The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India Volume IV of IV

R >> R.V. Russell >> The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India Volume IV of IV

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8. Hunting with leopards

The manner in which the Chita Pardhis use the hunting leopard (_Felis
jubata_) for catching deer has often been described. [413] The leopard
is caught full-grown by a noose in the manner related above. Its neck
is first clasped in a wooden vice until it is half-strangled, and its
feet are then bound with ropes and a cap slipped over its head. It is
partially starved for a time, and being always fed by the same man,
after a month or so it becomes tame and learns to know its master. It
is then led through villages held by ropes on each side to accustom
it to the presence of human beings. On a hunting party the leopard is
carried on a cart, hooded, and, being approached from down wind, the
deer allow the cart to get fairly close to them. The Indian antelope or
black-buck are the usual quarry, and as these frequent cultivated land,
they regard country carts without suspicion. The hood is then taken off
and the leopard springs forward at the game with extreme velocity,
perhaps exceeding that which any other quadruped possesses. The
accounts given by Jerdon say that for the moment its speed is greater
than that of a race-horse. It cannot maintain this for more than three
or four hundred yards, however, and if in that distance the animal has
not seized its prey, it relinquishes the pursuit and stalks about in
a towering passion. The Pardhis say that when it misses the game the
leopard is as sulky as a human being and sometimes refuses food for a
couple of days. If successful in the pursuit, it seizes the antelope
by the throat; the keeper then comes up, and cutting the animal's
throat collects some of the blood in the wooden ladle with which the
leopard is always fed; this is offered to him, and dropping his hold
he laps it up eagerly, when the hood is cleverly slipped on again.

The conducting of the cheetah from its cage to the chase is by no means
an easy matter. The keeper leads him along, as he would a large dog,
with a chain; and for a time as they scamper over the country the
leopard goes willingly enough; but if anything arrests his attention,
some noise from the forest, some scented trail upon the ground, he
moves more slowly, throws his head aloft and peers savagely round. A
few more minutes perhaps and he would be unmanageable. The keeper,
however, is prepared for the emergency. He holds in his left hand a
cocoanut shell, sprinkled on the inside with salt; and by means of a
handle affixed to the shell he puts it at once over the nose of the
cheetah. The animal licks the salt, loses the scent, forgets the object
which arrested his attention, and is led quietly along again. [414]

9. Decoy stags

For hunting stags, tame stags were formerly used as decoys according
to the method described as follows: "We had about a dozen trained
stags, all males, with us. These, well acquainted with the object
for which they were sent forward, advanced at a gentle trot over
the open ground towards the skirt of the wood. They were observed
at once by the watchers of the herd, and the boldest of the wild
animals advanced to meet them. Whether the intention was to welcome
them peacefully or to do battle for their pasturage I cannot tell;
but in a few minutes the two parties were engaged in a furious
contest. Head to head, antlers to antlers, the tame deer and the
wild fought with great fury. Each of the tame animals, every one
of them large and formidable, was closely engaged in contest with a
wild adversary, standing chiefly on the defensive, not in any feigned
battle or mimicry of war but in a hard-fought combat. We now made our
appearance in the open ground on horseback, advancing towards the
scene of conflict. The deer on the skirts of the wood, seeing us,
took to flight; but those actually engaged maintained their ground
and continued the contest. In the meantime a party of native huntsmen,
sent for the purpose, gradually drew near to the wild stags, getting
in between them and the forest. What their object was we were not at
the time aware; in truth it was not one that we could have approved
or encouraged. They made their way into the rear of the wild stags,
which were still combating too fiercely to mind them; they approached
the animals, and with a skilful cut of their long knives the poor
warriors fell hamstrung. We felt pity for the noble animals as we
saw them fall helplessly on the ground, unable longer to continue
the contest and pushed down of course by the decoy-stags. Once down,
they were unable to rise again." [415]

10. Hawks

Hawks were also used in a very ingenious fashion to prevent duck from
flying away when put upon water: "The trained hawks were now brought
into requisition, and marvellous it was to see the instinct with which
they seconded the efforts of their trainers. The ordinary hawking of
the heron we had at a later period of this expedition; but the use now
made of the animal was altogether different, and displayed infinitely
more sagacity than one would suppose likely to be possessed by such
an animal. These were trained especially for the purpose for which
they were now employed. A flight of ducks--thousands of birds--were
enticed upon the water as before by scattering corn over it. The
hawks were then let fly, four or five of them. We made our appearance
openly upon the bank, guns in hand, and the living swarm of birds
rose at once into the air. The hawks circled above them, however,
in a rapid revolving flight and they dared not ascend high. Thus was
our prey retained fluttering in mid-air, until hundreds had paid the
penalty with their lives. Only picture in your mind's eye the circling
hawks above gyrating monotonously, the fluttering captives in mid-air,
darting now here, now there to escape, and still coward-like huddling
together; and the motley group of sportsmen on the bank and you have
the whole scene before you at once." [416]

