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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
The people of Poladpur in the Kolába the fourth within one month, and those caused District believe in dreams, and when some of at daybreak are realized iminediately. their deities appear in dreams and give them At Kolhápur, dreams are believed to be advice or directions, they are careful to follow
caused through some mentai derangement or them. Sometimes even evil spirits appear in bodily disorder. It is customary to derive dreams, and advise the people to do certain omens from dreams, but their nature greatly
omens from dreams. but their things to avert calamitics. People who have depends upon the diffrent times at which faith in such spirits act according to their
these dreanis occur. The dreams caused in wishes, and if they fail to do so, trouble
the latter part of the night, i.e., just before is sure to follow.1
daybreak, are believed to come true. The people of Khopoli in the Kolába
At Ubhádánda in the Vengurla taluka it is District believe that if a person sees in a
believed that the soul of a person leaves the dream the dead body of a near relative, it
body temporarily during his sleep; hence it indicates that the person whose corpse was
is said that no changes or marks of colour, etc., seen in the dream will live long.?
should be made on the body of a person during At Birwadi in the Kolaba District it is
sleep, because it is believed that, while believed that if a person soes a snake in a
returning, the soul identifies the body, and if dream, a son will be born to lim; if he sees a
it is satisfied with the marks of the body it hell, le is sure to get wealth. If he sees gold,
enters it; otherwise it might not return.8 it is a sure sign of losing wealth. Again, if a
At Adivare it is believed that only Hindu person sees himself taking bis nieals in a dreain,
saints and ascetics, after deep and devout it indicates that his death is nigb at hand.
ineditation, are capable of removing the soul At Málad in the Thána District, omens are
from the body. It is believed that í heir souls derived from dreams. In case of bad dreams
go to heaven during that period and return at the god Vishnu is remembered, and the gods
pleasure. At present there are no such sádkus Shankar and Maruti are also worshipped.
in the district. At Belápur, wood, cow dung cakes and
Many Hindus in the Ratnagiri District turbid water, if seen in dreams, foretell
believe that the soul goes to drink water at calamities. White clothes, beautiful flowers,
night, and therefore keer a pot filled with and food containing sweetmeat are considered
water at their sleeping place.10 auspicious.
The people of Chaul in the Kolába District At Murbád in the Thána District it is
do not consider it possible ordinarily for the believed that all black things, and white things
soul to leave the body, but they state that the such as ashes, are inauspicious when seen
Swami of Alandi, who died in or about the year in dreams, but a black cow, white flowers, and pearls are auspicious. Considering the
1886, used to remove his soul from the body four parts of the night, the dreams that occur
by means of Yoga,11 in the first part prove effective within one
At Kolbápur, it is believed that the soul year, that of the second part within six months, leaves the body temporarily at night when a that of the third within three months, and of person is asleep. 12
1 School Master, Poládpur, Kolába. 3 School Master, Birwadi, Kolába. 5 School Master, Belápar, Thána. 7 Rao Saheb Shelke, Kolbápur. 9 School Master, Adivare, Ratnagiri. 11 School Master, Chaul, Kolába.
2 School Master, Khopoli, Kolába. • School Master, Málad, Thána. 6 School Master, Bhuwan, Murbad, Thána. & School Master, Ubhádanda, Ratnagiri. 10 School Master, Kalebe, Ratnagiri. * Ráo Sábeb Shelle,
