, weapons and most
importantly, on the seventh day, she will be given her eyes (i.e., the pupils of her eyes
will be painted in). It is not until this point that she is fully active, or alive. I will focus
on this murti to the exclusion of all others, because it is the most important Devi temple
in town. As a village temple (as opposed to a house shrine) it is frequented by all. Also,
it is here that the murti of the goddess is housed and given life.8 This temple is the
central focus of town rituals, and so seemed the logical place to concentrate my energies.

On the first day of Dashmi (literally "10 days" or ten days of puja to the goddess)

the puja begins early in the morning. After the initial invocations to the gods, who are to

 

8.Thegosainghw'templeisjustasbigasthevillagetemple,butasahouseshrine,itisnotascentralasthe
Devitempleintown. Itdoesnothousearrymurti'softhegoddess,asdoesthevillagetemple. Asistrueof
mostgosain ghar's, the goddels isrepresented onlybyaredpiece of cloth, hung onthewall.

72
witness the puja, the phat or story of Durga is read (all in Sanskrit incidentally, which

few people in town understand). The khurg (sword) which belongs to the temple, is
formally washed and a tika (dot) of sindur or red verrnilion is put upon it (the sindur
signifies a married woman, here it represents the goddess). A goat is washed outside the
temple and then brought within it. Here the animal is formally (symbolically) washed by
the priest. It is made pure by symbolically cleansing various parts of its body. After this,
the priest places flowers and leaves on its head. The khurg is touched to its neck, as the
prayers are completed. The goat has to shake off the flowers on its head, as a sign that it
has formally consented to be sacrificed (i.e., the will of the goddess to receive the goat
unto her abode has to be manifest by an act of the goat itself).

The goat is then taken to a post outside the temple (the post is a y shaped stick)
where it is beheaded. The priest yells, "Jai Durga," as he strikes. He quickly picks up
the head (which to my surprise continues to wiggle and attempts to cry out) and takes it
into the temple. Here in fiont of the deity, it is placed on the right side of the puja
offerings and flowers are put on top of it.

By this point, as the priest continues with the puja, the ghari ghanta begins
(gharr' ghanta refers to the drums and conch shell that are blown at the end of every
puja, signifying that the artr' is about to begin). As the puja comes to an end, the arti (or
sacred lamps) are lit. The artz' is passed around so that all may formally do pranam to it
(this is done by holding ones hands above the flame, then folding them and bowing
before the flame, as a sign of respect). At this point the temple has become very

animated and noisy. Little boys are busy beating on cymbals and drums and one is

73

blowing on a shanka (conch shell), as the arti is passed around so that all may receive its
blessings (according to tradition, the more noise one makes the better). When all have
ofi‘ered their respects to the sacred flame, the temple is cleared of people and the priest
closes its doors. Water is sprinkled by him upon the threshold of the door. The temple is
deserted and closed in this manner so that the goddess (who is the only person left
inside) may partake of her bhoj (or feast). That is, while the devotees wait outside, the
deity is said to symbolically eat the various offerings that have been made to her. After
an appropriate amount of time has lapsed (five minutes or so) the priest knocks on the
door of the temple three times, to signify that the temple is about to be reopened. As he
opens the door, people shout, "jai Durga."

The priest then enters the temple and sits down again to finish the morning puja.
The head of the goat is removed and a red cloth covers the prasad or offerings to the
goddess, which are mainly different kinds of sweets (a red cloth was used in the central
room of the temple, 3 yellow one was used in the adjoining room). With the final
completion of the morning puja, the prasad and the chandrogat (water that was used
during the puja, and so water that has absorbed the essence of the deity) is given to all
who are present, and some is saved to be given to the family that sponsored the puja.
The eating of the prasad again signifies the formal deference one has to pay to the deity.
The act of eating a persons leftovers is considered very polluting and you would only do
it if the person was closely related to you, and so shared in your essence, e. g. your
parents or your children, etc. The point is not only that leftovers of the deity are still so

powerfirl as to be a blessing and not a pollution to the devotee, but also that the deity

74
and the devotee have become symbolically related. In eating the deities leftovers, we

share in the deities essence, but at the same time we show the marks of social closeness
to her. Iffor some reason a person does not wish to eat the prasad, he or she must at
the very least do pranam to it.

This symbolic sharing of the essence of the deity formally ends the puja. It seems
significant that the act of feasting is the final act of a puja. The bhoj, or feast, is a
symbolic union between the devotee and the deity. Food comes to symbolize the social
relationship between humans and the goddess. To share food with the deity is to share in
a reciprocal social relationship with her. We give her food and she gives us her
blessings, in the form of the self-same food. That is, the act of eating prasad establishes
a social discourse between the devotee and the goddess.

The morning puja ends at around ten o'clock. On this the first day, not too many
people come to attend the event. The people who did show up were mostly women,
young mothers with their children. They were dressed in very neat and clean clothes.
They would come up to the door of the temple and bow to the newly installed murti of
Durga. Then they would walk over to the Kali temple next door and pay their respects
to the goddess there. Only about a dozen women in all showed up. For the rest of the
day, I noticed that everyone who passed by the temple would bow to the goddess. The
road that runs next to the temple is quite a distance away, but everyone who walked

upon it would still take the time to bow in the direction of the temple.9

 

9.Afewdayslater,IsawoneofmyMusliminformantsbowtotheimageofthegoddels,ashewalkedby
theternple. Whenlaskedhmaanitlmmidflmjuabemusehugreat-gamflwrhaddeddedtomm
tolslarndidntmeanflratheshorfldntshowflrepmperdefereneetoflreDevi.

75
The evening puja begins at about 6:30. This is a shortened version of the

morning puja. The phat (or story of Durga) is abbreviated and sung by the priest. There
are many more people who show up for the evening puja. They wander in and out of
the temple and bow to the goddess. After the puja is over, the ghari ghanta is done and
the artr‘ is passed around.

A CRACK IN THE FABRIC OF THE UNIVERSE

On the second day, the morning puja is done in much the same way as the day
before except that no goat sacrifice is made on this morning. There are many more
children playing in the temple courtyard today. The town is slowly taking on a festive
atmosphere. The main market and surrounding area has been rented out to store owners
who set up shop for the duration of the puja. Mostly they are selling trinkets and toys,
along with food. In addition, another three video halls are in the process of being
erected (normally C-nagar only has one video hall). During this time people will buy
little items (like ribbons for little girls, tikklies or cosmetic dots that are put on the
forehead, for women, etc.) to get into the festive spirit.

In the evening the puja is again done and the phat is sung by the priest and his
son (who is in training to be a priest). Today's puja is called pancho puja. No one really
pays much attention to the puja itself. No one is in the room except for the priests and
myself, and the occasional child peeping through the door.

During a lull in the evening puja, Krishanaish pundit, the main prohit (he likes to
call himself the 'raj prohit’) of this family tells me, "everything has vidya [knowledge, an

attribute of the goddess or a name of the goddess Saraswati] if you have the Shakti to

76
pull it out. Even this wall [pointing to a pillar of the temple] has vidya." Krishanaish

pundit told me that during all the days of Durga puja, he also does a (private) puja to the
goddess Kali, at the Siva temple. Pundit-jee insists that Kali is m; goddess of Tantra
and so must be worshipped at this time.

The next day the puja goes on as usual. Late in the evening, Pinku (the house-
boy where I'm staying) comes to me in a fiightened state. He claims that when he went
to the roof of the building to take down the laundry, he heard the voice of a chorrail. A
chorrail is a vampire like creature that calls out to people in the voice of a friend (in this
case, it assumed the voice of a mistress of the house, who was in Bombay at the time).
The chorrail will call out to its victim three times, and if you answer back, it will
immediately attack you and suck out all your blood. What is more, it can attack a victim
in this manner over a long period of time without him being consciously aware that he is
under its spell. Pinku is visibly fiightened and scared to sleep downstairs by himself.

There is a feeling I get during the next few days, the reader may or may not wish
to credit. It is as though there is a crack or rupture in the normal social fabric. The line
that divides the world of ghosts from the world of men seems to be breached. Not only
are people reporting strange events (such as chorrail attacks) there also seems to be an
increase in spirit possessions. Actually it is not so much that people are being attacked,
but rather that those people who are already possessed seem to be going into an "active"
phase of possession. In the next few days I saw no less than seven possessed people.
People seem more willing, eager even to talk about such things. On the other hand, all

the ojhas in town seem to have left. One of them told me that this was not a good time

77

to try and cure pe0ple, as the goddess is in an active phase. Later I was to learn that
most of the ojhas are preoccupied with the rituals surrounding the puja, because it is at
this time that they must activate their mantras.
MURTIES

On the fifth day of the puja, the top arch or chanoba is hoisted over statue. The
chanoba is a painted arch that is suspended over the murties of the deities. This more or
less completes the decorations. The only thing that remains is to put on the jewelry and

give the goddess her eyes. It may be useful to diagram the statues as they appear at this

  
 
 
 

 

 

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78
The chanoba, or top portion is painted. In its center is painted three Siva

temples, with a Siva-lingum clearly visible in the center temple. The flags on top of the
temple are flying to the left. On the left side is an army of joginis or the female minions
of the goddess. These appear as terrible female demon warriors. At their center appears
a naked Kali, standing on top of a lion. On the right side we find the same thing only the
army is lead by a (clothed) Durga, also standing atop a lion.

Next we have a picture of the goddess Ganga. She is immediately on top of a
small statue of Siva. Flanking Siva, to the left are the munnies (holy men mentioned in
the scriptures) Sanah and Daudan, to the right are Narid and Visisht.

Below this are the murties proper. These are painted, life size statues, made of
clay and decorated with clothes, weapons, etc. In the center we see an eight armed
Durga. She is on top of her vehicle, Narsiman (the lion). One of her feet is pressing
against the demon Mashaisur, who she is in the act of destroying. He is pictured under
the lion, being ripped apart by it, while a spear from Durga's hand pierces his breast.

Surrounding this central image are the different aspects of the goddess and her
family. To her left (our right) is Saraswati, goddess of learning and creativity. To her
left is Kartikay or Skanda, son of the goddess. And finally to his left is Vijaya, or the
goddess as supreme ascendance (victory).

To Durga's right (our left) is the goddess Lakshmi, goddess of prosperity and
worldly happiness. To her right is the god Ganash, another 'son' of the goddess. To his
right is Jaya or the goddess personified as victory. Finally, breaking the symmetry of the

whole spectacle, off to the Jaya's right side is the goddess Kali, with her feet upon Siva.

79
Durga is yellow in color as is Lskshnri and Kartikay. Ganash has a white face but a deep

red body. Saraswati is a paste white, while Kali is a deep blue.

Up till now, all the pujas have been performed in front of the image of Kali
(actually the pujas have been done slightly to the left of the image). I note in passing
that the statues of Kali in this temple always have Kali with both feet on Siva. This is
significant as this depiction of Kali is linked to Tantric iconography. In order to
understand this it is necessary to (briefly) tell the story of Kali.

Kali (or rather Durga) was created to kill a demon who had the power to create a
new self every time a drop of his blood touched the earth. So in his conflict with the
goddess, he created a whole army of demons every time he was struck by her. This
enraged her (she is still Durga at this point) and made her turn black with rage, at which
point she turns into Kali. She went on a killing frenzy, collecting all the demons blood in
a pot before it could reach the ground. She drinks this blood and in an intoxicated frenzy
goes on a killing rampage (i.e., continues killing even after the demon is destroyed). The
devas are perplexed, if she isn't stopped all of creation will soon be destroyed. The only
one who can stop her is her consort, Siva. He lays himself down in front of her path, and
the instant that her foot touches him, she is brought back to her senses and smiles,

pleased by the gods deception. 1° But in the Tantric version of the story, she does not

 

'0 Note the parallels between this and the story of Siva and Uma. They seem to be symmetrical myths
that closely link Siva to his consort. According to this myth, Sati was the first wife of Siva. When her
father Daksha decided to hold a yaga, he invited all the gods but Siva, as he did not approve of Siva, or
his daughter’s marriage to him. Sati is angered by this and decides to go to her father’s yaga, despite
the objections of her husband. Unable to bare the shame of her father’s rejection, she throws herself into
the sacred fire of the yaga (note that in the text of Durga puja, Durga is often referred to as the destroyer
of Daksha’s yaga, thus linking Durga to Sati and all other incarnations of the Devi). When Siva learns
of this, he is outraged. He attacks the assembles crowd and picks up the charred body of Sati. In a
frenzied state he begins to dance the tandam dance; the dance of destruction by which he, the lord of
destruction, ends each cycle of creation. The devas are perplexed, unless he is stopped, creation will

 

 

 

80
stop there but proceeds to put her other foot on top of Siva, thus affirming her

ascendance over him. Irnplicitly then (as I was told) what is being symbolized is the
sexual ascendancy of women, i.e., the 'woman on top' position. And it is in this position,
with both feet atop Siva, a bowl of blood in hand, a garland of limbs and heads around
her neck, a long red tongue sticking out of a smiling face, that she is represented at
Champanagar.
BAIL NOIT

On the sixth day, a procession leaves from the Dehori (or palace) at around 4:00
PM. or so. An elephant is at the head of the procession, with the children of the local
raja's family, dressed in their finest clothes, riding upon it. In front of the elephant are
two bearers carrying ceremonial silver spears, and another two carrying silver clubs
shaped in the form of a lion. Behind this are various members of the royal family (all
dressed in their finest clothes) and behind them are the priests and local town folk. The
procession walks to a bail (or wood apple) tree, about a mile out of town. I was told by
the priest, among others, that the tree mag be from outside the village. This tree which
is considered sacred to the lord Siva, is also said to be the home of the goddess.

Upon arriving at the tree, a puja is done to it, invoking the goddess that resides

there. The upshot of the puja is to give the goddess a formal invitation to join the puja

 

come to an end. Vishnu sends his chalcra (weapon) to dismember the corpse of Sati, which is still held
in the arms of Siva. As her body is dismembered, different parts of her fall to the ground and at each of
these sights is erected an important goddess temple (cg, the great temple at Kamakhia is Assam is
where her vagina is said to have fallen. Note that this myth links all the various regional goddess’ to
Shaki). Siva, oblivious to Vishnu’s plot continues his dance of death. Finally the gods hit upon the idea
of sending the goddess (now re-incarnated as Uma, or Parvati) to lay down before Siva. As soon as he
touches her with his feet, he comes to his senses and abandons his destruction of creation. The parallels
between this story and the story of Kali are to striking to be ignored. In each case, it is desire (or the
recognition of the self in the other) that stops the excesses or unbridled thanatos of the deity.

81

at the temple the next morning. This puja is known as the Bail noit (or Bail invitation).
Nine different types of vegetation, each of which signifies a difl’erent aspect of the
goddess are tied in a bundle and this is said to signify the noit (or invitation). A twin bail
hit is tied with a piece of cloth (the villagers insisted that it has to be a twin fiuit, and
the fact that this particular tree tends to produce twin fruits is a sign that the goddess
indeed resides within it). The fiuit is a representative of the goddess (i.e., it is treated tag
the goddess). After doing a brief puja in front of the tree an arti is passed around;
prasad and ghari ghanta are done as with all other pujas. This marks the end of the bail
noit and the procession then proceeds back to the village.

At the temple, the evening puja is done as usual. From this day on the small
town of Champanagar has transformed itself into a bustling market place. There are
people and vendors everywhere. The video halls and shop keepers have taken to blasting
Hindi movie songs on loud speakers (well into the night). The little hamlet has come to
resemble a large town.

Early the next morning, on the 7th day, a smaller procession (without an elephant
etc.) sets off once again to the bail tree. Here a brief puja is done to the goddess and
she is worshipped as the bail fiuit. At the conclusion of the puja the fiuit is cut from the
tree. This, along with the bundle that was left there on the previous evening, is taken
back to the temple.

Back at the temple, the statue of the goddess Durga is finally given life. On the
morning of this the 7th day, the eyes (or pupils) are put on the murti. This is said to

awaken the goddess, and the first sight that she must 'see' is blood. Consequently, the

82
instant that the statue maker gives her eyes, a goat is sacrificed by the priest. The statue

maker told me that ideally a kumari (or pre-pubescent girl) should paint on the eyes.

When the bail fiuit is brought to the temple, the priests go the kitchen area,
which is a separate small one room building to the left of the temple. Here in the
kitchen, which is in the space between the Durga and Kali temples, a puja is done to the
goddess and to her minions, that is, to ghosts and other spirit beings. From hence forth,
the kitchen is known as the 'ghost house.‘ During the puja, the priest formally invites all
the spirit beings to attend the puja, and then he requests them to stay in this room and
eat the prasad that is offered them (the prasad includes meat, which is not normally used
on such occasions). The ghosts are being appeased so that they will not disrupt the main
puja, which will be held in the temple. The bundle that has nine different types of
vegetation in it, is said to hold the ghosts. As ghosts live in trees and as the bundle (and
bail fruit) is also the product of trees, there seems to be a close association between the
goddess and ghosts.

After the puja in the kitchen, the bundle of plants along with the bail fruit is tied
with a red cloth, and carried to the temple. The short (and dirty) path from the kitchen
to the temple is prayed to as the bundle is moved. Flowers, rice etc, are thrown in the
direction of the temple (toward the statue of the goddess). Having finished with this
puja, the ghosts are asked to stay in the kitchen and leave us humans alone.

Inside the temple, the puja is moved from the left side of the statue of Kali/Siva

(where all the pujas till this point have taken place) to the center of the temple, by the

83
feet of the statue of Durga. But before this shift, the bundle of vegetation is put at the

feet of Kalil Siva and a brief puja is done there.

The bundle contains the leaves of plants that are sacred to the goddess. They
represent different aspects of her. They include: the banana tree, which is worshipped as
the Kankalini goddess; Rait Kantika is the goddess of the Drona plant (a mythical plant,
like soma; here it is represented by the anmoid plant); Lakshmi is associated with cflran
or paddy; Durga with haridrika (or haldi); Chamunda with the manna leaf; Kalikay with
kanchu; Siva with a bail leaf; Shoka Hrita or the 'pleased goddess' (i.e., the goddess that
takes away sorrow) with the Asoak leaf; Kartiki or the Shakti of Kartikay with the

jayanti tree. All these goddess' are worshipped in turn. Each of these goddess' (and

Siva) are being asked to bless the puja so that the puja can shift from the left side (i.e.,
the side where the plants are placed and where the ghosts reside) to the center, in front
of the statue of Durga. At the end of the puja to these plants, the priest formally bows

to the statue of Durga, and then moves the puja toward her (to the center of the temple)

 

 

 

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The bundle of vegetation is kept in front of the Kali murti (where the puja has
taken place till this point). The puja moves to the center of the temple, in front of
Durga’s statue.

84

By this time, the crowd outside the temple has become very large. The entire
village seems to have shown up to pay their respects to the goddess. Men and women
are dressed in their finest clothes. People, especially the older ones, have become very
formal in their deference to the murti. They come into the temple, bow to the goddess
and then exit walking backwards, bowing all the while. The crowd around the temple
has gotten so large that it is difiicult to walk in and out of the place.

The statue of Durga should have eighteen arms, to represent each of her aspects.
But mostly she is depicted with ten arms (as in the permanent image of her) or with eight
arms, as in the imperrnanent murti of her (there is a small brass statue of an eighteen
armed Durga next to the permanent statue of her in the temple). At any rate, when the
puja is moved to the center of the temple, each of the eighteen aspects (or ungs) of the
goddess is worshipped by turn. Then each of the gods and goddess' that are represented
are worshipped (Lakshmi Saraswati, Ganash, Kartika, etc). After the priest has
completed his prayer to Dhuchin Kali (the Kali that faces south, the 'house' deity of the
raja's who sponsor the puja) a silent prayer is done for each of the other deities. Then a
prayer is done for Ganga (who is on top of the painted arch, above Siva). After this a
prayer is done to Siva, and the munnies who flank him. In other words, by turn, each of
the deities represented is prayed to. Finally a long prayer is offered to Siva.

After this a goat is brought into the temple and prayed to (made pure by
symbolically washing various parts of its body, as on the first day). Then the khurg
(sword) is prayed to. The goat is then taken out to be sacrificed. The ghari ghanta and

arti are performed as usual.

85
The puja at night was pretty much the usual affair. The only difference was that

it was attended by many members of the royal family (the ones that own the temple).
The women sat to the left side, while the men sat on the right (I asked why this was so,
but no one seemed to know). The town folk also came in numbers for the evening puja.
On this, the seventh day of puja, the goddess was given her jewelry and her weapons.
Because the jewelry is of considerable value, from this day on guards were posted
outside the temple. Outside the temple, the town is in a lively festive mood.

Due to astrological reasons, on this year the seventh day of the puja repeated
itself. So the next day the puja for the 7th day was repeated. Not the procession to the
bail tree etc, but rather the morning puja started out in front of the Kali murti and was
then moved to the Durga murti. At night the pujas was more or less as before.

NISA PUJ A

But on this night, we performed Nisa puja (or 'midnight puja'). This is, as the
priest (and just about everyone else) told me, a Tantric puja. Most vedic pujas are done
in the morning, and must be completed before noon, which is normally the most
auspicious time to perform a yoga (or vedic sacrifice, puja). But Tantrics consider
midnight the most auspicious time to worship the goddess, a time when the spirits are on
the loose. This puja is done to the female minions of Durga, represented as dark, demon
like creatures. Eachjojani (or female devote of Durga) is worshipped in turn, all
hundred and eight of them. The puja itself is done to the bhoots (ghosts), paraits, dakins

etc. that form Durga’s army. The goddess herself is seen here in her bhasal (awesome,

or fiightening) rupa (form).

 

 

86
Normally an Indian town more or less shuts down by this hour (actually people

are in bed by ten PM.) But because of the mela (or fair) that has formed for the
festival, there are still a few men wandering about near the video halls. But no one, save
for the priests and myself, is at the temple this night. All in all the temple is a pretty
spooky place to be.

Nisa puja is a very long puja (it didn't finish until at least 2:00 AM.) The goat
that is to be sacrificed should ideally be black. It is tied to the temple pillar until the
priest is ready for it. All the while it kept crying, sounding very much like a human
infant. Pariah dogs are outside the temple, by the sacrificial post, licking the blood from
previous sacrifices.

One of the highlights of this puja is the sacrifice of the 'rippu'. A small rice paste
effigy of a man is placed to the left of the goddess. This man is referred to as rippu or
‘the enemy’. He is cut in half, with a small knife. The goddess is being asked to kill our
enemies, or rather, our enemy is being offered as a sacrifice to the goddess. After the
killing of the rippu, the goat is sacrificed. Then a green coconut is cut with the same
sword. Ghari ghanta and arti signal the end of the puja.

This was, to me the most dramatic puja in the entire ten day festival (its intensity
was rivaled only by Kali puja, which we shall discuss elsewhere). I was told that from
this night forth, the murti of the goddess will change. People claim to see a radiance or
transformation of the statue, which is now filled with Shakti (i.e., it is said to be alive,
even to the point of being dangerous). It is common knowledge that on this night every

Tantric adept, ojha or dine, will be performing special secret ceremonies to make their

_-—'”’

87
mantra's sidcflri (active). The ojhas that I talked to said that it is absolutely necessary to

perform the left handed Tantric pujas on this night (the "bhoot puja" or ghost puja) if
one wishes to retain one’s power. Dines (or witches) are said to sacrifice a human
victim on this night, in order to retain their power. So to a witch, the symbolic enemy
that the priest sacrifices is turned into an actual victim. As for the rest, witches,
renouncers or healers, all are said to do this puja naked, ofi’ering blood and semen in a
skull to the goddess, which is then used as changrogat (or the liquid sacrament that has
touched the feet of the divine).

Whether or not these things are actually true, I can not say. For obvious reasons,
any such rite is done in secret, and a guru will only invite his or her most accomplished
students to participate. But even if no such rites actually take place, there is hardly a
villager who doesn't believe that they do. Everyone knows that this night is a night of
extreme danger. The liminality of the entire dashmi period is attested to by the fact that
no one is supposed to cut their nails or hair during the entire ten day period. It is as
though a crack has been opened between the human world and the spirit world, and only
the goddess is in a position to see you safely through this period. She is the only one
who has authority over both ghosts (along with witches, snakes and other spirit beings)
and humans.

It is hard not to get caught up in the passion and intensity of such an event. As I
walked home from the temple in the wee hours of the morning, I realized that there

wasn't a soul around. Had I been bit by a snake (or attacked by a ghost) no one would

88

have heard me call out. It is at times like this that one stops being an observer and starts
becoming a participant. I, like everyone else, was in the hands of the goddess.
EIGHTH DAY

By the eighth day, the temple has become so crowded that it is extremely difficult
to enter it. By order of the temple patrons, local villagers are not allowed to enter the
temple. But they come anyway, and come in droves. It seems as though villagers from
miles around have come to pay their respects to the goddess on this day. There are also
many sadcflrus (ascetics) in the crowd. Everyone is dressed in their finest clothes and all
are carrying artis or prasad to offer to the goddess. They give such offerings to the
priests (and the local anthropologist, who is in the privileged position of being allowed
into the temple) who then place it at the feet of the goddess. After the puja such prasad
is taken by the giver to be distributed to family and fiiends. People wander from the
Durga to the Kali temple, bowing solemnly to each deity. The amount of people who
have turned up is truly incredible considering the size of the town. People are sitting out
on the compound of the temple, young men are checking out the local belles and vice
versa. Generally, there is a festive carnival mood to the whole event.

I was told that Nisa puja is the turning point of the entire ritual. The goddess in
now fully active and there is from here on in, a constant crowd around the temple. The
guards have to help me enter or exit the temple.

This is also the day when juniors will formally show their deference to seniors by
doing pranam to them. This little ritual isn't solemn or particularly formal; in the

morning my 'brothers' and 'sisters' (fathers second cousins' children) came barging into

89
my room, quickly touching my feet and then demanding money. Juniors expect their

elders to give them money to 'see’ the mala (or fair). But this act of asking for and
giving blessings isn't restricted to kinsmen. All the servants or clients of a patron expect
the patron on this day to give them new clothes or money (clothes are more traditional).
The net effect is to re-establish the hierarchy of patron/client relationships, of
junior/senior relationships.

In the evening the crowd that had gathered to watch the puja was very large.
They watched the puja with great intensity, following the pundits every move. Almost
everyone from the palace has shown up on this night (women sitting to the left and men
to the right). The murties are sprinkled with water and attars (scents) are put on the
deity.

After the puja, the women of the palace pour sindur (red vermilion) on the
goddess' right hand (the hand that is holding the spear that is in the act of killing
Mashasaure). After the sindur has touched Durga's right hand, it is taken to the statue of
Kali, where the process is repeated. Contact with the deity has made the sindur holy,
and this sindur is given to each of the married women of the lineage, to be used by them
for the following year. Sindur is put on the part of a married women’s hair, as a symbol
of her married status.

‘THE GODDESS LOVES BLOOD’

On the ninth day, there is a very large crowd outside the temple. It is so crowded

that even the guards have a hard time letting me in. There is a long line of people

waiting by the sacrificial post with their goats. Each has come to make a sacrifice to the

9O

goddess. The sacrificing continues for several hours. The temple priests charge a
minimal amount of money for each goat they have to kill. The priests and I estimated
that some three hundred goats were sacrificed on this day. ”

Immediately after the arti was performed, the crowd outside the temple tried to
push their way in. A barrage of pundits waited at the temple door, waiting to perform a
quick puja for each person who brought a sacrifice to the goddess. Bamboo gates were
erected to control the crowd. But this didn't do much good, as the impatient crowd
pushed to get into the temple. On this day, evegzone is required to come and pay their
respects to the goddess.

By mid-morning goats are being sacrificed left and right. The crowd outside has
become a mob scene. The 'line' in which people are supposed to stand has lost all
meaning. Women are pushing their way to the temple with plates full of sweets to offer
to the goddess. As they are not allowed into the temple (not that this really stops them)
they hand their offerings to anyone (myself included) that is within the temple. Even if
the offerings were not given with a prayer (as should be done) at least they spend some
time by the feet of the goddess and this was apparently enough to transform them into
prasad. The pundits spend the rest of the day performing such prayers and making
sacrifices for a fee.

By the evening the crowd has died down somewhat. By comparison to the

morning puja, the people who did show up were positively sedate. But with the

 

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sacrificedinmynameinmyhometownofSultangunj. Mygoatwasthefirstinlirre.

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91
sounding of the ghari ghanta, a crowd began to gather again, to participate in the arti

and to bow to the goddess. On this day little shops have sprung up on the road next to
the temple. They sell sweets and flowers that are offered to the goddess. The pundits
are still at the business of taking such offerings and performing a brief puja for a price.
After the puja (after the sweets have been put by the goddess' feet) they are given back
to the devotee to be eaten as prasad.

BISARJ AN

On the tenth and final day of the puja, the morning prayers are no longer done to
the statue, but to the various vegetation which has been placed to the right of the statue.
The pundit offers jasmine, sindur, hibiscus flowers, coconuts etc. to the deity. The
prayer is done to the flowers of a creeper, known as appragatia (a plant sacred to
Durga, which literally means victory). A red sari is offered to the goddess.

During each puja, for the last ten days, the goddess has been formally invited to
come to the puja and to bless us with her presence. Today however, at the end of the
puja, she is formally asked to leave and to come back next year. After the arti and ghari
ghanta, the pundits circle the temple three times. Then sacrifices are made and the
bisarjin puja (or formal procession that will dispose of the statues) is done.

Around noon all the pundits that have taken part in the puja go to the dehori (or
palace of the sponsors). Here all the men of the house have gathered in a room, each
facing north, while the priests bless them by sprinkling them on the head with the water
that was placed in the kalais (earthen pot) on the first day of Dasara. This pot had been

placed on a clump of earth that was sewn with barley seeds. These seeds, which have

92
sprouted within the last ten days are now placed on the heads of each male family

member. Then a garland of the appragatia plant is put on the right hand of each male
family member. A bag of coins, containing a hundred and one Rs (a hundred and one or
all odd numbers being auspicious) is passed around, and each person present is supposed
to put his hand in the bag and shake the coins. Later the money is taken to the gossain
ghar (family goddess temple) and given to the goddess, after which it is distributed to
the brahmins. Sindur is used to put a tika on the head of each family member.

The women go through a similar ceremony, however here the sindur is used as
sindur for the married women (i.e., they put the vermilion in the part of their hair). All
this is done to insure the 'victory' or success for the patron family for the conring year.
The link between the fortunes of the royal family and the festival of the goddess is
further specified by the blessings that are performed to all the arms (guns, swords, etc.)
that the royal patrons possess.

At about 4:00 in the afternoon, the evening pujas are completed. The goddess
(with her entourage) is taken out of the temple and placed on her routh (or chariot).
There is a separate chariot for Kali and Durga and one for all the other deities (Siva,
Ganash etc). The mood of the town is intensely passionate. People have come fi'om
miles around. Villagers, still wishing to have their offerings blessed by the goddess, have
taken to throwing sweets at her statue. The men of the royal patron family, who will
accompany the murti to the river, are constantly being pelted by such offerings. They
stand there, next to the statue, with the priests, barefoot. They are not allowed to wear

shoes, as the ground that the goddess traverses is instantly transformed to sacred space.

93
The Santhals (the local aboriginal peoples) have come to the village in large

numbers. The Santhal men are dancing in groups of eight to ten. Each group has
several people with short sticks in their hands. They keep these so that if anyone gets
overwhelmed by the trances that the Santhals go into at this time, they can cordon him
off (i.e., two or three men will literally form a small enclosure around the tranced out
individual). But such precautions seem to do little. Entire groups of Santhals have gone
into dancing fienzies, and in a trance state, they charge the chariot holding the goddess (I
was told that in such a state, individuals are 'pulled' toward the goddess). The only thing
that stops them are the priests (and the ethnographer who the priests have recruited)
who have come prepared with large buckets of holy water (water that has been used
during the puja or has touched the goddess and so is hill of her Shakti). These buckets
have hundreds of flowers in them, and the flowers along with the water is thrown at the
charging Santhals. The instant that they are touched by the water, they fall down,
prostrated, shaking, as though in a convulsion. ‘2

All in all the event reminds one of a mock battle, with wave after wave of trance
induced Santhals charging straight for the goddess. A short warning is sounded as
someone will yell out, "Santhals", and everyone clears a path for them. I was told that if
they are not stopped they would destroy the statue in a frenzied state. This happened
two years ago when one of the arms of the goddess was broken by a tranced out Santhal.

Only the priests are in a position to rebuff them, by pelting them with flowers and water.

'2.ltisunwisetobeinbetweenthegoddessandsuchchargingSanthals,astheyletmngstandintheir
Way. Lastyear,oneoftheserummembersofflremyalfarmywasunfommateenwghmbemmchaposifion
andwasunceremoniouslyknockeddowrr

94
Once touched by the Shakti within the flower they fall down around the murti, quivering

as though they were in the throws of death. Some Santhals have gone so deeply into a
trance that they start piercing their cheeks and tongue with large steel needles. Some
then cap the needles with a small trident, symbol of the lord Siva.

As dense and chaotic as the crowd is around the statue, there is an even larger
crowd lining the streets that the goddess will travel and a positively huge crowd waiting
at the gates of the dehori. As the goddess moves slowly through the town the entire
crowd goes into a frenzied state, pelting the image with gillabies and other sweets. The
mood has shifted from a carnival atmosphere into a passion play. Everyone bows deeply
as the goddess passes by them.

The procession is lead by the statue of Kali/ Siva, followed by the chariot housing
the other gods, and finally, the chariot that holds the goddess Durga. The procession
reaches the dehori, where it is joined by the remaining men and children of the royal
lineage. It rests here awhile as the crowd outside continues to beat drums and dance in a
trance state. Then it begins it slow journey to the river (a small stream about a mile and
a half outside of town). It reached the river around twilight, half the crowd turned back
before actually reaching the river. By the time we were ready to submerge the statues in
the river, it was pitch dark.

On the night of the tenth day, the mela (fair) in town started in earnest. It
continued on for the next 5 to 10 days. Today it is a requirement that you touch the feet
of your elders. Also servants (or clients) will touch the feet of their patrons. As clothes

and money have already been given to juniors and clients, today the elders mostly give

95

food, as a blessing. One must accept this food even if it is only a token amount. This

finally ends the ritual of Durga puja.

CHAPTER FIVE: THE DECONSTRUCTIVE DEITY

So far we have considered Durga puja from a descriptive ethnographic perspective.
It is time now to turn our attention to the text of the puja, and see what themes emerge. I
think that the text and the performance converge around the idea of opposition and the
collapse of opposition. The Devi's transcendental nature is implied (only implied) by her
ability to be simultaneously at both ends of an opposition. Thus in order to understand her
nature (and consequently our nature) it is necessary for the devotee to transcend or collapse
such opposition. And this deconstructive moment is what Durga puja is all about.

In order to show how this works, I thought it would be usefirl to simply list some of
the crucial oppositions that the puja 'plays' around with. These oppositions, let us keep in
mind, are crucial to _Iadi_a_r_r society (I do not wish to attribute anything universal about such
concepts). In what follows I draw from both the text of the puja (provided in an appendix) as

well as on our ethnographic description of the event.

Culture and Nature: It must be obvious to the reader by now that in Mathil society, Durga is
closely linked to both culture and nature.
She is a representation of culture because she 'lives' in the very heart of social space.

That is, the Durga temple is the center of the town’s ritual and social activity. Consequently

96

97
Durga is at the center of social space. ‘3 This is further enforced at a personal level, as the

goddess is placed in the most pure and sanctified space within a house; namely the ghosian
ghar. Here is an excerpt from a conversation with Krishnash pundit (the main pundit during
the puja).
"Gossain ghar. Meaning gossainids house, meaning the house of the god that is
associated with my [a] lineage. Kul [lineage] Devi's house. In my opinion, there are
two traditions that relate to this. I have seen this for many years, for the last 50, 60,
70 years... In the main dwelling, either on the western or the southern side is where
the kitchen is. Inside the kitchen, on one side is established the Kul Devi [family
goddess]. In the kitchen, on one side is the kitchen, on the other the gossian ghar. . ..
The reason is because without washing your hands and feet, you can't go to the
kitchen, and without washing, you can't bow to the goddess."
So the goddess resides in the central ritual space of a house, that is, in the purest
place of a house, and in the central ritual space of a village.
At the same time, there seems to be a strong link between the goddess and nature.
This link is made explicit in part 8 of the text, the "Bail noit" procession (Bail is called Vilwa
in Sanskrit). Although not specified in the text, the villagers at Champanagar insisted that the
Bail tree used in this puja must be outside the village. So we already have a clue as to the
significance of this event.
The tree itself is worshipped as Durga. The yagman says, "Oh Devi! Residing in this
Vilwa branch! Bestow on me thy emporia grace. "(part 9 of the text). Later, "Oh auspicious
Shree fruit! Oh embodiment of Durga! Oh Chanunda! Come! Come. Oh Durga! You have
been stabilized in this mud image and this Vilwa." And if this link between the goddess and

nature wasn't explicate enough, the same puja goes on to specify the nine kinds of vegetation

m

l3.Asweslrallseeinourdiscussionofldnshipandldngship,thefirstthingthatakingwhowishesto
mablishanewcenterorvillagedoesttobuildaDur-ga-stwr.

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[hr

112

98
that represents the difi’erent aspects of the goddess (banana, drona, paddy, turmeric, manna,

lamclm, vilwa, shake cmdjayanti, see part 12 of the text).

Meanwhile back at the temple, the murti of the goddess has been clearly marked as a
social person. The statue is treated as an honored guest, being offered all the hospitality that
the town is in a position to provide; including cloths, jewelry, and even attar. But, and this is
crucial, this image isn't complete, isn‘t alive until it is linked to the vegetation. That is, the act
of bringing the vilwa fruit and the nine kinds of vegetation to the temple finally collapses the
culture/nature opposition. ". . .At an auspicious moment, collorium should be made with ghee
on the vilwa leaf and put in the eyes of the image... 'Here are your eyes, Oh Devil'" (from
part 9) Bringing the fiuits and vegetation to the temple is the final act by which the statue of
the goddess is transformed into a social person. It is at the moment when the natural end is
linked to the cultural end of the opposition that the Devi is finally complete as a person.

This theme is consistently followed in other culture/nature symbols that are utilized
during the puja. The Devi is linked to the king; not only does the royal family sponsor the
puja, but the power and authority of the king are blessed by the goddess on the final day of
the ceremony. The king, along with the brahmin who performs the yaga on his behalf, are at
the apex of Indian society. Hence they are the upholders of cflu'ama (moral law) or cultural
rules. But this aspect of the goddess is counterbalanced by her close association with the
Santalrals of the region. These aboriginal populations (throughout east India) seem to have
an especially close link to the goddess, and as we have seen, certainly display this devotion in

a more dramatic manner than anyone else. But these people are considered apart from

“traditional Hindu (brahamanic) society. They do not usually employ brahmin priests for their

99
rituals, and are thought to violate normal rules of conduct (by eating meat, drinking liquor,

etc). Ifthe king and brahmin are the representatives of culture, then the Santhals take on the
role of outsider, of nature. Yet both ends of this opposition are equally devout in their

respect for the goddess. 1‘

Married and Unmarried: The goddess is clearly marked in the text of the puja as married.
Consider this passage from part 5:

"You are the Kali, the Karrala (Lakshmi), the consort of Bhrama, of Siva, you are
Jaya and Vijaya, you are Lakshmi (consort of Vishnu) in Vishnuloka (V islrnu's abode) and
you are Parviti in Kailash (abode of Siva), Saraswati in Brahmaloka (abode of Bhrama),
Indrarri (consort of Indra) who is always respected by Indra..." and so on. Later in the same
section, “Oh Queen of all Devas, Oh Mother of the Universe. . ..Oh Mistress of Q beings."
[emphasis is mine]. But of course, she is most clearly and most often linked to Siva, e. g., "Oh
the lifeblood of Shankar"(part 4) or, "Oh beloved of Siva" etc.