11. Crocodile fishing

For catching crocodile, a method by which as already stated one group
of the Pardhis earn their livelihood, a large double hook is used,
baited with a piece of putrid deer's flesh and attached to a hempen
rope 70 or 80 feet long. When the crocodile has swallowed the hook,
twenty or thirty persons drag the animal out of the water and it
is despatched with axes. Crocodiles are hunted only in the months
of Pus (December), Magh (January) and Chait (March), when they are
generally fat and yield plenty of oil. The flesh is cut into pieces
and stewed over a slow fire, when it exudes a watery oil. This is
strained and sold in bottles at a rupee a seer (2 lbs.). It is used
as an embrocation for rheumatism and for neck galls of cattle. The
Pardhis do not eat crocodile's flesh.

12. Other occupations and criminal practices

A body of Pardhis are sometimes employed by all the cultivators of a
village jointly for the purpose of watching the spring crops during
the day and keeping black-buck out of them. They do this perhaps
for two or three months and receive a fixed quantity of grain. The
Takankars are regularly employed as village servants in Berar and
travel about roughening the stones of the household grinding-mills
when their surfaces have worn smooth. For this they receive an annual
contribution of grain from each household. The caste generally have
criminal tendencies and Mr. Sewell states, that "The Langoti Pardhis
and Takankars are the worst offenders. Ordinarily when committing
dacoity they are armed with sticks and stones only. In digging through
a wall they generally leave a thin strip at which the leader carefully
listens before finally bursting through. Then when the hole has been
made large enough, he strikes a match and holding it in front of him
so that his features are shielded has a good survey of the room before
entering.... As a rule, they do not divide the property on or near
the scene of the crime, but take it home. Generally it is carried by
one of the gang well behind the rest so as to enable it to be hidden
if the party is challenged." In Bombay they openly rob the standing
crops, and the landlords stand in such awe of them that they secure
their goodwill by submitting to a regular system of blackmail. [417]

Parja

List of Paragraphs

1. _General notice of the tribe_.
2. _Exogamous septs_.
3. _Kinship and marriage_.
4. _Marriage dance_.
5. _Nuptial ceremony_.
6. _Widow-marriage and divorce_.
7. _Religion and festivals_.
8. _Disposal of the dead_.
9. _Occupation and social customs_.

1. General notice of the tribe

_Parja._--A small tribe, [418] originally an offshoot of the Gonds,
who reside in the centre and east of the Bastar State and the adjoining
Jaipur zamindari of Madras. They number about 13,000 persons in the
Central Provinces and 92,000 in Madras, where they are also known as
Poroja. The name Parja appears to be derived from the Sanskrit Parja,
a subject. The following notice of it is taken from the _Madras
Census Report_ [419] of 1871: "The term Parja is, as Mr. Carmichael
has pointed out, merely a corruption of a Sanskrit term signifying
a subject; and it is understood as such by the people themselves,
who use it in contradistinction to a free hillman. Formerly, says a
tradition that runs through the whole tribe, Rajas and Parjas were
brothers, but the Rajas took to riding horses or, as the Barenja
Parjas put it, sitting still, and we became carriers of burdens and
Parjas. It is quite certain in fact that the term Parja is not a tribal
denomination, but a class denomination; and it may be fitly rendered
by the familiar epithet of ryot. There is no doubt, however, that by
far the greater number of these Parjas are akin to the Khonds of the
Ganjam Maliahs. They are thrifty, hardworking cultivators, undisturbed
by the intestinal broils which their cousins in the north engage in,
and they bear in their breasts an inalienable reverence for their soil,
the value of which they are rapidly becoming acquainted with. Their
ancient rights to these lands are acknowledged by colonists from among
the Aryans, and when a dispute arises about the boundaries of a field
possessed by recent arrivals a Parja is usually called in to point out
the ancient landmarks. Gadbas are also represented as indigenous from
the long lapse of years that they have been in the country, but they
are by no means of the patriarchal type that characterises the Parjas."

