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48
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
adăd (lentils), lapsi, tadänt and other some places people engage the services of dishes, and offer them to the local gods for magicians to restrain the fall of rain. their propitiation,
Farmers sometimes brand the rain by casting To stop an incessant fall of rain, people burning sparks upon it in order to stop an often observe the Aladrā vow. The patel or incessant fall. Vows in honour of samudra headman issues a proclamation that on a par- (the occan) are also observed with the same ticular day none should cook, or churn whey, object, or fetch water, or wash clothes, or attend to In the changing circumstances of life, any of the multifarious household duties : women more readily have recourse to relibut that all should pass the day in prayer. gious vows for the fulfilment of their wishes A complete cessation from toil in favour of than men. This fondness of women for earnest devotion to divine powers are the vows has brought into vogue a number of peculiar features of this vow, People do vrats or religious observances which are pot abstain from food: but food must be practised by women only. Gangigor or prepared on the previous day. If the rains Ganügor, Vat-Savitri Molākat, Goutrāt, do not cease in spite of this vow, but threaten Alavana or Alunda, Eva-vrat, Tulsi vrat the village with inundation, the headman leads Uma masheshwar-urat, and Surya-vrat are a procession to the confines of the village instances of such vows, The Molākat-erat and makes an offering to the waters,
is observed by virgins from the eleventh to In some places a spinning wheel, some- the fifteenth day of the bright half of times specially constructed of human bones, Ashadh.16 The Goutrāt-vrat is believed to is turned by a naked person in the reverse secure male progeny, as well as long life to direction to the usual one, with the object the husband. It is observed on the fourth of causing the cessation of immoderate day of the dark half of Shravana on which rainfall.
day women fast till the evening, and then A cessation of rains is also believed to be take food after worshipping a cow." The brought about by offering an oblation to the object of the Eva-urat (or Jiva vrat) is to god Kasatia, and by the observance of the secure eternal exemption from widowhood, vow called Kasatia ganth (or tying the knot the day for this vow being the last day of ot' Kasatia). The vow lasts for three weeks, Ashādh. It is then necessary to observe a and those who observe it do not partake of fast till the evening; and the only food anything except rice (or, according to allowed is a preparation of wheat, taken at others, jiran, a kind of spice").
nightfall, Some persons attribute a heavy fall of On the fourth day of the dark half of rain to the wrath of Indra, and offer ceremo- Skrävan, women observe & urat called Bol nious prayers to appease that god. In choth. In the morning the woman worships
1 K, D. Desai.
M. M. Rana, Rajkot. • The Deputy Educational Inspector of Gobielwad.
• D, K. Pandya, Dhhank. • The Shastri of Jetpur, Pathashali and the Schoolmaster of Vanod.
• The Schoolmaster of Mota Dewalia According to him, the same vow is also observed to bring about a rainfall. 1 The Schoolmaster of Ganod.
• The Schoolmaster of Vanod. • The Shastri of Jetpur Pithashili.
10 The Schoolmaster of Jodia. 11 The Schoolmaster of Zinzuwada.
11 The Schoolmaster of Mendarda. • Coarse wheat flour fried in ghi and sweetened with sugar or molasses.
Bean-flour, generally of gram or pons, is allowed to remain in water with spices, until the paste acquires a sufficient degree of consistency, when it is rolled into small biscuit-sized balls and fried in sweet oil.