As this and several other passages make clear, the goddess is definitely wed. As the
Shakti (power) of all the gods, she is the mistress of g beings, implying that all women are
shakti. The idea here is that the goddess is closely linked to married women. This is made

explicit in the ritual tradition of women pouring sindur on the goddess' hand, on the eighth

 

 

1".'Nature'inlrrdiansocietyscemstohavetheaddedconnotationofbeingaplaceofliberation. The
Wleuvesthesocialworldofthevillage,toseekhisliberationintheforest. Thecloselinkbetweenthe
rl'i'notmcerarrdtheDevimakeshim,likeher,amediatorbetweenculturearrdnature. Hemorethanthekingor
lhebraluninisattheheartoflrrdianculmrcbutatthesametime,heisalsoapartfromthatculture,choosing
toSpendhislifeinnaturre. 'I'hislthinkisnoaccident. Transcendenceisalwayslinkedtotheabilityto
Wmuon (forthelinkbetweentherenormcerandtheforest, seeJ.C. Heesterman, 1985, esp. ch
)

100
day of the puja. This sindur which is a symbol to indicate a woman's married state in this

region, clearly links the goddess to wedded women. The text of the puja enforces this
association in the passage, "with sindur: This vermilion, created as the symbolic decoration
of all married women, is offered to Thee, Oh Devi."'(part 5)

Incidentally, the wedded status of the Devi LIE! related to whether she is
represented as a malevolent or a benevolent being (see Babb, 1970 and 1975). During Nisa
puja, the goddess is represented in her terrible form, "Oh, Maha-Devi, with terrible teeth and
scary face, who loves offerings of blood and flesh." Here she is seen as the general of a great
demon army. Yet she is still specifically linked to her consort Siva, "0h beloved of Hara
(Siva)." This is true of Kali as well. In fact, it would be hard to make sense of the myth of
Kali (see above) if she were not wed to Siva. So the goddess' wedded status is not related to
whether she is seen as a destroyer or as a loving mother.

On the other hand, the goddess is also contemplated as an un-wed maiden (W).
The whole point of the kuman’ puja (part 16) is to contemplate the goddess as a pre-
pubescent maiden. "l meditate on the young, maiden form of the goddess, with smiling ’
countenance like a lotus in full bloom. . .etc. " The unwed status of the goddess, or the link
between her and a [canon is reinforced by the statue makers insistence that a kumari (and not
he) should give the goddess her eyes.

This should not confirse us. The goddess is associated with afl women. She is, "the
mistress of all beings." Consequently, she is represented as and linked to all aspects of

Womanhood (benevolent/malevolent; terrible of fonn/beautifirl in form; black/white;

thinned/unmarried; etc). The point is that she is both wed and unwed, and this is true of any

101

of her forms. Therefore no simple dichotomy between wed and benevolence verses unwed

and malevolent can be made.

Humans vs. Ghosts: Many of the associations of this opposition have already been covered
under our culture/nature section. I include the human/ghost opposition only because it seems
so important to the residents of Champanagar. Obviously, the very possibility of healing
spirits could not exist if the goddess did not mediate between the human and the spirit worlds.
Therefore, ojhas (as well as dines) are closely linked to the goddess. As we saw in the
interview with Pharabho and Basu Dev in Chapter one, the goddess is in charge of jogins and
jogins in turn control ghosts. So their is a hierarchy in the spirit world, and the goddess is at
its apex. This is equally true of the world of humans. The first person that a human will turn
to in times of trouble is the local village god (the gran devata). Such local gods, as we have
already seen, are said to be the agents of the goddess. Humans and ghosts are equally under
her control.

The world of spirits and the world of humans are interconnected, as jogins tend to be
seen as moral agents. They will possess people who have in some way violated the social
norm. What we have here is a spiritual chain of command. Shakti is in command of all spirits
and sends her minions (her demon warriors), called jogins, to do her bidding. These demons

can then help the ojha to fight evil ghosts. In other words, the jogins control the ghosts and

Durga controls them.

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But to get back to our opposition, Durga as we have seen is closely linked to the

world of humans. She is called master of the universe, in the text of the puja, and is in every
way treated as a royal personage during the ceremony (being formally offered food, clothes,
jewelry etc). Her link to the human world is specified in the puja, where she is asked
repeatedly to bless our a'th, kana, drama, and moksa. That is, she is seen as being in
charge of all human pursuits.

At the same time, she is linked to the spirit world. She, like the ghosts she controls, is
seen as living in vegetation (the bail tree and the nine other kinds of trees mentioned in the
text, along with the appragatia creeper, mentioned on the last day of the puja). During Nisa
puja she is worshipped as the general of a ghost army (the jogins mentioned by Basu Dev and
Parabho Mondal). She is even represented pictorially (in the Charaba) at the head of this
demon army.

Clearly then Durga is part of both the human and the spirit world. It is only by
praying to her that these worlds are kept separate, or kept in balance. This would explain the
ambivalence people feel during the time of puja. It is a time of danger, because by activating
the goddess, one also activates the world of ghosts. If all goes well (i.e., if the puja is
performed correctly) and the goddess is pleased, then she will put these separate realms in

their proper place.

Giver and Receiver: I include this opposition as a response to Prof. Gloria Goodwin Raheja’s

 

book Poison in the Gift. According to Prof. Raheja, accepting a gift in the Indian context,

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always implies an inferior status and a willingness on the part of the receiver to take away or

ingest the ritual pollution of the giver (Raheja, 1988). Thus she feels that gift giving is always
an asymmetrical process that carries with it the taint of ritual pollution. But if this were so the
complex reciprocal exchanges embedded within the ten day ritual of Durga puja would make
little sense. The goddess is offered (and receives) many gifts fiom the devotee (see for e. g.
part 2, where she is offered an arm, feet cleaning water, udava'ttara, etc). Does this mean
she is polluted or of an inferior status to the devotee? Or again, juniors and brahmins receive
gifts from seniors during this time, but to say that a son or a daughter is taking away the
pollution of a parent would be silly (even offensive) to the natives of this area.

I do not mean to imply that there aren't times when the process of receiving a gift
carries with it the taint of pollution. Prof. Raheja does a good job of pointing out such
examples. However, it seems to me that too many South Asian ethnographers wish to make
o_n_e aspect of Indian society the bedrock of the entire culture. Partly this is a result of the
influence of structuralism on South Asian scholars. I am not saying that such models haven't
helped us understand India, all I am saying is that one should be cautious in any attempt to
represent such an old and complex culture.

I think it is far better to go with a more basic analysis of what it means to give and
receive, namely that the act of gift giving implies a social connectedness. In the social world,
such gifts do tend to delineate hierarchies. That is, it is the patron that is giving to the client;
it is the elder that is giving to the junior. .This certainly seems to imply that the status of the
receiver is lower than the status of the giver (although, as far as I could tell, this has little to

do with purity or pollution).

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But when we turn our attention to the exchanges between the deity and humanity, a

far more complex picture emerges. Here the act of giving and receiving does not seem to
imply hierarchy. This would be consistent with Heestennan's view that in Indian society there
is a radical rupture between the social world of humans, and the transcendental world of
sacrifice. Exchange between humans implies hierarchy, but exchanges between humans and
divinity does nothing of the sort. The entire ten days of puja is a series of exchanges between
hurrrans and the goddess. The term yoga m sacrifice, in Sanskrit, and so every yaga
implies an exchange between humans and the divine.

We give her clothes, food, jewelry, incense, sandalwood, flowers, blood sacrifice,
etc, but these self same gifts are given back to us by the goddess in the form of a blessing. A
generalized reciprocal exchange is set up between the goddess and the community,
generalized because the gifts being exchanged are certainly not of equal value (actually, a
reciprocal exchange is set up with each individual within the community, as each will sooner
or later partake of the blessings of the goddess). This is significant because each and every
individual of the community, in the course of the ten day ritual, will enter into a social
relationship with the goddess.

This is most clearly marked in the symbolic feast that takes place at the end of every
puja. The goddess and the devotee participate in the bhoje (feast) that is offered to the
goddess at the end of the puja. We give the goddess food, but in exchange, in the very act of
accepting our gift, she gives us her blessing. This blessing comes in the form of eating the
goddess' leftovers, or sharing in her essence. This prasad is thought to be so powerful that it

has the ability to re-order (or restore) the balance of an individual. It is for this reason that

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people who sufl’er fiom spirit possession need to perform a puja to the goddess, offering her

sweets, or garga, or in the case of a particularly powerful spirit, ofl‘ering her a pigeon or a
goat (blood sacrifice). This is an important point and one we shall return to.

The act of sharing in a feast with the goddess reestablishes the natural order of the
world. This point was driven home to me in a conversation with Basu Dev:

"Me: These ghosts or yogins, how do they get out of it? I mean once they turn into a
ghost or a yogin how do they...

BD: They get out of it, sarkar, like this. A bhakti [devotee] is doing puja to god.
After the puja they get prasad. They take some of that prasad home with them.
Now they (i.e., the ghosts) take a human form and meet him on his path (i.e., the
devotee). Just like me and you, they come to the bhakti and ask for prasad. Once
they get the prasad, their bhootyoni [i.e. 'ghost womb'] is canceled.

Me: I didn‘t get that, tell it to me again.

BD: The prasad that the bhakti has, he eats some of it and takes the rest to distribute
to other villagers and his family and children. So he wraps up the prasad and goes on
his way home. He takes it home with him to give to people. Now the ghosts, who
roam around, those ghosts, those ghosts turn into people, just like you and me, and
stand on the path. [They say], 'Sarkar, where are you conring from, where is your
home. Please give me some prasad too, I am very hungry.’ Why wouldn't he [i.e.,
the bhakti] give him some prasad? Of course he will give him prasad When it eats
the prasad, he stops being a ghost.”

As this conversation illustrates, the instant a ghost partakes of the feast, that is the
social, he is released fiom the limbo of pariat yoni (also called bhoot yoni, the ghost womb
or place where the soul of a dead person goes before being reborn). The social act of feasting
ends the deferment of death. We shall talk more of this later.

My point here is simply to show that during the ritual of Durga puja, the goddess is
both giver (giver of order, giver of blessings, etc.) and receiver. This seems to me to imply
that the act of giving and receiving between humans and the deity is a reciprocal process that

establishes a social bond between the two.

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We could continue on with such oppositions, but I think that I have established the

fact that the goddess mediates between oppositions. By being linked to both poles of an
opposition, she effectively deconstructs the dichotomy. Before we leave this line of
reasoning, I would like to highlight what I feel are the three most important dichotomies that
the goddess deconstructs. In the process of establishing herself on both sides of these

oppositions, she clearly reveals herself as th_e transcendent. 1’

Purity and Poflution: This crucial opposition, according to Dumont is central to Indian
society (Dumont, 1970). Hierarchy in India tends to be justified in terms of purity and
pollution. Yet to the transcendent, neither purity nor pollution exists. Consequently, the
goddess is both the apex of purity and the acme of pollution.

As with all pujas, great care is taken during this event to purify the space where the
puja will be performed. Part 1 of the text specifies how one should purify the seat (am) to
be used during the puja. Not only is the space purified but the yagmar performing the rite
must also be made pure. Each representation of the goddess (e. g. the pots that represents her
in Part 2 ) is proceeded by the purification of the spot that it will rest upon. The pot itself
contains water from all the tirtha’s of the world. One can‘t really ask for anything purer than
that (incidentally, the pot itself should be of a pure substance, ideally gold, silver or copper,

see part 3).

1’ Of course it is the ease that every deity is seen as the transcendent in their temple or during the time
of their worship. However, in this society as Durga puja is the most elaborate ritual, Durga is more
closely linked to the transcendent than any other deity.

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Once the pot is established, the goddess herself is invoked as followed: "0m! Hring,

Kling, Chanundai Vichai. The skull of Heaven's, the birth place of all beings, the pme_st_o_f
thpulg, crimsoned by the blood of all asuras, white in complexion, drinker of ambrosia, the
skull of the goddess. I bow to Thee!" [emphasis mine]

This passage clues us into the fact that the goddess is pure, but also polluted. Images of
blood (a very polluting substance) skulls and death are invoked even as the text assures us of
the absolute purity of the goddess.

This theme of purity and pollution is constantly being highlighted in the performance
of the puja. After all the care that the yagmai takes to purify the sacred space on which the
puja will take place, he then turns around and puts the severed head of a goat within this
sanctified space. Normally nothing remotely connected with death is allowed near the site of
a puja. Not only must the spot be cleared of any blood or other impure substances, but even
people who are in mourning are not allowed to attend such events. Here however, the
goddess' nature as both pure and impure implies that she is unafi‘ected by the contagion of
death and impurity.

This is crucial to understanding her nature. It is only because she can, at the same
time, be both pure and impure that she is in the position to reach out to and interact with all
members of society. Unlike the other transcendental deities, such as Vishnu, this goddess can
be worshipped by anyone. ’6 What this means is that the "inner conflict" that Heesterman

speaks of is to an extent mediated by the Devi (Heesterman, 1986). The crisis point of Hindu

‘6.Vishnuseemstobeaparticulatlysuingentdeityinthistegatd. Hisdevoteesspendaninordinate
arrrountotimeobwssingoverritualpun‘ty. MostVishnaviatesarevegetarians,whoshunliquoretc. Inother
words, even if they aren't bhramins themselves, they tend to conform to the codes of brahmanic society.

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theology revolved around the question of what to do with the mundane social world. The

renouncer could maintain his legitimacy only so long as he totally distanced himself from the
polluted secular world. This in efl’ect meant that there was a radical break between the
transcendental world of the ascetic and the profane world of the king. And this is fine, as
long as you are a renouncer, but the question becomes, how do normal humans (the ones that
are still in the polluted world) relate to the transcendent. The Devi, by being closely
associated with both pollution and purity is able to bridge the gap between these two realms.

Consequently, the goddess' devotees need not follow the strict code of conduct
prescribed by brahmarric society. As we have seen, the least 'brahamanic' section of this
community (namely the Santhals) are among the most devout followers of the goddess, and
no one would question this. It makes perfect sense that the Deve-Mahatmaya is told to a
deposed king and a merchant (see Colburn, 1991). The goddess may be the perfect symbol
of the transcendent in her role as the purest of the pure, but she is also the perfect symbol for
the achievement of a'th, kana, and cflraana (worldly well being) in her role as the polluted
deity.

Time and again, the theme of pollution that implies victory crops up in the text of
Durga puja. For example, in part 3 of the text we see the passage, "You carry (all sorts of)
different weapons. You wear garlands of skulls that give blessings and relief fiom fear to
worshipers." The pollution of death is transformed in the relief fiom fear. Or again, after the
goat is sacrificed (part 15), "Taking a little blood fiom the khadga (sword), a dot on the

forehead should be put with: 'Om! Whatever I may touch by my feet or see with my eyes,

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should come under my power, even if firll of animosity toward me. " Here the pollution of

blood is transformed into victory over ones enemies.

But nowhere is the link between victory and pollution more clearly stated than in the
process of bait (sacrifice). Here the ultimate in polluting actions, taking a life, becomes the
symbol of moksa (liberation, and so transcendence). First the sword is worshipped as the
upholder of Juana, "Oh Khadga of sharp edge, and terrible form! You have glory, victory,
and m as your qualities. We bow to Thee." Then, and this is the crucial point, the goat
is told, "Conquer the terrible pain of the strike of this Khadga, and by the grace of Devi,
emancipate yourself as well as ourselves... For protection, you were in this bondage, for
attaining muldi, you are released by me. Oh good animal! By propitiating the Devi, proceed
to heaven. Having discarded this body, become of divinely form." Clearly the act of sacrifice
is linked to the extinction of animal bondage, therefore it is linked to mukti or liberation. The
most polluting of actions, the taking of a life, becomes the symbol for our highest aspiration,
the realization of the transcendent.

It is only after the sacrifice that the text of the puja even mentions moksha (part 16).
Till this point the Devi has been asked to uphold cflrrama, a'th and kana, but the final goal of
human kind, the attainment of moksha can only be evoked after the deconstruction of
pollution and purity is completed.

It is interesting that sacrifice also has the effect of linking the transcendent and the
mundane, by collapsing the distinction between purity and pollution. The sacrificial animal
goes fiom being a creature of the mundane world who is then transformed by the brahmin

into a sanctified animal. The ritual purity of the animal is insured by the various acts of

l 10
cleansing that the brahmin performs prior to the sacrifice. In this way the animal, fi'om the

perspective of the human subject, can mediate between the mundane world that they inhabit
and the transcendent world of the deity. But at the same time, in the instant that the animal is
dispatched, he crosses over into the realm of the transcendent (i.e., is accepted by the Devi).
But in that world, no distinctions between purity and pollution can exist; the Devi makes no
distinction between the sanctified act of sacrifice and the mundane act of murder. To her
death and life are one, purity and pollution are one, and sacrifice and murder are one.

So the sacrificial victim follows a path from mundane, to sanctified but then back to
the mundane (or to a state where the mundane and the sacred are no different). This means
that for a moment, for the horrible moment of ritual murder, the human subject who perfornrs
the sacrifice can glimpse the transcendent world of the Devi; a world in which sacrifice and
murder are no different in form.

This theme of sacrifice is a complex one and one we will take up again later. But
before proceeding to this, there is one more point I wish to make. One of the highlights of
Nisa puja (part 18) is the sacrifice of the enemy (or rival) represented as a small rice paste
efigy. This harkens back to the older idea of puja as a ritualized violent contest between
rivals (see Heeseterrnan, 1986). The rival who loses this contest is (symbolically) killed. Now
according to Heesterman, the inner conflict of Hinduism resulted from the banishment of
violence (or rivalry) from the act of puja. By distancing themselves from the reciprocal
violence of the puja contest, the brahmin priest was able to claim absolute authority as the

representative of the transcendent. Here we see the reverse process, where elements of the

l l l
rivalry submerged within Hindu worship are again allowed to surface. This idea of puja as a

ritual contest between rivals is clearly indicated during Nisa puja.

True to form, this puja has several 'left handed' or Tantric elements associated with it.
Not only is there an element of human sacrifice (symbolic, of course) but on this night the
goddess is evoked specifically to attain power, or victory. "Today, for the destruction of my
enemies. .." Not only are all the aspects of the goddess specified and worshipped on this night
(including her terrible forms), the puja also worships Bhairava, the god of death. The puja
ends by worshipping the ghosts and spirit beings, that on the previous day (part 9, seventh
day puja) were formally requested to leave the sight of the puja. In other words, those spirit
beings who are normally disruptive and so banished from the sacred space created at a puja
(part 1 and part 9) are here requested to attend the puja: "0m! Tonight, Loka-Palas, the nine
planets, constellations, Asuras, Gaidarva’s, Yaksha, Rakshasa, Viayacflram, Parnaga,
elephants, animals, bhoota, pishachu, meat-eating demons, yoginis, dala'ns, are offered these
edibles. " So the goddess' association with the polluted world of spirit beings (meat-eating
demons and the like) is here specified. And this theme of the conquest of ones enemies by left
handed Tantric practices is elaborated upon by the left handed worshipers of the goddess. If
you recall, this night is the night that ojhas, witches and ascetics are said to make their
maitras sidcflri. On this night the town folk think that such people, but especially witches,
take the notion of killing ones enemies literally. By using the magical power that one gains by
performing Nisa puja, the witch magically kills (sacrifices) a victim on this night.

Here the collapse of the distinction between murder and sacrifice is brought to

fiuition. The collapse of this distinction which is the logic of the world inhabited by the Devi

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and her meat eating minions, is temporally applied to the devotee. The devotee is so close to
the transcendent world by this point in the ritual, that the sacrificial victim (at least
symbolically) can legitimately be his rival. Because they have become so closely linked to the
goddess the prohit and the yagmar are able to, at least temporarily, visualize the logic of her
non-distinction between murder and sacrifice. Consequently, by ritually killing their rival,
they are able to collapse this distinction.

The point of all this, I think, is to bridge the gap between the ethereal world of the
brahmin and the secular world of the rest of society. The Devi addresses us at two levels: the
level of the pure, transcendent world; and the level of the defiled world of politics. By so
doing, she breaks the inner conflict of Hinduism. Therefore, she makes herself easily
accessible to all. For regardless of whether one seeks molcsha or simply to vanquish ones

enemies, one must still seek the Devi.

Siva and Shakti: The goddess as the shakti of the universe, is closely linked to all the devas
(as we saw in our discussion of her wed and unwed status). However, she is most closely
linked to Siva, both in the text of the puja and in everyday belief. In fact, as we said in our
discussion of the Siva-lingum, Siva and Shakti represent the two complementary principles of
the universe. Thus, they always imply each other. During Durga puja this theme is take to its
logical conclusion, where the line between Siva and Shakti are blurred to the point where
Shakti becomes Siva. Or to put it another way, the opposition of Siva and Shakti, between

self and the other, are being deconstructed within the puja.

1 13
In part three of the puja the goddess is evoked in the following manner:

"0m! You shine like a thousand suns. Your rays are cool like a thousand moons;

you have 18 arms, five heads and three eyes on each; you are poised in the center

of the ocean of Ambrosia sitting on the lotus of creation; Your carrier is the bull, your
throat is blue, and you wear most beautiful ornaments. You carry the skull and the
sword and play on cymbals and drums. You carry the pashu, and alkush. You have
a huge club in hand and a plough. .etc."

In this passage the goddess is being contemplated as various other deities, not as the
consort of these deities, but as the deities themselves. The one sitting on the lotus of creation
is a reference to Bhrama (the creator). The god who's carrier is the bull, who has a blue
throat, plays the drums and cymbals, and carries a pashu, is obviously Siva. While the arlmsh
and club refers to Indra, and the plough to Balram. In other words, the goddess is here
contemplated as the embodiment of various (male) deities. But as we have seen, the male
deity that the goddess is most closely linked throughout the text is Siva (see for instance, part
4, "Oh the life blood of Shankar").

It is not until part 8 and 9 (the Vilwa puja) that a deliberate attempt is made to
confuse the identities of Siva and Shakti. The vilwa tree (or bail tree, in Mathili) is closely
linked to Siva, and not Shakti. This link is specified in the eariy morning worship of the tree,
where the yagman says, "Oh Tree! Oh Icing of all vegetation’s! Oh Beloved of Siva! " Later,
the tree is called the "beloved of Uma," Uma being the consort of Siva. Normally, the bail
tree is associated with Siva because its branches come in groups of three leaves. These leaves
are said to represent the three gunas, while the fiuit is said to represent the universe. The text
itself seems to confirm the fact that the tree is sacred to Siva.

But by the time the fiuit of the tree is taken to the temple, it seems to have

transformed itself into Durga. "Oh auspicious Shree fiuit! Oh embodiment of Durga! Oh

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Charninda! Come, come. Oh Durga! You have been stabilized in this mud image and this

vilwa. Bless us in our abode." Now if you recall, the final act by which the goddess is
objectified or personified in her murti, is done by painting in her pupils. It is not until this
point that the image is said to be complete. Interestingly enough, the ‘brush’ that is used to
paint in the pupils is made from bail leaves. So the ultimate personification of the goddess
comes only by linking her to the bail tree, which we have seen is closely associated with her
consort Siva. The significance of this is that the self, even the self of the goddess, can only be
objectified by being linked to the other of Siva. The self; even the divine self, is part of an
intersubjective dialectical process, where its objectification is dependent on its link to the
other of the intersubjective encounter. This initiates the process by which Siva and Shakti
end up representing each other. For when the nine different kinds of vegetation that represent
the nine aspects of the goddess have been brought back to the temple, the bail leaf is part of
the package. But even now (even after it has been clearly marked as a representation of the
goddess) it is worshipped as the embodiment of Siva (and not Shakti). Siva seems to be one
of the embodiments of Shakti and vice versa. With the bail tree we are constantly flip-
flopping between it being a representation of Siva and Shakti.

The other significant moment when Durga and Siva are equated comes during the
T rishilini puja (part 19). Here a trident of wood is erected and then washed with a mixture
of water, milk, yogurt, honey, ghee, and sugar. After this, it is worshipped as Durga. What

is telling about this is that the trident is nonnally the weapon of Siva.” This is so because

 

”.lwastoldbyptor. Muller-Ortegathatitmightbetheeasethatoriginallythetrisulwastheweaponof
ShaktiandnotSiva Alflroughlhavenotbeenabletofindanysuchreferencefororupurpows,ithardly
matters. 'I'hefactisthatincontemporaryMathilsociety,thetrisualisdefinitelyseenasasymbolofSiva. In
factmostSivatempleshaveatrisulontopofthebuilding.

l 15
Siva in his role as the destroyer, uses the three shuls, or three kinds of suffering, to destroy

creation. Just about every contemporary icon or representation of Siva will show him with a
trident in his hand.

But as with the Siva-lingum, the act of sex symbolically collapses the distinction
between male and female, between Siva and Shakti. As in the Siva-lingum, the act of pouring
the mixture honey, yogurt, milk, etc, over the symbol of Siva is, I think, an act of symbolic
copulation (the tie in between this and the chardrogat poured over the Siva-lingum and the
pouring of the mixture over the trident is to close to be coincidence). The act of sexuality
transforms the trident from a symbol of Siva to a symbol of Durga: "Next, Durga should be
invoked in it with the usual avahana..."(part 19).

The blurring of the distinction between Siva and Shakti is important for two reasons.
Firstly, it collapses the male/female opposition that some South Asian scholars have picked
up on (see Babb, 1970 and 1975). This would also explain the curious androgyny of the
goddess that scholars such as Mackinzi-Brown, 1990, have noted). This again is a symbol of
transcendence, where sex and sexuality is used to ultimately collapse gender. The atma, or
brahma is androgynous, or rather, to the transcendent, gender is irrelevant. One of the most
potent icons of Siva, the Siva-Ardhanali, shows the deity as half male and half female. This
re-enforces the tantric theme that sex (or passion of any kind) can be used as a tool to
collapse the difference that we perceive between the self and the other. Once our
consciousness can see itself in the other, once it has gotten past the illusion of self, it is,
according to Hindu philosophy, well on its way toward mukti. Hence, the Tantric adept

doesn't reject the pleasures of this world, because it is only this ananda (pleasure, or bliss)

l 16
that allows us to glean the ultimate ananda that is divinity. In other words, it is only pleasure

that allows for the possibility of escaping the confines of our limited consciousness.

Such matters are best left to theologians, my point is not to engage in such
philosophical speculations, but rather to show how such a view efi‘ects the community being
studied. In effect what such a philosophy does is to allow for the legitimate pursuit of
worldly gains. The devotee need not oppose pleasure (ath or kana) with the ultimate goal
of moksa. According to such a view, one can only gain moksa by pursuing worldly pleasures.
But this leaves us with a continuum. While worldly pursuits are legitimate, the true devotee
(the renouncer) uses them only as a means to gain the ultimate goal of a Hindu, the goal of
liberation from the world. On the other hand, those who do not have such lofty ambitions
can content themselves with the acquisition of shakti (power), that is, with worldly gain. As
shakti is Shakti, it can be used either to further ones spiritual or worldly aims. Either way, the
process is the same, and either way, one must engage in a relationship with the goddess.

The second implication I see in the collapse of the Siva/Shakti opposition has to do
with a deeper theological issue within Hinduism. It tells us something about the character or

nature of divinity as envisioned by this society, and requires a separate section unto itself.

The Manifestaml the Unmainfest: It is interesting to note that the whole first part of Durga
puja concerns itself with the representation of the transcendental form of the goddess. This
form, called the para (or unmanifest, highest) form of the deity can, of course, never be

represented directly. It can and is however, given symbolic representation in apara diagrams.

l 17
In part one of the puja, the yagmar is told to draw a symbol, a triangle with a dot in

the center, that is immediately covered up by the asai on which he sits. The triangle is meant
to be a representation of the para form of the god Siva (reference), with the dot as a
representation of the Chinchina Shakti (or the Shakti that existed prior to the manifest
universe). This theme of drawing the transcendental form of the deity, only to cover it up is
repeated several times, each time in a more elaborate manner. In Part 2, the same triangle is
drawn, only this time it is covered by a pot of water that is said to represent the rivers of the
world. In part 3, a more elaborate image is drawn, representing the para form of Siva and
Shakti, joined in sexual union. This image is again covered by a pot which is then filled with
water (symbolic of all the tirtha's of the world). Then grain and other symbolic bounties of
the earth are put into the pot. The pot is said to sit on the cardinal points of the earth. The
pot i_s the earth. And the Devi is evoked within it.

Finally, in part 4 (the kalash-stahapaia), we see once again the same pattern. Two
intersecting triangles are drawn, only this time an eight petal lotus surrounds the image. The
eight petal lotus is said to represent the manifest form of the deity (i.e., the manifest universe).
Again this image is covered by a pot that then represents the universe. Around the pot are

planted seeds of barley, which are, on the tenth day, used as a blessing for the sponsors of the

puja.

1 l8
diagram

W’

In the first two diagrams, we see a representation of the Unmainfest forms of Siva
and Shakti. The triangle represents Siva and the dot Shakti. In the third diagram the ‘para’
form sits at the center of two intersecting triangles, The triangle’s represent the sexual union
of Siva and Shakti. In the final diagram the sexual union of Siva and Shakti are represented
with an eight petal lotus around them. This lotus signifies that the diagrams represents a
manifest form of Siva and Shakti; but the dot in the center still implies the unmanifest form of
Shakti.

In each case, the symbol that represents the 'true' nature of the deity is covered up as
soon as it is drawn. The point is that the transcendent can not be represented, and though
one tries to approximate its nature, such an approximation is never to be confilsed with the
actual. Consequently, no sooner is the para form represented than it is covered up. But even
though it is out of sight, the 'trace' of the transcendent (to use Derrida's term) remains. And
this trace will continue to exist throughout the ten day ritual.

The attention of the yagman and the devotee shifts to the pot, the murti, the valwa
tree, etc, but the true image of the goddess remains hidden, literally, beneath the 'manifest'
forms of her that capture our attention. This is a crucial point, because the entire ritual

revolves around it. It also helps us to understand the nature of the relationship between Siva

and Shakti.

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As we saw in our discussion of the Siva-lingum, Siva is represented in Siva temples
as the transcendent (and so umnanifest) principle of the universe, while Shakti is seen as the
womb of the universe; the manifest form of creation. This idea is expressed in the worship of
the goddess as well, and she is clearly equated with the manifest universe. Not only is she
evoked within the pot that is a symbol of that universe, in part 11 she is specifically called the
universe.

"0m! Oh Durga, Durga, Maharnaya [great or supreme mayo. Maya can be translated
as 'illusion' but only in the sense that it is the illusion of perception that doesn't see the
unmanifest beneath the manifest form of things] Oh Incarnate-Power. . . .You are the life-
giving water in all creation, you are shining radiance in all luminations. You are yoga-mayo
and air in space. You are the prithvi [earth] which carries all scents. You are perpetual in all
difi’erent kinds. You are the universe, the master of the universe, and the power behind the
universe..."

On the other hand, during the course of the puja, Siva becomes the representative of
the manifest universe, while Shakti, as his consort, becomes the supreme symbol of the
transcendent. So the symbolic equation of the Siva-lingum is here reversed. In a Siva
temple, Siva is the representation of the transcendent, while Shakti is the symbol of the
manifest universe. Here we have the exact opposite, with Siva representing the manifest
universe and Shakti representing the transcendent. This theme is most clearly drawn out in
the puja’s handling of sacrifice. In Hindu cosrnogony, sacrifice is closely linked to the
creation of the universe. It was through the act of sacrifice (yoga) that Prajapati created all

life (see the fig Veda, X. 90). This theme, though not directly taken up by the ritual, still

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seems to be significant. Sacrifice links this, as all yagas, to the act of creation (or recreation)

of the universe. At any rate, the ritual certainly seems to reestablish the social order of the
universe (hierarchy, separation of human and ghost realms, etc). But the most significant
aspect of sacrifice, in this text, revolves around the nature of Siva and Shakti. Siva ia the
sacrifice.

In a startling passage in part 14 of the text, the demon Mahishasura is equated with
Siva: “0m! Oh Brave one! Though in the form of a buffalo, you are the incarnation of soda-
Siva, and are Siva-rupa." This link between the buffalo and Siva is taken up later in part 20,
when the mashish (bufl’alo) which is to be sacrificed, is worshipped as Siva. Now the mahish
is obviously linked to the demon Mashishasura (who is depicted as half human, and half
buffalo) but it is also linked to Siva, who's vehicle is the bufi‘alo. In part 20, the bufi’alo is
called the vehicle of cflrarma, the carrier of Yama (god of death and a minion of Siva). Far
from being represented as a demon or a disruptive force, the buffalo and the demon
Mahisasura are seen as noble beings (both in part 14 and part 20). The yagmai says to the
buffalo, "discarding this form, take the form of Gandarva. On your forehead resides Siva, in
your horns resides the lover of Parviti (consort of Siva), and you have been blessed with the
affection of Durga for a hundred years for sure. "

At first glance, one might be tempted to take a Freudian view of this passage. The
argument would go something like this; the goddess is a symbol of the assertion of women
over men, thus she is seen as a castrating female, ready to kill her consort. But such an

analysis would be a radical departure fi'om what we have discovered so far about the nature

12 l
of the puja. It seems more consistent to continue with our theme of the puja as the collapse

of opposition, in which case the equation of the Mahis with Siva becomes consistently clear.

Along with his other attributes, Siva is also seen as Pashu-Pati, or the master of all
animals. Siva is Pashu, or animal form. Now Pashu comes out of Prala'iti, or the dynamic
manifest universe (as opposed to Purusa, the inert, spiritual force of the universe). Pashu has
two parts, the mayo that is the body, and the head that houses its consciousness. The body
becomes the symbol of lower consciousness, or bondage. Hence in part 15 of the text
(during the goat sacrifice), the goat is told that the head represents 'mental prowess,‘ while the
body is animal bondage. Once this body is sacrificed, the higher consciousness or mukti is
nrade possible. So the goat (as the buffalo and Mashiasura) are sacrificed by the Devi as a
favor to it, as a way to release it fi'om the bondage of animal form.

But we too are Pashu! That is, we too are of animal form. As part of the manifest
universe, the yagmar is using the goat (and later, the bufi’alo) as a substitute for none other
than himself. We have become equated with Siva, who is killed by the grace of the Devi only
so that we can understand our higher nature, our transcendent nature. This, I think, is the
significance of the Bhoot Bali (or ghost sacrifice) mentioned at the end of Nisa puja. The
bhoot being mentioned here is a reference to animal form, that which has already existed.
What is being sacrificed is the yagmar himself (or rather, his animal nature). Consequently,
the sacrifice is done to please all animals, or bhoots: "Om! Jackals, Karghal's, vetal’s,
putaras, foxes, be all propitiated by these offerings. " (part 18). All sacrifices during Durga

puja come in this way to represent the yagmar himself. Consequently, the body of the

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yagmai becomes the sacrificer and the sacrificed. This certainly links the act of sacrifice back

to the myth of Prajapati, who in the act of creation, is the sacrificial victim.

But to get back to Siva, the equation of Shankar with the animal to be sacrificed
collapses the opposition between the manifest and the unmanifest universe. Normally, as we
have seen, Siva represents the transcendent (the nonmanifest universe) while his consort,
Shakti represents the maya of creation. Here however, their roles have been reversed; Siva
becomes equated with the manifest universe (animal beings) while Shakti, in the form of
Durga, takes on the role of the transcendent. The animal nature of creation is transcended
only by the grace of the Devi. And it is for this reason that the first mention of molrsa in the
text of the puja, comes only after the revelation that Siva is Mahasasura.18 This implies that
only the collapse of the Siva/Shakti opposition or the manifest/unmanifest opposition can lead
the devotee to true liberation. .

In an insightful collection of articles, a number of South Asian scholars have noted the
theme of irnperrnanence that seems to be central to Hindu puja (see, Gods of Flesh, Gods of
m, Waghome and Cutler, 1985). Many of the themes that we have touched upon in our
discussion of Durga puja are also articulated by these scholars (see especially P.Conrtright,
and S. Ingles in Waghome and Cutler, 1985). I would like to conclude our analysis of Durga
puja by saying something about the imperrnanent nature of the murti, which relates to the

manifest/unmanifest nature of the goddess.

 

'8. Ifthislineofreasoninghaslegitimacy, it would helpustounderstandthebloodthirstyiconography
associatedwiththegoddess. Thegoddessloves bloodandsacrifice because sacrifice becomestheultimate
symbol of liberation, and so victory. This is why polluted images of death throughout the puja come to
represerrtvictoryandconquest. TIregoddessdestroysmuerrermes,btntheenemymnorreothertllanthe
illusion of things, thatweseethroughourlimited consciousness.

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Since the goddess is both in and out of time and space, her 'true' nature can never be

captured (at least not within time and space). She can only be represented symbolically, and
even then, her true nature can only be hinted at. We have already seen this in the 'trace' of the
transcendent that is implied in the diagrams at the very beginning of the puja. The diagrams
are covered as soon as they are made. In a sense, wry representation of the goddess follows
the same process. That is, the symbols used to represent her can never capture her true
essence, the paa form can never be captured by an apara representation, and so must be
discarded, lest the devotee mistake the image for the reality. Consequently, each of the
various representations of the goddess are imperrnanent. The irnperrnanence of the murti is
related to the irnperrnanence of the valwa fiuit, or the pot of water that represents the
goddess.

This point is driven home during the last day of the puja. After all the time and
trouble that the devotee has invested into representing the goddess, slowly bringing her murti
to life, he has to then turn around and declare the murti to be incomplete! In part 22 of the
text, the yagman address the goddess by saying," . .I do not know your form, nor your body,
nor all your attributes. There is only one thing I am aware of and that is my reverence to your
lotus-like feet." 80 even after the elaborate care that the yagmar and the prohit have taken to
activate and so manifest the goddess, they are in the end forced to declare that none of their
efforts can truly manifest the Devi. Even the devas, like Brahma, can not, according to the
text, perform the puja well enough to truly manifest the Devi. All that the yagmar can know
is the most polluted (most base) aspect of the Devi, namely her feet. The final act that the

yagmar performs before sending the murti on its way to the river, is to hold its feet. This, I

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think, tells us something about why any representation of the transcendent must be

impermanent. The transcendent, which is both manifest and unmanifest, can never be fully
represented within a world that is delineated by time and space. All that the puja has done
then is allow the devotee to contemplate the nature of the transcendent by focusing his or her
attention on the rituals and symbols of the puja.

Interestingly enough, it is also precisely at this moment that the Santhals express their
act of supreme devotion to the goddess. For it is at this moment that the murti of the Devi is
taken outside the temple and the Santhals, who have been waiting for her, go into their
frenzied trance state. This is significant because it links the Santhals to the brahmin, the
outsiders of this society to its insiders. For the brahmin like the Santhal is forced to declare
that his link to the Devi is sustained by nothing but his devotion or bhakti to her. All the
elaborate care that he has taken to manifest her has failed to capture her true nature. The
only benefit of the entire ritual is to make the yagmai and the prohit (and by extension, all
who partake of the ritual) aware of their “reverence” to her lotus like feet, i.e., make them
aware of their devotion to her. Despite his ritual expertise the brahmin is no different from
the Santhal as both are linked to the goddess only by the personal devotion they feel. And the
whole point of the ten day long puja is only to concentrate or activate this devotion by

making its participants focus on the rituals and symbols that it employs.

Cpnclusion: This puja is obviously too complex for me to do justice to, or even point out its

major themes. Instead, I focus on those aspects of the puja that have relevance to my

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particular interests in this ethnography. There are at least two levels that we must address the

goddess at: namely the social, and the individual. The goddess is the upholder of order (both
spiritual and societal) and the goddess is a symbol for the liberation (objectification, or self-
actualization) of the individual.

