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86
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
her mouth when she is asleep. The only means to guard against her witchcraft is to remain on friendly terms with her, and not to hurt her feelings on any occasion. People generally keep a watch over the actions of a woman who is suspected to be a witch, and if she is found practising her black art, and is caught redhanded, people then pour into her mouth water brought from the shoe-maker's earthen pot or kundi. It is believed that, when she is compelled to drink such water, her black art becomes
ineffective.1
In the Thana District it is believed that the skin round the eyes of a witch is always black, her eyes have an intoxicated appearance, her nails are generally parched and have a darkish colour, and the lower portions of her feet seem to be scraped. When any sorcerer gives out the name of such a Bhutáli, she is threatened by the people that, should she continue to give trouble in the village, her own black art or another spirit would be set against her; and she then ceases to give trouble.*
There are some sorcerers in the Thána District who can move a small brass cup or váti by the
1 School Master, Khopoli, Kolába, School Master, Padghe, Thána.
power of their magic. They can detect a witch by the movement of this vessel. When the brass vessel or váti reaches the house of a witch, it at once settles upon the witch's head. She is then threatened by the people that she will be driven out of the village if found practising her black art.3
In the Kolhapur District, when the people come to know of the existence of a witch in their village, they take special precautions at the time of harvest. They arrange to harvest a different kind of grain to the one selected for harvesting by the witch. After some time they go to the field of the witch, and discover whether there is a mixture of grain in her field. If they are convinced of the fact, they take further precautions. In order to avoid being troubled by the chetak, they keep an old, worn out shoe or sandal and a charmed copper amulet under the eaves at the main door of their houses, or make crosses with marking nut on both sides of a door. At some places chunam spots or circles are marked on the front of a house, the object being to guard against the evil effects of the chetak's tricks.
* School Master, Rái, Thána. 4 Ráo Saheb Shelke, Kolhapur.
