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THE LIFE STORY OF A JAINA let all these be yours without hindrance.' No man older than the husband is allowed to be present at this ceremony, and it is considered better for the husband not to be in the house at the time of any of these functions. The father and mother of the girl feast all their relatives at this time; and from now on the expectant mother is not allowed to do any drudgery or hard work about the house.
A very important ceremony takes place on some auspici- Simanta ous day in the seventh month. The bride's mother sends Whole special clothes for the occasion, and the bridegroom's bharavo. relatives also give presents, including three pounds of rice. The expectant mother fetches Seven water-pots, and then goes and worships the gotrija. Then the auspicious direction for that particular day being settled, she is taken to a room facing that quarter and there bathed, whilst she sings and is fed on sweetmeats. A little boy is also brought into the room and seated beside her whilst she bathes, and is afterwards presented with a rupee by the bride's parents. The girl's own mother, or her representative, comes into the room whilst she bathes, and parts the young wife's hair; she is then dressed in the special clothes sent by her parents, her hands and feet being coloured red. A rich picce of cloth is spread outside the bathing-room, and on this the girl steps very slowly and majestically, bearing a cocoa-nut in her hands. For every step her father will have to give a present to the ubiquitous husband's sister, but the gifts progressively decrease in value, for whereas the first step will cost her father a rupee, the next will be valued at only cight annas, the third at four, and so on. When the edge of the carpet is reached, the husband's relatives offer the wife one rupee and throw over her balls of ashes and rice.
She then sits on a stool near the family goddess, and some milk is poured out on to a plate, which she drinks; the two