The puja has several elements that establish or re-create the ordered world of Mathil
society. Not only does the yaga seem to reestablish the balance between the world of
humans and the world of spirits, it also seems to reaffirm the social realities of hierarchy and
structure. It does so by legitimating authority, the authority of the king (especially during
Aparajitia puja, part 23) and the hierarchy of the social. During the course of the puja,
juniors will formally mark their deference toward elders or their patrons. The goddess also
seems to legitimate the relationships between men and women, establish the ritual superiority
of the bhranin as he is the only one who can perform her worship and his ritual authority is
extended to those elements of society that do not normally accept it, namely the Santhals.
Ultimately, through the symbolism of sacrifice, creation itself is reaffirmed. Anyway, as the
upholder of Juana, the Devi is certainly the upholder of the social order.

At the same time, the Devi is also the perfect symbol for the objectification of the self.
As the mediator of opposition, especially the mediator of the opposition between the self and
the other, she ends the Lacanian process of self-deferment, or the incomplete ego; the self
that emerges only in a fixture intersubjective encounter. Normally (in Lacanian thought) the
self is constantly deferred, as it can only objectify(or actualize) itself in the desire of the other.
Since we can never know the intentionality of the other, we can never truly know if we exist.

What is interesting about the goddess, is that to an extent, she is both the desire and the

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desired; she is both the self that wishes to be objectified and the other who's desire can

objectify. This is so because she is none other than her consort Siva (and, of course, vice
versa).

So the final point to make as far as the individual is concerned, about the
deconstructive moment that the goddess represents, is that in the act of deconstruction, she
firmly establishes herself as grounded, or if you prefer, she becomes the symbol of the self-
actualized individual. By being simultaneously at either end of an opposition, the goddess
ends the process of ‘deferment’, and establishes herself as the bedrock that is then in a
position to objectify us. We will speak more of this later, What I wish to delineate here is
that, paradoxically, the goddess in her role as deconstructor, finally ends the dialectical
process and thus becomes the symbol of completion. This establishes her as the
transcendental principle; that which is given, at least to the Hindu mind. Entering into a
relationship with her, then, helps to ground the individual. '9

What I find interesting about this is that the Freudian opposition between the
individual and the social, between the id and the super ego, is here gotten around in the
symbol of the Devi. She is at once the id, thanatos and eros incarnate, but at the same time

she is also the upholder of the moral social order, the perfect symbol of the super ego.

 

'9 The reader may wonder as to why I have used the term ‘collapse’ of oppositions rather than the
Hegelian notion of mediation or synthesis. The concept of synthesis, as I understand it, implies the
creation of a new opposition, an opposition at a higher level of abstraction. But in the course of Durga
puja no such teleos is implied. The oppositions are not mediated and no new oppositions are created.
At the end of the puja we go back to the normal world of Mathil society, and the same oppositions of
purity and pollution, Siva and Shakti, or manifest and unmanifest insert themselves. However, for the
devotee who has realized the underlying theme of the puja, such oppositions no longer have relevance.
No new oppositions present themselves to the enlightened individual (which is why Tantra insists that it
is a non-dualistic school of philosophy). This process of collapse can happen only at the level of
consciousness, or atma, because it is only at this level that the individual can realize that he or she is no
different form the absolute.

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Consequently, the pursuit of individual desires, within Hinduism never implies social

revolution. The individual renouncer is to an extent, the perfect narcissist; he or she is only
concerned with the ultimate satisfaction of his or her needs. Perfect pleasure (ananda) and a
pleasure that is self sustaining. Now one might think that the pursuit of absolute pleasure
would be the antithesis of social order (certainly Freud did) but in Hindu society this is not the
case.

For while the renouncer might be the symbol of absolute pleasure and so,
individualism, he or she is also the symbol of the social ideal, the highest aspirations of the
society. Thus although personally the renouncer might reject those things closely associated
with the social (hierarchy, pollution, social morality, etc.) they do not end up being a
revolutionary or disruptive force within society. Indeed, one could argue that they are what
has held Indian society together for all these years.

This certainly relates to the conservative nature of Mathil society. The individual is
given many options, even the option to rebel against society, but because all the possibilities
of what it means to be hurrran are encompassed by, and imply, the goddess, none of these

possibilities end up rejecting the social order. The goddess is a totalizing institution.

CHAPTER SIX: IN THE WAKE OF DURGA PUJA

The worship of Lakshmi and Kali follow close on the heels of Durga puja. The
deconstructive nature of the goddess, which was established during the course of Durga puja,
is elaborated upon in the worship of other goddess’. Durga is a representative of Shakti
herself, that is, she is the symbol of the complete or absolute goddess. Once she has been
worshipped in this form, the subsequent goddess puja’s break Shakti down into her
component elements or attributes (each of which corresponds to a different guna), which are
represented by difl’erent deities. Consequently Lakslrim and Kali represent radically difi’erent
elements of the goddess, but their puja’s follow each other in such close proximity that the
deconstructive nature of the absolute or complete goddess, Shakti, is hard to miss.

This deconstructive theme is consistently followed in each of the representations or
attributes of Shakti. It is tempting to equate Lakshmi with her usual attribute, that of
prosperity, light or good fortune. But while such an equation is true at one level, the exact
opposite is true at another. Lakshmi may be a symbol of prosperity at one level, but is a
symbol of entrapment and bondage at another. Kali is a symbol of destruction or darkness at
one level, but she becomes a symbol of liberation and victory at another. In this chapter I will
briefly delineate how Kali and Lakshmi end up representing aspects of reality that on a

surface level seem to be the exact opposite of how they are envisioned.

128

129
On the next full moon following Dhashmi, the worship of the goddess Lakshmi is

performed (in the year that I did fieldwork, it happened four days after the end of Durga
puja). A new life-sized clay statue of Lakshmi is installed in the Durga-stai. She is adorned
with clothes, jeweh'y, etc. She stands upon a lotus and under the lotus are two small owls
(her vehicle). The statue is surrounded by many lotus flowers (made of clay and paper).

The entrance of the temple is decorated with banana leaves, an auspicious tree that
represents prosperity. The entire puja is devoted to the advancement of prosperity and well
being; which are the attributes of the goddess Lakshmi. During most pujas, the deity is
formally invited to the event, and then formally asked to leave. During this puja however, the
goddess isn't asked to leave, in the hopes that the prosperity that she brings, will remain in the
community for the entire year. Consequently, this is a silent puja, so as not to startle or drive
the goddess away. No gha'i ghaita is rung during the ceremony, and even the bell that the
priest usually rings during the course of a puja, is kept silent. All loud noises should be
avoided on this day. 20

During the puja, a lamp is lit on the left side of the murti. Here too is erected a pot
(kalish). Offerings of sweets, fiuits etc, are placed to the right of the image. The puja is
performed on a tray. At the beginning of the puja a triangle is made on the tray, and in its
center is written the word ('shree'). Then a brief puja (about 40 minutes) is done.

There weren't too many people in attendance during the ceremony. Those who did
show up kept drifting in and out of the temple, placing offerings of sweets and fiuits before

the goddess. Women were told not to enter the temple during the service, but were not really

 

2°.Ofcourse,themelaintownisstillinfullswingandnothingwasabouttokeepthemquiet. However.
theydidseemtornakeanefl’orttourmdownthevolumeofthesongs. etc. playingontheloudspeakers.

130
barred from doing so. They waited outside till after the an (bowing to the sacred lamps)

was performed. They had come prepared with their own lamps (deeaps) so that they could
do their own an before the goddess, after the puja. This was done to insure the success of

2' All in all, the atmosphere was very subdued.

their families for the upcoming year.

The statue of the goddess was submerged into the liver the next day, around 4:00
PM. Not too many people showed up to accompany the murti to the river. This ended the
formal puja to the goddess Lakshmi (the real Shakti puja, as I was informed).

However, about two weeks after Lakshmi puja is the festival of Diwali, and this is
closely linked to the worship of Lakshmi. This is the festival of lights, and every house is
adorned with hundreds of little earthen lamps, or deeqos. Everyone has taken care to clean
their house or shops. People take the custom of cleaning on this day quite seriously. They
will even decorate their doors and cabinets etc, with various alta designs (mandala like
designs made from rice paste). It is said that on this night the goddess Lakshmi walks upon
the earth. She is said to be offended by dirt and so to have a dirty house on this day means
that she will shun you for the coming year. Quite a calamity, as to be shunned by Lakshmi
means that prosperity will allude you throughout the following year.

About 15 days prior to Durga puja, a brief puja is done to ones ancestors. This is
called Piua Paksh. The ancestors are given food and water etc, and are said to be around

(roam) the earth from this day forth. But it is not until Diwali that such spirits are formally

shown the house of their descendants. People light many earthen lamps and fill a pot (kalash)

 

2'.Thereisanespeciaflyclosehnkbetweenwomenandthegoddesslakshnu. Yormggirlsoryoungbrides
arereferredtoasthe'Lakshmi ofa house.’ Inthe pre-capitalist worldviewofMathil samaj, thereseemstobea
close relationship between the potential fertility of women and wealth.

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with grains to symbolize prosperity. The lamps are said to show the ancestors the way to

their descendants house, so that they may see how their progeny are doing.22 This is done so
that one’s ancestors, like the goddess, will give their blessings and protection, thereby insure
success in the coming year.

After the lighting of the lamps a brief puja is done to Lakshmi (the goddess of
prosperity), and then the prasad offered to her is passed around to all present. The males of a
household are then supposed to go to the ghosain ghar, where a deea) is lit next to the
image of the goddess. Each man then takes up a faggot and uses this lamp to light it. These
lit faggots are then carried by each man to the entrance of the house where they are used to
light a huge bonfire.23

I was told that in the olden days the lighting of the bonfire was a time for much high-
jinx. Men would leap over the fire, or walk across it. They would also light small balls of
rubber, attached to a string and then swing it around over their heads. It seems to me that the
significance of such events revolve around their potentially dangerous nature. What is
significant is the chance element that such danger involves and the control that people show
over this uncertainty. It is also for this reason that on this night there is a tradition of
gambling. The person who wins on this night is marked as someone who the goddess has
looked upon favorably. In other words, such a person is sure to have good fortune for the

rest of the year.

 

22. lwastoldthatthisnightischosenbeeauseonthisnightthemoonissaidtobeclosesttotheearth
However, I could find no relationship between the proximity of the nroon and the dwelling place of ones
ancestors.

23.'l'hesefaggotsandthebonfirethatislitareexactlylikeafrmeralpyre,althoughlamnotsurewhythisis
theease.

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At any rate, three of the faggots are kept while the rest are thrown into the bonfire.

These bundles will later be used to beat a soop. Late at night when the flame has died down,
an old woman will take these three faggots and beat a soap upon the bonfire. While she
beats, she yells out repeatedly, asking for prosperity to come and for poverty to leave.

After the men have lit the fire they all adjourn to participate in the fin of the festival.
Little kids (and the young at heart) have spent days amassing as many firecrackers as they can
afford. On this night they set off fireworks of all designs. This is a very festive time,
especially for the young, who have much filn playing with their fireworls.

On this night it is important to do panam to one’s elders. Consequently, after the
fireworks have died down, people will go to visit their relatives. As a blessing elders will give
their juniors prasad. This is usually various kinds of sweets (sugar fiied makhans, coconut
bafaees and the like). Sweets are considered auspicious. As with Durga puja, this formal
show of deference and blessings isn't restricted to kinsmen, clients (servants, etc.) will also
come to touch the feet of their patrons.

But the mood of the evening changes abruptly, for on this very night one is supposed
to worship the fierce goddess Kali. As with Nisa puja, Kali's worship is best done at
midnight. The night itself is called Maha Nisharatri (or 'great midnight'). A newly installed
life-sized statue of Kali has been put in the central room of the Durga-stan. The threshold of
the temple has been decorated with banana leaves. Because Champanagar also has a
permanent Kali temple (to the left of the Durga temple), one must perform the puja at two

separate locations (before the permanent image at the Kali temple and before the

imperrnanent image at the Durga temple).

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No one but the people who will perform the puja have shown up at either temple.

Again a lull descends over our little town, which just hours before was alive with the
effervescence of hundreds of fireworks. Now the town is as quiet as the grave. Only a few
pariah dogs hover outside the temple, eagerly awaiting the blood for the sacrifices to be made
on this night. Two black goats who have been tied to the pillars on the verandah of the
temple, cry out pathetically, awaiting their inevitable doom.

On this night the yagmar (and prohit) have taken special care to approach the deity in
a pure state. At one point the prohit formally asks the yagmar if he is pure or not. Once the
puja starts in earnest, the yagman has to symbolically purify himself by rinsing out his mouth
and then sprinkling water on his back. The atmosphere inside the temple is deadly serious.
We the audience, are formally requested not to speak, or interfere once the puja has started.
It is said that there should be no interruptions during this puja, that is, once the puja has
commenced, it _m_us_t be completed without interruptions. This adds to the palpable sense of
danger that this puja entails. The priest tells me that this is a Tantric puja, and in order to
perform it, one must have shakti.

The puja is done to Dhaksin Kali (the Kali that faces south, and the Kul devi of the
patron family). The puja starts on the right side of the murti, on a banana leaf. Then a silver
tray is used to continue the puja. Upon this tray, the yagmar makes a triangle of sindw. On
the tray, one starts the puja fi'om the left side. The yagmai touches his mouth, heart, nose,
ears, navel, arms and finally his head while he prays to the goddess. Then he does praian to
the deity. He uses his hand to block his right nostril while focusing on the rajas, tanas, and

satwa gunas. These gunas are the three elements of maya by which the goddess creates or

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manifests the universe. Rajas guna is associated with the goddess Lakshmi; satwa guna is

associated with Saraswati; and tanas is associated with Kali. Everything in the manifest
universe is nrade up of a combination of these three elements.

Different parts of the body are touched (focused upon) while praying to the goddess.
Much of the puja is done in silence, i.e., the yagman is asked to chant the giatri martra 10
times to himself etc. A long list of nonsense Tantric phonemes are recited while the yagman
touches his right arm. The puja is filled with silent japs (martras or chants).

Finally a sword is placed on the banana leaf. A triangle of sindru is painted, on which
the bait (sacrifice) is placed. At this point, the sacrifice is only a ladoo (a gram-flour sweet).
After this, a vedic havar is done (vedic according to Krishnash pundit). A fire is lit at the
hearth of the goddess.24 Various ofierings are thrown in. Then the ash from this fire is put
on a spoon and this is used to put tikas on everyone present. The tika, which I was told
offers the devotee protection from evil forces, is a far more elaborate affair than the usual tika
(usually a tika or dot is placed only on the devotees forehead). In this case a tika is put on the
head, the left shoulder, the right shoulder, the neck and finally, the heart of each person
present. Then the Tantric phoneme "Kring" is written on the sword with sindur.

The goat, which has just been washed, is shivering fi'om the cold as it is led into the
temple. It is symbolically cleansed (purified) by the yagmar by touching various parts of it's

body. Then the sword is prayed to. The goat is sacrificed outside the temple. Later the

 

2". Due to politieal reasons, Krishnash pundit was assigned to the Kali temple instead of performing the
puja at the rmin Durga-stan. The priest at the Durga—stan was particularly inept. and so I moved from the
DurgatempletotheKalitemple. Theperformanceherewasmuchmoresatisfying, arrdbesideslfeltadebtof
allegiancetoKrishnashpundit. AttheKalitemple(butnotattheDurgatemple)thereisatriangular
permanent hearth built into the temple. It is here that the havan is performed.

135
sword is used to 'sacrifice' a gourd. After this, a bisargin is done. Ghai ghaiti and the arti

mark the end of the puja. By now it is 2:30 at night, and not a soul is awake as I walk home
from the temple.

Conclusion: The theme of the goddess as mediator of opposition is consistently
followed during the course of these two rituals. On the one hand, as the goddess Shree
(Lakshmi), she ofi‘ers us prosperity and material well being. She protects us from poverty and
misfortune. Because of her close links to Vishnu (she is his consort), she is an especially pure
deity. On the other hand, as Kali, she is the destroyer, especially of enemies which, as we
have seen, relates to soteriological issues. If you recall during Durga puja destruction or
sacrifice became the symbol of liberation, or mukti. The death of the body implied the
ascendancy of a higher consciousness. In her role as the destroyer, the goddess Kali offers us
not only protection from the physical dangers of rivals or ghosts, she also ofl’ers us the
possibility of the escape from the bondage of animal form. Kali is closely linked to ghosts and
spirit beings, and is said to be the consort of Siva, an ambivalent god, who's purity is often in
question. She herself is often represented as a demon like warrior. Nonetheless she too is
a benevolent deity that protects us from that which would do us harm, including our own
nature.

It is interesting to note the Tantric themes taken up during Kali puja. As with Durga
puja (but more clearly pronounced during this ritual) the body of the yagmai becomes
associated with the universe. This Tantric theme of associating the micro (individual) with
the macro (universe) seems to be a key ingredient in goddess worship. It is for this reason

that Tantric adepts are said to perform Kali puja in a markedly 'left handed' manner. As with

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Nisa puja, Kali puja must be done by anyone who wishes to achieve the good will and

therefore the shakti of the goddess.

And as with Durga puja, themes of deconstruction are prevalent on this night. The
social order that is established during Diwali (doing praran to ones elders etc.) is in marked
contrast with the individual power that the yagmar hopes to gain by performing Kali puja.
The 'light' of Lakshmi (who is symbolically represented as yellow) is in marked contrast to the
dark goddess Kali (symbolically represented as blue). At a superficial level, Laksmi is a
symbol of goodness, light and prosperity, while Kali by contrast is sinister, dark and
destructive. The good spirits (i.e. ancestors) that Diwali hopes to invite are contrasted to the
dark spirits that Kali commands. Lakshmi is associated with life or the preservation of life
(material well being), while Kali is associated with death or the extinction of animal bondage,
and so, with liberation. These are not different deities, but rather different aspects of the one
goddess, Shakti.

Therefore at a deeper level, the goddess’ seem to reverse their roles, and Laksnri
becomes a symbol of material entanglement, while Kali becomes a symbol of liberation. In
this way Lakshmi becomes more closely associated with witchcraft or the egotistical pursuit
of worldly pleasure over social responsibility, while Kali becomes more closely associated
with the yagman or the renouncer and their emphasis on liberation. Thus the positive and
negative aspects of each goddess is constantly being reversed, depending upon at what level

she is being addressed. The following diagram may help to clarify what I mean.

137

GODDESS’
Durga (or Shakti)
Lakshmi Kali
1. At the level + _
of worldly Prosperity Destruction
pursuits
2. Consequences _ +
of goddesses Entanglement with Release from
actions, i.e., material desires animal bondage
at the level of (the egotism of (the path of
the transcendent witchcraft) the yagmar or
renouncer)
3. Human/other + - + -
interactions Ancestors Enemies

The goddess’ inverse their symbolic relevance depending on what level they are being
addressed at. In terms of material well being, Lakshmi seems to be a positive deity, ofi’ering
us contact with our ancestors, good fortune and prosperity. Kali, by contrast, is the goddess
of destruction, darkness and death. Even her positive attributes, namely the destruction of
one’s enemies, is filled with the animosity and pollution of murder. Yet if we see these same
attributes form the perspective of the transcendent, then what appears to be positive in the
manifest world becomes negative. Laksmi, from the perspective of the unmanifest universe
offers us entanglement with the material world. This theme of entanglement is carried

through to the level of the afterlife, for while socially the proper Hindu should show

138

reverence and piety toward his or her elders, it is something of an entanglement to over
emphasize the bonds that unite us to them. Ideally the relationship between the individual and
the people that they are related to is more a matter of duty, Juana, than the illusion or
attachment of love. It is for these reasons that Krsna tells Arjun in the Mahabharata that duty
takes precedence over filial piety.25 Ultimately, the return of one’s ancestors must be viewed
as a calamity, for it certainly means that the ancestors themselves have not reached the level
of liberation and so are still caught in the cycle of birth and rebirth. The act of receiving the
blessings of one’s ancestors may be a good thing for the individuaL but it is certainly a bad
thing for the ancestors. This points out the egotistic nature of Lakshmi’s blessings.

Kali, by contrast ofi’ers us a radically different notion of the afterlife. Here death is
closely linked to the release fiom animal bondage. As we saw in our discussion of sacrifice in
chapter five, sacrifice is a metaphor for the extinction of the animal form of the sacrifice, so
that he may achieve the higher consciousness of the transcendent. Even the destruction of
one’s enemies implies the destruction of the lower consciousness for the attainment of
liberation. The enemy (like any other sacrificial victim) is none other than the yagmat (see
especially the section on the manifest verses the unmanifest in Ch. Five). The afterlife here is
being viewed from the perspective of the transcendent. From this venue, Kali as the goddess
of destruction is that which detaches us fi'om the illusion of animal form, from the tyranny of
worldly existence.

So at the level of worldly pursuits Laksnri takes on a positive role as the goddess of

prosperity, and Kali a negative role as the goddess of destruction. But at the level of the

 

2’ The entire point of the Bhagavat Gita is that if an individual follows his or her duty without the
sentimental attachments that existence fosters, than they can become a renouncer even while they
continue to live in the mundane world of politics.

1 3 9
transcendent Laksmi comes to symbolize material entanglements, which is surely a negative

role, while Kali symbolizes the positive values of detachment and liberation. Finally, at the
level of human and other interactions both the goddesses can be viewed as both positive and
negative. Lakshmi is positive as she sustains the links between the self and one’s ancestors
(socially a positive thing) but she is negative in that this very link implies an attachment to
worldly relationships which is the opposite of liberation. At the level of human/other
interactions Kali is also both negative and positive. She is negative because she symbolizes
the destruction of one’s enemies, which we have seen is closely linked to murder (see chapter
five). But at the same time she is positive because the enemy in question is ideally none other
than the self, which when destroyed leads the devotee to a higher plain of existence. So at the
level of humans verses other interactions, the intentionality of the subject viewing the
symbolism associated with the goddess becomes crucial. At this level, both goddess’ present

themselves as the deconstructive deity, which is simultaneously positive and negative.

CHAPTER SEVEN: DO WIT CHES HAVE HAIRY PALMS?

Even before I set off to do fieldwork, the Mathil community here in the mid-west of
America, told me that my project was ill advised. Time and again a fiiend of the family would
come to visit and after hearing about my research topic, would inevitably shake their head and
say, ‘ojhas just don’t exist anymore.’ Mathila, according to them, is just not as backward as
it use to be and so beliefs in things like ojhas and dines have disappeared. Needless to say,
this caused me a great deal of anxiety.

My anxiety only increased upon landing in Bombay. The people I met there
confirmed the attitudes of my fiiends in America. They too felt that only the remotest areas
of Madha Pradase or Assam still held on to the backward beliefs in ojhas or witchcraft.
Interestingly enough, they would then go on to tell me about various ascetics or holy men
they knew of that practiced ‘real’ magic. This seemingly unanimous belief that ojhas and
witches are a thing of the past haunted me as I reached Patna and finally Champanagar.
Everyone I encountered seemed to feel that my project was filtile.

Even in Champanagar, the relatives I was staying with told me that ojhas and dines
were a thing of the past. So it was a matter of some relief when I found that the small town
of Champanagar has at least a half dozen ojhas and that if you were to count all the ojhas
within a two mile radius of Champanagar, you would find at least a hundred individuals who

claim to perform healing rites.

140

141
At first this fact was only a relief to me, as it meant I did not have to change the t0pic

of my research. But as I reflected upon the contradictions between the perceptions of
Mathila today by the elites of Indian society and the realities of a typical Mathil village, I felt it
was important to explain the lack of fit between the two. The question that occurred to me
was, why is the belief in ojhas and dines so persistent, and this is the subject of the current
chapter.

We have already seen in Chapter one that the educated elites of this society tend to
try and distance themselves fi'om such beliefs, but that when push comes to shove, even these
people will not hesitate to call ojhas. As Basu Dev told me, even the local rajas (some of
who were the same people who insisted that ojhas don’t exist) have employed him on
occasion. So ojhas, like dines continue to exist in this society despite the apparent need of
modern rationalism to discredit them.

The reason for this, I think, is that ojhas, dines, and renouncers (saryasas) are closely
related concepts, and if one believes in one, then by the logic of this belief system, one is
forced to believe in the possibility of the other two. And although the educated elite may not
believe whole heartedly in dines or ojhas, they definitely do believe in the renouncer. The
logic of the ascetic, in this society, is tied to the worship of the goddess. In Tantric
philosophy (and just about every ascetic in India today is influenced to some degree by
Tantric philosophy) one can only achieve enlightenment by focusing on the rituals and
symbols of goddess worship. Most contemporary yogic manuals are thus devoted to the
symbols and siJianas prescribed by Tantric philosophy. So the renouncer, like the ojha and

the dine justifies his or her power by referring to the exact same system of beliefs. The only

142
difference is that the renouncer and the ojha are seen in a positive light, while the dine is

viewed negatively.

But the goddess is on both sides of this equation; she is both good and evil (though
‘evil’ may be the wrong word to use here, perhaps ‘dark’ would be more appropriate).
Regardless of if one seeks power by performing negative rites or by performing a positive
one, one still ultimately gains power only through the goddess (shakti is Shakti). Because
power in this society is a value neutral term, one can gain power and ultimately liberation by
pursuing either a negative or a positive path. In the final analysis, evil itselfcan lead to
liberation just as surely as goodness. But power (shakti) only leads to liberation if one
refi'ains from using it. What I mean by this is that, Tantra is an existential philosophy that
feels that all sensation has the potential for liberation. Sexuality is good because it activates
within the individual the same aianda (bliss) that created the universe (or the ararda of the
divine). Or to put it another way, sexuality, or any other passionate experience, can trigger
within the individual the power that , if channeled pr0perly, leads to a higher consciousness,
and ultimately to the transcendent. This is so because at the heart of the manifest universe
(Shakti) is the transcendent (Siva, or Brarnha). So if one pursues any sensation to its ultimate
level, one will find at its core the transcendent. The problem is that most sensations quickly
dissipate, and leave the individual at the same level of consciousness as they were prior to the
experience. Sexuality is the quintessential such experience in Tantric thought. For a brief
moment the individual experiences the ananda of the transcendent, but the energy (or shakti)
that he or she has tapped into quickly dissipates back into the universe in the course of normal

sexuality. It is only when the energy, and so consciousness, of sexuality is captured or

143
suspended, that it can lead the individual to a higher plane of consciousness (or awaken the

Kundalini within them). So action or the actualization of power leads to the dispersion of the
psychic energy that passion produces. This is an often used motif in Hindu mythology, where
rishis or gods must store up their power through meditation or must recharge their power if
they are moved to action. It is only by non-action (or the deferment of action) that one can

gain enlightenment. So in this worldview we have a model of the world that looks something

like this:
Evil Good
Goddess
/ \
Dine , tha
’lo‘ \ \ ‘ I r ' ’0:an
4:56” ‘2) (renouncer) 1.- rd"
L Goddess \l
AC5“! f“ fiction for
evi 1 Good

The goddess in her role as the deconstructor of oppositions is on the side of both
good and evil. Both the dine and the ojha use the exact same logic to gain their mystical
powers. They are both equally devote in their worship of the Devi. So the question is why

are dines seen as bad while ojhas are seen as good?

144
In order to understand why dines are evil, I will have to first say something about the

nature of ritual in general. It is only by understanding the relationship between the ritual
moment and personhood that we can begin to understand the role of the dine and the ojha in
Mathil society.

V. Turner's model of ritual attempted to link the Durkheimian perspective of the
social to the Freudian emphasis on the symbolic. To Turner, rituals are effective because they
link the affect of the individual to the norms of society (Turner, 1967). This model of ritual
has been taken up by such thinkers as Obeyesekere, who again focuses on the afi’ective force
of a symbol and how such symbols are integrated into a social worldview (Obeyesekere,
1981). Such works point to the intimate link between psychology and ritual. Rituals must be
understood not only in terms of a societal process but in terms of individual psychological
processes as well. This is all fine and well, but I feel that the link between ritual and
psychology goes deeper than the affective nature of symbols. Rituals, at least in the Mathil
context, seem to do nothing less than define the self by setting up a relationship between the
self and the community. Adopting such a perspective helps us to understand the link between
the community rituals, such as Durga puja, and the personal rituals of healing that is so
prevalent in this region.

In Lacanian psychology, the self is objectified only by its recognition by the other", that
is, in the act of intersubjectivity. Dialogue can be seen as one such process of mutual self
recognition. But dialogue, like society itself, is governed by rules, and such rules are always
prior to any given intersubjective moment. All intersubjective utterances are interpreted with

reference to such rules, that is, there is no immediate access to the intentions of the other.

145
Thus the objectification of the self by the recognition of ourselves in the dialogue of the other

is always subject to interpretation; we can never be sure if we have legitimately interpreted
the intentions of the other, and so we can never be sure we have been objectified. The
confidence we have in this recognition of ourselves by the other (and thus, the confidence we
have in ourselves) is predicated on the confidence we have in our interpretation of the rules of
society. We can never be sure if the other has truly recognized us, or if we have just
misinterpreted their intentions. This leads to the realization that only the Other, of social
order, is truly in the position to objectify us, as only the Other (i.e., society) is firlly objectified
without reference to the other of the intersubjective encounter. But this Other (the
transcendental signifier of Derrida) never speaks to us, and thus, the self, to Lacan is never
fully objectified (Lacan, 1973; see also Dews, l987,p.45-86).

V. Crapanzano, in his book Tahanai, claims in passing that the social order can be the
frame of reference by which the self is objectified. In Moroccan society, the saints and jinn's
are such a constant point of reference, and are consulted at times of social and personal crisis
(Crapanzano, 1980, p.81). This is so because, like the nrles of dialogue, they exist prior to
any intersubjective encounter. Consequently their reality (objectification) isn't subject to the
uncertainties of intersubjectivity. To Crapanzano, they become the Other of identity
definition (p.82) but as they seem to be out of touch with modern times, their Otherness is in
question. That is, Crapanzano implies that because the social structure of Moroccan society

is disintegrating, it can no longer serve to objectify the self. Consequently, he doesn‘t take up

this perspective in any meaningful way.

146
The implication, however, is that flfl social structure can be viewed as the Lacanian

Other. Social structure precedes any intersubjective moment (orders intersubjectivity) and so
orders all social reality, including the self. This clues us in on the intimate connection
between ritual and the individual. The self is spoken to (objectified) by the social structure of
society in the form of rituals. \Vlth such a model we are in a position that allows us to reread
many of the important works of psychological anthropology. In Truner‘s work, the
significant Other of social order comes in the form of 'ancestral shades' (Turner, 1967).
Through misfortune, the spirit of the Other speaks to specific individuals, and the individual is
forced to respond; that is, recognize the 'other‘ of the spirit. Thus 'slrades' create an
intersubjective dialogue, but a dialogue where one partner (the spirit) is guaranteed as
grounded (objectified) by the social structure of Ndembu society ( by the rules of dialogue
itself). In other works, one partner is by definition (by the rules of intersubjectivity)
objectified, and as this partner is recognizing you,, you become objectified. The
Lacanian deferment of the self is gotten around in such rituals by grounding one partner
of the intersubjective encounter, and such a grounding can not be questioned as it is
legitimated by the very rules of intersubjective dialogue, that is, it is legitimated by the
social structure of Ndembu society.

Grace Gredys Harris' work on the Taita can be read in the same way (Harris,
1978). A self in Taita society is always in the process of becoming. The more social ties
one creates, which happens as one gets older and has more social dependents and
fiiends, the more of a person one becomes. In other words, personhood here seems to

be dependent on the density of ones intersubjective network. This process of

I47

personhood seems to be complete only when one's father dies and a person can then take
on a house shrine as a symbol of their new found autonomy. But one's parents never go
away. They become ancestor spirits and make themselves felt by inflicting misfortune
for the breaking of social rules. So the parents ultimate authority over the child is
recognized in death (p.91). Here again the unquestioned personhood of the dead is used
to both expose the everyday social tensions of the community ( a point made by both
Harris and Turner) apt] to objectify the self by creating a relationship between a person
and the spirit. The self is objectified by the fact that the spirit is recognizing the self, and
it seems that the Taita recognize the fact that it is only at this point (when a relationship
between the self and a spirit is created), that a person becomes autonomous, or firlly a
person. There is no need to belabor this point, one can make a similar case for
Obeyesekere's work on Sri Lankan spirit possession. Here it is not the dead, but gods or
other spirit beings that serve the same firnction of objectifying the self by engaging the
self in a dialogue with a subject who is by definition objectified.

Liminal periods or rites of passage can be made sense of by reference to such a
model. To Turner, lirrrinality is, "essentially unstructured (destructured or pre-
structured.)" Linrinal phases put people in close contact with the supernatural. Thus,
liminality collapses opposition (Turner, 1967, p.99). In such periods people are, "that
which is neither this nor that, and yet both." (p.99). All this has the effect of forcing
people to think about their culture (p. 105). During rites of passage, alternative models
of reality are presented to the initiate (what Turner calls 'monstrous forrns'), which

implies that culture could be different from what it is. It is as though the correct cultural

148

form (that which actually exists) was being reshaped even as the ceremony proceeds
(p.106). Such linrinal periods strip initiates of their identity and social status, and
therefore allow them to stand in a direct relationship to the Other of the social order.
That is, it gives them a direct access to, sets up a direct dialogue with, social structure.
But it is not only social structure that is being directly addressed, the initiates also stand
in a direct (immediate) relationship with each other. Linrinality creates an immediate
intersubjective moment, unmediated by an 'interpretation' of the other’s intentions. This
is similar to how Berger and Luckrnann characterize the founding moment of an
institution in that individuals are not going from a 'history' that needs to be legitimated by
reference to other ideologies (and so subject to interpretation) but are rather in a process
of creating or recreating institutions on the basis of what makes emotional sense to them
(Berger and Luckmann, 1967). The creation of a relationship of equality between them,
the equality of dialogue ('communitas' in Turner's words) make of the initiates a constant
group of reference in each others lives. So what such rituals do is create an
intersubjective moment that is immediately self present, and thus define the self within
this moment. Note that none of this actually gets away from structure (Turner more than
anybody else, presented us with the 'structure' of 'anti-structure'), but society structures
such liminal periods as_fi’ structure was not involved. The question is why? The answer
is to act out a moment that transforms the self or defines the self, by creating the
immediate intersubjective dialogue by which the self can be objectified. Liminal phases
become processes that set up relationships between the self and the Other of social

structure.

149
But to get back to the matter at hand, namely Mathil social structure, I would

like to point out how this model of ritual can help us to make sense of ojhas (healers)
and dines (witches). The first point to be noted is that ojhas help pe0ple in periods of
crisis, expressed here in the idiom of spirit possession, by re-establishing a relationship
between them and the Other of the Goddess. The great goddess of the Durga puja ritual
is intimately linked to spirit possession. Great community rituals, like Durga puja,
establish a personal relationship between the devotee and the Other of the social order.
Such rituals are periodic and serve not only to reestablish the ordered world of society
(re-create social structure) but alg reestablish individual identity by creating a means of
communication between the deity and the individual. Indeed the two (personal and
social order) are closely linked. As we have seen, rituals like Durga puja set about
creating the universe as though it was being formed even as the puja is acted out. In
other words, as in a rite of passage, the puja appeals to what makes emotional sense to
the devotee. It is as though the world was being created right before one’s eyes, so such
events need not fall back on other ideologies to justify themselves, and are, to this extent,
self-contained. Thus personality and personhood are intimately linked to ritual, not
because of the affective nature of symbolic communication ( or rather, not only because
of this) but because the very nature of personhood is tied to creating a dialogue with a
social order, and this is precisely what a ritual is. thas continue this process by
performing healing rituals that address specific individuals at times of need in their life.
Such periods of crisis are the collapse of social identity (when the social order no longer

makes emotional sense), and viewed in this way, we can understand the logic of healing

150

rituals. It is precisely at the moment when the person is most deferred (ungrounded) that
such rituals reestablish a dialogue between the self and the Other of society. It is at the
moment when one's social identity no longer makes emotional sense that healing rituals
reaffirm this identity by linking it to social structure. In this way they renegotiates the
ongoing dialogue between the self and society. We will talk more about this later.

The point I would like to turn to now is the nature of sorcery. At one interview I
was talking to several ojhas, when one of them, Pharabho Mondal, began to needle
another, Bhasudeva Yadhav, about the fact that he had trained under both an ojha and a
dine! Bhasudeva was visibly distressed, so I decided to intervene. I asked the group,
"what is the difference between an ojha and a dine, they both seem to have shakti?" This
lead to a general discussion where everyone seemed to agree that dines and ojhas are
equally empowered with shakti. Both engage in esoteric practices that violate social
norms to get such power. Ultimately, the process is the same for both, the difference is
in what they do with their shakti. This struck a cord with me, and certainly got
Basudeva out of what might have been an embarrassing moment. Turner, Harris and
Evans-Pritchard (1976) all make the point that sorcery is like magic, that is, is no
difi’erent as a process; but is nonetheless viewed as the greatest social evil. But what is
evil about it? Dines in Mathil society are often seen in the popular imagination as older
widowed women, who have outlived their children. This is perhaps the greatest calamity
that could befall a normal woman; to lose her husband is bad enough, but to lose her
children effectively cuts her off from any long term social networks. Women normally

gain in status as they grow older, because as their children grow up and reproduce they

151
become firnrly established as an elder of their husbands lineage. That is age brings

status, but largely because of its link to a kinship network. Now what makes a dine so
fiightening to the average Mathil is the fact that she is said to be capable of deliberately
killing her own family (note that a dine need not be a woman, but is popularly seen as
one). This is because in order to gain her powers, a dine needs to make a blood sacrifice
to the goddess, especially on the sixth night of Durga puja (Nisha puja), a sacred time
when all who wish power, both dines and tantric adepts, perform special secret
ceremonies. Tantrics are said to perform all kinds of left-handed rituals, such as doing
the puja naked, filling skulls with urine or blood etc. Dines are said to gain or reaffirm
their power on this night by making a human sacrifice to the goddess. If they have no
victims handy, they will turn on their own husbands or children. Such sacrifices are
carried out magically; the dine will throw a stick through the air that turns into a flying
snake ( a ghost-snake) and bites its victim. The following story, told to me by Mu’in,
one of my best informants and fiiends gets at the horror and pathos of such events.
Mu’in told me that sometime ago his family was sitting around as usual, when all
of a sudden his thirteen year old daughter (his eldest child) got up from her bed and said,
‘something has bit me.’ On her right hand, between the second and third knuckle, there
was indeed a bite mark, and blood. But Mu’in shone his flashlight right away and saw
no snake. Now Mu’in claims that after a snake bites someone, they themselves stick
around, they may even faint (they are said to be intoxicated by biting people). So if you
don’t see the snake afterwards, then it is a dine and not a snake that has attacked (i.e., a

‘ghost snake’ sent by a dine).

152

Not wanting to take any chances, Mu’in put turmeric on the girls wound and
rushed her to an ojha to get rid of the poison. The ojha said, ‘take off the turmeric. ’
Mu’in objected to this, but the ojha said that if it was a snake bite, then he could cure it,
but if it was a dine, then he could do nothing. Either way, the turmeric would not help.
The ojha concluded that no snake had bit the girl, but he would nonetheless try and get
rid of the poison. So Mu’in took off the turmeric. The ojha then jharoed the poison
out, and Mu’in said that the crafty dine let the poison go down while the ojha was
present.

The girl got better, and said she was feeling fine. But on the way back home, the
dine put the poison back. The girl began to complain about dizziness. Mu’in knew that
this was a bad sign, he knew then that she would die. Once they reached home, she
asked for water. Everyone told Mu’in not to give her any, as it would make the poison
go straight to her head. But Mu’in said, ‘ she is dead anyway, so why deny her the
water.’ She died shortly after this.

A few months later Mu’in heard a commotion in his village. His grand-daughter
(by kinship classifications) was bitten in exactly the same spot as his daughter had been.
She too was thirteen years old. After his daughter’s death, people told Mu’in that if he
had taken her to the hospital in Purena instead of taking her to an ojha, she would still be
alive. This thought stuck with him, so he borrowed a motorcycle and rushed his grand-
daughter to the hospital. There she was given injections for the snake bite, but to no

avail. Within three hours she was dead. Now no snake was spotted by her or her family

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either, so Mu’in concluded that it must have been a dine in both cases, and even if he had
taken his daughter to the hospital, she would still have died.

