Indian Antiquary Vol 46

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 349

THE FOLKLORE OF GUJARAT
NATURE POWERS
CHAPTER I
DESIDES the higher-grade deities, whose D worship is enjoined and treated of in the Slästras and Puranas, numerous other minor deities, none of whom however find a place in the Scriptures, are worshipped Hy the lower classes. The principle underlying the whole fabric of the worship of these minor deities, who for the most part are the spirits of dead ancestors or herocs, has more in it of fear for their power of harming than of Inve for their divine nature. All untoward occurrences in domestic affairs, all bodily ailments and unusual natural phenomena, inexplicable to the simple mind of the villager are attributed to the malignant action of these nameless and numerous spirits, hovering over and haunting the habitations of men, The latent dread of receiving injuries from these evil spirits results in the worship by the low. class people of a number of deras and mätās, as they are called. The poor villager, sur
ounded on all sides by hosts of hovering spirits, ready to take offence, or even to possess him, on the smallest pretext, requires some tangible protector to save him from such malign influences. He sets up and enshrines the spirit that he believes to have been beneficent to him, and so deserving of worship, and makes vows in its honour, often becoming himself the officiating priest. Each such deity has its own particular thanak (sthana) or locality. Thus there is hardly a village which has not a particular deity of its own. But in addition to this deity, others in far off villages are generally held in high esteem.
There are a number of ways in which these lower-class deities can be installed. Their images are made either of wood, stone, or metal.' No temples or shrincs are erected in their honour. An ordinary way of representing them is by drawing a trident, (triskül, a weapon peculiar to god Shiva) in red lead and oil on an upright slab of stone on a public road, on any dead wall, on the confines of a village, or a mountain side, or a hill top, in an underground cellar, or on the bank of a stream. Some people paint tridents in their own houses. The trishül, or trident, may also be made of wood, in which case its three points are plastered with redlead and oil and covered with a thin coating of tin. Sometimes carved wooden images in human shape, daubed over with red-lead and oil, are placed in a small wooden chariot or in a recess about a foot square. In soine shrines two brooms or whisks of peacock's feathers are placed on either side of the image. A slight difficulty overcome or a. disease remedied by a row in honour of any of these deities offers the occasion for an installation, and in all future emergencies of the same kind similar vows are observed. A mäta installed to protect a fortress or a street is called a Gadheri Mätä, and the worshippers of a fortress, or street, mother are known as Pothias. At the time of installation flags are hoisted near the dedicated places, A troop of dancers with jingling anklets recite holy verses, while the bhura, exorcistpriest, performs the ceremonies. Generally installations are frequent during the
1 Khan Bahadur Fazlullah and Mr. K, D, Desai.
The Deputy Educational Inspector, Gohelwad.
The Deputy Educational Inspector, Gobelwad. ? Mr. K. P. Joshi, Schoolmaster, Limbdi.
Mr. D. K. Pandya, Schoolmaster, Dhank. • Mr. N. D. Vora. Schoolmaster, Rajpan, - 3r, M. D. Vyas, Shastri, Bhagavadur.