Dines, according to Mu’in, when they are just learning their trade will go to the
forest and pick up a stick. They recite a mantra over the twig twelve times, then they
throw it into the air. The twig flies to the intended victim and is transformed into a
snake. It bites the victim, and if the victim dies, then the shakti of the dine is increased.
After this, the dine is so powerfiil that they can kill anyone by his magic. The victim of
such first attacks (i.e., the first time a dine kills someone) are either the oldest child or a
pre-pubescent girl (kumari). His daughter fit both categories. Such attacks cannot be
treated in the same way as snake bites, as it will do no good.

This is an especially fiightening image considering the fact that the region is
infested by cobras and karaits, both of which are highly venomous snakes. In the first
month of my fieldwork I heard of ten locals who died from snake bites. After the first
month, I stopped keeping track, for fear that I would never have the courage to step out
of my house again. Some things it is best not to know! And of course, one can never
tell if a snake is a snake or a ghost-snake sent by a witch! The important point is that the
dine is willing to kill those very people that any normal person would sacrifice his or her
all for.

The fact that a dine would kill his or her own family clues us in on what is so evil
about witchcraft, namely that it is anti-social. A witch among the Azande, Ndembu or
Mathil, is one who uses their power for personal gain. The process of witchcraft is no

different from other kinds of socially useful magic, but witchcraft is evil because of its

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anti-social nature. But what exactly is anti-social about it? Sorcery uses the Other of
society and is completely steeped in the cosmology of a given social order. That is, it
can only be understood, like healing, by reference to the social order, it does not offer a
counter-ideology. Thus, as in a ritual, the dine has 'irnmediate' access to the social order
(the Other). The dine sets up a direct dialogue with the goddess, just as an ojha does.
But dines uses this dialogue only to increase their power, while ojhas uses this dialogue
to reestablish the social connection between an individual in crisis and the goddess. In
this way, dines and ojhas become structural opposites, a fact attested to in the following
interview with Pharabho and Basudev.

Me: But why do dines do this? [Hurt people]. Are they just like that or what?
PM: They learn to do it.

BD: They learn to do it. Those who learn to be a dine as a kumari (pre-
pubescent girl) will not hesitate to kill their own husbands.

PM: Or even their own son.

BD: Those kumari’s who learn the mantra, they will promise to teach their
children too. But if not, if the guru doesn’t accept them or if they won’t [i.e., if
the children refuse to learn], then the guru says, ‘sell the pillar in your house and
give me that [i.e., give me some other compensation]. If not that then give me
your mang [promise], that is, your sindur [i.e., serve me like you serve your
husband, or have sex with me]. Or I will kill your husband.’

Me: So dines too have gurus?

BD: Yes...

Me: OK. So a dine does these things because they get their shakti from them,
just like you learn tantra/mantra from your guru, they use their evil eye etc.
PM and BD: Yes.

Me: Could anyone get more shakti from such actions? For example, could you
get shakti from putting the evil eye on someone?

PM: Their pride [or enthusiasm] will increase every time they kill someone. If he
kills two or three people he will feel increased vigor. Their lust to kill will
increase. If someone [a likely candidate] should come along, they will find out
their name. Without the name, they can’t kill him.

Me: They can’t kill without a name?

BD: No they need the name...

Me: What I’m asking is do you get something out of it [from helping people].
Do you get shakti from it, or do you just do it to help others? You said that
dines get shakti from putting the evil eye on people right?

155

PM: Yes.

Me: Now when you do these things [i.e., help people], do you get something
too?

PM: I get shakti because I help [or relieve, cure] people. Then my power
increases. They [i.e., the dine] want to kill, I want to save. So our two powers
are bound to come into conflict. When they do clash, they want to kill me, they
want to kill the ojha. I too want my power to mess him up. So there is a clash.
I have to finish it, so they can not get up again...

Me: About dines, do they do Tantric puja?

BD: Yes.

PM: In their house, dines usually do puja to the Devi. They do puja to the Devi.
The suria [sun or sight] of the Devi. They don’t have to go to their [i.e., the
victims] house, they can kill them fi'om their own home. Or if they meet
someone on a path, they can kill them. But they have to know their name. Once
they know the name, they can make an image out of dough or of cow dung.

Me: OK. But first they have to make a human image?

PM: Yes, they have to make a human image.

BD: A murti.

PM: A murti just like the murti of the Devi or Durga that people do puja to, and
then dump in the river, just like that, they make an image and use the name [of
the victim] to kill him. They may use a knife or stick a needle in it, to give him a
pain in the stomach. Whatever they do to the image, it will happen to the victim.
BD: There are many ways to kill someone. They can use til (sesame) or a doll of
khus (grass), they can make an image like to do puja with, they make a murti.
Or they can use a needle to kill. Or they can make a murti out of sulfirr to kill.
They can use sulfirr to kill with. If they use a sulfirr image, no one will be able to
sit near him [i.e., the victim]. He will smell so bad that even his family won’t sit
near him. This is a very bad death. In the end, they will die.

Me: OK. So they make an image of a person. A person who’s’ name they know.
And then...

BD: They will ask people of the area to get the name. They will say, ‘tell me his
name, tell me his father’s name.’ Then they will make an image. Once he gets
sick and dies, they will bury the image. No ojha, or anyone else, will be able to
help him. He will die sooner or later.

We see fi'om the above that the dine does set up a dialogue with the other of an
intersubjective encounter, but that such a dialogue is at heart negative. The dine has to
know the name of his or her victim, which implies a social relationship, but a purely

negative one. Dines set up an anti-social (or a negative social) relationship with their

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victim. If we were to diagram the difference between the ojha and the dine, we would

get a picture that looks something like this:

/ tha \

Goddess (A ____ __ - __ _. ..> ’> Patient

The ojha sets up a reciprocal exchange with the goddess, as he both gives and receives
from her. He gives her sacrifices in the form of sweets, sindur or even the blood
sacrifice of a pigeon. In exchange, the goddess gives him her blessings and her shakti,
which he can then use to fight spirit beings. At the same time, the ojha sets up a
reciprocal exchange with the patient. The patient gives the ojha money or other gifts,
and in return the ojha activates for the patient the mystical powers he has gained by
pleasing the goddess. Since the point of such rituals is to reestablish the link between the
patient and the other of the social order (in this case, the goddess), the ojha becomes the
medium by which this process is achieved. By setting up a reciprocal and so social
relationship between himself and the goddess, and between himself and the patient, he
implicitly sets up a social exchange between the patient and the goddess.

Dines on the other hand, set up a negative social relationship between themselves
and the patient. The dine both gives and receives from the goddess, in much the same

way as the ojha, but he or she only takes from the patient (or victim).

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Dine

7 \-
Goddess/ \ Victim

This is the crucial difference between the dine and the ojha. The ojha reestablishes the
intersubjective dialogue between the patient and the goddess, while the dine uses the
patient to increase their own power. The patient becomes the sacrifice of the dine. In
this way, the dine is distorting the meaning of sacrifice itself. As we have seen, the
sacrificial victim is a stand in for the sacrificer. But here, the sacrificial victim is only a
means by which the dine seeks to increase their own power. In a normal sacrifice, the
victim itself must consent to the violence that is done to it (see Chapter 5). Here,
however, the victim is excluded from any involvement in the sacrificial process. The
sacrificial animal here is a victim, pure and simple.

What is more, the anti-social nature of the dine’s sacrifice is further attested to by
the fact that it is the victim of such attacks that are often the patient of the ojha. The
ojha is trying to reestablish the social, the intersubjective moment between the goddess
and the patient, while the dine is often the one responsible for the breakdown of this
social encounter in the first place. Normally sacrifice is used as a symbol for the
recreation of the ordered world of society, but here the sacrifice of the dine disrupts the
order of the social world. Dines and ojhas seem to be structural opposites. The ojha
establishes social relationships while the dine establishes anti-social relationships. This

opposition is made clear in the above interview. Pharabho seems to take seriously the

158

idea that dines and ojhas are such opposites that if they should meet, one or the other
has to be destroyed.

The opposition between the ojha and the dine is analogous to the opposition
between the devas(gods) and the asuras(demons) in Hindu mythology. For although the
goddess (or any other symbol of the transcendent) may be a totalizing institution that
encompasses both good and evil, as the upholder of Juama, and so the killer of the
asuras, what is emphasized is her role as the upholder of good, or the moral order. No
myth or legend of the goddess takes the opposite point of view (i.e., views her as the
upholder of aJuana). So here the symmetry of the goddess breaks down. As we saw,
the goddess in her role as the deconstructor of oppositions is on the side of both good
and evil, but in her role as the upholder of dhrama she is clearly on the side of good and
opposed to evil.

The asuras aren’t exactly evil beings. If they were then why would the text of
Durga puja call Mashasure ‘noble’? In fact, it is often difficult to see the difference
between the asuras and the devatas. They both get their power in exactly the same way,
by practicing austerities that compel the great gods (the personification of universal
order) to give the power. So the asuras are not really challenging the moral order or the
fundamental laws of the universe assumed by Hindu philosophy. They only become
powerful in the first place lagguse they followed the laws that govern the universe.
Therefore, they do not really pose a threat to the fundamental logic of the Hindu

worldview, they do not really present a counter-ideology.

159

What differentiates the asuras form the devas is that they use the power they gain

for their personal pleasure. Each powerful demon threatens the social order of the

 

universe by attempting to become the master of the three worlds. And this attempt is
undertaken for no reason but to further the glory of the demon. In the story of Durga
and Mashasure, the fatal mistake of the asura king was to be vain enough to assume that
he could possess the goddess. His vanity blinded him to the true nature of the goddess
and he was willing to risk everything he had for the personal pleasure of having sex with
her.

It seems to me then that the difference between the devas and the asuras is not
so much about good and evil, but about the Freudian tension between the unbridled
needs of the individual for pleasure, verses the needs of society for order. The social
order upheld by the devas is in marked contrast to the narcissism of the asuras. The
asura is the anti-god or the opposite of the god, because he used his power for purely
personal ends. Even the devas fall into this trap. Lesser gods, like Indra, are constantly
being reprimanded by the higher deities for emphasizing their personal glory or pleasure
over their social role as the upholder of dhrama. H. Zimmer starts out his classic work
on Hindu mythology by telling the story of Indra’s pride and egotism and how Krsna had
to remind Indra that in the end, he, Indra, had nothing to be boastful about (Zimmer,
1946). In this story, as in many others, the devata act like an asura, in that he
emphasizes his personal pleasure over his social role. And this seems to be the greatest
sin within Hindu cosmology; the hubris of power that rejects or forgets the oblation that

power has to the upkeep or the social order.

160
I think something similar is at the center of the conflict between the ojha and the

dine. The dine, like the asura, does not really threaten the fundamental laws of the
social order (they are seen as devout worshipers of the goddess). They gain their power
by practicing austerities, just like the ojha or the renouncer. The difference is that the
dine like the asura emphasize their own pleasure at the expense of the social. The very
act by which the dine gets power (by making a sacrificial victim of a human) is a
disruption of the social order. The ojha attempts to reestablish the connection between
the individual and the social, while the dine breaks this bond. In this way the dialogue
that the dine set up between themselves and the Other of the goddess, is at heart
narcissistic. The Other of the social order is being used here not to satisfy the needs of
the self to objectify itself, and so to accept its responsibilities toward the social, a process
that always implies a relationship of mutual obligation between the self and the Other,
but rather uses the Other of the social order purely for personal gains, purely in an
egotistical manner. It cheats the intersubjective moment. It denies the desire of the
Other (of society and so the goddess) and its need for social order. The needs of the
goddess in her role as the upholder of this social order are being ignored.

Sorcery is thus like the Freudian genital stage. The witch has some of the
attributes of an adult, namely the ability to initiate a social encounter, but the narcissism
of sorcerers makes them less than firll fledged adults. The other is important to the
witch, but is being used as a substitute for masturbation. That is, the dine is an egotist,
unable to engage in a relationship with the other that acknowledges the mutual

dependence of both parties for the fulfillment of their mutual desires. The dine is caught

161

in a web of their own desire that denies the relevance or the necessity of the social. The
firlfillment of desire in Freudian theory is, after all, always a compromise. A firlly formed
ego recognizes that its desires must be channeled or limited in order to accommodate the
desires of the other (i.e., one’s lover). That is, the id which is a pure egotist, wants to
possess all sexuality all the time. It makes of the lover an object, an object that exists for
no reason but to fulfill it’s desires. It is the reality principle that forces it to acknowledge
that this state of pure pleasure is impossible. In a social world, it must compromise its
desires if it wishes to find any pleasure at all. But the dine, like the adolescent, is
involved only with his or her own desires, and denies the dependency he or she has on
the desires of the other. The dine does this in two ways: firstly the dine denies the needs
or the desire of the other by using a human as a sacrificial victim. This act is certainly a
disruption of the social order and even denies the rights of the sacrificial animal to
consent to be sacrificed. Secondly, the dine denies the needs or the desires of the Other,
namely the goddess. The goddess’ need for social order is made manifest not only in the
great puja to the goddess Durga, but also in the personal healing rituals of the ojha,
where she shows her willingness to help the individual in crisis reestablish their
emotional commitment to their social role. In this way the dine’s anti-social nature is
revealed, and it is for these reasons that the dine becomes the greatest evil.

The ojha, like the renouncer, on the other hand, is firlly willing to accept their
dependence on the desire of the Other. Thus, though the process that leads to power
might be the same in each case, the essential point is that ojhas like the renouncers do

not abandon society. They may flaunt its norms, but ultimately come back to embrace

162

the social order. That is, they accept their dependence upon others, and so, they accept
the needs of society. For this, they become valued members of the community.

The point of all this is that psychological processes are intimately linked to social
structure. Personhood can only be understood as a dialogue between the self and the
Other of society. And only one who has fully accepted the responsibilities of such a
dialogue is fully human. This is an ongoing process that finds expression in ritual. Ritual
is tied to personhood not just because of the emotional content of symbols but because
of the very structure of both ritual and the self. Therefore, no study of psychology can

ignore the relationship between the self and the social.

CHAPTER EIGHT: KIN SHIP AND KINGSHIP

My cousin (F zd), who is considerably senior to me, was quite insistent that I attend
her daughters wedding. Conring toward the end my stay in India, I saw the occasion as a
time for some R and R Besides it had been a number of years since I had seen a proper
Hindu wedding, so I decided to go. What amazed me was that I was treated with much
respect and deference at the occasion. Most of the wedding party was made up of my
aunts (F 2) and other relatives, who, so to speak, "out ranked" me. Indeed this fact was
given cultural expression in the formal deference I was obligated to show such relatives
by the act of touching their feet and asking for their blessing (elders bless juniors, and
never the other way around), an act that is called ghor lagni or pranam, literally the act
of touching a persons feet to ask for their asirvad or blessing (incidentally, this would be
the same gesture of respect that a student would traditionally show toward a guru). It
seemed odd then that they should make such a fuss about my presence. During the
ceremony, however, I began to understand the significance of my presence. My cousin
(and many others besides) repeatedly told me how nice it was that someone from "my
family" had attended the wedding. Initially this struck me as strange, after all th_ey were
all from "my family". But this was not the case. In Mathil kinship women marry out of
their natal family and become members of their husband's patriline, and only members of
your patriline are true 'members' of your family. But more importantly, the
overwhelming sense of this experience was that I was a representative of that patriline.

163

164

It wasn't me who attended the wedding, but 'my family' that made an appearance.

The first time I visited the temple at Ramnagar, the priests there had no idea who
I was. Dressed in shorts and tennis shoes and peddling around on my bike, I must have
cut a rather odd figure. The priests were very rude and I left without actually entering
the Devi temple. Now the temple at Ramnagar was built by my great-great grandfather,
but the estate that own the temple today has passed on to another family (my great great
grandfather's daughter inherited this land and it has passed on to her husband's cognates).
I thought little about this incident, but the current owners of Ramnagar and its temple,
without my knowledge, took pains to reprimand the priests and let them know 'who I
was.’ The next time I went to Ramnagar, the priest came out to greet me long before I
reached the temple. Their they had prepared a ceremony to commemorate the fact that
someone 'of my family' had come back to visit the old place. With gongs ringing they
chanted mantras over me and then put a tika on my forehead. After that, they personally
showed me the Durgastan and began to reminisce about the history of 'my family'
Again what struck me about this was the fact that my personal presence wasn't what was
important, what was important was that a member of 'my family' had come to visit the
temple. On occasions such as these, and there are many such occasions, one gets the
feeling that one is just a stand in for one’s family.

What these examples point out, I think, is that Mathila is a kill based society.
What this means is that kinship is an important (if not the most important) ordering
principle in this culture. But firrther, kinship here is closely tied to identity and

personhood. As in the case of Bengali kinship ( a closely related culture; for a time,

165
under the British, all of Mathila was administratively considered as a part of Bengal), kin

identity comes in concentric circles; a ‘segrnentary lineage system’ in which one’s
primary allegiance and identity is to one’s immediate patriliny, and then to ever widening
circles of one’s kindred (see Inden and Nicholas, 1977). One’s 'personhood' is thus
dependent on the context in which one find oneself. One can be, at a maximal level, a
representative of one’s lineage ( a "Sinha", in my case) or a stand in for one’s immediate
minimal segment ( the 'son of Indranand Sinha'). This minimal segment tends to take on
a dominant role when dealing with members of one’s own family, while the maximal
level lineage of 'family' tends to be stressed when dealing with pe0ple who are outside
one’s family. In the examples above I was dealing with people who were outside my
family ( in the case of my cousin and aunts, they were women who had married out of
the family, and so were no longer directly part of my lineage) and so what was stressed
was my role as a Sinha. In other contexts, say in inter-family disputes (which we shall
talk about presently) the emphasis is on the immediate kinship segment, namely you,
your father, and your brothers. Of course this is a simplification. The widest context of
belonging would include women who have married out of the family and their children.
How much emphasis is placed on such ties are largely a matter of interpersonal
interactions and politics (by this I mean choice). As long as you 'remember' and accept
such ties, you are obligated to treat such tangential members of your larger kindred with
all the respect (or indulgence, depending on if you are older or younger to them) due any

other family member.

166

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It will be useful to present a kinship chart before considering the implications of
kinship in Mathil society. I would also like to point out, briefly, some of the significant
features of this kinship system before attempting to say anything about its meaning ( see

chart on previous page).

Great Grand Parent's Generation: At this level importance is placed on patrilineal vs.
matrilineal descent. The term Pra-Pitamaha is used for paternal great grand parents
(agnatic), while Pra-Matanaha is used for maternal great grand parents (uterine). Both
these terms are fairly formal, the majority of my informants simply referred to such
people as Par-Nana/Nani ("great grand maternal father/mother") or Par-Baba/Babi
("great grand paternal father/mother"). In practice, should one actually have the
opportunity to meet ones great grandparents, one would simply address them as
Nana/Nani or Baba/Babi. It is interesting to note the patrilineal bias in this system,
where the parents of ones grandmother (either maternal or paternal) are referred to by
the more generic terms for grand parent. That is, one's maternal grandmother's parents
would not be called Pra-Matamaha but simply Nani or Nani. Only ones maternal
grandfather's parents have this title. Ones paternal grandmother's parents again are
referred to by the generic Baba/Babi (not Pra-Pitamaha).

_G_r_and Parant's Generation: The emphasis here is again on maternal vs. paternal
descent. Maternal grandparents are called Nana (male) or Nani (female). And this is
true regardless of if they are directly in your line or not, or if they are 'married' into the

family or not. The same holds true for paternal grandparents (Baba/Babi).

168
Parent's Generation: This is the most marked group of Mathil kin types. Every

class of people in this generation has a separate name, and these are actually used in
addressing them (you would actually call, for example, your paternal uncle Kaka-je). It
is interesting to note that all the females in this generation have the suffix 'ma'(mother)
added to their title, except for Manee (mother's brother's wife) who already has the
word 'ma' as part of her title. Now what we need to keep in mind is that ideally Mathil
households should be joint households, with patrilocal residency. Also your mother's
immediate family has extensive contact with you so that in a very real sense the women
of your parental generation do act as your surrogate mothers. And in a very real sense,
especially with your paternal aunts, you are expected to treat them in the same manner
that you would treat your mother. This ideal of multiple mothers is further enforced
symbolically in the act of breast feeding. Any woman (but especially aunts, who are
likely to have been lactating at the time of your infancy) who breast feeds you will feel it
their right to be treated, for the rest of their lives, as if they were your mother. This also
points out the importance of progeny in the acceptance of women into a lineage. In a
strongly patrilineal society, like Mathila, there is always a tension between wives who
'many in' to the family and 'real' members of the lineage. This tension is expressed by the
fact that elder members of the lineage will refer to women who marry in as bhahue
(daughter-in—law, or bride) or kanya (bride), even after such women have reached middle
age and their wedding has become a dim memory to all. But the reminder of the 'alien-
ness' of wives is counterbalanced by the fact that women have children. And it is

through their children that women gain acceptance and status in their husband's lineage

169

(note however, that their status is of an interpersonal nature, the personal bond between
them and the members of the next generation). This again points out the significance of
breast milk. The more members of the lineage a woman has suckled, the deeper her ties
(personal and symbolic) are to the lineage. Now it isn't necessary that a woman is
actually lactating, the important thing is that she let the baby suckle, or held it in her
godh (lap; it is perhaps significant that to adopt a child here is called godh Iani, to take
one into ones lap). That is, she acted as a mother to the child, as so, at some level, is a
mother to it.

The same logic to an extent works for the men of this generation, although there
is a much clearer division between the matrilineal and patrilineal sides. Every male
member of your parents generation is to an extent, an extension of your father. So the
relationship between you and your Pissa-je (the "je" here is an honorific suffrx), Kaka-je,
Mausi-je, and Mama-je is in theory, the same as your relationship to your father. Your
rmrsr treat all these individuals with respect and deference. However, in practice, it is
your Kaka-je (F b) that is most closely linked to your father. Your Mama(Mb) or Pissa
(thub.) would generally be indulgent and open toward you, while your Kaka would be
(like the ideal father) reserved and formal (note the difference between female and male
roles here. Women relate to children through indulgence and love, interpersonal ties;
while men, especially fathers, relate to their children through formal cultural ties). In
theory your Kaka-je would the first person you turn to for mediation of a dispute or

help, should your own father be unavailable.

170

Own Generation: Although there are different terms for cross-cousins vs.
parallel cousins, for both matra and patrilineal sides, in practice such people are never
addressed by such terms. All members of this group are simply addressed as bhai or
bhaine (brother or sister) for those older to you or by their name, if they are younger to
you. This is another way of marking status, juniors never refer to elders by their name
alone, and for significant elders such as father or mother, the name is never used. This
also marks the disparity in status between men and women as an ideal wife never uses
her husband's name. This is meant to be a way of showing respect. It seems that a
deliberate attempt is being made to equate such relatives (the significant difference
between them is not in terms of patri or matrilineal ties, but in terms of junior vs. senior
status), and indeed close bonds tend to exist between cousins, and between your parents
and your cousins. This generation is your primary group of reference, especially in
extended households.

Children's Generation: Again, we see a tendency to gloss over differences. The
salient distinction here is between the children of your "brother's" (bhataja or batheige)
regardless of how such "brother's" are related to you, and your "sister's" children
(bhagana/bhagini). In theory, the relationship between you and them is the same as
between a parent and a child (it is considered the height of bad manners to imply that this
isn't the case). This means that many of the privileges or obligations that are attached to
the parent/child relationship are extended to your nephews and nieces. It would not be
considered unusual for you to take in such relatives should they need to move near you

for any reason, such as work or schooling (one of the great disadvantages of such

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institutions to someone who grew up in the west is that your aunts and uncles would
take offense if you were to say visit a town in which they lived and ao_t stay with them).
All such events tend to happen causally, and to imply that it may be a burden would be
insulting. Of course, such arrangements are conducted with the understanding that you
will treat your nephews and nieces will all the love or discipline of their actual parents.

Indeed when I set off to do fieldwork, I was worried about where I would stay (I
had only visited Champanagar once before and it certainly did not have any hotels or
places to rent). My father immediately made arrangements for me to live with his uncle
(my grand-father's first cousin). I was unsure of this, as I really didn't know the man at
all well. As it turned out, one of his nephews (and therefore my 'uncle') ended up, at the
spur of the moment, taking me in instead (he was living alone in Champanagar, and so
had more room to put me up). This was all done in the blink of an eye, and no amount
of protest on my part about being a burden or contribution to household expenses was
heeded. For the duration of my stay, Hira Kaka treated me as though I was his own son
(in fact, as is so typically the case in Mathil kinship, he and his wife, who I had never
meet prior to my fieldwork, took to calling me bata or son). This from a man I had only
met once before in my life!

Grand-Children's Generflm: The difference between matrilineal and patrilineal
sides are here down played. The important difference is whether you are linked to the
person ( in an immediate sense) by a male or a female. If you are linked to them by a
male (regardless of whether it is your brother's son or mother's sister's son's son) they are

called poutra or poutri (pota or potee is the less formal usage). If you are linked by a

172
female, then they are called nati or natine. Past this generation, all male grandchildren's

children are called potra/potee, while all female grandchildren's children are called
nait/natin.

Grandparents here enjoy a good deal of status, and consequently your
grandchildren are expected to treat you with much respect and deference. And this is
true regardless of whether you are their matrilineal or patrilineal grandparent. Generally
grandparents treat their grandkids with a good deal of affection and indulgence.

People who Marry In: In your own generation the term for people who marry
into the family is generic; bhaoji for females (wife of 'brother') and bahinow for males
(husband of 'sister'). And this is true of all your 'brothers' and 'sisters,’ regardless of how
they are related to you. The significant difference that this emphasizes is between
members of 'your family' and those who are marrying into your family. Note that this is
not the case for the generation above you, where people who marry in are given a
feminine or masculine version of your relatives title (Kaka's wife is Kakee, Pissi's
husband is Pissa, etc). It seems to me then that to an extent, people who marry in are
equated. This would imply that one's assimilation into a lineage is a result of seniority.
As one moves from being married into a lineage to the role of being a senior member of
a lineage (with juniors who show deference toward you) one becomes more 'fixed' as a
full member of the lineage. Initially, however, all members marrying in to the lineage
seem to be equated. This would tend to imply that one's assimilation into a lineage is a

result of seniority. As one moves from being married into a lineage to the role of being a

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senior member of a lineage (with juniors who show deference toward you), one becomes
more fixed as a full member of the lineage.

This isn't quite true, as far as your relationship to such people are concerned.
Bahinow's must uniformly be treated with respect, though not in an aloof or formal
manner, but there is a real difference in the way one acts toward one’s bhaoji. There
exists a joking relationship between you and the wife of an older brother, such that there
is a constant, and often sexually charged game not unlike the dozens between you and
her. This is especially visible during the festival of Holi, where anything short of actual
sex is permissible, and even expected; if you did not sexually accost your bhaoji on such
occasions, people would wonder if something was amiss. On the other hand, their is
something of an avoidance relationship between you and the wife of a younger brother.
Ideally she would cover her face whenever she was in your presence ( the term is ghoge
or veil, which is done by sliding a sari way over the face) and you would address her in
formal terms.

In fact, a woman marrying into a lineage generally has to treat all senior males in
this formal manner (including her husband's older brothers, Father, Uncles, etc). And
for very senior members of the family (say her husband's father's generation and up), she
will make her extreme deference apparent by speaking in the third person. Mathili has
three kinds of speech: common speech used among equals, formal speech used toward

seniors ( a western example would be the difference between the French 'tu' and 'vous'),

174
and very formal speech, in which you address people as 'they' (e.g., "will they be going to

town")26.

Now one might get the impression that the actual relationship between seniors
and juniors is very formal, but this is certainly not always the case (or rather, need not be
the case). Although juniors are required to show deference, this is generally a superficial
act, and in actuality, such relationships can be warm and fi'iendly. This is so because
while a bride should act respectfully toward, say her husband's aunt, the aunt (who
ideally is close to the husband) is expected to act very warmly and openly toward the
bride (in the same way as she is expected to act toward her own daughter-in-law).

I think what all this points to is the tension between family members and people
who marry in, what Radcliff-Brown would have called social conjunction and
disjunction. This tension is given structural expression in the form of joking relationships
or avoidance relationships. The logic here would go something like this: your elder
brother's wife is your 'senior' (symbolically expressed by the fact that you should touch
her feet, goar lagni, when you meet her), yet she is not quite a real 'senior' of the lineage,
in the same way, say as your paternal uncle would be. It is also often the case that she is
(chronologically) younger than you (ideally a bride should be 10 years younger than her
husband). This leads to a structural tension, where someone is, by the rules of kinship,
your superior, yet in other ways, your equal or junior. This tension is mediated by joking

relationships. No such tensions exist for the wife of your younger brother, and so this

 

2". Necdlessto say, such subtletywas initially lost on me, as I would inevitably get confirsedby who exactly
wasbeingreferredto.

175

relationship is not especially marked. Consequently the general rule of respect for elders
(in this case, you) is followed.

For the next generation (your children's generation) and all consequent
generations, there is a marked tendency to lump together all the people marring into the
family. This means that the wives of all male members of this generation (your bhatija's
or bhagina's) are called by the same term puthu ( or bahau, bride). This is true no
matter how the male is related to you and extends down; i.e. your 'grandson's' wife
(poutra pr nati) is also called puthu. The husband's of the female members of this
generation (i.e., your bhatiji, or bhagini) are uniformly called jamai, and again this
extends down to the next generation also.

So far we have considered Mathil kinship from the perspective of a male ego.
Something should be said about how this system would appear to a female ego. From a
female perspective this system would seem somewhat disjointed, or perhaps more
accurately, punctuated by abrupt changes. Females start out as members of their natal
lineage. Their allegiance and loyalty to their father's lineage marks the early phase of
their life. But from a very early age they are made aware of the fact that eventually they
will leave this lineage and be adopted into the lineage of their husband. Marriage then
marks an abrupt transition form one kin group of reference to another. After marriage, a
woman's loyalty and allegiance is expected to shift from her father's to her husband's
lineage, which is formally marked by her taking on her husband's gotra (clan or sub-

caste).

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But this shift comes in stages.27 Initially there is a good deal of tension between

a bride and her husband's family, especially her mother-in-law. Traditionally, women are
entrusted with the management of the household and all household affairs. There is a
hierarchical relationship between women in which the senior most woman enjoys a
position of power over all others (this logic of seniority is followed down the line, with
the wife of an elder brother 'out ranking' the wife of a younger). This means that in the
ideal joint family situation, the mother-in—law would have absolute authority over all her
daughter in laws. Even today, when many people choose not to live with their parents,
there still tends to be a short period of time, right after the wedding, when the young
couple will live with the husband's family.

The relationship between daughter-in-law and mother-in-law should be one of
love and indulgence. But in practice, especially initially, there tends to be a good deal of
tensions between them. Partially this is a structural tension; there is much pathos and
grief that women and their parents feel at the time of marriage. This is true not only
because of the close ties that tend to exist between parents, especially mothers, and their
children, but also because young women, from an early age, contribute a considerable
amount of labor to the upkeep of a household, The mother then is not only losing a
beloved child, she is also losing a valuable worker. This makes marriage a fairly

traumatic period for all involved. And this trauma isn't made any easier by the tentative

 

27.Thereisnocertaintythatthisprocesswilleverbecompleted. Awomanwhomarriesdown(i.e. marries
malmwerstaumfamilymronewhoismhappywimhermamagefmwhamverreason mightcontinueto
assertheralien-nessformherhusbandsldngroup.

177

status of a young bride within her husband's lineage. No matter how loving a mother-in-
law is, she can't replace ones own mother. 7

So initially, the bride is put into an alien household, cut off from her own kin, and
expected to work under the supervision of her mother-in-law. This is a traumatic period
in a young woman's life (just ask any married Indian woman!) and one we shall talk
about in our discussion of spirit possession. The young bride is referred to as kanya
("bride") or bhahou by her in laws, and spends much of her time alone or silently helping
with domestic chores. She is expected to cover her face (ghoge lagnai) in the presence
of her father-in-law, or other senior members of the household, as a mark of respect.
Generally she is treated very formally by her husband's kin, which only increases her
sense of isolation. She is of course allowed to maintain contact with her parents and
siblings, but going back to visit them too often, especially in the first year or so of
marriage, is looked down upon, even by her own parents. Initially then, the bride is put
into an alien lineage and treated in a very formal and reserved manner by her new kin.

All this changes, however, with the birth of her first child. For while her in-laws
might treat her in a formal way, they are certain to treat her children with indulgence and
love. A woman's children solidifies the link between her and her husband's lineage.
Since they are firll fledged members of this lineage, and since they show their mother the
respect and formal deference due to any other elder member of this lineage, they act as

the mechanism that firmly establishes their mother as a member of that lineage.28 But

 

2".'I'heconceptionofchildrenissocnrcialinthissocietythatabarrenwomanissomethingofasocial
outeast. Traditionally marriages are for life, and until very recent times divorce was unheard of. However, a
wornan'sinabilitytoconceivewouldbegroundsforherhusbandtotakeanotherwife,orevenabandonhis
infertile bride. Consequently, couples will conceive soon after marriage. If they should put ofl’ having
children, people will assume something is wrong. A fiiend of mine, a female anthropologist fiom Assam, was

178

this process isn't restricted to a woman's own children; as her sisters-in-law begin to have
children she will assume the role of Kaki-ma toward them. This makes her a senior
member of the lineage, with close personal ties to the next generation of that lineage. As
we have stated earlier, this final act of assimilation is given formal expression in kinship
terminology. A woman starts out being called bhaoji (by her husband's siblings) or
bhahou (by her husband's seniors), both of which are rather generic or 'unmarked' terms.
However as she assumes the role of senior, she will be referred to as Kaki—ma and later
Babi (by her grandchildren's generation). This firlly assimilates her into her husband's
lineage.

Though time, she begins to identify more closely toward this lineage than toward
her father's lineage. The density of her social ties within her husband's lineage make the

people of that lineage her primary group of reference.

Institutions that Relate to Kins_hip: Now that we have sketched the parameters of
Mathil kinship it is time to turn toward other institutions that have a bearing upon it.
The first to be considered is caste or jati (jait in Mathili). This is central because it
determines the choice of eligible marriage partners. In Mathila, the jati's are ranked such
that it is not so important whether you are a Brahmin or not. What is crucial (as far as

marriage is concerned) is what kr_'n_d of Brahmin you are. The highest caste Brahmins(

 

tellingrrrethatasshehasbeenmarrr'edfor8yearsandhasnotasyethadachild,totalstrangersfeelno
hesitation or embarrassment in asking her if she is barren (something which understandably infirriates her). It
is interesting to note that infertility is generally assumed tobe a female problem. This is beeause ofthe strong
particularnatureofN.Indiansociety. Impotenceinamanisagravematter,tlmtsaysasmuchabouthis
'character' as it does about his medieal or somatic state.

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the 'pure' Mathil Brahmins) are only 12 or 13 in number. These 13 gotras (or ranked

clans) are forced to intermarry between themselves. Such marriages follow the logic of
clan exogamy. Each person in this society belongs not only to ajati (caste) but to a
gotra, or clan. Such gotras trace their descent to a mythical ancestor (usually a
celebrated holy man mentioned in the scriptures). No real kin ties unite members of a
gotra, nor as far as I could tell, does the gotra form any meaningful political or social
unit. Its significance is purely in terms of marriage or other ritual occasions.” Aside
from gotra exogamy, the only other time it becomes meaningful is at a firneral. Ideally
your eldest son, then your youngest son, but never a middle son, would be responsible
for cremating you. But should you have no son's, or should they be unavailable for any
reason, it is a male member of your gotra that must take on this responsibility. As gotras
are deterrrrined by patrilineal descent, in practice this means that any of your patrilineal
male relatives are in a position to cremate you (that is, brother's son or brother's son's
son, but not brother's daughter's son, or sister's children as they would belong to a
difi’erent gotra). Any member of your matriliny, is naturally disqualified, as your
mother's natal gotra will not be the same as yours. However, it is interesting to note that
a woman changes her goatra to her husband's upon marriage.

Another important consideration when trying to understand kinship in Mathila,
are incest taboo's. These have the effect of extending out the immediate kin group to
include other branches of the family ( the diagram we have considered shows us only one

immediate kin group). Since the rule is that you must be six generations removed from

 

2” . All pujagaries, i.e. a person performing a puja, have to specify their gotra before perfomring a yoga.

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your patrilineal group and five generations fiom your matrilineal, in order to marry, it
becomes necessary to keep track of the various branches of your kindred, if for no other
reason than to keep track of who is and who is not a potential mate. The same
terminology that is used for your immediate kin group is extended to other branches of
your relatives. For example, your father's paternal uncle's children (F FB children) would
be your father's pittyot bhai's and bhaine's (classificatory siblings), and consequently they
would be your kaka’s and pissi-ma's. The pattern is to refer to such individuals in terms
of the generational position they occupy. All your father's 'brothers', i.e. cousins, would
become either kaka’s or mama's, depending on if they are his paternal or maternal
cousins; conversely, all your mother's 'brothers' (and cousins) would be your mana's or
mausa's. And the children of such people would be your mamyot or mausyot bhai's or
bhaine's.

The closeness of such kin depends on the personal contact that individual
members of the family have maintained through the years. It is always the case that one
has to treat them with all the respect etc. due to any other kaka or mama, but as such
relatives become more and more removed from you, it is often the case that you have
little or no dealings with them. This, added to the fact of clan exogamy, leads to a
complex situation where professional genealogists are often called upon to make sure
two people are indeed in the position to marry.

The limited number of families that are available to any given individual as a
legitimate marriage candidate ( i.e. that are of the correct jati and an equal gotra), along

with the strict incest taboos crates a dynamic situation that turns kinship into something

181

of a game. For example, your pissa-je's (FZH) relatives (his cousins or niece's) have no
real relation to you, and consequently ( as they would be members of an appropriate
gotra for you to marry) they would be potential spouses. This means that any given
relative of yours might end up being related to you in any number of ways, and the tie
that ends up being stressed is often a matter of personal preference. A few examples
may help to illustrate what I mean. The 'uncle' I was staying with (Hira Kaka) was
related to the current owner of Ramnagar (Bum-Bum). On the one hand, in terms of
Hira's patrilineal descent, Bum-Bum was his nephew, that is, Hira's grandfather was the
uncle of Bum-Bum's grandmother (normally this tie would be remote enough to be down
played, as Bum-Bum's grandmother 'marlied out' of the family). By this token, Bum-
Bum was obligated to show respect to Hira. On the other hand, by matrilineal descent
(that is, Hira's wife family) Bum-Bum ended up being Hira's mama (uncle), so by this
connection, Hira was to show Bum-Bum respect. There was yet another tie that made
them brothers (if this is all a bit sketchy, it is because they themselves weren't quite sure
how these ties came about. Indeed Bum-Bum, who was quite a good fiiend of mine, sat
down and tried to figure out how in the world yya were related. It was quite an effort for
me to remember my graduate seminar on kinship, but I finally was able to determine that
Bum-Bum and I were of the same generation, and so Bum-Bum, who is older to me,
would be my older 'brother.’ This meant, and this was the upshot, I had to touch his
feet). As far as Hira or Bum-Bum were concerned, all this meant that at any given time,
Hira could do paman to Bum-Bum as a sign of respect, or Bum-Bum could touch the

feet of Hira. When I asked how they know which tie to emphasize, they both laughed,

182
and told me it depended on what they felt like that day (which wasn't really the case.

Bum-Bum almost always touched the feet of Hira).

A more telling example comes from my own immediate kindred. My eldest
Pissa-ye (FZH) also happens to be a classificatory uncle of my mother. This meant that
in terms of patrilineal ties he is my Pissa, but in terms of matrilineal ties he is my
Nana(grandfather). What is significant about this is the fact that my father seems to
deliberately downplay the matrilineal end of this relationship; to him it is more important
that this Pissa of mine is his bhanoi. There is something of a joking relationship that
exists between yourself and your bhanoi (I did not mention this earlier as it is not nearly
as pronounced as the joking relationship between ego and an elder bhaoji). So between
my father and his brother-in-law, there is a casual give and take relationship. However,
my mother always focused on the fact that this man was her: uncle. Consequently, as far
as I am concerned, he is my Nana and I have always treated him as such (and vice
versa). This example points out the dynamic nature of Mathil kinship. Because of the
limited number of families that one can choose to marry from, through time individuals
become 'related' in one way or another, to a wide group of people, and such relationships
tend to be multi-stranded. Which strand of the such relationships is emphasized is often
a matter of choice (though generally, the most important relation will be emphasized). In
the example above, Nana 's are more important than Pissa's and so this takes precedence.

As I have stated, Mithila, in the bad old days of Structural-Functionalism, would
have been called a kin-based society. This does not mean that kinship is the only I

ordering principle, other institutions are certainly important in this society (caste,

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kingship and religion come to mind). But as far as the everyday reality of any given

individual is concerned, kin networks are certainly an important frame of reference.

Even people outside of your kin network, will be made into fictive kin, because kinship is
such a central way of organizing social relationships. For example, if I were to have a
close fiiend, he would, as a matter of course, be equated with my brother ( I did not use
the example of cross gender friendships because generally their is little contact between
the sexes in this society. This changes after marriage, of course, but even then a fiiend
of a different gender is always presented with their spouse). This means that my mother
would tend to call my fiiend bata (son), my sister would call him bhiaya (brother) etc.
Should you visit a home in this region, the children of the household, without prompting,
would refer to you as 'uncle'. Such fictive kin relationships may be extended to a village
level. Women (young girls) of the village are seen as the 'daughters of the village' and
young men as the sons. Practically speaking, this means that many of the rules of
avoidance between the sexes are abandoned within the village, because fellow villagers
are, after all, part of the family. I was rather shocked to see that most women within a
village have no hesitation in walking around topless! Whenever they leave their village,
say to go to 'town' (Champanagar hardly qualifies as a town, but in this area it is as close
to a town as one gets) they will cover themselves. This is especially revealing given the

rather conservative attitudes most people have toward sexuality or nudity.’0

 

3°.ItisinterestingtonotethatthevillagersofthistownthinkofAmerieansaspeoplewhoshamelesslywalk
around in their underwear (the closest translation they have for bikinis). This is not surprising considering that
theonlyrepresentationsoftheWestthattheyhavecomefromMagazineadsorfi'omthepornomoviesthatare
shownontheslyattheloealvideohut. Giventhisstateofafi’airs,itisnowonderthattheythinkofWestemers
asslrarneless,huwhatisinteresfingisthattheyseemtobetotanybhndtoflrefactthattheythemselveswalk
arormdinclothingthatatypiealwestemerworfldconsiderseandalous.

184
Now given this state of affairs, one may assume that kinship, like ritual, has the

ability to 'objectify' the self, as we discussed in the chapter on witchcraft. That is, like
ritual, kinship exists prior to any given intersubjective moment, and is part of the taken
for granted reality of the community. So, in theory, it should be able to objectify the self
in the same way as a ritual moment does. But surprisingly this is not the case. This is
so, I think, because of the many structural equivalencies that are part of this kinship
system. Instead of objectifying the self, the kinship system actually seems to destabilize
the self Conflict seems to be built into the system (the ghost of Gluckman haunts
Mathila). Partly this is the result of the instability of extended households, but I think
more is involved. Joint household are the ideal. This means that people will try to get
three generations of a family to live under the same roof. Patrilocal residency is the rule.
This ideal makes a neat little microcosm, at least to the Mathil mind, where the entire
social world of an individual is at his or her fingertips. That is, as kinship is so important
and as ones kin are the most important group of reference to an individual, having all
your kin living with you is a very satisfying and comfortable way of living. But this ideal,
of course, falls short of reality. Sooner or later conflicts between brothers, sister-in-
laws, etc. are bound to erupt, and when they do, there is much emotional baggage that
will carry with them. It is one thing to fight with a roommate or a neighbor-- one can
ignore such people if one chooses--- but in a joint household this option is not available.
Conflicts that would generally (in American society) be resolved by 'letting off steam'
(that is, a good afternoons worth of yelling) end up becoming life long vendettas. Much

of this could be mediated by a clear 'family development cycle,’ that is, a mechanism by

185

which joint families could peacefirlly split off. There is even an expression to describe
this 'developmental stage' of the family, called the diyadijhagara. A diyad is someone
who is related to you and has rights to commonly held property. Diyadijhagara then
means a conflict or fight between dryads. A common piece of local wisdom states that
one should never get involved in a diyadijhagara, if one can avoid it (which is very
good advice, indeed. Unfortunately for me, I had to acquire this wisdom the hard way).
So it seems that my assumption that no good mechanism exists to split a joint family has
some legitimacy. The problem with kinship models is that they always seem to be
addressing some kind of a cultural ideal. It is hard, especially to an 'insider' to such a
system, to speak in terms of such generalities. Every time you make a generalization,
your mind automatically thinks of dozens of real life examples that counter your
assertions. Mind you, there is nothing wrong with generalizations; cultural ideals do tell
us something important about a culture, but they are incomplete pictures, and the only
way to remedy this is by giving real life examples. Consequently, I would like to present
a family history, to show how persistent such inter-family conflicts are.

The example I use is that of my own family. In a sense this is not a good
example, as my family is considered a 'royal' lineage (a 'bara' household, to use C.Jha's
term; Jha, 1982). This means that they are not a real representation of a 'common'
Mathil family. But I use them nonetheless for two important reasons: firstly because I
know the story of this family better that that of any other. Largely this is due to the fact
that they were roya_lty, and so they ( and Mathil society) kept track of their history in

ways that other families would not. History is important because it gives us a

186
longitudinal view that makes certain structural conflicts more apparent. As we shall see,

certain structural conflicts keep cropping up generation after generation, conflicts that
may be dismissed as an aberration if one were to focus on any one given cultural
moment. The second point is that being a royal family, the Sinha's were in a position to
live up to the ideals of Mathil society. That is, they do not represent a normal family, but
they do, in many ways, represent a culturally ideal family. What this means is that many
of the features of Mathil kinship are exaggerated. Again this makes the persistent
features of such a system all the more apparent. Conflicts between family members
would not normally lead to the high melodrama we are about to consider, but the
M involved would be exactly the same.

One last point to consider is that such stories (and I call them 'stories' because
they aren't quite a history) get told by different branches of this family in different ways.
Hence there is a tendency for those telling the tale to completely reinterpret certain
events to make their particular branch of the family look good.31 Note that the
following isn't just a matter of family history. I was shocked to learn that many of these
stories are part of the cultural tradition, that is, part of the folk history of the society
itself. This point was driven home to me one day when I was sitting at the bazaar at
Champanagar drinking my evening tea. A geriatric man approached me and asked, rather
pointedly, "Who are you?" When I said my name was Govind (a house name, or a
'calling' name), he shook his head, and asked, "Who are you really?" I thought about this

for a moment, as I'm not altogether comfortable with my membership in a royal family

 

3' As a member of this family, I have tried to be as objective as I possibly could in the following
account. But as such stories are a matter of inter-family politics, I am sure that many members
of my family would object to many parts of the following.

187
(this was to be a major burden in getting information in this part of the country), but

finally decided to tell him that I was Yoganand Sinha (my 'fonnal' name and one that
clearly marked me as a member of my family). Far from being satisfied, he probed
further, asking me who my father was. When he got this information, he broke out into
a wide toothless smile, as he was able to place me as the grandson of Kumar Krishanand
Sinha, of Sultangunj. He himself had been in the employ of K. Ramanand Sinha (my
grandfather's brother). The next hour was spent listening to him reminisce about
Ramanand Sinha (a man I never met), and his relationships to his uncle Raja Krityanand
Sinha, who was the last raja of Champanagar. Such encounters were not unusual. In a
'traditional' agrarian based economy, rich landholders, such as the zamindar family being
considered, were one of the main employers in the immediate region. Further, such
employment was often put in terms of patron/client relationships, so that close personal
bonds tended to form between employer and employee, so close, that the patrons
'history' often became the history of the region at large, depending on the patron’s
influence.

Keeping my disclaimers in mind, let us now proceed to a brief history of the
Sinha family for the last four generations. I start with Raja Lilanand Sinha because past
this point the history gets very vague. Lilanand Sinha was a very rich and powerfirl man,
who's wealth and status rivaled the Raja of Dharbanga (the real royal line in Mathila).
He is said to have had an annual income of some 79 lacks Rs, quite a tidy sum even by
today’s standards. But he himself was not much of a manager, preferring to donate large

sums of money and land to various charities (schools and the like). He had four wives,

188
but until the later part of his life, only one son, (Raja) Padamanand Sinha. These two

people had a falling out, the details of which are a matter of interpretation. Those who
wish to make Padamanand look good, insist that the falling out was over money. One
story goes that the Raja of Dharbanga owed Lilanand a good deal of money and was
unable to pay it. He and his brother came personally to Lilananand's dhori (house or
palace) at Ramnagar to negotiate terms of payment. Lilanand was so flattered by this
visit that he personally went out his gate to receive them, saying, "Mathila itself has
come to my house" (a reference to the Raja of Dharbanga). Lilanand promptly tore up
the documents of credit (i.e., forgave the debt) just because the Raja of Dharbanga had
come to meet him. Then he said that he wouldn't allow the raja to leave without a
present to honor him. The raja asked Lilanand for his prize elephant (by all accounts
something of a family mascot), which Lilanand promptly gave him. This lead to a fight
between Lilanand and his son Padamanand. From the son's point of view, the father was
being reckless with his generosity. Another version, less flattering to both parties, goes
that one night both father and son were in their meafil enjoying some dancing girls. One
particularly comely beauty put all the others to shame, and excited the manhood of both
father and son. Lilanand said something to the effect of, "she is urine." Padamanand
countered by saying, "a dancing girl belongs to no one" (i.e., she is anybody’s). So in
this version of the story a sexual rivalry over the girl lead to a fight between father and
son. Yet another version (this one clearly a Champanagar version) of the story goes that
Padamanand Sinha along with his mother actually killed all the other son's of Lilanand

while they were still infants! What 'really' happened is not as important for our purposes

189
as the fact that father and son did get into a conflict; so severe a conflict, in fact, that the

father actually moved out of his own dehori, apparently at the spur of the moment.

What is clear is that in 1869 (or thereabouts) Lilanand Sinha loaded up his
elephants and entourage ( and 2 of 3 wives) and left his home. There are, of course,
conflicting versions of this story as well. One of my uncles at Champanagar (who's
versions of such things inevitably ends up making the Champanagar branch of the family
look good) said that he left with his fourth wife, Rani Sitaviti (as far as I can tell though,
he didn't actually marry Sitaviti until after this move). At any rate, R. Lilanand, with one
or the other of his wives in toe, left Ramnagar. He told his bride that he would build a
new dehori for her wherever his elephant decided to rest. It stopped to rest some two
miles from home, where Lilanand built a new home that came to be known as
Champanagar. There are many other stories about Lilanand, but they do not concern us
here. What is significant is that Lilanand has two more sons with his new wife Sitaviti.
This, or so the story goes, he did to spite his eldest son and sole heir. The two sons
were Raja Kalanand Sinha and R. Krityanand Sinha, who was born after his father's
death.

R. Padamand, upon hearing about his two new half-brothers, decided (or so the
version at Champanagar would have us believe) to do away with his brothers and his
step-mother. Rules of etiquette did not allow him to actually kill them (!), but he banned
any mid-wife in his domain (which, we must keep in mind, was yery extensive) from
helping Sitaviti to deliver her second son. She had to hide herself away in a hut and

deliver the baby alone. Her trusty servant, a man by the name of Ganase, arrived just

190
after the delivery and helped her clean the baby and nursed her back to health. Later this

man helped Rani Sitaviti to 'escape‘ to the other side of the Ganges (south of Purenia into
Bhagalpur), where she would be relatively safe from her nare-do-well step-son,
Padamanand. Eventually she moved to one of Lilanand's estates in Calcutta, where she
(single-handedly) raised her two young sons. But she was running out of money, and the
meager allowance that Padamanand gave her was not enough to sustain her. One story
that drives this point home, and is designed to pull at the heartstrings of any red-blooded
Mathil, states that one day her two young princes (still quite young at this point) saw a
Victoria carriage. They were so impressed that they ran straight home to ask their
mother to buy them one. She told them she had no money to do so, at which point they
began to cry. They were inconsolable, and spent the next few days sulking. Sitaviti,
being the good Mathil mother she was (or has become), couldn't stand to see her
children in this state, and so pawned her last remaining bits of jewelry to buy the carriage
(Jewehy in this society is the exclusive property of women. They may do with it what
they please. However, to sell family jewelry is indeed a pathetic event. Ideally such
jewelry is passed on from a mother to her daughter or her daughters-in-law).

At this point she realized that she had to legally challenge her step-son
Padamanand, in order to assert the claims of her two sons over the land and revenue of
Raj Banali (as this zamandari was called). With her sons safely in Calcutta, the Rani
went to the district courts in Bhagalpur to present her case. She won her claim, and
Banali Raj was divided into three parts, with Padamanand Sinha getting the lion’s share

(close to half) while the two younger brothers received rights to the other half of the

191

estate. But receiving rights to a zamandari and actually being able to collect on it are
two separate matters. Raja Padamanand was still the dominant power in Pumeia (where
most of the land was) and he wasn't about to let Rani Sitaviti send her men to collect
taxes on her lands. In a bold move, Sitaviti hired her own muscle men and decided to
cross the river into Pumeia. She went directly to Champanagar. When Padamanand
heard about this, he sent his men after her. She was surrounded and forced to hold up in
the Durga temple at Champanagar (the house temple built by her husband). Here she
stayed for the next several days. The guards (who apparently were under orders to
attack her) dared not go into the temple, as this would offend the goddess, and the Rani
refirsed to come out. Finally she was able to get a message to her people back in
Bhagalpur and they came in force to rescue her. This more or less ended her direct
conflicts with Raja Padmanand, who had no choice but to honor her legal claims to Raj
Banali. Sitaviti stayed the rest of her days at C-nagar and built much of the palace
complex that now exists there (actually she only built a defensive wall as a precaution,
and one palace, her son with her approval, did the rest).

Second Version (or the Ramnagar version of the story): the current owners of
Ramnagar are the descendants of Padmanand Sinha's daughter. Consequently they have
a slightly different view of the above story. In this view Padmanand was actually a
generous and good man, who tried to protect the best interests of his family”.

Apparently Ganashe(Sitaviti’s servant) sent Padmanand a letter (which my sources swear

 

32Iarndeliberatelynotmentioningthenarnesofthesesourcesontheoffchancethattheyeverhappento
readthis. Theymaybeembarrassedtoleamthattheyholdsuchradieallydifferentviewsontheseevents.
Someofthebadfeelingsthatwerecreatedbytheseeventslingerontothepresentday.

192
actually existed) saying something like, "What has happened has happened. It is best not

to pursue this matter any further. " This rather cryptic message implies the obvious (at
least to the Mathil mind) that Ganashe was actually Sitaviti's lover, and her son
Krityanand was sired by him and not by Lilanand Sinha; a titillating implication that was
backed up by one of Krityanand's own grand-children. He said that at one point
Krityanand called Ganashe to him and said, "people say I look like you. Why is that?"
When Ganashe refirsed to answer, Raja Krityanand had him whipped severely. This
would certainly explain why Padmanand would be so opposed to his brother's claim on
Raj Banali (no one mentioned Kalanand Sinha, the older son, possibly because he was
my great grandfather and they did not wish to offend me). Family is, as we have seen,
very important and a bastard child has little claim to inheritance or legitimacy in Mathil
society. The noble nature of Padmanand is further attested to by the fact that after 1
Krityanand publicly molested Ganash, Padmanand came to his defense and set him up for
the rest of his life. But we get ahead of ourselves. The central conflict between father
and son is here seen in terms of property rights. The son tried to get Lilanand to be
more responsible about money matters, which ticked off the old man and in a huff,
Lilanand decided to leave (my father, along with the Ramnagar version of this story,
insists that Padmanand actually begged his father to stay). At any rate, Lilanand was
quite old at this point (perhaps in his sixties) and was paralyzed from the waist down.
Consequently he was incapable of having children. When Sitivati filed suit against
Padmanand, the letter by Ganash, which apparently proved her children were illegitimate,

was submitted to the courts. Now in those days such documents were kept in a

193

"Reading Room" in the courthouse (no copies were made). After Padmanand's lawyers
saw the letter, they gave it to the judge who put it in the reading room for Sitaviti's
lawyers to look at. The lawyer, after seeing the letter, apparently ate it before anyone
could stop him! In disgust, Padmanand apparently more or less decided to drop the case
at this point, taking no further interest in the matter. It was his step-brother Krytianand
Sinha who decided to keep this vendetta alive.

But back to our story. Sitaviti had set up shop at Champanagar and was doing
quite well. She managed to amass a fortune by prudently overseeing her estate (actually
it was her sautan, co-wife, Chandra who was and remained the manager of Raj Banali,
on a permanent lease from her husband Raja Lilanand). She built or oversaw the
building of much of what is now a spectacular (though somewhat out of place) palace
complex. Significantly, she is said to have personally commissioned the Siva temple
there, a truly magnificent temple3‘3 . In the meantime, her son's began to come into
conflict. More specifically, Kriytanand Sinha, who still maintained an intense rivalry with
his older step-brother Padmanand, began to come into conflict with his older full-
brother, Kalanand. Apparently Kriytanand was donating jointly held land and properties
to various charities (colleges, orphanages, etc.) but n_ot putting his brother's name on
such contributions. That is, he gave such donations in his name alone. This upset his
older brother, but it really upset his older brother's eldest son, Kumar Ramanand Sinha.
At this point in time, Kalanand's eldest son was about 19 years of age, while his younger

son, Kumar Krishanand, was 9. Keep in mind that all of these people (Sitaviti, her co-

 

” EverytimeanewdehoriisbrrilttlrefirstthingthatgoesupistheDmgasran (Goddesstemple), sothe
menwhoestablishsuchhouseholdstendtolmiltthose.

194
wife Chandra, Sitaviti’s children and their wives and children) were all living under the

same roof, so to speak (actually there are several buildings within the palace complex,

but the effect is the same). Unlike his older brother Ramanand, Krishanand was quite

fond of his uncle Krityanand. They shared many similar interests, which were to unite
them throughout their lives (big game hunting, cars, and an exaggerated sense of royal
demeanor).

While this little fragment of the melodrama was getting underway, Krityanand's
first son (age of one and a half, or two years) died. Krityanand has several daughter's
but no sons. This must have come as a great shock to all, and it added firel to an already
volatile situation. Krityanand's wife, Prabhabiti, began to accuse Kalanand's wife,
Kalaviti, of being a dine (witch). Now this is not at all unusual, dines are reputed to
'sacrifice' the lives of farmly members through magic, but to accuse ones own sister-in-
law is a bit much. The accusation was that not only had Kalaviti killed her nephew, but
had used magic to insure that her sister-in-law would have no more sons. Krityanand
took up this accusation and began to openly accuse his sister-in-law (older sister-in-law,
mind you) of being a dine.” The mother of these two brothers, Rani Sitaviti, apparently
sided with her younger son Krityanand, against her elder son. Witchcraft is a very

serious charge, even in the 'enlightened' Purenia of today, but back in those days, people

 

’4 Themanwhotoldmethisstory,agrandsonofKrityariarldputparticularemphasisonthefactthat
Krityanand made this accusation despite the fact that he had a college edueation. The implieation being that a
college educated individual would surely not believe in such superstitions. Given my experiences with college
students thisdidnotseemasironictomeasitdidtohim.

ItisinterestingtonotethatthecurrentmembersofChampanagarinsistthatKalanandwassomehow
mentally imbalanced, feeble ofmind. But they have no stories or evidence to back up this assertion. It would
however, totheirminds, justifytoanextendKiityanand'streatrnentofhisbrother

195
say witches were actually killed if the charge was substantiated. Things had obviously

gotten out of hand.

In 1919 Kalanand could take no more, and decided to move out of
Champanagar. By this time Krityanand had two sons, so (as the logic of these things go)
the charges of witchcraft were obviously wrong. But the bad blood between the two
brothers remained. Kalanand moved to Ghar-Banali, some six miles away, where he
founded his own dehori. But his tenure there was short lived, as he died just 3 years
later (1922 or 1923). But as one character leaves the stage another must enter, and so
Kumar Ramanand Sinha, Kalanand's eldest son, enters into the drama. Ramanand, as
previously mentioned, was already angered by his uncle, Krityanand, but the accusation
of witchcraft leveled at his mother, and his father's early death, served to file] his anger.
He took it upon himself to begin a life long vendetta against his uncle. Now Krityanand
Sinha was a real raja, in the grand old tradition, but apparently this didn't lend itself well
to good business sense. He had managed to squander much of his mother’s hard gained
fortune in grand business ventures, like his steel works or ceramic factory, that soon
went bust. Besides, he was busy entertaining every Indian or British nobleman who
happened by with shooting expeditions and the like (he even built a spectacular, though
gaudy, Naveratan, literally a 9 room palace, or more accurately, a pleasure doom, at
Champanagar, just to house passing dignitaries). The one corore (100 million) or so
rupees that Rani Sitiviti has so carefully accumulated was soon exhausted. Far from

seeing the writing on the wall, he continued to donate large sums of money to charities

196

(in his name, and not in the name of Banali, of course). By 1928 he was forced to
borrow money.

In the meantime, his arch rival Ramanand, was doing quite well for himself.
Unlike his uncle, Ramanand was a shrewd, if not heartless, businessman. He started up
several business ventures (including a successful mill) that actually turned a profit. Soon
his personal wealth exceeded that of Banali Raj. And this wealth was put to the service
of shaming his uncle. He built up Ghar-Banali in a manner designed to put the palace at
Champanagar to shame"5 This rivalry between uncle and nephew lasted till Rarnanand's
death in 1943, at which point he was one of the richest men in India.

Meanwhile the descendants of Padmanand Sinha also were gaining in influence.
The children of Padmanand's daughter (he had no sons, or rather none that survived) had
done quite well for themselves, and they wished to use their wealth to humiliate
Krityanand Sinha. My informant at Ramnagar tells me that they were close to
bankrupting Krityanand shortly before his death. Once he died however, the matter was
dropped. At any rate, it was a new era, and wealth and status had shifted fi'om rural
zamandaries to urban centers, and the descendants of Padmanand gravitated toward
such urban centers (Ramnagar was deserted for several years. The current owner is in
the process of reclaiming the palace, but it still looks like a ghost-house). But let us
leave Krityanand Sinha at this point, and move on, briefly, to the next generation.

Ramanand Sinha, as we have said, hated his uncle Krityanand. His younger

brother, Krishanand, on the other hand, adored him. This eventually lead to a conflict

 

3’ Nothing of this palace now remains. His son-in-law (he had no sons of his own) saw fit to destroy it by
selling offit’s bricks and tile work.

197
between the two brothers. According to the people at Champanagar, this was a rather

intense and ugly conflict (though the sources from Sultangunj, Krishanand's dehori, deny
that any meaningfirl tensions existed). Krishanand's wife, Chitra, was being mistreated
by her mother-in-law, Kalaviti. She used to be beaten etc, by her, with the approval of
Ramanand (this story was told to me by two sources at Champanagar, and one from
Srinagar. However, my father insists that it is false, while my mother used to tell me that
Kalaviti was a sweet old lady who went out of her way to make women marrying into
the family, such as my mother, feel at home). This, along with the resentment between
the two brother's over the uncle, eventually lead to Krishanand moving out to form his
own dehori at Sultangunj (some 60 miles away, in the district of Bhagalpur). One story
(told to me by a particularly partisan source at Champanagar) has it that Krishanand was
poisoned by his older brother, the poison being given in the form of a ladoo (a sweet
made from gram-flour). Krishanand didn't die however, and once he recovered moved
out of Ghar-Banali. I asked my grandmother (Chitra) about all this and she insisted it
wasn't true. She claimed her husband was suffering from typhoid and had not been
poisoned (again, my father, the son of Krishanand, insists that Ramanand was a ruthless
businessman but very kind and good natured to his kin). Whatever the truth of the
matter is, the Mr insists that there was bad blood between the two brothers. At any
rate, in 1934 Krishanand Sinha officially filed for a partition of jointly held lands (jointly
held by both Ramanand and Krityanand). With the money he received from this, he set
himself up at Sultangunj. The assumption that there was some bad blood between the

two brothers is given support by the relationship between their wives. Rarnanand's eldest

198
wife had no children. Krishanand, on the other hand, had several (three sons, 5

daughters). Krishanand's youngest son was tragically killed in a hunting accident while
still in his early 20's. This was a great shock to Chitra, who began to accuse Rarnanand's
wife of being a dine. She insisted that witchcraft and jealousy had caused the death of
her son. This little feud between the two women lasted some 30 years. Upon the death
of their husbands, they both moved to Varanas, to await a pure death, as good Hindu
widows should do, but despite the fact that they lived in the same town, they refused to
speak to each other.

At this point I will end this 'story' of Raj Banali. I must stress again that the
preceding account does not claim to be a 'history' in any true sense of the word.3'6
Rather, it is more akin to 'court gossip,’ but gossip which spans well over a hundred
years. For our purposes the details are irrelevant. What is important are the structural
conflicts that present themselves generation after generation. That is, it is not important
why Krityanand Sinha and Ramanand Sinha came to be in conflict with each other, what
is important is the conflict itself, and on this point there can be little doubt. The next
generation brings us into contemporary times (Krishanand's son is Indranand, my father)
and I am just a bit too close to this to comment upon it and maintain any pretensions to
objectivity. I can only say that in the current generation of Sinha's (and related families)

there are three intense conflicts that I have heard of (and in one of these conflicts I

 

’6 Mostofthaeaccountswerecolleaedbymeinaninformalway. Theyweremeanttobeformyown
amusementandnotreallyapartofmyresearch. ItisimportanttokeepinmindthatinMathilhouseholds
there is a strong denrareation between 'insider' vs. 'outsider.‘ Gossip such as this is meant for an 'insider' only,
amemberofthefamily. Thestoriesthatoutsiders,orpeoplewhoarenotpartofthefamily,telltendtobefar
less dramatic, although the conflictsbetween, which is our main focus here, is still part ofsuch stories.

199

myself was a player, although, in hindsight, a minor one). These conflicts involve: l.) a
nephew and his paternal uncle 2.) two nephews and their paternal uncle (along with the
uncles support group, which includes his children and his sister-in-law) 3.) and finally
two brothers and, by implication, their mother. All of these conflicts are intense and felt
to be a matter of life and death, if you believe the rhetoric of the parties involved; I had
the opportunity to speak to all of them. Violence is often threatened although generally
not used in each of these conflicts. What I would like to say about this, is that being an
'insider' to at least one of these conflicts, one begins to understand the raw passions
involved. It is not like a 'fight' in the American sense of the word but rather a vendetta in
which kinsmen are transformed into the personification of evil (the Mahabharat has lost
none of its currency in Indian society today). And as I mentioned earlier, everyone gets
into the act. Everyone who is related to you feels it their right or duty to give you the
benefit of their advice, or sympathy. It is perhaps because of this context, where one
always has an audience that is being performed to, that such conflicts have to be justified
in terms of grandiose ideologies such as khandani izzath (family honor) or justice.
People feel compelled to justify disputes over land and property (and all the disputes we
have considered were, to an extent, about property) in terms of high minded principles.
Discussion: Let us turn now to an attempt to explain Mathil kinship. What becomes
clear in the history of the Sinha family is that people who, by the rules of kinship, should
be close actually end up coming into conflict. It is almost as though conflict was built
into the system. In the first generation we considered, the conflict was between a father

and a son. In the next, it was between brothers, son and step-mother, and sisters-in-law.

200

In the last generation we considered, the conflict was between nephew and uncle,
brothers, and sisters-in-law. And these same relationships continue to create conflicts
right up to the present generation. Such conflicts can be made sense of, I think, by
referring to R. Girard's notion of structural equivalence. The argument here is that
structural equivalence leads to identity instability and consequently, violence (Girard,
1977). Two people who occupy the same social space are bound to come into conflict,
if, for no other reason, than to assert their own individuality.

One can see this process at work in the above family history. Each conflict was .
punctuated by one or the other of the parties moving out and establishing their own
dehori. This act of establishing a new 'center' seems to be crucial for two reasons. In
the first place, we are dealing here with Rajas, and the first rule of being a raja in this
society is to put on a good show. The concept of a 'theater state' works well in this
context. As there were few, if any, real political conflicts in the 100 years that we have
spanned, the king had to show his power in ways other than conquest (i.e., military
might). This was done in each case by building a new palace that tried to outdo all other
family centers. Such centers were noted for their conspicuous opulence, and their
founders became the nodal point for a new segment of the Sinha lineage. That is, the
Sinha family is still divided in terms of such dehories and the descendants of their
founders. The Srinagar branch (which we haven’t talked about as that split happened six
generations ago) is demarcated from the Champanagar or the Sultangunj branch of the

family. Note that such branches are named for the dehoris that the founder established

201

rather than for the founder himself. This tells us something about the importance of
establishing a new center of power and about what such centers mean.

For above all else, the men who establishes these households has to have personal
charisma. As J. C. Heesterman has noted, Indian politics traditionally (and I would
argue even today) revolve around the personal ties between a ruler and his subjects
(Heesterman, 1986). This is like a patron/client relationship, but here the patron has to
prove his ability to be a patron not so much in terms of money or influence (although this
is certainly important) but in terms of his personal charisma (perhaps 'charisma' is the
wrong word. What I mean is his ability to act like a king; the force or shakti of his
personality) This is similar to B. Anderson's notion of power in the Javanese context
where power is a personal attribute of the individual ruler (Anderson, 1972). Money or
influence do not create power but are a result of the personal power of the ruler. This
means that putting on a good show (i.e., establishing a splendid palace, etc.) is a crucial
act by which an individual announces his authority and at the same time actualizes it.
This would explain the meticulous care that each of these centers took to perform rituals
etc, such as Durga puja. In a sense these rituals represented the best 'show' anyone
could imagine, and a show that at the same time legitimated the authority of the raja (or
invested him with power, shakti).37 This would also explain why this family has faired
so badly in modern times. For the nature of power and authority in India today has

shifted right beneath the feet of such traditional families. Today power i_s measured in

 

’7.Mmofflwcmmmiwasodatedmmeachofdresehuiwmmsmnbeseenmdnmhght
Onlyarajahasthelegitimateauthoritytoldllatiger,orbeapatronofthearts,etc. Andalloftheabove
mentioned individuals engaged in such activities.

202

terms of money and influence, and only secondarily in terms of personal presence. The
Sinha's on the other hand, seem to have clung on to the more traditional idea of power as
personal charisma. So within one generation, they went from being the elite’s of Indian
society (rajas) to rather mediocre civil servants and farmers. They simply could not (or
would not) understand the logic of power within the capitalist world View that is India

today, or so it would appear?8

Em.
Conflict Founder

1. Lilanand vs. his 1. Lilanand founds
eldest son, Padmanand Champanagar

2. Padmanand vs. his 2.‘ Sitivati co-founds
step-mother-in-law, Champanagar
Sitivati

3. Krityanand vs. his 3. Kalanand establishes
elder brother, Kalanand Ghar-Banali

4. Ramanand vs. his brother 4. Krishanand establishes
Krishanand Sultangunj

The second point of establishing a new dehori or center is more a personal
assertion of one’s individuality. These two points (the social display of power and the
need to assert individual identity) are of course closely related. But the focus here is
somewhat different. From the perspective of the individual, one way of getting around

the problem of being structurally equated to another is to establish (or attempt to

 

38. The last ofthese traditionalists, the eldest son ofraja Krityanand Sinha, maintained this persona of
personal presence throughout his life. Several of my informants, including some well regarded ojhas, insisted
thathehadadivinenature—agodlikepresencethateventhey, asojhas, werefiightenedof. Basudaveeven
told me that he was reluctant to come see me at the dehori at Charrrpanagar, for fear that his presence would
offendthisman. Asheexplained it, thecurseofaraja isverypowerfulandhecoulddo nothing to counter-act
its effects.

203

establish) your own individuality. This can be done by establishing your own center of
power with its own unique style or flavor. This is indeed true of the dehoris we have
considered. Each new palace tried to outdo the last and the net effect was to create
monuments in brick and mortar to the individuals who established them. This would also
explain why such dehoris seem to have such a short life span. For the descendants of the
founder did not have their identities as closely linked to the palace as he did.
Consequently, they were not as involved with the upkeep of such places and through
time such dehoris decayed into piles of rubble.

But this pattern of breaking off to establish a new household, and thus a new
identity, only had limited success. Despite the magnificence of some of these buildings,
the underlying stnrctural conflict that motivated their creation never went away. That is,
the act of breaking away fi'om an old center to found a new one did little to end the
underlying conflicts inherent in Mathil kinship. Krishanand Sinha could establish a new
palace, but he could not escape the social equivalence between him and his older brother,
Ramanand. So in a sense, the establishing of a new dehori was a futile effort. The
conflicts that spawned such moves did not resolve themselves, nor did the underlying
structural causes go away. It is, however, only in conflict, only in the various vendettas
that we have considered that anything about the individual personalities of the actors
emerge. Conflict is the only way to assert one’s individuality, but at the same time, the
underlying causes of such conflicts are what makes such assertions necessary.

We started off this chapter by noting that to a great degree, identity in Mathili is

dependent on one's identification with one's lineage. To an extent-«and this can be seen

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in the terminology of Mathil kinship--- app is one's lineage. The most marked structural

equivalencies happen between members of the minimal lineage segment (father and
sons). But the father is a social role that is to a degree, extended out to include uncles
(especially paternal uncles). It makes sense than that fathers and sons, uncles and
nephews are bound to come into conflict. And this is not just a matter of property. If
such conflicts were only about property, they would not carry the emotional and social
intensity that they do.

The same logic would extend toward the women who marry into the family. A
woman's structural role is defined in terms of her husband, or rather in terms of her role
to her husband's lineage. Women are always subordinate to their husband (a fact that is
driven home by the rule that they must touch his feet and not use his name), so no
conflict is implied here. That is, since a clear asymmetric relationship exists between a
husband and a wife, there is no possibility of structural equivalence or conflicts over
identity. But women are to an extent equal to all other women marrying into the lineage,
again, a fact driven home by kinship terminology (the term poutho is used for all
daughters-in-law). Consequently, the structural equivalence, as far as women are
concerned, is between sisters-in-law. They occupy the same social space vis-a-vis their
husbands lineage. They are all outsiders to that lineage until they produce children, and
such children are, to an extent, interchangeable. That is, there is a definite equivalence
between mothers and aunts such that aunts are always seen as potential mothers, or

rather mothers that could have been. In makes sense than that sisters-in-law will come

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into conflict. In each case, it is the close identification between kin-members that seems
to lead to conflict.’9

The point I would like to conclude with is that kinship is a central institution of
Mathil society but does apt have the power to objectify the self. In fact, it seems to
destabilize the self. In our discussion of ritual, we noted the Lacanian idea (Lacan via
Crapanzano) that the self can be objectified by a social institution as such institutions
exist prior to any given intersubjective moment. But, and this is crucial, not just any
institution has this ability. In the Mathil context, ritual seems to serve the function of
objectifying the self but kinship does not. As we have seen, in the ritual context, one
party (namely the deity) is grounded. That is, by definition, the deity is a social given
who thus ends the process of deferment inherent in any other intersubjective moment by
escaping the need to be objectified in the desire of the other. The deity, in this case
Shakti, collapses the very notion of the difference between the self and the other (see
section on the Siva/Shakti opposition in the chapter five). This social grounding of the
divine self is what gives the deity the considerable power to objectify mortals. In the
case of kinship, neither party is 'given'. Thus the self remains deferred. This personal
tension creates a need for both parties to attempt to objectify themselves by asserting in
dramatic and monumental ways, their individuality. But such efforts seem to be futile as

the self can never escape this prison of deferment. Instead of objectifying the self,

 

’9 Thereis,accordingtoGirardoneodrerwayfliatstmcnualeqruvalenceisexpressed,andthatisinwst.
The idea of mimetic desire, or one's wish to possess all that belongs to one's structural equal (or potential
equal)iscertainlyagoodinsightonGirard'spart Butincestistootabooasubjectformetoreporton There
are after all limits to what an ethnographer can legitimately talk about without damaging the reputations ofthe
subjects being considered. It is enough for me to say that if this generation of Sinha's is any indication of past
generations (and I have heard such stories), than incest is a very common phenomenon indeed And one that
follows the logic of mimetic desire.

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kinship collapses down to the rivalries of structurally equivalent parties. Nor is it the

case that ritual has this power to objectify the self because it is more central than kinship.
Kinship i_s a central institution in this society, so the centrality of the institution alone is
not a guide to its objectifying potential. What must be looked at is the way such
institutions are constructed within a given society, and the meaning they hold within that
society. That is, no generalizations are possible regarding institutions and their role in
personality formation or maintenance. In each case, we must look at the specifics before

we attempt to apply any general model of society or personality.

CHAPTER NINE: POSSESSION AND PERSONHOOD

We are finally in the position to talk about people who experience spirit
possession. As we have seen, the kinship system in this society is set up in such a way
that it is bound to produce certain crisis moments in the life of an individual. If such a
crisis is intense enough then the individual is likely to vent his or her psychological
fiustrations (which amounts to an alienation form their assigned social roles) in the form
of spirit possession. Further, the ritual cycle specifies summer as the time when such
attacks are most likely to take place. By looking at people who are experiencing a crisis
in their personal lives, we will be able to draw certain conclusions about personhood in
Mathil society and how it relates to ritual. For the whole point of the healing ritual that
an ojha performs is to reestablish a ritual relationship between an individual in crisis and
the goddess.

The first point we need to consider is the nature of ghosts or more generally,
spirit beings in this society. As we have already seen, ghosts are not necessarily evil or
malicious beings. They are seen rather as beings who are similar to humans but of a
different kind or class. In other words, just as there is a continuity between minor gods
and humans, there is a continuity between humans and ghosts. Ghosts, like gods, are not

radically different fiom humans, just a different sort of being. Consequently they, like

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humans or all things that exist in the universe, are under the domain of the goddess. She
is ‘in charge’ of ghosts, and they do her bidding.

This close link between the goddess and the spirit world was pointed out to me
by Krishnash pundit. I had been told that one should never sleep near the gohasan ghar
(god’s house) at night, as all sorts of ghosts tend to materialize there in the night time.
Although several people told me this (and a few even claimed to have seen such ghosts)
no one seemed to know why this was the case. I finally had the chance to ask Krishnash
pundit about it and this is what he said:

“Krishnash Pundit: In fact, I have never seen anyone sleep in that room. It is not
customary. I think this is because the goddess should be left alone at night, left
to

herself. Therefore, sleeping there or staying there is not proper. And another
thing, because of her over-powering presence and awe, people dare not sleep
there. No one has that kind of self confidence; her power is that awesome.

Me: People have told me that ghosts live there. Is that true?

KP: For average people they could be treated as ghosts [i.e., average pe0ple
think of them as ghosts]. But actually when you learn from people with
knowledge then you know that they are not ghosts, but attributes or servants of
the goddess

Me: So they are part of her?

KP: It is a third rate knowledge that says they are ghosts. A higher knowledge
knows that they are part and parcel of her presence, and not ghosts. They are
always present with her. They are her power. Like Nava-Durga, Nava-Kalika,
Yogani, Pramatha. But with Dhakshan-Kalika, who resides in a forest, there
these ghosts remain personified. But in family deities [i.e., in ghosain ghars],
they are not manifest. You should not suspect this. You should not suspect that
there are ghosts here.

Me: So if there is a temple in a forest, those ghosts are dangerous?

KP: Yes! Therefore, the worship of the goddess in such temples is done at
twelve midnight and only by accomplished yogis. But here anyone can worship,
because she is in the form of peace and benevolence.”

What pundit-jee is saying is that ghosts are not something apart from the Devi.

They are her attributes, and so do her bidding. It is a third rate knowledge that says that

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they are separate fiom her, but it is a third rate knowledge with which we are working.
As part of the manifest universe ghosts like humans and all other living beings are only
different aspects of the Devi. But this is a philosophical point that we will not take up.
The point I wish to consider here is that ghosts, as the minions of the Devi, are moral
agents.

For it is commonly believed that not being duly respectfiil to the gods will lead to
either spirit attacks or snake attacks. Snakes, like ghosts, are thought of as the minions
of the goddess (especially as the minions of the goddess Bisari). Basu Dev early on in
my fieldwork told a story with an often repeated motif According to him, people who
do not believe in ghosts or who do not pay the pr0per respect to the worship of the
gods, leave themselves open to divine retribution.

“BD: One person was like that... I was doing Bisali puja, and he said,

‘Huh, these guars [A guar is an especially low caste individual] are doing Bisari

puja?! A telia [a telia is also a low caste individual], a telia makes offerings at

Bisari puja!’ He said, ‘Go, go. Get out of here.’ He then went back home. On

his way home, he had to cross a ditch that had a bamboo pole across it. Right in

the middle of his way, a snake blocked his path. It would not let him move a

step. If he went back, the snake went back [followed]. No matter where he

went, the snake followed; he lost his courage. He said [to the snake], ‘forgive
me sarkar, for what I said, forgive me. I will sacrifice a chagar [goat] to you.’

When he said he would sacrifice a chagar, OK, OK, sarkar [i.e. the snake] sat

down, it got off the pole. He began to make sacrifices of chagars [to the

goddess].”

Stories similar to this one are to be found everywhere. Anyone who belittles the

worship of a Devatas, be it the gran devata of a village, or the goddess Bisari, is asking

for trouble. Logically then, it follows that virtue is a good defense against spirit or snake

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attacks, and this indeed seems to be the case. As Pharabho once told me, “those who
have punna [virtue] can’t be banned by dines or by ghosts.”

The interesting thing about ghosts is that they are closely linked to humans.
Ghosts can be seen as a kind of variation on human beings. The logic that applies to
humans applies equally well to the spirit world. Like humans, ghosts are subject to the
play of desire. If their desire is thwarted, they, like humans, experience a crisis in what
should be their legitimate course of existence. What I mean by this is that ghosts are
formed because while they lived their desires were thwarted. It is a persistent belief in
this area that only young people who have died prematurely become ghosts. Billath
Singh, a farm laborer who also sometimes dabbles in jhar phoor, told me, “those who
have not completed their allotted full life span, they become ghosts.” If someone who is
at the prime of life were to die suddenly, due to an accident, then they would likely
become a ghost. Here is an excerpt from a conversation with Pharabho Mondal.

“Those who don’t finish [complete] their karma [fate], those who don’t
complete their karma, they become ghosts or jogins. Those who complete their
allotted time, that is, if god gives you a certain number of days and you live out
all those days, nothing happens to those people. They do not turn into ghosts.

God will reincarnate them into something else. But those who don’t complete

their fate [destiny], who say, fall off a tree and die, or they were running and fell

down and died, or a snake bit himand he died; well such people didn’t complete
their destiny, so they turn into a ghost or a jogin.”

Normally then it is a young person who has died before their allotted time that
turns into a ghost. This is because their soul or spirit wishes to fiilfill its desire for a

complete life. There are exceptions to this rule and the exceptions are telling. Sanjay,

the boy we met in the first chapter, told me a story about how his mother was possessed.

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His mother, who has since passed away, was attacked by a ghost every time she passed
by a certain jack-fruit tree. An old woman used to live next to Sanjay’s mother. One
day this old woman was hungry and asked his mother for some corn roties (makay ke
roti, or corn bread). His mother went home to fix it for her neighbor, but by the time she
had finished and went back to the old lady, the poor woman had passed away. Later,
when Sanjay’s mother passed by the jack-fruit tree, she began to feel strange and kept
asking for makay ke roti. She began to rave and said, ‘I am the old woman, and I never
got to eat my makay ke roti. ’ This story clues us into the fact that thwarted desire can
lead to spirit attacks. A person who’s desires are left unfulfilled, ends up becoming a
ghost. The reason that such people are usually young is that it is the young who
normally have not fulfilled their desires for life. Those who have lived to a ripe old age,
in this society, are viewed as lucky people who have satisfied their worldly desire; their
desire for marriage, for children and for the respectability and satisfaction that old age
ensures. But those who die young are left unfillfilled and so come back to haunt people
in the shape of ghosts.

As we have already seen, the thwarted desires of spirit beings that hold them in
the limbo of the parriat yoni (ghost womb) can only be escaped if the ghost somehow
manages to eat some prasad. That is, it is only by re-establishing a ritual relationship
with the deity that the ghost is able to escape the undesirable state of being a ghost.
Ghosts are suspended from the normal trajectory of existence. Normally a person should
be reincarnated after death, but the ghost is suspended in the parriat yoni because it’s

previous existence left it with thwarted desires and these unfulfilled desires led to the

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suspension of the normal course of existence. This is significant because something very
similar takes place in the world of humans.

Humans who experience thwarted desires tend to be the subject of spirit attacks.
Such crisis moments are very predictable and tend to happen during times of transition.
There are certain moments in the life-cycle of a person that seem to leave them open to
spirit attacks. Such moments tend to be times when a person is forced by society, and
the norms that they themselves have internalized, to take on the added responsibilities of
adulthood. For it is the young who are by and large the subject of spirit attacks. As we
have already seen, ghosts seldom trouble the aged. According to local wisdom this is
because older people are thought to have fewer desires and because they are not able to
withstand the rigors of spirit possession and so are likely to die if attacked by a ghost.
This would not please the ghost, for the ghost only possesses individuals to satisfy it’s
own worldly desires, the desire above all else for food or other creature comforts. This
is why chili pepper smoke or any other unpleasantness will drive the ghost away from the
body of a possessed individual. Should the possessed individual die, the ghost would
have to find another person through which it could satisfy its desires. Therefore, it is
usually the young who are possessed by spirits.

The fact that old people are too frail to withstand spirit attacks only tells us half
the story. For there is more going on here than the simple explanation that local Mathils
use to make sense of spirit possession. It is not just any youth that is possessed, but a
youth at a very particular point in time, and a youth that is in some way experiencing a

crisis moment in their existence who are the subject of spirit possession. These moments

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tend to be different for males and females, as men and women in this society have
somewhat different life-cycles. For men the crisis moment tends to come between the
ages of 15 to 20, while for women the range is closer to 18 or 25 years of age. The vast
majority of possessed individuals fall within these general parameters. There is also
another point in time for women that lends itself to spirit attacks; women who are in their
50’s or older tend to be the subject of such attacks, but such cases are far more unusual.
Promode Biswash’s case of possession is not atypical of how and when young
men experience spirit attacks. Promode was a domestic servant for one of the people
living at the palace of Champanagar. He was about 18 years old, and his father had died
some 5 years earlier. Consequently he was left to support his mother and his three
sisters. At first he tried his hand at farming but soon made arrangements for others to
help with the family farm while he went to work at Champanagar. Here is a description

of how he was possessed.

“Me: O.K. tell me what happened.

PB: I had gone to cut some bamboo, well there is a jammun tree there. As I was
cutting the bamboo, it became difficult to move my body. But still I kept cutting
the bamboo. As I was cutting, I felt someone was on my neck. I got fiightened.
I felt that someone was going to catch me [or overpower me]. I got very
frightened. I came to the market. I went to the ojha. The ojhajharrowed me
[‘swept’ or performed a healing ritual]. There was one parriat in me.

Me: A parriat?

PB: Yes.

Me: That’s what the ojha said?

PB: Yes, he said that there was one parriat.

Me: What did it feel like. I mean how did you know it was a ghost?

PB: Yes, I felt that someone had possessed me.

Me: The ojha said so?

PB: Yes, the ojha also said so. There is an ojha that lives in the basti
[neighborhood] over here. He said that a pariat has possessed you. It lives in

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the jammun tree. After three or four days, I went back there, I have a garden
there. When I went there, I felt that something was happening to me. So I left.
Me: What did the ojha do?

PB: He jha'rowed me. I asked him, ‘what has happened to me?’ He said, ‘you
have been possessed by a parriat. ’

Me: Anything else? Did he have you do any pujas, or give you any jarries
[talismans]?

PB: Yes. He gave me a jarrie. He gave me the jarrie and told me, ‘Go. You
don’t need to be fiightened anymore.’ He had filled [activated] the ja'rie.

Me: And he told you not to be fiightened now?

PB: Yes, he told me I will feel no fear. It just recently broke, I had tied it to my
arm, it just recently broke. . ..

Me: How did hejharrow you. What did he do?

PB: He put his hand on my head and swept it down to my neck and threw the
ghost away.

Me: And what did you feel?

PB: When he swept it off my neck, I felt that my neck had become lighter [i.e. a
weight had been taken off my neck].”

Although Promode’s case is a bit unusual in that his father had recently died, it is
fairly representative of how spirits attack men. Usually they are fairly young, will go to
cut a tree (or to defecate underneath one) and be attacked by a spirit. The treatment of
such attacks can last anywhere from one instance of an ojhajharroing a person, to
several years of jharroing by an ojha. But as far as I could tell, in the end everyone gets
better (I have never come across anyone who continued to be possessed through out
their life time). Promode’s case is typical in that usually such individuals are about to, or
already have assumed the responsibilities that are associated with adulthood. In
Promode’s case, this transition was made more dramatic by the death of his father, but

even if his father had not died, the age at which Promode experienced a spirit attack is

the age at which all men go through the transition from childhood to adulthood.

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Being a patrilineal society, Mathils put a premium on sons. The birth of a son is
a significant event, as we have seen in our discussion of Mathil kinship. Consequently,
male children are generally spoiled by their parents. At any rate, male children are not
expected to do much house work, especially when compared to girls. All of this changes
abruptly at the age of 15 or there about. For by this time the body is thought to have
reached adulthood, or as the Mathils would say, the ‘age of reason’. It is at this time
that the boy is expected to work like any other adult male. Now the lot of a typical
Mathil peasant is quite hard indeed, and regardless of whether they are sent to work for a
master or they take up the job of a farm laborer, they are expected to work quite hard.
And it is not just the work that the boy is suddenly expected to perform, he must also
assume the psychological responsibilities of a full grown adult male. This means that his
mother and especially his sisters expect him to work on their behalf, and if he should
slack off, they, along with everyone else, will remind him of his obligations toward them.
As this society has a dowry system, any family that has an unwed girl has to plan years in
advance to amass enough wealth to get her married into a respectable household. This
was true in Promodes case, as he had to work and work hard so that his three sisters
would have enough money to marry. And although Promode worked like a dog for next
to no money, all that he made was sent off to his family.

This would be quite a burden for anybody, but an especially hard task for
someone who has spent most of his childhood doing next to no work. But despite the
fact that young men at the age of 15 or 16 are expected to take on an adult work load,

they are not granted the fill] status of adulthood. Even in a case such as Promode’s,

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where his father has died, the young man is still not seen as a hill grown adult and it is
likely that others, especially his kaka (FB) will assume authority over him. Such
individuals are in limbo, stuck between childhood and adulthood. They have all the
responsibilities of adulthood but none of its authority.40
The behavior that such young men exhibit when they are possessed is telling.
Generally they act in what would be considered irresponsible ways. They tend to rant
and rave, yell and in some cases even hit people. But what is very typical of such
possessed individuals is that they eat lots of food, especially luxury food items, like meat
or sweets. Ashoke Kumar Biswash’s case is a good example of this. Ashoke was 17
years old when I interviewed him, and had been possessed on and off for about 7 or 8
months.
“I went fi'om home to the market. I sat at the store. At one o’clock
[P.M.]I went to the market after eating. I got hungry. The ghost said, ‘You
have to eat or else I will kill you.’ I went to the hotel. I asked [the ghost], ‘what
should I eat: meat, lice, sweets?’ The ghost said sweets. I ate 15 Rs. worth of
sweets, I only had 10 Rs. I went to the cinema hall [video hut] to see a movie. I
only stayed 15 or 20 minutes. I wanted to relieve myself. I went to a Boa tree to
sit. After I was leaving, the ghost said, ‘come with me to the tree and I will tell
you things, your “name place” etc.’[I’m not sure what ‘name place’ refers to] So
I went. Then I went back to the cinema hall. People asked, ‘do you want to go
home?’ I said no. My home is here, I can go myself. I yelled and made a racket
all the way home. I fell asleep. I kept making noise all night [i.e. I kept raving].
Seven or eight times. Finally an old woman heard. She said, ‘he is possessed.’
People gathered around. They called an ojha and he jharrowed me.”
So at the very point in time when a young man is expected to take on the
responsibilities of adulthood, he is most prone to spirit attacks. Such attacks give him

the opportunity to protest his new social role in a way that does not reflect badly upon

him. For when one is possessed, society recognizes that the individual is no longer

 

‘0 A situation analogous to the lot of teenagers in American society.

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responsible for his or her actions. In other words, a possessed individual is assigned a
new social role for the duration of his or her possession, and this new role allows him or
her to act in ways that are not normally appropriate. This point was driven home to me
when I was interviewing the family of Bibi Hasani Khatun. Normally young women are
very formal and respectful to strangers who came to visit their household. But during
the course of the interview, Hasini Khatun suddenly came charging out of her hut ( I was
sitting outside in the village courtyard) and began to threaten me. She said she would
grab my neck and flip me etc. The villagers who were talking to me were so fiightened
by her behavior that they all got up an ran away! Keep in mind that these people were
her neighbors or her family members. Later her father and brother told me not to take
her behavior personally, as it was the ghost within her and not her that had acted in this
unseemly fashion. In fact, the ghost himself (through her) later came to me and asked
me to forgive her for his behavior. From this example we see how spirit possession
absolves the possessed individual fi'om the social transgression they engage in.

The fact that the possessed individual is not held accountable for their actions is
used to good advantage by such individuals, especially by possessed women. Men tend
to verbally lash out at everyone, while women who are possessed tend to be far more
specific about who they target their ire at. It is often the in-laws of a woman who bare
the brunt of her ravings. This is significant because the age at which women tend to be
possessed would be a time when the major conflict of her existence would revolve
around her ability to be incorporated into her husbands lineage. In our discussion of

Mathil kinship, we noted that marriage is the major turning point. in a woman’s life. She

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is expected to sever her ties with her natal home and is gradually incorporated into her
husbands lineage. But this incorporation comes in stages. The first crucial step is her
ability to produce children. Once she has accomplished this, her role in her husbands
lineage should be secured; she is well on her way to becoming a full fledged member of
that lineage. What is interesting is that the majority of women who are possessed are of
18 to 25 years of age. Generally this means that they have already had one or two
children. Consequently, their role in their husbands family is more or less set by this
point. They should be fairly well integrated into the lineage, for their role within it will
not change substantially until their children reach maturity and marry. So whatever the
state of their relationship is to their in-laws, it is not likely to change in any meaningful
way for another 16 or 18 years.

If a woman is for any reason unhappy with her role within her husband’s family,
there is little she can do about it. She can not really expect things to improve for quite a
long time. It is this transition, fiom being a bride to being a hill fledged member of her
husband’s lineage that seems to be crucial in explaining possession in women. For unlike
men, women in this society begin to contribute a substantial share of labor toward the
maintenance of a household from an early age. So maturity does not really represent any
change in the amount of responsibility that a woman is expected to assume. It is rather
the trauma of marriage and especially the trauma of not being accepted by her in-laws
that creates a crisis in the life of a woman. The social isolation that results from such a

rejection is often expressed in the idiom of spirit possession.

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The case of Meena Devi is a good example of spirit possession in women.
Meena was about 20 years old at the time I interviewed her. She had two small children.
If the following conversation seems a bit disjointed, keep in mind that Meena was
actively possessed at the time of this interview.

“I went to plant. I said, ‘I have a pain in my stomach. I won’t work.’

They said, ‘go ahead and work, you can stop if the pain is too much.’ So I

worked. I couldn’t see, and was no longer conscious. I felt dizzy, as though I

was being spun around. I came home and ate lots of food. I was taken home. I

fell down. Then an ojha was called. Kulkeeth the ojha. The ojha said, ‘the

ghost has been sent from your sassor [husband’s natal home].’ After ten

minutes, at twelve o’clock noon, I felt better. The ojha rubbed oil and jharrowed

me. It took three times [ofjharrowing] but the ghost left. It left by the evening.

Me: Why did the ghost come from your sassor?

Promode (her brother): There was a fight [conflict] at the sassor. They wanted

her to come back and she wouldn’t go. So her father-in-law, who knows tantra-

mantra [i.e., magic], sent three dakins [spirit beings] to possess her. Those who
are possessed eat lots of food.”

In another case, that of Nisa Devi, the conflict between her and her in-laws was
even more clearly stated. Her husband, Arjuan Metha and her in-laws all agreed that she
had been an ideal wife, she was young and pretty and a good worker. She had had two
children and was in her early 20’s. Suddenly one day she was possessed by a ghost (she
claimed she was possessed by the goddess Kali). What was interesting about this is that
I interviewed her in her village with all her neighbors and in-laws present. She
repeatedly called her mother-in-law stingy and blamed her possession on the fact that her
mother-in-law was too cheap to make an offering to the goddess during Durga puja.

The poor mother-in-law had no option but to listen to Nisa’s complaints about her.

Normally a woman is expected to be quite formal and respectful toward her in-laws.

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Openly criticizing them is just not done. As Nisa spoke, some of the neighbors joined in,
asking the mother-in-law why she didn’t treat her daughter-in-law better.

We see then that possession in women tends to be about the conflicts between
them and their in-laws. Possession in men, on the other hand, tends to be about the
conflicts that result from the transition from childhood to adulthood. In both cases, the
conflicts are about social identity, or the anguish that is associated with changing social
roles and status. Although much less common, there is another time that women tend to
be open to spirit possession, and this too is a time of transition. Some women
experience spirit possession in there late 50’s. Such women tend to be widows with full
grown children. Again this is a period in a woman’s life when her social identity is in the
process of changing. Usually such changes are positive; a woman gains status with age.
As far as I could tell, the women I interviewed in this age bracket were not really
experiencing any personal conflicts in their life. They were not fighting with their
neighbors, etc. So it is not so much social conflict, as the personal conflicts that result
from changing identity that seems to be crucial to whom is subject to spirit possession.
For possession, in Mathil society, is closely tied to personal identity.

In both male and female possession, the intersubjective moment that defines the
self changes during such crisis points in one’s life history. The people who you are most
closely linked to, and so the very individuals who are likely to be the most important
players in your intersubjective world, suddenly change the rules of the intersubjective
encounter. They change your social status by changing their attitudes toward you. As

we have stated, the Lacanian model of personhood seems to fit quite well in the Mathil

221

context. Consequently, if the most significant players in a persons intersubjective game
change the rules of that game, they in effect change you. For boys, the important players
are the parents. By suddenly treating you as an adult, or by redefining the self to which
their intersubjective encounters are addressed, they in effect change your identity. Such
a change is not unexpected but neither is it desired or approved of by the self. For girls,
the change is more dramatic. Not only are one’s parents recognizing you as a different
kind of person, they, to a large degree, disappear fi'om your intersubjective world
altogether. The frame of reference that a woman has known fiom childhood and the
intersubjective rules that she has used to define her identity are abruptly abandoned.
After marriage, it is her in-laws that define her intersubjective encounters and so define
her identity. Again, this is not an unexpected transition, but it can often be a traumatic
one. In either case, the social rules that have defined the self seem no longer to make
emotional sense to the individual. As in a rite of passage, the identity of the individual
has to be stripped away and reestablished so that it once again is in agreement with what
makes emotional sense to them. Ifthe individual is alienated from the social roles that
define him or her, then a crisis of identity results. Such crises are seen as a loss of
identity. In two separate instances, I talked to women who have experienced emotional
trauma as a result of being married.”1 In both cases (they had never met each other) they
expressed this trauma by not being_able to recagnize their reflection in a mirror. Even
the infantile objectification of the self that is implied in Lacan’s mirror stage of identity

formation ceased to fiinction for these women (Lacan, 1977, p. 1-8). Socially, this loss

 

4' Both these women were related to me, and I had the opportunity to speak to each at length. Because
both were from the upper crust of this society, and so both were part of the ‘modern’ world that the
upper classes tend to don, neither consulted an ojha.

222
of identity is recognized by assigning the possessed individual a new transitional identity.

By being labeled ‘possessed’ society absolves the individuals of their social
responsibilities and obligations, but at the same time, recognizes their loss of control
over their identity. Their self, during the period of possession, is submerged altogether.
The identity of ‘possession’ is not really an identity in the normal sense, rather it is a
temporary social identity, created to account for the absence of the self that such periods
of crisis entail.

It is precisely at moments of such personal crisis that an individual is likely to
consult an ojha. The ojha reestablishes the identity of a possessed individual by re-
establishing the intersubjective moment between the self and the other that defines the
self. But the other of an intersubjective moment can be ambiguous. We are never really
sure if they are recognizing us, and so objectifying us, or if we have simply misread their
intentions. What is more, as they themselves rely on an intersubjective moment to define
themselves, the possibility that their identity could be just as deferred as ours arises. The
ojha bypasses the ambiguities of normal intersubjective encounters by establishing a
relationship between the self and the Other of the social order. The Other is, by
definition, grounded, and so no doubt can exist as to it’s existence. Thus if the Other of
the social order recognizes the self, the deferment of personality that exists as a result of
the ambiguities of an intersubjective moment is gotten around. This Other is none other
than the goddess.

When a person is possessed, the ojha generally performs a deceptively simple

healing ritual. The ojha will gently stroke the individual at whatever part of their body is

223

being effected, a process which is referred to as jharrowing (jharrow means to sweep).
While stroking, the ojha chants whatever mantra he feels is most appropriate to the
situation. Such mantras are generally nonsensical little rhymes, that are said in the local
language (not in Sanskrit).42 Accomplished ojhas can have quite a repertoire of such .
mantras, but more generally, an ojha will have no more than three or four such mantras
that are effective for any situation. Now as we have seen, ojhas feel that the
effectiveness of their treatment is due to the blessings of the goddess. The ojha, like the
goddess, is seen as someone who is capable of mediating oppositions. In other words,
the liminality of the possessed individual, who is between social roles, is combated by the
ojha, who is seen as someone who is constantly in a liminal state. As Basu Dev told me,
“Just as the tape recorder ‘catches’ your voice, this [mantra] catches everything. The
mantra is like a boat, you know the boats that take you fiom one side of the Ganges to
the other; the mantra takes you from one side to the other. Mikes you between life arid
M” The ojha, just like the Tantric adept, is seen as a person who can mediate
between this world and the world of spirit beings. In fact, people often view Tantrics
and ojhas (the two terms are often interchangeable, for a Tantric is one who knows
tantra-mantra, or magic) as being ghosts or spirit beings themselves. They are both
human and spirit beings, which points out the continuity between these two realms. The

Tantric and the ojha is said to have shakti (power, and so a higher consciousness) and

 

“2 I collected many such mantras, for ojhas tend to feel that the power they have to heal is a result of the
mantra and not of anything that they themselves do. Many ojhas would say nothing to me but the
mantras they knew, as to them, this was the only thing of relevance that they had to ofi’er me. But try as
I might, I can make no sense of such rhymes. Here is an example of one such mantra, “Four ponds
(male), and four ponds (female), Where the guru sets up a bait (fair, or store), Quickly he lays it out,
Quickly he picks it up, Quickly ends the event (or the bhat, talk, or event)” The reader is free to try
their hand at interpreting the above.

224

therefore can link two realms that others may see as discreet categories. This explains
why ojhas feel that only the goddess is capable of healing the possessed. For as we have
already seen, it is she and not the ethereal male deities of Hinduism, who is in the
position to mediate between life and death, between humans and ghosts. This is what is
so crucial about her ability to deconstruct oppositions, for in her role as the head of both
the spirit and the human worlds, she is in a position to restore the balance between the
two.

Healing rituals are really about establishing a relationship between the patient and
the goddess. As a first step the ojha simply ‘sweeps’ (iharrows) the patient while
chanting mantras. The goddess is implied in this because the ojhas justify and legitimate
the power of such mantras by saying it pleases or activates the goddess. But should this
first attempt at linking the patient and the goddess fail, more drastic measures are taken.
The ojha will urge the family of the patient to make a sacrifice (do a puja) to the
goddess, and he himself will preside over such a ritual.43 Such sacrifices at first only
involve rather inexpensive offerings made to the goddess. Sindur (red vermilion) or
sweets are offered. But if this fails to achieve the desired ends, than the ojha will
suggest offering a red sari, or ganga to the goddess, and if even this does not work,
then, as a final step, a blood sacrifice is offered to the goddess. Usually this is a pigeon,

but in extreme cases, a goat is sacrificed. Such pujas are non-vedic, and can be done

 

"3 Although it is not necessary that he perform it. The family of the possessed individual can decide to
formally do a ritual employing a bhraml'n priest; who performs it is not as crucial as the fact that it is
performed, although the ojha is usually employed to preside over it. This is so because the ojha is much
cheaper than the bhramin. Besides. the ojha will perform the puja in keeping with the financral
fortunes of the family involved. If they are poor, the ojha might suggest offering a flower to the
goddess instead of more expensive offerings.

225
anywhere. The crucial feature of the puja, however, the eating of the prasad is still

retained. Note that these offerings imply the goddess. Sweets can be offered to any
god, but sindur is closely linked to married women and is offered during the course of
any puja only to the goddess. The red sari, and the blood sacrifice is also exclusively
linked to the goddess. Ganga, on the other hand, is sacred to her consort Siva who, as
we have seen, does not actively involve himself in the affairs of humans. Rather the hope
is that the goddess will be pleased because her husband is being honored in this way (at
any rate, the ganga is offered to her and not to Siva).

Now as we noted in our discussion of Durga puja, sacrifice is a loaded concept in
Hinduism. The very act of worship, called a yoga, means sacrifice. But sacrifice as we
have seen, is a metaphor for the re-establishment of social (or cosmic) order. It recreates
the original sacrifice of Prajapati that established the universe in the first place. So the
use of sacrifice (be it the low level sacrifice of sweets or the ultimate sacrifice of an
animal) is meant to reestablish the order that has been disrupted by the intrusion of a
spirit being into the world of humans. Further, sacrifice, especially blood sacrifice, is
closely linked to the sacrifice of the self. The animal is a stand in for the sacrificer
himself (see chapter five). This clearly points out the liminal nature of healing rituals.
The self of the patient is being recreated in the course of the ritual. The ritual itself is
quite simple, what is so powerful about it is the various symbols that it manipulates.

Healing rituals establish a relationship between the self of the patient and the
Other of the goddess. All such rituals refer to the goddess because in this society it is

the goddess that is seen as the personification of the social order. This point is driven

226

home during the ritual cycle devoted to the goddess, where she is clearly marked as
someone who incorporates all aspects of social existence. The rituals of Durga or Kali
puja establish the role of the goddess within Mathil society, while the personal healing
rituals that the ojha performs manipulates the symbols that such pujas establish to help
individuals. Such healing rituals and the personal crisis of identity they are intended to
rectify are even given a specific time within the framework of society, namely summer
(see chapter three)"4 Summer is said to be the time when the gods are asleep and so the
world is in a state of disorder. The boundaries that divide the world of humans fi'om the
world of ghosts is breached at this time. But though the gods may be asleep, the
goddess is not. It is at this time that the majority of healing rituals take place. Because
she is at the apex of both the world of ghosts and humans, the goddess is able to restore
the balance between the two, either during the course of her formal worship by the
community (see chapter four and five) or personally, in the lives of specific individuals.

Because the goddess is a totalizing institution, the personification of the social,
the healing rituals that an ojha performs establishes a relationship between an individual
and the goddess and in this way finally objectifies the deferred self of the individual. To
put it another way, spirit possession disrupts the normal trajectory of a persons life cycle.
But by being linked to the goddess the balance or order of one’s personal life is restored.
Thus, the deferment of the normal course a life should take collapses, and the individual
is now free to once again assume the normal responsibilities and obligations that his or

her social role demands. This is analogous to what happens to spirit beings. They too

 

4" This is true as a general rule, but people can be possessed at any time. However, generally possessed
individuals do not go through an active phase of possession until the summer months.

227

are experiencing a deferment of their normal life (or after-life) cycle. A person who dies
should be reborn into another being. But the ghost, because he or she is still carrying the
emotional baggage of a previous existence, defers this process. The emotional baggage
is, for the ghost as for the human, tied to desire. The ghost wishes to continue to fulfill
the desires of its previous existence, the desire for food, for marriage, for children, etc.
The human wishes to continue to exist in his or her previous social role."5 That is, they
wish to retard the normal course of their existence so they can continue to indulge their
appetites for youth or personal acceptance. In either case, what is being suspended is the
normal course or teleos that a person’s existence should take. But in either case, once
the person is linked to the goddess, the balance of their existence is restored. Once a
ghost eats prasad he or she leaves the parriat yoni and is reborn into another living
being. Once a possessed individual performs a ritual to the goddess (which is also
concluded by the eating of prasad) he or she is no longer possessed and is so able to
continue with the social roles that their lives dictate. In either case, it is ritual that
restores the balance of existence. Ritual is an important ordering principle for both the
social and the personal.

And this, I think, is true for all manner of beings. For the relationship between an
individual and the goddess is important in this society no matter who you are. For a
possessed individual, the goddess is able to reestablish their social identity. For the
peasant, the goddess establishes the ordered world of society. For the priest or the king,

the goddess legitimates their authority. Finally, and most importantly, for the ascetic,

 

’5 Desire, in Hinduism, seems to be a concept that is responsible for any action, including the action that
created the universe. But it is not necessarily a positive thing, for the one who is enlightened, the one

228

who wishes to know the ultimate truths of existence, for those individuals who wish to
end the deferment of existence itself, the goddess is seen as the only being capable of
helping them. Ultimately, in Hindu philosophy, existence itself is a kind of deferment, a
disruption of the normal trajectory of consciousness that only reaches its conclusion
when it has grasped the ultimate, the transcendent. In Mathil society, the goddess is that

ultimate.

 

who is in touch with the transcendent, is beyond worldly desires. Or perhaps, the desires of such
individuals are inexplicable to mere anthropologists.

CHAPTER TEN: CONCLUSION

The goddess Shakti’s ability to collapse oppositions is brought to fruition by the
ojha. By using the symbol of the goddess the ojha is able to help reestablish the social
role of the individual suffering fiom a crisis of identity. The symbols and rituals
associated with goddess worship point out the intimate connection between ritual and
personality formation.

The goddess’ transcendent nature is revealed during the course of Durga puja. In
this ten day long ritual, the goddess is symbolically associated with both sides of several
key oppositions of Mathil society. By being on both ends of an opposition, the goddess
effectively collapses the relevance of such oppositions. It is this ability to transcend the
mundane realities of existence that reveals the goddess’ true nature. In Mathil society
the goddess is the most important symbol of the transcendent.

The subsequent rituals associated with the goddess, such as Kali or Laksmi puja,
follow the basic deconstructive logic set up in the course of Durga puja. Each of these
subsequent pujas elaborate upon the theme that the goddess transcends oppositions by
collapsing them. Because of her ability to be simultaneously on both ends of an
opposition, the goddess can be both the symbol of the transcendent and at the same time
the deity most closely associated with the mundane realities of existence. Thus she is,

more than any other deity, associated with prosperity, agriculture, spirit possession or

229

230

any of the other aspects of existence that impact on the everyday lives of individuals. At
the same time she is the deity most closely associated with transcendence or the ultimate
actualization of an individuals potential. In this way the goddess becomes a symbol of
the grounded intersubjective actor, who’s reality is beyond question.

The ojha uses the symbol of the goddess to help ground the identity of an
individual suffering from a crisis of identity. Such individuals express their trauma in the
idiom of spirit possession. The healing rituals that the ojha performs reestablishes a
connection between the individual in crisis and the social order that they are alienated
from. The goddess is the personification of this social order. Thus by establishing a link
between the individual and the goddess, the ojha in effect grounds the social identity of
the patient by setting up an intersubjective dialogue between the social and the
individual. Healing rituals are about the on going dialogue between the individual and
the social order. Because such rituals formally set up a dialogue between the goddess
and the individual in crisis, the individual’s social identity becomes grounded as this
identity is being recognized and implicitly legitimated by none other than the social order
itself.

Therefore, there is an intimate link between ritual and the concept of personhood
within Mathil society. Every social institution in theory has the potential to ground the
individual as every social institution exists prior to any given social encounter. That is,
the legitimacy or grounding of a social institution cannot be questioned by the social
actor because such institutions to an extent order intersubjective encounters and so order

the existence of the individual. Their relevance must be assumed by the social actor for

 

231

they structure the rules by which social actors interact and so objectify themselves. Yet
as I have attempted to demonstrate, not all social institutions have the ability to ground
the self. Kinship in Mathil society is a significant institution, yet seems to alienate
individuals from his or her social roles. Kinship and the life-cycle trajectory that it
implies sets up a situation in which an individual is likely to experience crisis moments in
tier identity. Such crisis moments result from the abrupt changes in identity that are built
into Mathil kinship, and also from the structural equivalencies that are part and parcel of
this system. Personal identity is problematic in Mathil society and such problems are
expressed in the form of spirit possession. Consequently, I conclude that only certain
institutions have the ability to help the individual legitimate and order their social roles,
while other institutions tend to de-center the individual. In each case we must look at
the specific institution and its relevance to the society at large before assessing its
relevance to personhood.

In Mathil society it is ritual and not kinship that is crucial to understanding
personhood. Or rather both institutions are important but in totally opposite ways.
Identity is linked to kinship but in a surprisingly negative way. For while kinship
destabilizes personhood or individual identity, ritual reestablishes personal identity in a
way that is tailor made to fit the emotional needs of the individual. At a more general
level, it could be argued that any theory of personhood must necessarily take the cultural
context within which the concept of the person is embedded if it is to have any
legitimacy. One can not assume that any social institution has the ability to define or

objectify the self. It is only after one has gained an understanding of the rituals and

232

symbols associated with the goddess that one is in a position to say anything about the
category of the person in Mathil society.

During the course of this research it became apparent to me that medical systems,
like psychological theory are so intimately connected to social structure that any attempt
to divorce them would be problematic. Personality like healing systems can only be
understood within the culture context, for such things exist only in relationship to the

culture as a whole.

Alta

Amrit
Anand
Apara

Appragatia

Aram

Arth

Asan

Atma or Brahma

Baba and Babi

Bail or Vilwa

Bali
Bata
Barfaees

Bata

GLOSSARY

Manda] designs usually made from rice paste. These are usually drawn by women
and used to decorate sacred spaces, such as the area where a puja will be performed.

Ambrosia.

Pleasure or bliss. Anand refers to the state of consciousness that characterizes the
transcendent, to be liberated, or achieve mukti, is to understand the anand of Braluna.

Manifest, as opposed to para (beyond manifestation).
A type of creeper that has white flowers. It is a plant sacred to the goddess.

Relief or rest. In common usage it refers to the end of an illness, or relief from a
khust.

Worldly pursuits, especially the acquisition of power or wealth. Along with kama
(pleasure or sensualiIY). dhrama (or morality, correct action), and moksa (liberation,
or enlightenment), it is specified as one of the legitimate human pursuits.

The sacred flame that is passed around at the end of a puja. The devotee must
formally bow to the flame (do pranam to it), both as a sign of respect to the deity and
as a blessing form the deity.

Seat.

Atma means soul or spirit. In Hindu philosophy, the atma is ultimately none other
than Brahma, or the transcendent. See Brahma.

Baba means paternal grandfather; Babi is paternal grandmother.

Wood apple tree. Called bail in Mathili, vilwa in Sanskrit. A plant that is sacred to
Siva.

Sacrifice; or the object that is to be sacrifiwd.
Big, or superior. Bara ghar refers to a high status family.
A kind of sweet, usually made form milk solids, or nut pastes.

Son.

233

Bhagana and
Bhagini
Bhagwan

Bhagwati

Bhai

Bhaine

Bhakt and the
Bhakti
movement
Bhang

Bhaoji

Bhasal

' Bhataja and
Bhateige

Bhoj

Bhoot or Parriat
Yoni

Bhoot; Bhoot
lagni

Bhrama

Brahmin
Chandrograt
Chanoba

Chinchini Shakti

Chorrail

Corore

234
Sister’s son, daughter.

God, or a Deva.

A goddess. In Hindu philosophy all the goddess’ are seen as different forms of
attributes of the supreme goddess Shakti (see Shakti).

Brother.

Sister.

A Bhakt is a devotee, especially a devotee of Krsna, who was the dominant god of the
Bhakti movement. The bhakti movement was started in North India in the fourteenth
century by Caitanya Maha Phrabho. It emphasized devotion, especially erotic, as a
metaphor for the relationship between the individual and the transcendent.

Marijuana puree, a common intoxicant in North India.

Older brother’s wife.

Awesome; the bhasal forrrr of a god or goddess is their awesome or total form. E.g.
Krsna in the course of the Bhagwat Gita shows his bhasal form to Arjun

Brother’s son, daughter.
Feast.

Ghost womb. The perate yoni is where the soul goes after death, and from here it is
reborn into another living being.

Bhoot means ghost or a spirit being. Bhoot lagni is when a ghost possesses an
individual, the act of being possessed

The transcendent principle of the universe; the universe. Bhrama is the supreme
reality, that encompasses both the manifest and unmanifest universe. Because in
Hindu philosophy consciousness or atma (which could also be translated as the soul)

is closely linked to Bhrama, atma can also be used as another name form Bhrama.
That is, supreme consciousness and transcendence are one and the same thing.

Highest of the four castes, traditionally a priestly caste

Literally, ‘liquid that has touched the feet of a Devata.’ The liquid sacrament ofl‘ered
to the devotee after a puja.

The painted arch or awning.

The form of the goddess Shakti that existed prior to the creation of the manifest
universe. Symbolically, she is represented as a dot, especially within a mandala
design. It is form this dot that the universe unfolds.

A kind of spirit being, usually malevolent

one hundred million.

Dakin

Deeaps

Dehori

Devatas of Deva

Dhasara and
Dhasmi

Dharama

Dine
Duits

Durga

Durga-Stan

Ganash

Ganga

Ganja
Ghari Ghanta

Ghee

Ghoge Lagnai

Ghor Lagni

Ghosain Ghar

Ghram Devata

235

A type of spirit being. Dakins can be malevolent, but are also often considered to be
the servants of the goddess.

Earthen oil lamps. These are used during the course of a puja, and during the festival
of Diwali.

Palace.

Gods (male).

Dhasara literally means ‘ten lost.’ In North India, it is a ritual that celebrates the
killing of Ravan (the ten headed demon) by the god Rama. But in East India it is
often used interchangeably with Dhasmi (literally, ‘ten days’), the ten day ritual
devoted to the worship of the goddess Durga.

Moral order or duty. It also refers to the quality or property of a thing (i.e., the
dharama of an object). Along with Karma (the cosmic consequences of action) it is a
central concept of Hindu philosophy, especially social philosophy. See also Karma.
A witch.

Minions, or servants.

An important manifestation of the goddess Shakti. Durga is the goddess that is
closely linked to victory, or ascendancy. She was created by combining the shakti of
all the Devatas, to destroy the asura Mahisasura. See Coburn, 1991

A Durga temple, a place where the goddess Durga resides.

Son of Siva and Parviti. Ganash is the elephant headed god, who is the master of
beginnings or thresholds.

The Gangese. Ganga is also a goddess, who pours forth form the hair at0p the Lord
Siva.

Marijuana, a plant sacred to the Lord Siva.
The cymbals, drums, and conch shell that are sounded toward the end of a puja.

Clarified butter. A pure substance (because of its association to the sacred cow) that
figures prominently in most yugas.

A woman is expected to cover her face (with her sari) in the presence of her elders.
Ghoge lagnai refers to this act.

The act of doing pranam (see pranam). That is, the act of bowing down to touch the
feet on a superior, and ask for their blessing.

House shrine, or temple. The Ghosain Ghar is usually part of the kitchen area of a
house, and it is where an image of the Kul devata of the lineage is kept.

Village god, or the local (usually non-textual) god of an area.

Gillabies
Godh

Gotra

Gunas

Guru

Holi

Indra

Jai (as in Jai-
Durga)

Jamai
Jarrie
Jati
Jaya

Jee

Jhagara

Jhar Phoor

Jharo
Jog

Jogin

236

A kind ofsweet, made from fir’ed gram flour.

Lap, or to cuddle.

Sub-caste, or clan. Such clans trace their descent form a mythical ancestor, and
maintain fictive kin relationships, especially with regards to marriage (gotra exogarny
is the rule). Gotra’s are ranked groups.

Qualities; the three gunas’ are: satwa, rajas, and tamas. They are the three forms or
forces of Shakti by which she manifests the universe. Every object in the universe has
a combination of these three qualities, although which quality is emphasized varies
from one object to the next. Satwa guna is the quality of radiance, thinking and
creativity and is associated with the goddess Saraswiti. Rajas guna is the quality of
striving, working and activity and is associated with the goddess Lakshmi. Tamas
guna is the quality of lethargy, anger and indifference and is associated with the
goddess Kali.

Master, or spiritual guide. More commonly, a teacher of any kind.

A ritual that takes place in early Spring, during the course of the ritual people will
squirt colored water on each other. According to M. Marriott, it is a ritual of reversal,
M. Marriott, 1966.

King of the devas (gods). Indra figures prominently in the earlier (pre Upadnashadic)
traditions of Hinduism. As the king of the gods, he is closely linked to kingship
among humans.

Great; Jai-Durga would mean, ‘great Durga. ’

Daughter‘s (or niece’s) husband.

A talisman, or charm.

Caste; or species.

Ascendancy or victory. This is an attribute of the goddess.

A suffix used as a honorific term. E. g. Ifyour name was Bob, you may be addressed
by your juniors as ‘Bob-jee. ’

Fight, or conflict.

In Mathili this means ‘to sweep.’ In common usage, it means to perform a healing
ritual. The ojha will sweep or stroke the body of the patient during the course of such
rituals.

Literally to sweep. In common usage it means to heal or perform a healing ritual.

Yoga in common usage.

A spirit being, often thought of as a minion of the goddess. Jog is also often used in

Joti-lingum
Kaka and Kaki
Kalais

Kali

Kali Yuga

Kama

Kan-Kali
Kanya

Karma

Kartikay or
Skanda
Khurg

Krsna

Kul Devi

Kumar
Kumari

Lakshmi

Lingum

237
Mathili as yoga, or meditation.

Light or power lingum (phallus). Jon-lingum refers to a particularly powerful or
active lingum, thus a very sacred Siva temple.

Kaka means uncle; father’s brother. Kaki is the wife on one’s Kaka.
Pot, usually an earthen pot used in the course of a puja.

The tamas incarnation of Gori or Shakti. Kali is the goddess of destruction, or victory
over ones enemies. She is the consort of the Lord Siva.

The last of the four epochs within Hindu cosmology. In Hindu thought, each epoch
represents a corruption or deterioration of the purity of creation. Thus Tantric
philosophy wishes to present us with a ritual and philosophical system that is
appropriate for this corrupt age.

Pleasure, or sensuality. Kama, along with arth, dhrama, and moksh, is part of the
legitimate human pursuits specified in the Vedas. It is most closely associated with
sexuality, but, because in Hindu society sexuality involves all kinds of sensual
pleasure, it is more properly translated as sensuality.

The skeleton form of the goddess Kali.

Bride.

The cosmic law of cause and effect. In Hindu philosophy, every action has a cosmic
consequence. Every good action (one that is in keeping with the laws of dhrama)
comes back to the individual in the form of good fortune (in this or in the next life-

time). Every evil action (one that would be ealled adharruic) results in misfortune.
See also Dhrarna.

Son of Siva and Parviti. He is the god of war. Also called Murigan.
Sword.
Sufiering or pain. In common usage it refers to an affliction or illness.

An avtar of Vishnu, and a prominent figuer in the Mahabharata. He is the central
god of the bhakti movement, and a major god of any Vishnivate sect.

House or lineage Devi (goddess). Each lineage has a god or goddess that is sacred to
it, and this deity must be represented and worshipped in the ghosain ghar of a house.

Prince.
A pre-pubescent girl; a virgin.

A goddess, consort of Vishnu, the god of preservation. She is the goddess of god
fortune, bounty, or wealth. The rajas incarnation of the Gori or Shakti.

Phallus or shaft. The term lingum is closely linked to the god Siva, and he is often
represented as a lingum.

Mother.

Mahamaya

Mahish
Makhan

Mama and Marni

Mamyot

Mantra

Mashaisur

Mathil

Mausa and
Mausi

Mausyot

Maya

Meafil

Moksa or Mukti

Munnie

Murti

238

The great or supreme Maya. Maya can be translated as illusion, or the power to
manipulate physical form (see Maya). As the goddess is the manifest universe (the
universe of form) maya or the ability to manipulate form is one of her attributes.
Mahamaya then can be translated as Shakti, as the supreme form of the goddess.

Waterbuffalo.

A kind of kernel found on the underbelly of a pond weed. It is sort of like popcorn,
and is often used as a pure food that is distributed as prasad in a puja.

Mama is one’s mother’s brother; marrri is the wife of your mama.
Matrilineal.
Sound, word, or phoneme that has magical properties.

An asura (demon or rakshis). Mashaisur is represented in the form of a Mashis, or
buffalo, who was so powerful that he conquered the three worlds. Durga was created
by the devas (gods) to destroy him. See Coburn, 1991.

an ethnic group found in N. Bihar

Mausi is one’s mother’s sister; mausa is the husband of your mausi.

Mother’s sister’s children.

Maya is a name or an attribute of the goddess. It is often translated as illusion, but its
meaning is more akin to the ability to control physical appearance. The goddess is
called Mahamaya because it is within her power to give the universe the appearance
of form, of differentiation. In this way, the entire universe is Maya, the appearance of
form.

Assembly, or congregation. This term is especially associated with pleasure or
sensuality (even prostitution). To hold a Meafil is to hold a sensual party, i.e., one
that involves singing, dancing girls, or sexuality.

Liberation or enlightenment. This is the final goal of every living creature (along
with arth, kama, and dhrama, it is part of the four legitimate goals of humans).
Because Hindu philosophy links atma (soul or spirit) with Brahma (the transcendent),
the achievement of moksa is the act by which the consciousness of the individual
realizes that it is none other than Brahma (i.e., that it is part of the undifl’erentiated
universe). Once one’s consciousness has realized the link between atma and Brahma,
the individual is liberated from the cycle of karma and dhrama, that is, the individual
becomes one with the transcendent and so is no longer part of the cycle of life and
death.

Holy men, or enlightened souls. Munnies are mythical wise men mentioned in the
scriptures (or in some cases, sages who actually wrote sacred texts, e.g. Vyas is a
munnie who wrote the Mahabharata).

Statue or image of a deity.

Nag

Nana and Nani
Nati and Natine
Naveratan

Noit

th3

Par

Para

Parriats
Peeple

Phat

Pissa and Pissi
Pittyot

Poutra and
Poutir' (also Pota

and Potee)

Pranam

Prikriti

Prohit
Pujagari
Pundit

Puthu

Radha

239
A cobra.

Nana means maternal grandfather; nani is maternal grandmother.

Daughter’s son, daughter.

Pleasure palace. Literally, a palace with nine different venues.

Invitation, especially a formal invitation to a ritual, such as a bhoj, or a wedding.

Indigenous healers of Mathil society. They legitimate their power by referring to
Tantra and goddess worship.

Great, as in ‘par-baba’; great grandfather.

The ultimate or supreme form of an object (usually a god or goddess). Because the
supreme form of a deity encompasses their unmanifest nature, the para form ean
actually be represented.

A type of spirit being, usually malevolent.

a type of tree.

Story, especially the story or origin myth of a god or goddess that is read out loud
during the course of a puja. Normally such phats are taken from sacred texts and so
are read in Sanskrit.

Pissi means father’s sister; a Pissa is the husband of one’s father’s sister.
Patrilineal.

Grandson and grand daughter in Sanskrit. In Mathili or common usage, the terms

would be Pota and Potee.

The act of formally showing respect to a superior (either human or divine). One must
bow down and touch the feet of the superior individual and then fold one’s hands, as
a way of formally asking for their asarvad, or blessing.

Natural power or form. Maya (or Shakti, the active manifest principle of the
universe).

A priest who assists or directs the performance of a yuga, or puja.
One who performs puja.
Priest, especially one who performs pujas.

Beyond nature. Something which is beyond Maya (or Brahma, the dormant
unmanifest principle of the universe).

Son’s (or grandson’s) wife.

Consort of the god Krsna. Together they are depicted as the perfect couple, and the

240

love that Radha has for Krsna is meant to be a example for the love that humanity
should show toward the divine, especially in the bhakti movement.

 

Raga Literally ‘color.’ A raga is part of a system of musical classification in Indian
classical music.

Raj Banali Banali is the name of the royal house considered in chapter eight. The Sinha’s first
established themselves in the small village of Banali.

Raja King.

Rani Queen.

Roties Unleavened bread.

Sadhana Practice, or discipline.

Samaj Society, or world.

Santhal a formally hunting and gathering society indigenous to N. Bihar

Saraswati A goddess, consort of Bhrama, the god of creation. She is the goddess of knowledge,
creativity or art. The satwa incarnation of Gori or Shakti.

Sari A long piece of cloth worn by Indian women. It is the traditional clothing for woman
in India, just as a dhoti is traditional for men.

Sarkar Sir; an honorific term used to address a person of higher status.

Sassor A woman’s husband’s home (as opposed to her natal home).

Sautan Co-wife.

Shakti The female principle in Hinduism; a name of the goddess. Shakti also means power,
so Shakti is the shakti (power) behind every god. That is, she is the consort of every
deva.

Shankar Another name of the Lord Siva

Shankar Another name of Siva.

Shanti Peace.

Siddhi To activate; or to invoke the power of a mantra.

Sindur Red vermilion. It is put on the part of a married woman’s hair as a symbol of her
married status.

Siva A major god within Hinduism, part of the Hindu trinity who along with Bhrama and

Vishnu combine to form Brarnha or the supreme transcendental principle of the
universe. In Tantric philosophy, he combines with Shakti to form Bramha. Thus he
is purusa (the dormant principle of the universe), the male principle of the universe
that unites with prikriti (the female and active principle of the universe) to form

Soma

Tantra—mantra

Thundai

Tika
Tirtha

Uma

Varna

Vidya
Vijaya

Yagman

Yoginies or

Jogini

Yoni

Yaga

Zamindar

241
Bramha.

A mythical drink, mentioned in the sacred texts.

Magic; or the ability to control events by the use of Tantra (the power that a Tantric
can acquire) and mantra’s. See also Mantra.

A drink common to North India. It is made form milk almond paste and aromatic
spices. It is often laced with bhang or marijuana puree.

Dot; the dot that is put on the forehead of the devotee during the course of a puja.
The bank of a holy river, or a holy place on the banks of a river.

The consort of Siva. After the burning of Sati in her father’s sacrificial fire, she was
reborn as Uma, the chosen consort of Siva. As Siva’s consort, she is none other than

another avtar or manifestation of Shakti.

Literally means ‘color’ in Sanskrit. The term was used in several religious texts as a
way of describing metaphorically, the caste system.

Knowledge; A name of the goddess Saraswati
Supreme or ultimate ascendancy or victory. This is an attribute of the goddess.

One who undertakes the performance of a yaga, or puja. The puja is done by the
yagman with the assistance of a phroit, or priest.

A spirit being, often thought of as a minion of the goddess. A jogini is one who
performs jog (yoga). So a jogini is one who performs jog to the goddess, and so is one
of her followers. Yoginies are often depicted as the female demonic warriors of the
goddess.

Womb, or vagina. The sexual organ of a woman. Shakti is often referred to as the
yoni of the universe, and together with the lingum of Siva, they form the transcendent
principle of the universe, i.e. Bhrama.

A vedic ritual.

A land holding family. or person. One who lends out land on a share-cropping basis.

APPENDIX

2 4 2
APPENDIX

SREE DURGA PUJ A

MAHA-LAYA PROCEEDINGS

In the month of Ashwin, in the morning of the night of Pratipat day of Shukla
Paksha, one should take his bath and do his/her daily rituals. Then one should read the
auspicious martra as follows: "Om! May Indra, Vridhashrawa, Sun, and FireGods be
favourable to us. May Takshaka (the king of reptiles), the creator Pasha, the Asura (the non-
divine), the Earth with its ten direction be favorable to us consciously. May the winds blow
in our favor, the master of the world called Soma (moon) be favourable to us, Brihaspati ( the
Guru of the Divinebeings) bless us, and the Adityas ( the sons of Aditi, the Divinemother)

be favourable to us, etc."

1. Asana-Shuddhi (purifying the place to sit)

Taking three kusha's and water in right hand, one should read, "Om! whether pure or
defiled, or in whatever condition he, one who takes the name of Pundarikasha ( the lotus eyed
Vishnu), is at once purifed externally, as well as internally. May that pundarikasha purify

me.

2 4 3
Thus sprinkling water all around, one should sit on a comfortable mat (asaia) in the

lotus posture. Then with the mattra, "0m! protect, protect, Hunt, Phat, Swaha," one should
sprinkle water on the Asana. With, "0m! pure and solid be this earth, Hum, Phat, Swaha,"
one should pruify the ground of ones seat. With "0m! Hring! I bow to this supportive
Asan," one should make a triangle 'A' with red sandalwood paste. with, "0m! with life-
supportive lives, hard as Vajra( the weapon of Indra), Hum, Phat, Swaha," one should draw
the circle ' @ '
With "0m! Han-Sah 0m," one should put the dot in the middle
With, "0m! Hring! I pray to the supportive Asaia," one should worship the place with
inscence, flowers, rice, etc. Then recite, "0m! I pray to Ananta, Um! I pray to this clean
Am. Um! I pray to the lotus-Asana. 0m! Har-Sah Um! I pray to the lotus- Asaia names
Maha-Preta." Then catching the asaia, "Oh Goddess! The Earth and the Lokas (seven in
number) is sustained by you and you are sustained by Vishnu. You be my daily protector and
make this Asata pure. "

Then with incense etc. one should worship Vastu-Purusha, Brahma, Dharma, Gyana,
Vairagya and Aishwarya; in that order, starthing form the east direction

Then in between these angles, one should worship: Adharrna, Agyana, Avairagya and
Anaishwalya, Disha, Bidisha.

Then with the Maura, "0m! Protect, protect Hum-Phat—Swaha. 0m! Aug-Hum-

Phat-Swaha," five times, one should purify all around.

2 4 4
With, "0m! Astraya-Phat," one should three times hit the earth with the left leg,

and willing all the hinderances and troubles out from heaven and earth, one should clap
three times above, and three times below. Then with the arrow posture (extended right
arm) one should scatter Laj-a “ruffed rice), sandlewood, grass-shoots, purified ash, with
the Mantra, ”0m! Away with Bhoots, Pishachas, Parriats-Guhyakas, all those earth
bound devas. 0m! Away with those Bhoots who may be hiding in the Earth; those who
are creators of disturbance in these deeds should be banished by the orders of Lord Siva.
Let those violent forces who intend violence against me, perish. Let Death, Disease,
scare and anger befall on the heads of my enemies." Thus one should scatter the above

things in all four directions.
2. Samanya Arghya-Sthapana

On the right side, the worshiper should purify the ground by sprinkling water,

should use red sandlewood and sindur to make

and say, "Um! I bow to this foundation for support," and then do its worship with

 

flowers etc. Then with, "0m! Hrah! I establish the Samawya Arghya-Patra," he should
place a pot (Patra) of gold, silver, copper, or of what-so-ever possible, on it. He should
fill it with water, sounding, 0m, all the time. Then with Ankush Mudra he should invoke

the T irtha's from Surya-Manda] as follows:

2 4 5
"0m! May Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Saraswati, Narmada, Sindhu and Kaveri rivers

dwell in this water.
0m! Oh Sun-God! In all this Brahamanda, whichever T irtha's have been touched by
your rays, verily let them be transformed here. "

Then with l)"0m! I bow to all the T irtha on Ganga and the others; 2) 0m! I bow
to Hridya and all the other six embodied Gods; 3) 0m! Ing! I bow to the ten forms in the
Agni(fire)-Mandala; 4) 0m! Ung! I bow to the sixteen forms of the Soma(moon)-
Mandala; " he should worship with flowers etc.

Then ten times, he should repeat, "0m! Aing, Hring, Kling! Chamunda Vichai,"
with Dhanus-Mudra.

Then he should cover the pot with Matsya Mudra, show Yoni-Mudra and finally
sprinkle the sacred water from the pot on the articles intended for puja as also on

himself.
3. Vishesha-Arghya— Sthapana
On his left, with,"0m.’ Asu-Rekha, Bajra-Rakha Hum, Phat, Swaha," he should

and with kusha sprinkle water with, "0m lang! "

make

 

 

2 4 6
With, "0m Vang!" he should wash the ground around, and then on the six angles,

should worship Hridaya, etc, the six body-parts. Then with flowers and other offerings,
he should worship at the four corners of the rectangle as follows: 1) on the east, with,
"0m! Puma-Giri-Pitthaya Namah"; 2) on the south with, "0m! Uddiyana Pitthaya
Nana "; 3) on the west, "Om! Kama-Rupa Pitthaya Namah"; 4) on the north, "0m!
Jalandhar—Rupa Pitthaya Namah"; 5) in the middle, "0m! Supportive-Power be pleased;
0m! Karma (tortise) Sheshayam (thousand headed support of the universe) Namah. "

Then he should worship the Mandalas as in the previous section (2).

With, "0m! Hring, Phat, " he should establish a tripod and worship it with, "0m!
I bow to the support."

With, "Om! Astraya Phat," he should place a gold, silver copper or whatever is
avaliable, pot on the tripod.

With, "0m! Hring, Kling, Chanundayai- Vichai, th skull of Heavens, the birth-
place of all beings, the purest of the pure, crimsonned by the blood of all Asuras, white in
complexion, drinker of Ambrosia, the skull of the Goddess! I bow to Thee!" The pot
should be worshiped with flowers etc.

With one's Mala-Mantra, thinking it to be nector, one should pour water in the
pot with a shankha (counch shell). Then with Ankush-Mudra, one should call upon the
T irtha from Surya-Manda] as in part 2; with, "0m! Aing, Hring, Shring, Hrong: 0m!
Hring, Ling, Ing, Phat, Haisong, Hung," one should purify the water in the pot.

Then show the Shankha, Dhenu, and Yoni Madras.

Then cover with Matsya—Mudra.

2 4 7
Then repeat the MuIa-Mantra, ten times. Having put roots of kusha, hibiscus,

and other plants in the pot, one should put rice, grass-shoots, yogurt, seseme-seeds,
barley, different herbs, vilwa leaves in the pot. Then show T rikhanda-Mudra.

With, "Om! I bow to Ganga and the other T irthas; to Hridaya and the other six
Anga-Devatas. Um! I bow to my beloved Goddess Durga along with her weapons,
carrier, and her entire family, " one should worship the pot.

Then one should do Dhyana of Durga as follows:

"0m! You shine like a thousand suns; Your rays are cool like a thousand moons; You
have 18 arms, five heads and three eyes on each; You are poised in the center of the
ocean of Ambrosia, sitting on the lotus of Creation; Your carrier is the Bull; Your throat
is blue and You wear most beautiful ornaments. You carry the skull and the sword and
play on cymbols and drums. You carry the Pasha (to tie the enemy) and Ankush ( to
peirce him). You have a huge club in hand and a plough (to fight). You carry (all sorts
of) different weapons. You wear garlands of skull that give Blessings and relief from
fear to worshipers.

"Thus I also remember you of bright crimson colour, Oh Goddess of all Gods!
You are the Elixir; you shine like infinite number of moons. You are also white like
Snow-lilies and with your Five faces, three eyes on each, 18 arms, you are always eager
to bestow Bliss. You are always smiling and cheerfirl, you have beautiful, big eyes, on
your beautifirl face. "

With the following, one should then offer Arghya (water offering): "0m!

offernigs to Anaid- Vairawi! To my beloved Goddess!!"

248

4. Kalasha- Stahapana

With powders of five colours, one should make a Mandala in the form of a
lotus. Then taking kusha, seseme seeds, and water, one should do the SankaIpa: "Om!
On this Pratipada day of Shukla-Paksha of Ashwin month, I perform this Kalasha-
Sthapana, as part of the autumnal Durga-puja."

Then to one's left and to the right (or in front) of the Dieties, one should make an
alter of holy sandal in the form of

A
'0!
‘ v

or Sarvato Bhadra or a square surrounded by

’1'»

On this, one should preform Kalash—Sthapana according to the usual process for

a lotus of eight petals.

all pujas. In this Kalash, one should worship Ganesh, Varun, Brahma and Durga in the
daily ritual form; and around it Java seed (barley seeds) should be planted to sprout,

which will be removed as Jayanti on the 10th day: see "Aparajita-Puja"

249

5. Main Durga Puja (on Pratipada- Day)

On the kalash, with kuksh, til and water, perform the Samkalpa with; "I, (name)
of Gotra (state gotra), for the prosperity, well-being, longivity, progeny, etc. will be
performing the Puja of Durga-Devi, represented by this Kalash. "

Then with akshata and flowers, after reciting the verse Jayanti-MangaIa-Kali
one should say, "Oh Shree Durga! Be pleased to be present here."

Then with one flower offering: "0m Devi Chandika! Along with your eigthtfold
Shakti, please do come. Please partake the proper share of these offerings by being in
our midst. Oh Maha-Bhaga! Bestow all well beings to us. Oh the Lifeblood of
Shankara! Destroy all our enemies. Oh the Destroyer of the yagyan of Daksha! Oh
Maha-Ghora! The one surrouned by crores of Yoginis! Oh Bhadra-Kali! Oh Incarnate
of all Shaktis! 0m Hring! Bhagavati Durga Devi! We bow to you. Please accept this
Dhyana flower offering along with all your family, graced with all your forms and
weapons. "

And with another flower: "Oh Durga, the Empress of all creation! Until] we
finish this Puja, be pleased to dwell in this KaIas ."

With water offering: "0m! By mere thought of the entire existance of Akash,

Water, Earth, Fire and Air, with this water, we bathe Thee."

2 5 0
With sandalwood paste: "0m! Nourished by the moisture of Malaya mountain,

full of different kinds of fragance, cooling and pleasing, this Chandan is offered to you.
Be pleased to accept." Then offer red sandlewood paste also.

With verrnillion: "This vermillion, created as the symbolic decoration of all
married women, is offerred to Thee, oh Devi! Be pleased to decorate us also, with all
befitting ommentations. "

With akshata: "These akshata, product of paddy, created before by Brahma, the
life-sustainer of all living beings, is being offered to Thee, oh Bestower of all boons!
Please accept."

With several flowers: "Emanating fragrant pollens, being followed by hords of
attracted bees, grown in the Ananda-Garden, with these flower offerings, we bow to the
Durga-Devi. "

With Vilwa leaves: "Oh the Goddess of all Gods! these Vilwa leaves from the
Shree-Briksha manifested from Amrit (nector) always so dear to Shankar, we offer to
Thee. "

With flowers of the Drona tree: "these Drona flowers are always so dear to
Bhrahma, Vishnu, and Mahesh. For the fullfilhnent of all our Kano, Artha, oh Durga!
we offer these to Thee."

Then garments, dhup, deepa, different kinds of edibles and beetle nuts etc,
should be offered.

Then with flowers: "Oh Durga! Oh Durga! Oh Mahamaya! Oh Universal

Shakti-incarnate! You are the Kali, the Kamala (Lakshmi), the consort of Bhrama, of

2 5 l
Siva; you are J aya and Vijaya; you are Lakshmi (consort of Vishnu) in Vishnuloka, and

you are Parvati in Kailash (abode of Siva), Saraswati in Brahmalok (abode of Bhrama),
Indrani (consort of Indra) who is always respected by Indra. You are Varahi,
Narshinghi, Kaumari, Vaishnavi. You are the life-giving water of all creations, the fire
also, Oh Shining Being! You are Yoganaya. You are the Air pervading all space. You
are Prithivi, the container of source of smell. You have infinitely many forms and you
are Sanatani (ever existant, free of decay). You are Creation-incarnate, the Goddess of
all creation, the abode of all Powers in creation. Oh Blissful Durga Devi! Be benevolant
to us, we bow to you."

"Oh Goddess of Creation! Oh affectionate Mother! Accept this offering of
flowers of different kinds, hill of several textures of fragrance. "

Then with Arti (offering of lighted campher or oil lamps): "0m! The campher-
stick, lighted with fire, is offered to Thee, oh queen of all Devas, oh Mother of the
Universe!"

Then bowing before the Goddess: "0m! Oh Durga Devi, oh Mother of Creation!

I bow to thee. Please pardon all the short-comings of our rituals, oh Maha-Maya! Om!
Oh slayer of Mahishasura, Oh Maha-Maya, Oh Chamunda, Oh wearer of the garland of
skulls, bless us with prosperity, health and power. Oh Mistress of all beings! Oh form of
all forms! Oh power-incarnate! Oh Durga! we bow to Thee. Please protect us from all
fears."

[Thus the puja should be done each day till the sixth. On the second day, hair tie;

on the third, feet-colouring (A laktak), sindur for the forehead, and looking-glass; on the

2 5 2
forth day, honey, head decor ( T ikuli), colluirn for eyes; on the fifth day, four kinds of

body decore, and omments]

After the main puja, the T eu—Dik-Pala 's and the Nine Graha's should be
worshiped as in any othe puja.

Then to the right side of the Devi, a perpatual deepa (lighted oil wick) to burn
throughout the nine days and nights, should be offered with the following mantra, with
kusha, til and water: "0m! This deepa, to perpetually light as the representation of
Vishnu, we offer to Thee, oh Durga! With prayer to be blessed with blessing equal to
the performance of Vajapeya-Yajna."

Then according to local (family) customs, different fiuits, cooked edibles, rice
pudding, etc. should be offered to the Devi. Chandi-Pattha, Havana, worship of
maidens, feeding of maidens and married daughters of the family, and feeding the
Brahmins should be preformed. Dancing, singing, evening Arti, Stotra-Pattha, etc.

should be continued everyday.

6. Second Day: Remant Puja

With flower and rice: "0m! Oh Remant, come and stay here along with your
horse." Then with the ending, "Um! I bow to Remant along with his horse," all the usual

offerings should be made.
Offer of Dhyana flower: "Oh King of all Horses! Oh son of the Sun-God! Oh

Horse-Faced! We are in your protection. Please bless and protect us."

2 5 3
With folded hands: "Oh Son of Sun! Oh son of Chhaya! We bow to you to

harness our horses in peace and well being. "

Then the horse, Uchchaishrava, should be worshipped, everyday till the end of
the ninth day, and in a yellow cloth, putting Vallataka, Vacha, Kusttha, mustard seeds,
neem leaves, Guggula, Ghee, Asphodita, the yellow cloth should be tied with threads of

five colours and tied to the neck of the horse.
7. Elephant Puja: The Sixth Day

With Kusha etc: " I worship Kumud, Airavata and other divine Elephants."

On the east side, one should worship with all the offerings with the mantras:
"Om Indraya Namah;" "0m Airavate Nanaha;" "0m Avranave Namaha;" "0m Agnaya
Namaha;" " Om Padmaya Nanaha;" "0m Kapilaya Namaha. "

On the south side: "0m yamaya Namaha; 0m Pushpa Dantaya Namaha; 0m
pingalaya Namaha. "

On the east-south side: "0m Namaha to the King of Demons; 0m Vamanaya
Namaha; 0m Anupanaya Namaha; 0m Varunaya Namaha; 0m Sarva-Bhumaya
Namaha; 0m T anra-Karanaya Namaha. "

On the South-west side: “0m Vayave Namaha; 0m Anjanaya Namaha; 0m
Shuvrattantyae Namaha. "

On the north side: "0m Kubaraya Namaha; 0m Nilaya Namaha; 0m Anganaya

Namaha. "

2 5 4
In the middle: "Om Vishnuave Namaha; 0m Shriyae Nanaha; 0m Suryaya

Nanaha; 0m Prithivayae Namaha; 0m Antarikshaya Namaha. "

Again, starting form the east all the way around: "0m Vajraya Nanaha; 0m
Shaktaye Namaha; Om Dandaya Nanaha; 0m Khadgaya Namaha; 0m Pashaya
Namaha; 0m Ankushaya Namaha; 0m Gadaya Namaha; 0m Shulaya Namaha. "

Thus the Elephant should be worshipped with all the five offerings.

8. Vilwa-Avimatrana: Sixth Day

Going to the Vilwa tree, with kush, til and water, one should do the Shankalpa of
Vilwa-A vimatrana. Then the tree should be worshipped with the five offerrings. Then
in the Vilwa tree itself, Durga-Awahana and puja should be done as usual and with
music, etc. She should be pleased.

Then the flower offerings: 1) "You, requested by Brahma, awakened to kill
Ravana in order to favour Rama. I also awaken you today so I can vanquish my enimies,
obtain endless pleasure and all kinds of prosperity. I want to take you to my home
tomorrow morning so you can, there, fulfill all our desires. Oh, Vilwa Tree! Tomorrow
morning you should bestow upon me two fiuits and part of yourself, for the worship of
Durga, Oh, Beloved of Maha-Deva."

Then with a yellow thread the Vilwa tree should be tied, and in a yellow cloth, a
branch with two fiuits should be gathered.

Finally Arti of the tree should be done.

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9. Nava-Patrika Sthapana: Seventh Day

After the daily rituals, one should go to that Vilwa tree and worship it with all
five offerings.

Then with folded hands: " Oh Tree! Oh king of all vegetations! Oh beloved of
Siva! I have resolved to please Durga by worshipping her with your brach and fruits.
Please do not resent the pain of parting with them."

Then with a sharp knife, cutting the branch along with the two fiuits, by a single
blow, chanting the two mantras: "0m! Cut, Cut. Phat-hring-swaha! 0m Durga! Durga!
The protector! Swaha! "

Holding these in hand: " 0m! The Deva's had taken thy branches and worshipped so it is
said. I am also taking these, Oh Beloved of Uma! For the multiplication of progany,
prosperity and longivity. Oh Devi! Residing in this Vilwa branch! Bestow on me the
emperial grace. 0m! Oh Chandika! Come to bestow all well being. Oh Katyayani!
Accept our offerrings. We bow to you. Oh Beloved of Shankara!"

Thus, putting these on a carrier, they should be brought to the Durga puja
maidapa and , putting them on a platform, they should be worshipped with the five
offerings.

Then, conring to the outer door of the room, making a Mandala with cow dung,
Bhoot, Parriat, Pishacha etc. should be warded off as follows: First they should be

worshipped and offerred boiled rice and meat with: "0m! Whichever Bhoots, Parriats,

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Pishachas be on this earth, may they accept these offerings. Thus worshipped, let them

vacate this place and observe our rituals from a distance."

Then on a palm leaf write, "0m Phat!" and seven times, with white mustard
seeds, these should be scattered in all four directions to ward off the Bhoots.

Now the Vilwa branch should be worshipped with all the five ofi‘errings and the
mantra, "0m! We bow to Chamunda!" ’

Then the platform with the vilwa should be taken to the Durga image with: "Oh
auspicious Shree fi'uit! Oh embodiment of Durga! Oh Chamunda! Come, come. Oh
Durga! You hav been stabilized in this mud image and this vilwa. Bless us in our
abode."

Then on the right side of the image, tied with white Aparajita creeper, the nine
types of leaves of banana, pomagranate, paddy, turrnaric, manak, kachu, vilwa, ashoka,
and jayanti should be hung. Each of these should be worshipped and bathed. After that,
at the auspicious moment, collorium should be made with ghee on the vilwa leaf and put
in the eyes of the image; first in the iigtht then the left and then the middle (on the fore-
head) eye with: "These eyes, lunrinious like the Moon, Sun and fire, oh Devi, shine like
the three universes. 0m! Aing! Hring! Kling! Chamundayae Vichae! Here are your
eyes oh Devi! We bow to you."

Then, covered with a curtain, the offer of Kusumanda-Bali (gourd) should be
made; on the right side of the puja, accessories should be put on th left, the Naivedya

(offering) should be placed before starting the puja.

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10. Durga Puja: Seventh Day

After doing sankalpa (vow) to perform the puja, with kusha, flower and rice in
hand, the heart of the Image should be touched, with joined Anamika (finger next to the
little one) and
thumb: "Oh Durga Devi! With all your paraphemalias and attendants, please grace this
puja. "

With a flower, "Oh Devi! I invoke you in this Image and this Shree (vilwa) fiuit.
Bestow long life, health and prospority. Om! From Kailash, Vindhya and Himalaya,
come to this Image and this vilwa branch along with your millions of yogini ’s to partake
in the share of this yagna offering. Om! Aing-Hring-Kling! Chanunde! Oh Destroyer of
the yagna of Daksha! Come and stay here with all your followers."

Then with folded hands: "Om! Oh Bhagawati! Oh Mother! Giver of victory over
adversories by their destruction! Oh the one worshipped by all Gods! I worship Thee
with all devotion. Oh Devi who graces this branch! I please you with prayerfirl offerings
of branches ladden with fi'uits and with pleasant blossoms. Oh Durga! Come, come near
us, in these nine leaves, Oh Benefactor! Oh Destroyer! Accept our offerings. Oh
Destroyer of the night of the demons! We seek your permission to perform this
sharadiya puja. You are Chandi, Chand-rupa, oh All-Powerful! You are the power of
all divinities. Come and stay during this yagna while we worship Thee." Further, "Om!

With long, braided hair, cresent moon on forehead, having three eyes, face like a firll

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moon, complexion of an Asati flower, in beautiful eyes, full of budding youth, firlly

ornamented, with shining white teeth and fill], erect breasts, body bent at three places
(knees, hips and neck), the killer of Mahishasura, with skulls, hunting gears, bells, mirror,
threatining bows and arrows, with flags and damaru (a kind of two faced drum), ropes
(to bind the advesaries), all these in the left hands, and shining gears of war like Shakti,
Vajra, Ankusha, crounch shell, chalcra, arrows in the right hand, such a one is beholding
the Mahisha deprived of head and shoulders. Likewise the demon without his head, still
holding his Khadaga (a kind of sword), heart pierced by the shula (a kind of lance), with
bloodied body, with bloodshot open eyes, tied in naga-pasha, twisted eye brows, pulled
by the hair with a left-hand by the Devi with lion in attendance, should be visible. Devi is
shown seated with her right leg resting on the lion and a little raised left one pressing the
toe on Mahishasura. This appearance is being praised by the Devas. She is the
Ugrachanda, Prachanda, Chanda-Nayika, Chanda, Chandavati, Chanda-Rupa, Ati—
Chandika. Such Durga, surrounded by her 8 Shakti's, is mediatied upon constantly, who
is the bestower of Dharma, Kama, Arth and Moksha. To such a Durga, I offer this
meditative flower."

Then the welcoming hymn: "1) Oh Mahamaya! Oh Chandika! Oh Benafactor of
everyone! Welcome to you. Oh bestower of all wellbeings! Accept the various puja's
offerred to you. "
2)"Oh Queen of all the Deva's! One who is easily propitiated by devotion! Surrounded

by your retinues, be present here while we worship you. "

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Offer of am (seat): " Om! Oh most auspicious one! Oh mother of all creation!
Oh master of all beings! Accept this shining, high and purified asana."

Offering of feet cleaning water: "Om! Accept this wash water from Ganga, which
alliviates the tiresomeness of feet after long joumy. "

Offering of udavarttana (body masage paste): "Om! Made with til oil and
fragrant herbs, please accept this udavarttana, Oh Devi!"

Offering of arghya: "Om! Containing til, rice, kusha, flowers, sents, fiuits, etc,
please accept this offering. "

Offering of achamana (water to wash face): "Om! Even after bathing etc,
whatever cleanliness be necessary, for that is this offered. Please accept. "

Offering of bath: "Om! Invoking pure water from Heaven, Earth, Oceans, Stars,
and Wind, I bathe thee with this."

Offering of maJiu-parka (yogart,sugar, ghee, and honey) put in and covered by
a bronz utensil: "On Maha-Devi! Oh daughter of the Mountain! This madhu-parka,
concockted by Brahma and offered by me, be pleased to accept."

Offering of achanan, again as before.

Offer of sandal-paste: " Om! Grown on Malaya-mountains, repleat with fragrance,
cool, pleasant, this sandal-paste is offerred to Thee!"

Offer of red sandal-paste: "Oh Devi! The red-sandal paste, invented by Thyself, is
offerred. Please accept."

Offer of Sindur (verrnillion): "Om! This sindur was created as the decor of all

sathis' (women with husbands alive). Please accept, oh Devi!"

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Offer of kum-kum (forehead red dot): "Om! Red like hibiscus flower, pleasant

decor of the fore-head of ladies, this kum-kum is offered to Thee, oh Devi!"

Offer of rice : "Om! created by Brahma to sustain life in all living beings, this
Akshata is offered to Thee, oh Devi!"

Offer of flowers, vilwa leaves, garland, lower and upper garments, ornaments,
dhup, deepa, fragrance, lighted campher, and naiveaya's should be made, as usual.
Similarly, rice pudding, sweet balls (modaka or laddus), pancakes (pua), fruits etc.
should be separately offerred. Then water to drink, water to wash hands, water to wash
face, and bettle nut should be offerred. Finally, colliruims of two kinds, feet coloring,
hand fans, bells, and money (Dakshina) should be offerred.

Then with flowers in folded hands: "Om! Oh Durga, Durga, Mahamaya! Oh
IncamatePower! You are Kali, Kamala, Brahnri, Jaya, Vijaya, Siva, Lakshmi in the
Vishnu-Loka, Parviti in Kalash, Saraswati in Brahma-Loka, and Indrani adored by Indra.

You are Varahi, Narasinghi, Kaumari and Vaishnavi. You are life-giving water in all
cration, you are shining radiance in all luminations. You are the yoga-maya and air in
space. You are the Prithvi (Earth) which carries all scents. You are perpetual in all
different kinds. You are the Universe, the Master of the Universe, and the Power behind
the Universe. Oh Durga Devi! We bow to Thee. Oh Ever-Blissful! Bless us and accept
this flower offerring. "

Then artis should be offerred

Finally, pray as follows with sashtanga-pranam (bowing prostrated) : "Oh

Durga, Oh Durga, Oh Mahamaya! Which-ever fashion our puja has been, may that be

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deemed flawless by your grace, Oh Devi Siva, Oh Mahamaya! Whatever drawbacks

might have occurred in our performance, Oh Mother of the Universe! please forgive. Oh

Durga Devi! We pray and bow to Thee! "

12. Nava-Patrika-Durga Puja

Worship as follows with all five offerings:
1) On the banana leaf: "Om Hring! Brahmanyai Nanaha:
2) On the pomegranate leaf: " Om ! Rakta-Dantikayai Nanaha"
3) On the paddy leaf: "Om! Hring Dhanyadhishtthai Lakshmiyai Namaha"
4) On the tumeric leaf: "Om! Hring HariJaJiitthatriyai Durgayai Namaha"
5) On the manak leaf: "Om! Hring ManaJrishtthatriyai Chanundayai Nanaha"
6) On the kachu leaf: "Om! Hring Kachu-patrikaJrishtthatriyai Kaliyai Nanaha"
7) On the vilwa branch: "Om! Hring Vihvadhishtthatrtyai Shivayai Namaha"
8) On the ashoka leaf: "Om! Hring AshokaJrishtthatriyai Shokarahitayai Nanaha"
9) On the jayanti leaf: "Om! Hring Jayantyadhishtthatrtyai Kartikiyai Namaha"
Then with folded hands, pray: "Om! Oh Nava Durga in the leaves! Oh Beloved
of Maha-Deva! Accept all our offerring and protect us, Oh Maheshwari! Oh Maha-
Devi! Oh Queen of all Devas! You have been invoked in these leaves. Bestow long-

life, good health and Victory to us, Oh Devi! We hail Thee!"

13. Worship of the Family of Durga

 

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On the right of Durga-Image, Lakshmi should be invoked: "I invoke the beloved
of Narayana, who is radiant like heated gold, who has two arms, whose eyes having
sideways glance and shinning and beautiful like a calm, lighted flame and is decorated
with collirium, who has a divine dress on and is decorated with sindur and tilak."

Thus invoked, she should be called upon: "Om! Hring-Kling Bhooh-Buvaha-
Swaha Lakshmi! Come and stay here"

Then worshipping with the usual five offerings, the flower offering should be
made with: "Om! You are the consort of the Vishwa-Rupa (Vishnu), Oh Padma! Oh
Devi! Oh Maha-Lakshmi! I bow to Thee. Please protect us from all sides."

Then to the left of Durga, Saraswati should be invoked: "Om! One, fair like the
counch shell and shining like white moon, who has two arms and eyes like lotus, with
sideways glance, radiant like light flame, dressed in divine garments and divine
ornaments, whose power of voice is unsurpassed, is invoked by me."

Then calling, "Om! Hring-Bhooh-Bhovaha-Swaha Maha-Saraswati! Come and
stay here."

After worship with all five offerings, the flower offerring should be made with,
"Om! I bow to the Bhadra-Kali daily. I repeatedly bow to Saraswati, who is the abode
of Veda, Vedanta, all Vedanga, and all Vidyas. "

Then to the right of Lakshmi, Ganasha should be invoked and worshipped; to the
left of Saraswati, Katrika should be worshipped. To the left of Katrika, Jaya should be

worshipped with the ending, "Om! Hring-Hring! Jayayai Nanaha. "

 

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Then to the right of Ganasha, Vijaya should be worshipped with the ending,

"Om! Aing-Hring! Bijayayai Nanaha. "

Finally, the ten Dik-Palas and the nine Grahas should be worshipped.
l4. Worshipping Durga's Carriers

1) Lion (with flower): "Om! One with sharp teeth and terrifying face, shoulders
flourishing beautifirl mane, four feet with nails like Vajra, called 'Maha-Singha'; Om
Hrang-Hring! Oh Lion, the seat of Durga, come and stay here."

Worship with the ending, "Om! Vajra-nailed, having teeth as weapons, Oh Maha-
Singha! I bow to Thee."

Then Mahishasura should be invoked: "Om! Oh Brave One! Though in the form
of a buffalo, you are the incarnation of Sada-Siva and are Siva-Rupa. So I worship
Thee, please forgive us. Om! Hring-Hring-Hung! Oh Mahishasura! Come and stay
here. "

Worship with, "Om! Mahishasuraya namaha. "

Then as usual, the Mouse, the Peacock, Remantaka and Uchchaishrava (the two
horses), should be worshipped.

Then in front of the Image, Nawa-Vairava's should be worshipped as follows:

1) "Om! Aing-Hring-Ang! Asitang- Vairavaya namaha. "
2) "Om! Aing-Hring—Ing! Ruruda- Vairavaya nama ."

3) "Om! Aing-Hring— Ung! Chanda- Vairavaya namaha. "

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4) .0m! Aing-Hring-Ring! Krodha- Vairavaya namaha."

5) "Om! Aing-Hring-Lring! Unmatta- Vairavaya nanaha. "
6) "Om I Aing-Hring—Aing! Bhayanaka- Vairavaya nanaha. "
7) "Om! Aing-Hring- Uung! Bhishana— Vairavaya namaha. "
8) "Om! Aing—Hring-A ng! Sanghar- Vairavaya nama ."

9) "Om! Aing-Hring-Kang! Kapali- Vairavaya namaha. "

Finally pray with folded hands: "Om! Oh slayer of Mahisha! Mahamaya!
Chamunda! One with skull-garland! We bow to Thee! Please bestow on us wealth, good
health and valour, Oh Devi! Oh Durga, who is always decorated with kum-kum and
sandal-paste, and who holds in her hand the blessing vilwa leaf! 1 seek Thy protection
and am at your mercy. "

In the evening, arti etc. should be performed.
15. Process of Goat Sacrifice

A goat, bathed and garlanded with red flowers, should be kept to the left of the
worshipper, and be worshipped with the ending, "Om! Chhagaya nanaha," with all five
offerrings. Then sankalapa (vow) as follows with flower, sandal-paste and rice:

"Today (on the seventh day, eighth day and ninth day) for successively multiplying my
punya (auspicity), for the propiciation of Durga, this goat, representing the F ire-God, is

being sacrificed by me."

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In the right ear of the goat, whisper: "1) Om! Know the bondage of animal traits;

(the) head represents mental prowess. May this goat be a beacon to us."
2) (Pashu-Gayatri): " Om! In the cration, Surayambhuva (Brahma) created Pashu 's
(animal-beings) for yajna. Therefore I am sacrificing you today in this yajna."

Then with all five offerings, the khadga (sword) should be worshipped with the
ending, "Om! Khadagaya namaha." With folded hands: "Oh Khadga of sharp edge and
terrible form! You have glory, victory and protection of Jiarma as your qualities. We
bow to Thee. You are the destroyer of the Demons. You firlfill the purpose of Shakti
(Devi). You have to quickly sacrifice this animal, Oh King of Khadgas! We bow to
Thee."

Touching the khadga to the neck of the goat: "Animals were created for yajna.
Only for yajna should they be sacrificed. Thus sacrificed they surely go the heaven. Oh
good animal! Conquor the terrible pain of the strike of this khadga and by the grace of
Devi, emancipate yourself as well as ourselves."

Releasing the bondage of the animal: "For protection, you were in this bondage;
for attaining mutki, you are released by me. Oh good animal! By propiciating the Devi,
proceed to heaven. Having discarded this body, become of divinely form, and enjoy with
the Pramatha's (retinues of Siva) as long as 14 Indra reign is sucession."

Then with, "0m! Haing!" the animal should be sacrifice. With, "Om! Aing-
Hring! Oh Kaushiki! Be propiciated with this offering of flesh with blood," the offerring

of the flesh with blood should be made.

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Then putting a deepa on the severed head of the goat, it should be put in front of

the Image, with, "Om! Here is the offerring of head of the goat-animal with deepa to
Durga. Hring! I bow to the Devi."

After that, pray as follows: "Oh Maha-Devi, with terrible teeth and scary face,
who loves offerings of blood and flesh! Accept this sacrifice along with animal blood
and flesh! Om! You love blood in battles. This offering with deepa, please accept. Oh
Three-eyed one! Oh Scary-faced! Oh Skull-garlanded one! Oh Destroyer of all Demons!
Oh Carrier of Khadga and Death! Oh Slayer of Mahisha! Oh Mahamaya! Oh Destroyer
of the Arrogance of the Daityas! I offer this sacrifice through this goat. Oh Beloved of
Hara (Siva)! Please accept."

Taking a little blood from the khadga, a dot on the fore-head shoud be put with:
"Om! Whatever I may touch by my feet or see with my eyes, should come under my
power, even if fill! of animosity toward me. "

Finally dakshina (offering to brahmnins) should be made for having successfully

performed this sacrifice.

16. Kumari Puja (Worship of Maidens)

With kusha, til, and water (sangkalpa): "Om! Today (seventh, eighth and ninth

days) for the fulfillment of various desires, for obtaingin prosperity and later attaining the

abode of the Devi, I will worship these maidens."

 

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After washing the feet of the kuma'i's, they should be seated facing east, on a

neat place, cleaned and washed with cow-dung. Then they should be worshipped with
all five offerings with the ending: "Om! Hring! I bow to (this) these (maiden) maidens."

They should be garlaned, given nice clothes and ornaments and should be fed in a
pleasurable manner.

After they are fully satisified with delicious foods, placing rice in their hands, one
should say, "Kshamadhwam" (please forgive any short-comings). Then, having made
them put the rice on the worshipper's head, the latter should recite: "I mediate on the
young, maiden form of the Goddess, with smiling countenance like a lotus in full bloom,
shining like the just rising sun, dressed in red clothes, red garland and decorated with all
kinds of ornaments. She is joyfully frolicing with divine maidens and she firlfills all the
wishes of her devotees."

Finally, one should propiciate the maidens with ample ofiferings of dakshina.

l7. Puja: Eighth Day

Facing east, first Sankalpa for the eighth puja should be made. Then pray, "Om!
Oh Jayanti! Mangala! Kali! Bhadra-Kali! Kapalini! Durga! Kshama! Siva! Dhatri!
Swaha! Swaha! I bow to Thee."

With flower invokation: " Om! The one adorned with long tresses of hair, having
cresecent moon on it, with three eyes, face like a hill moon, whose complexion is like

Asati flower, who is well poised and has beautifirl eyes, who is fill] (of) youth and with

 

268

all kinds of ornaments, whose face is extremely charming, who possesses firll, erect
breasts, who stands with three bends in (her) body, who is the slayer of Mahishasura, in
whose left hands are skulls, hunting-gear, bell, mirror, one fore-finger lifted, bow, flag,
Damaru, and Pasha, and in the right hands are Shakti (a weapon), club, spear, sword,
Vajra with sharp tip, counch-shell, chakra and arrows, below who shows the buffalo
with severed head yet holding a khadga in hand, with spear pierced in its heart,
ornaments all scattered, (with) bloodied body and red-shot eyes, coiled (arrested) in
Naga-Pasha, with distorted eye-brows and ugly face, dragged by the hair by Durga, and
lion shown with blood in (its) mouth, on it rests the rigtht foot of Durga, and her left
foot toe is pressing on the buffalo, and who is being worshipped and praised in this form
by the Celestial-Beings, who is Ugrachanda, Prachanda, Chandogra, Chanda-Nayika,
Chanda, Chanda-Vati, Chanda-Rupa, Ati-Chandika, surrouneded with Her eight Shakti's
(in attendance), such a Durga, who bestows Artha-Kana-Dharma-Moksha, is mediated
upon by me. I offer this meditation flower to Durga and bow to her."

With fower and rice: "Oh Durga! Oh Maha-Bhage! Come and protect us always.
Oh Devi! I invoke Thee so we can be successful in all our Kana and Arth. Entering this
Image, being kind to us, please wait in it. Oh Bhadre! Oh Queen of the Universe! I pray
to you. Be pleased to protect us forever. Oh Goddess Durge! Do come, stay near us
with paitience."

With water mixed with sandal paste and flowers, offer it for washing the feet,
with:

1) ”Jayanti-Mangala, etc. (repeat)"

 

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2) "Oh Durga! Durga! Oh Protector! Swaha. "

3) "Om! This water for washing feet is offered to Thee along with Thy retinues."

Then along with 2nd mantra above, kum-kum, vilwa-leaf, akshata (rice), Durba
(grass-shoots), three kusha, til (seseme-seeds), water, barley should be offered.

Similarly, bathing water, madhuperka (see above), achanan, sandal-paste,
sindur, and flowers should be offered.

With vilwa-leaves in folded hands, offer with the same 2nd mantra and, "Om! I
offer these vilwa-leaves, Oh Queen of Divines! Which were gotten from Amtrita
(necter), from the Shree tree, and which are always loved by Siva."

With drona-flower, "Om! This flower is always adored by Bhrama, Vishnu, and
Siva. For fulfillment of all our arth-kama, I offer this to Thee."

Similarly, jati, champa, lotus, lily, mallicka, karavira, hibiscus and other flowers
should be offered. Then agaru, guggula, etc, should be put on burning ambers and
offered, deepa should be offered, and so should naivedya, jewels, umbralla, footwear and
clothes.

Then on the eight petal lotus, with akshata and flowers avarana and pittha puja
should be offered as follows:

On south-east petal, "Om! Hridayaya namaha"

On south-west petal, "Om! Durga! Shirase Swaha"
On north-west petal, "Om! Durga! Shikhayai Vashat"
On north-east petal, "Om! Rakshini! Kavachaya Hum"

On the mid-petal, "Om! Swaha! Netravyam Vaushat"

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On all sides, "Om ! Durga! Durga! Rakshini ! Swaha Astraya Phat"

Then with flower and akshat, the eight shaktis of the Devi should be worshipped

as follows:

1) " Om ! Hring! Mangalayai namaha"

2) "Om! Hring! Kalyayi namaha"

3) " Om! Hring! Bhadra Kalyayi namaha"

4) "Om! Hring! Kapalinyayi namaha"

5) " Om ! Hring! Shivayiyai namaha"

6) "Om! Hring! Dhatriyayi namaha"

7) "Om! Hring! Swadhayayi nanaha"

8) "Om! Hring! Swahayayi nanaha"

And these should be worshipped with all five offerings. After that with folded hands
different sotras (stanzas from the scriptures) should be recited, according to ones taste,
in praise of Durga.

Then prayer should be made for blessings, such as: "Oh! Slayer of Mahish! Oh
Maha-Maya! Charnunde! Oh wearer of skull-garland! Oh Devi! We pray to Thee.
Bestow wealth, good health and victory to us. Oh Maheshwari! Protect us against fears
from bhoot, parriat, pishacha, rakshasa's, devata's, humans etc. Oh auspicious and all
auspicities! Oh Shive! Oh one who can accomplish all desires! Uma! Brahamni!
Kaumari! Oh Vishwa-Rupa! Be pleased on us. Om! Bestow good appearance, victory,

fame, Oh Goddess! Along with progeny, wealth and all other desirables. Om!

 

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Propiciated with sandal-paste, kum-kum, vilwa leaves, Oh Durga! We have come under

your protection."
Then as before, Bali dana, feeding of maidens, un-widowed women, and

brahmins should be performed.

18. Midnitht Worship: Eighth Day

After doing sankalpa for puja, take kusha, til, water: "Oh Maheshwari! To
obtain the abode of Crescent-Moon Headed One (Siva) and for Thy propiciation, I
invoke Thee. Om! For the warding off of all evils, and for getting rid of all fears, Oh
Maheshwari! and for the freedom from all worldly bondages, for attaining all wisdom,
Oh Queen of all Divines! On this eighth puja date, I remember you. "

Then recite, "Om! Oh the Beloved of Siva! I sing in your praise on this Eighth
puja day to get rid of all the sins of this Kali-Yugo, and after passing through (this)
misarable existance repeatedly, I pray to Thee in order to obtain the most glorious
existance. "

Then looking at the Image, "Om! Oh Durga Devi! Oh Maha-Maya! today I look
up to you to attain auspicity and bliss of the highest order. Om! Oh Maha-Durga! To
attain great prosperity, great wisdom, great valour, great power, long life, strength,
fame, wealth, learning and spiritual enlightenment, I look up to you. For bliss, for fiuits

of giving cows to brahmins, for progress of progeny, I sing in Thy praise. So Om!

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Today, for the destruction of my enemies, Oh Chandika! and for the increase in
prosperity, attainment of desires, for all kinds of auspicious results, and for removal of all
obstacles, I worship Thee on this eighth day. "
For puja, first recite Jayanti-Mangala etc. (see above), and with "Om! Durga-
Dukrga-Rakshini! " bow to the Image. Then, as before, perform the puja.
Then to the right of Durga, Jayanti should be worshipped with the ending,
l)"0m! Hring! Jayantiyai namaha. "
2) next, Mangala with, "Om ! Hring! Mangalayai namaha. "
3) Kali with, "Om! Hring! Kalyai nanaha. "
4) Bhadra-Kali with, "Om! Hring! Bhadra-Kalyai nanaha. "
5) Kapalini with, "Om! Hring! Kapalinyai namaha. "
6) Durga with, "Om! Hring! Durgayai namaha. "
7) Kshema with, "Om! Hring! Kshemayai namaha. "
8) Siva with, "Om! Hring! Sivayai nanaha."
9) Dhatri with, "Om! Hring! Dhatriyai namaha. "
10) Swadha with, "Om! Hring! SwaJiayai nanaha."
ll) Swaha with, "Om! Hring! Swahayai namaha."
On the back of the image:
12) Ugra-Chanda with, "Om! Hring! Ugrachandayai namaha."
l3) Prachanda with, "Om! Hring! Prachandayai nanaha. "
l4) Chandogra with, "Om! Hring! Chandograyai nanaha. "

15) Chanda-Naika with, "Om! Hring! C handa-Naikayai namaha. "

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16) Chanda with, "Om! Hring! Chandayai namaha. "

l7) Chandavati with, "Om! Hring! Chandavatyai namaha. "
18) Rudra-Chanda with, "Om! Hring! Rudra-Chandayai nanaha. "
19) Chanda-Rupa with, "Om! Hring! Chanda-Rupayai namaha. "
20) Chandika with, "Om! Hring! Chandikayai namaha."
21) Ugra-Dangstra with, " Om ! Hring! Ugra-Dangstrayai namaha. "
22) Maha-Dangstra with, "Om! Hring! Maha-Dangstrayani namaha. "
23) Shubhra-Dangstra with, "Om! Hring! Shubhra-Dungstrayai namaha. "
24) Kalini-Dangstra with, "Om! Hring! Kalinyai-Dungstrayai namaha. "
25) Bhim-Nata with, " Om ! Hring! Bhim-Natayai namaha. "
26) Vishalakshi with, "Om! Hring! Vishalakshyai namaha. "
27) Mangala with, "Om! Hring! Mangalayai nama ."
28) Vijaya with, "Om! Hring! Vijayayai namaha."
29) J aya with, "Om! Hring! Jayayai namaha. "
In front of the Image:
30) Nandini with, "Om! Hring! Nandinyai namaha. "
31) Bhadra with, "Om! Hring! Bhadrayai namaha."
32) Lakshmi with, "Om! Hring! Lakshiyai namaha. "
33) Kirti with, "Om! Hring! Kirtyai namaha. "
34) Yashaswini with, "Om! Hring! Yashaswinyai nanaha. "
35) Koti-Yogni with, "Om! Hring! Koti-yoginyai nanaha."

36) Pushta with, "Om! Hring! Pustayai namaha."

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37) Medha with, "Om! Hring! MeJiayai namaha. "

38) Shiva with, "Om! Hring! Shivayai namaha."

39) Sadhwi with, "Om! Hring! Sadhwiyai namaha. "
40) Yasha with, "Om! Hring! Yashayai namaha."

41) Shovana with, "0m! Hring! Shovanayai namaha."
42) Jaya with, "Om! Hring! Jayayai namaha. "

43) Dhriti with, "Om! Hring! Dhrityai namaha. "

44) Ananda with, "Om! Hring! Anandayai nanaha."
45) Sunanda with,"Om! Hring! Sunandayai namaha. "
Then near the Image, in the same way:

1) Vijaya
2) Mangala
3) Bhadra
4) Dhriti
5) Shanta
6) Riddhi
7) Ksharna
8) Siva

9) Siddhi
10) Trishti
ll) Pushti

12) Uma

275
13) Rati

14) Dipti

15) Kanta

16) Yasha

l7) Lakshmi
18) Tripura
19) Riddhi
20) Shakti
21) Jayavati
22) Brahmi
23) Jayanti
24) Aparajita
25) Ajita

26) Manasi
27) Shweta
28) Diti

29) Maya

30) Maha-Maya
31) Mohini
32) Rati-Lalsa
33) Tara

34) Vimana

276
35) Gauri

36) Kaushiki
37) Mati

38) Durga

39) Kriya

40) Arundhati
41) Ghanta

42) Kama

43) Kapalini
44) Raudri

45) Kali

46) Mayuri

47) Trinatra
48) Swarupa
49) Bahu-Rupa
SO) Ripuha

51) Charchika
52) Ambika
53) Sura-Pujita
54) Vaivaswata
55) Kaumari

56) Maheswali

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57) Vaishnavi

58) Maha-Lakshmi

59) Kartiki

60) Shia-Kuti

61) Barahi

62) Chamunda
Then around the Image:

63) Brahmarri

64) Maheshwari

65) Kaumari

66) Vaishuavi

67) Varahi

68) Indrani

69) Chamunda

70) Maha-Lakshmi

71) Chandika

All should thus be worshipped as indicated above with "Hring"- root. Then, in

front of the Devi Nava-Bhairava's should be worshiped as in (part) 14

Next the 12 Kshatra-Pal’s should be worshipped as:

1) "Om! Yaksha-Rajaya namah. "

2) "Om! Hunge, Kshaung! Katuk-Kshatra-Palaya maha- V ibhishanaya swaha namaha. "

3) "Om! bali-Bhadraya nanaha. "

 

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4) "Om! Chitra-Mundaya namaha. "

5) "Om! Sendra-Yakshaya namaha. "

6) "Om! Jambhaya namaha. "

7) "Om! Vetalaya namaha."

8) "Om! Bhishaia-Kshatra-Palaya namaha. "

9) "Om! Eka-Pada—Yakshaya namaha. "

10) "Om! A gni-Jiva-Kshatra-Palaya namaha. "

1 1) " Om ! Kala-Kshatra-Palaya namaha. "

12) "Om! Jang-Yakshaya namaha. "
Next tht parts of Devi's body should be worshipped, as:

l) "Om! Kali! Kali! Hridayaya namaha. "

2) "Om! Kali! Kali! Vajrini Shirsa namaha. "

3) "Om! Kali! Kali! Vajreshwari Shikhayai namaha. "

4) " Om ! Kali! Kali! Vajreshwari kavachaya namaha. "

5) "Om! Kali! Kali! Loha-Dangshtrayai swaha netratrayaya namaha. "
Next worship of the five facets of Devi, as:

1) (On the head), "Om! Ishanaya namah. "

2) (on the mouth), "Om! Kali, Kali, T at-Purushaya nanah. "

3) (on heart), "Om! Vajreswari! Aghoraya namah."

4) (below), " Om ! Loka—Dangstrayai— Vama-Devaya nama ."

5) (all over the body), "Om! Swaha! Sadyo-Jataya namah. "

Then worship the wepons as:

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1) "Om! Kapalaya nanah. "

2) "Om! Khetakaya namah. "

3) " Om! Ghantaya nanah. "

4) "Om! Darpanaya namaha. "

5) "Om! T arajanayai nanha. "

6) "Om! Dhanushe nanah. "

7) "Om! thajaya namah. "

8) "Om! Damarukaya nanah. "

9) "Om! Pashaya nanah. "

10) " Om! Dakshina-Hastaya namah. "
11) "Om! Shaktaye namah."

l2) " Om ! Mudgaraya namah. "

13) "Om! Shulaya namah. "

14) "Om! Khadgaya namah. "

15) "Om! Vajraya namah."

16) "Om! Angkushaya namah. "

l7) "Om! Shankhaya namah. "

18) "Om! Chakraya namah. "

l9) "Om! Sharaya nanah. "

20) "Om! Sarvebhyo Devyastrevvo namaha. "
Finally:

21) "Om! Yani yaniha mukhani prasiddhani aqurani cha. "

280

"Whichever main, renowned weapons be, destroyer of the adverseries, famous in
the three universes, all those I worship especially on this 8th puja day. Let all these
protect me everyday, and bestow all accomplishments. Om! I also worship the crown
and other ornaments of the Devi."

" Om ! Vajra-Nakha-Daigshtraquiaya Maha-Singhasanaya Hum! Phat! Swaha!
Singhasanaya nanaha. "

Then making an eight petalled lotus with sandal-paste, beginning with the east
petal, Rudra-Chanda, Prachanda, Chandogra, Chanda-Niyaka, and in the middle, Ugra-
Chanda should be worshipped with all five offerings.

After that the goat sacrifice should be offerred as before. Next, making a triangle
Mandala in the south-east direction, offerrings of different edibles should be offerred
with:

"Om! Tonight, Loka-Palas, the Nine Planets, Constillations, Asuras,
GanJiarva’s, Yaksha, Rakshasa, Vidyadhara, Pannaga, elephant's, animals, Bhoot,
Pishacha, meat-eating demons, Yogini ’s, Dakini 's, are offered these edibles. "

Then Bhoot-Bali should be performed with:

"Om! Jackals, kangkal's, vetal's, putana's, foxes, be all propiciated by these offerrings."

Finally, after arti, feeding of maidens, women with living husbands, and brahmins

etc, should be done with festivites as before.

19. PUJA: 9th DAY: TRISHULINI PUJA

 

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After sankalpa for this puja, on well cleansed earth, a trident of wood etc, should

be made to stand and washed with water first and then with a mixture of milk, yogart,
honey, ghee and sugar. Then again it should be washed with water. Next Durga should
be invoked in it with the usual avahana, and puja with bathing water, achamana, kum-
kum, agaru, camphor, sandal—paste, sindur, akashata, flowers, garland, dhup, deepa,
naivedya, achamana, beetel nuts, dress, putta-sutra (dress-tying threads), white flower
offering etc. should be done with the ending: "Om! Chardikayai nanaha."

Then, decorated with golden, bejewelled oranments, the trident should be placed
on a carrier or horse and, accompanied with procession of farming chamars (a fan maid
of the fiirry tail of a particular mountain animal-yak), variours musical instruments
playing, covered with chhatra (umbrella), it should be taken in front of the Durga image
and established there.

There it should be again worshipped as before and several stotras in praise of
Durga should be recited.

After that, as in the puja of the 8th day, all devatas like Durga etc, Nava-Patrika,
Remant etc, should be worshipped.

Then, making an 8 petaled lotus of red-sandal-paste (rakta chardai), Chandaika
should be worshipped in the middle of it. On its eight petals, starting with the eastern,
respectively, Brahmani, Maheshwari, Kaumari, Vaishnavi, Barahi, Narasinghi, Aindri,
Siva-Duti, should be worshipped, and in the middle Charnnda should be invoked and

worshipped.

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Finally, as before, feeding of maidens, havana and goat sacrifice should be

performed.

If within means, Mahish (buffalo) sacrifice may be made.

20. PROCESS OF MAI-HSH-BALI

Going to the sacrifical alter, Prithavi (earth) should be invoked with, "I invoke
the Goddess who holds all beings and is filled with good qualities, bestows all wishes, is
the consort of Vishnu, is the means of progress, attainments, and is worshipped
everywhere, which bears all agriculture products and is the source of all fi'agance, who is
the base of all creation. Oh Vasundhara adorned with blossoming lotuses! Please come
to us. "

With Dhyana-flowers:

"I invoke the Vagundhara, seated on a lotus thrown, having beautiful cresent moon on
the forehead, whose beautifiil body has the colour of fresh grass shoots, who is
messaging the sides of Daityari (Vishnu, in his service as a consort), and who is bestower
of boons. In the war of Mahishasur, and all the Devata's, Oh Prithavi!, you were
trampled and shaken. Now at the sacrifice of this Mahisha (buffalo), attain your
contentment. At that time, you sufferred the lashes of the hooves of Mahisha. Today,
with the blood of this Mahisha, get peace of mind. I offer this Dhayat-Pushpa, Oh

Pritivi! and bow to Thee."

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Then worship with the five offerrings. After that with, "Om! To one who stays in

Hema-Kuta, mountains and is the slayer of animal-bondages, who is supreme to all
supremes, the greatest of all Divinities and epitome of Hung-Kara. Om! Hraha! Astraya
Phut! " With this peruse the entire body of the buffalo.

With, "Om! Between columns as high as the skies, tie, tie this buffalo, Om! Phut!
Swaha! " The buffalo should be secured to a column.

Invoking Nava-Durga in a pot filled with water coloured with turmeric power,
she should be worshipped with all the five offerings, in this order:
I) "Om! Kaumaryai namaha."
2) "Om! Vaishnavyai namaha. "
3) " Om! Brahmanyai nanaha. "
4) "Om! Maheshwayai namaha. "
5) "Om! Chamundayai namaha."
6) "Om! Varahiyai namaha"
7) "Om! Indranyai nanaha. "
8) "Om! Ambikayai namaha. "
9) "Om! Kling! The remover of all sins of all the universes! The Brahma-source
incarnate! The supreme power! One of Supreme Beauty! nama ."

With the same water, the buffalo should be bathed. Then with the ending, "Om!
Mahishaya‘ nanaha," the buffalo should be worshipped by the five offerrings.
With, "Om! Aing-aing, hring-hring, shreeng, shreeng, hung, hung! I cleanse this buffalo

for the incarnation of the one who resides in the realm of Varuna (the god of oceans),

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the Chandika who has the appearence of a buffalo. Swaha! " the buffalo should be

cleansed.

Then the buffalo should be offerred a garment with the usual yuvasuvasa mantra,
and between the horns, sindur, alta, and pata-sutra ( a decorative thread), should be
offerred.

Holding a red garland, it should be put on the neck of the buffalo with: "Om! In
the battle of Mahishasura, you fought a bitter battle, taking forms at will. Hence, let
Chandika be propiciated by your sacrifice. Om! Oh fortunate Mahisha! You are known
to be the vehicle of Dharma. By your very nature, then, you should bestow pleasure,
food, wealth, and Jirama on us. Since you hate sin and are the carrier of Chandika, so
you should vanquish our enemies and bestow good fortune on us, Oh Lulayak! Oh!
Carrier of Yama! You are undestructible. You can take all forms at will. Oh Kasara! I
bow to you. Bestow long life, wealth and fame to us. Discarding this form (of the
Buffalo), take the form of Gandarva. On your forehead resides Siva, in your horns
resides the lover of Parvati, and you have been blessed with the affection of Durga for a
hundred years for sure." Then after bowing to the buffalo, in its difl’erent body parts,
Anga-Devata should be worshipped as follows:

On the top of the head (Brahma-Randhra), "Om! Brahamane namaha." On the nose,
"Om! Daminyai namaha. "

On the ears, "Om! Akashaya nanaha."

On the Toung, "Om! Sarva-Mukhaya namaha. "

On the eyes, " Om! Jyotirbhyang namaha. "

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On the mouth, "Om! V ishnave namaha. "

On the forehead, "Om! Chandramse nanaha."

On the right cheek, "Om! Shakraya namaha. "

On the left cheek, "Om! Vahni-Hridayaya namaha. "

On the throat, "Om! Soma- Vartine nama ."

On the front of the hair, "Om! Nairitaya namaha."

On the middle of the eye brows, "Om! Prachatase namaha."
On the root of the nose, "Om! Shwasanaya nanaha."

On the shoulders, "Om! Dhaneshwaraya namaha. "

In the heart, "Om! Sarpa-Rajaya namaha."

Then the tying cloumn should be worshipped with all the five offerrings, and then
the flower offerring be made with, "Om! Oh coloum! you are the symbol of Stthanu
(Siva). You were forrnely created by Bhrama. Therefore, I worship Thee today and tie
this animal to Thee. At your root, resides Brahma. In your midrift, is Vishnu. In the
top, is Rudra (Siva) himself. You be immovable. As immovable are the Meru and
Himalaya mountains, and the other mountains, so be Thou. All the Deva's, Yaksha’s,
Gandharva's, serpants, Rakshasa's seek to be near you. So you be immovable."

Then the tying rope (Pasha) should be worshipped with all five offerrings with
the ending, "Om! Pashaya namaha," and it should be bowed to with, "Om! Oh Pasha!
You were created by Varuna and are always devoted to Him. Therefore, I worship you
today. Bestow peace on us. You are the Witness—God. You are the vanquisher of all

enemies. You are respected by all beings. Bestow Pasha-Siddhi on us. "

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Then with kusha, til and water: "I offer this Mahisha to Yama for our

prosperity, progeny etc, and to propiciate the Goddess Durga along with all her families
and retinues."

With flower offerring, "Om! Through performance of puja and havan, you were
born in the family of Asura's. May the Devi be propiciated by your meat and blood.
Vanquish my enemies. Fullfill our desires. Bestow progress on us. Allay, allay our
- sufferrings, all sins and evil-mindedness. May your sacrifice with reverance in this
worship, make us attain sucess in all yagya and vrata."

Then in the ear of the buffalo, say, "I may be aware of this animal-bondage; may
wisdom lead in our worldly pursuits. Oh Mahisha! So guide us. Om! Hring! Shring!
This Bali in the form of all the Brahmanda, please accept, Swaha! " Thus mentally
offereing the Bali to Devi, the khadga should be worshipped as in the Goat sacrifice.

Then touching the khadga to the throat of the buffalo, read, "Om! Aing-Shring!
Offer the supreme liberation to this Mahish; accept, accept this! Swaha! "

The rest should be done as in the goat sacrifice.

21. HAVAN, PROCESS

The kunda (bit of offerring) should be surronded on all four sides with kusha, and

it should be purified with cow-dung. In a bronz pot, amber should be placed, and

worshipped with all five offerrings, and prayer be offered as, "Om! Oh Jagat-Dhatri! Oh

 

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Mahamaya! Slayer of all enemies! Oh Mother! Oh Maheshwari! Accept our Havan

offerrings. "

Then with samidha (dry twigs with ghee, etc), offerrings in the fire should be
made with these three mantras:
l) "Om! Bhuh swaha; Idan bhuh."
2) "Om! Bhuvah swaha; Idan bhuvah. "
3) "Om! Shwah swaha; [dam Swah."

With ghee, honey, milk, and soaked til:
1) "Om! Durga, Durga! Rakshini, Rakshini! Swaha. "
2) "Om! Hring! Daksha- Yagya-vinashinyai, Maha-Ghorayai, Yogini-Koti-Parivritayai,
Hring! Bhadra-Kalyai namaha, swaha. "
3) "Om! Ambe, Ambike, Ambalika. Nananayati kushchanah, sasastyaha swakah,
subhadrikam, kampeela Vasineem. "
4) "Om! Jayanti Mangala Kali. Bhadra Kali Kapalini. Durga Kshama Shiva Dhatri.
SwaJia swaha nanstu te. "

Or, one should do 108 offerrings with, "Om! Aing Hring-Cling! Chanundai
vichai. "

Then purna-huti (final offerrings) should be made with the usual mantra having
the ending as in 1) above.

Finally, with trayayusha mantra, the bhasma (ashes) should be dotted on the

forehead, neck, shoulders and chest

 

288

21. EVENING PUJA: 9th DAY

After the usual puja, stustis of Durga (songs of praise) should be recited and arti,

bhajan, dance and festivities should proceed.

22. PUJA: 10th DAY

No bali is offerred on this day. After bowing to the Image with different stotras
like Jayanti-Mangala etc. and taking out the Jayanti shoots (planted on the 1st day)
from its tray, the following prayer should be offerred: "Om! Oh slayer of Mahisha! Oh
Mahamaya! Oh Chamunda! Oh Munda-Malini! Oh Devi! I bow to Thee. Bestow on us
wealth, freedom from ailments, victory, good appearance, good fortune, dhanna,
prosperity and fulfillment of all desires."

After offerring kum-kum etc, and reciting Sarva-Mangalya and other stotras,
one should beseach pardon for short-comings as follows: "Om! Oh Maheshwari!
Whatever we have offerred in worship, eventhough falling short in proper proceedings,
in proper enacting, and in proper reverence, may we yet bear desirable fruits by your
grace. Even the divinities like Brahma etc. cannot perform your puja to perfection.

Then what can I, being a mere mortal with little brain-power, do in this respect. I do not

 

2 8 9
know your form, nor your body, nor all your attributes. There is only one thing I am

aware of and that is my reverence to your lotus-like feet. In deference to that reverence
of mine, kindly accept these offerrings of mine in the sharat season's puja, and go to
your own place as you may please, bestowing on us lots of favours."

Then one flower should be offerred in the north-east direction with: "Om! I bow
to Chandeshwari. I bow to Nirmalya-Vasini."

Then holding the two feet of the Image and bowing, "Om! Kali, Kali, Maha-Kali!
Kalika! Destroyer of all sins! Kali-Karali! Nishkranta-Kalika! Accept my prostrations.
Oh! Rider of lion! Oh Chanmunde! Oh Beloved of the carrier of the bow called Pinaka!
Accept our offerrings and be pleased on us, Oh Queen of all Divinities! On Devi
Chamunda! Rise after accepting our auspicious offerrings. Proptect our welfare, along
with your 8 Shakti's! Proceed to your supreme abode, Oh Devi Chandika! May our
puja be firlfilled. Go after bestowing wealth, welfare, victory, destruction of our
enemies, and come back to us again. Proceed to the water of the river, yet stay in our
home in spirit. Assuredely, come again next year (for our puja). Om! May all the deva's
go to their respective abodes, after bestowing desired blessings on us. Oh Parameshani!
You go as you please along with your retinues. Om! Hring! Oh Druga Devi! You have
been worshipped by us, along with your weapons, followers and retainers. Be pleased,
forgive our short-comings, and go to your abode. "

Then Bisarjara (farewell) should be done to all the rest of the worshipped

divinites.

2 9 0
Afterwards, the Image should be lifted with, "Om! Hring! Chanunde! Chal-

C hal, Chalaya—Chalaya! H ung—Phut-Swaha! "

Then, accompanied with music, dance and festivities, the Image should be
brought to the river and with, "Om! Durga! Durga! Mother of the Worlds! Having been
worshipped, proceed to your destination. Come back to us again after one year. Taking
with you our offerring in this puja, offerred to the best of our capicity, please proceed to
your supreme abode, after bestowing all protections to us."

The Image should be immersed. Likewise, the images of the rest of the gods and
goddesses should also be immersed.

Then coming bact to the puja place, Dakshina is to be offerred to brahmins and

shanti kalash water should be sprinkled around with the relevant mantras.

23. APARAJITI, PUJA PROCESS

After sankalpa to do this puja, in a flat tray, an 8 patelled lotus should be made
with sandle-paste. On it, an aparajita (a kind of flower-creeper) branch should be
placed along with grass shoots, and tumerick roots. In the middle of the lotus, aparajita
should be invoked. Then flower ofi’errings should be made with, "Om! Having four
aims, yellow garments, decorated with all kinds of ornaments, having a fair complexion
of pure quarzt, soothing like crores of moons, with hands in the postrue of bestowing

freedom from fear and of bestowing all blessings, coverred with decorative, yellow

291

coloured clothes, possessing many decorative paraphemalias, surrounded by frolicking
skylarks, to such an Aparijita-Devi! I bow and offer these dhyana flowers."

Then she should be worshipped with all the five offerings. After that the
following should be similarly worshipped with the ending:

1) Kriya, "Om! Kriyayai namaha. "
2) Uma, "Om! Umayai namaha. "

3) J aya, "Om! Jayayai namaha. "

4) Vijaya, "Om! Vijayayai namaha."

Then the aparijita branch should be invoked as follows: "Om! Oh Aparajita!
You are renowned as the best of creepers and bestower of all the Kana and Artha.
Therefore, I wear you on myself. Oh Devi Aparajita! Be the source of all prosperity to
me. By worshipping you, may I be favored with all greatness and may all my sins be
washed away."

Then it should be wrapped on the right hand, with, "Om! Oh Devi! Bestower of
victory! Bestower of blessings! On this 10th puja day, I am wearing you on myself. I am
putting you on my right and for continious victory in my prusuits in life."

Then, as family rituals may require, the different weapones may be worshipped.

Finally, holding a sword in hand, Pradakshina should be done and bowing to the
goddess, the following should be recited, "Om! Oh Maha-Devi! This puja has been
offerred to the best of our ability. Accept this and go to your supream abode at will,

bestowing upon us all kinds of protection."

292

(The above text is fiom Varsha Krirya, by Pundit Ramachandra Jha,
Chaukhambha Vidya Bhawan, Varnasi, India, 1982. Translation by Dr. Indranand

Sinha)

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Anderson, B.
1 972

Baal, J. Van
1971

Babb, Lawrence A.
1970
1975

Brooks, Douglas R.
1 990

Brown, C. Mackenzie

l 990

Coburn, Thoman B.
l 99 1

Daniel, E. Valentine
1 984

Dews, Peter
1987

Dumont, Louis
1 970

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