In Bastar the caste are also known as Dhurwa, which may be derived
from Dhur, the name applied to the body of Gonds as opposed to the
Raj-Gonds. In Bastar, Dhurwa now conveys the sense of a headman of a
village. The tribe have three divisions, Thakara or Tagara, Peng and
Mudara, of which only the first is found in Bastar. Thakara appears
to be a corruption of Thakur, a lord, and the two names point to the
conclusion that the Parjas were formerly dominant in this tract. They
themselves have a story, somewhat resembling the one quoted above
from Madras, to the effect that their ancestor was the elder brother
of the first Raja of Bastar when he lived in Madras, to the south
of Warangal. From there he had to flee on account of an invasion of
the Muhammadans, and was accompanied by the goddess Danteshwari,
the tutelary deity of the Rajas of Bastar. In accordance with the
command of the goddess the younger brother was considered as the
Raja and rode on a horse, while the elder went before him carrying
their baggage. At Bhadrachallam they met the Bhatras, and further
on the Halbas. The goddess followed them, guiding their steps, but
she strictly enjoined on the Raja not to look behind him so as to
see her. But when they came to the sands of the rivers Sankani and
Dankani, the tinkle of the anklets of the goddess could not be heard
for the sand. The Raja therefore looked behind him to see if she was
following, on which she said that she could go no more with him,
but he was to march as far as he could and then settle down. The
two brothers settled in Bastar, where the descendants of the younger
became the ruling clan, and those of the elder were their servants, the
Parjas. The story indicates, perhaps, that the Parjas were the original
Gond inhabitants and rulers of the country, and were supplanted by a
later immigration of the same tribe, who reduced them to subjection,
and became Raj-Gonds. Possibly the first transfer of power was effected
by the marriage of an immigrant into a Parja Raja's family, as so often
happened with these old dynasties. The Parjas still talk about the Rani
of Bastar as their _Bohu_ or 'younger brother's wife,' and the custom
is probably based on some such legend. The Madras account of them
as the arbiters of boundary disputes points to the same conclusion,
as this function is invariably assigned to the oldest residents in
any locality. The Parjas appear to be Gonds and not Khonds. Their
sept names are Gondi words, and their language is a form of Gondi,
called after them Parji. Parji has hitherto been considered a form
of Bhatri, but Sir G. Grierson [420] has now classified the latter
as a dialect of the Uriya language, while Parji remains 'A local
and very corrupt variation of Gondi, considerably mixed with Hindi
forms.' While then the Parjas, in Bastar at any rate, must be held
to be a branch of the Gonds, they may have a considerable admixture
of the Khonds, or other tribes in different localities, as the rules
of marriage are very loose in this part of the country. [421]

2. Exogamous septs

The tribe have exogamous totemistic septs, as Bagh a tiger, Kachhim a
tortoise, Bokda a goat, Netam a dog, Gohi a big lizard, Pandki a dove
and so on. If a man kills accidentally the animal after which his sept
is named, the earthen cooking-pots of his household are thrown away,
the clothes are washed, and the house is purified with water in which
the bark of the mango or _jamun_ [422] tree has been steeped. This
is in sign of mourning, as it is thought that such an act will bring
misfortune. If a man of the snake sept kills a snake accidentally,
he places a piece of new yarn on his head, praying for forgiveness,
and deposits the body on an anthill, where snakes are supposed to
live. If a man of the goat sept eats goat's flesh, it is thought that
he will become blind at once. A Parja will not touch the body of his
totem-animal when dead, and if he sees any one killing or teasing it
when alive, he will go away out of sight. It is said that a man of the
Kachhim sept once found a tortoise while on a journey, and leaving it
undisturbed, passed on. When the tortoise died it was reborn in the
man's belly and troubled him greatly, and since then every Parja is
liable to be afflicted in the same way in the side of the abdomen,
the disease which is produced being in fact enlarged spleen. The
tortoise told the man that as he had left it lying by the road, and
had not devoted it to any useful purpose, he was afflicted in this
way. Consequently, when a man of the Kachhim sept finds a tortoise
nowadays, he gives it to somebody else who can cut it up. The story
is interesting as a legend of the origin of spleen, but has apparently
been invented as an excuse for killing the sacred animal.

3. Kinship and marriage

Marriage is prohibited in theory between members of the same sept. But
as the number of septs is rather small, the rule is not adhered to,
and members of the same sept are permitted to marry so long as they
do not come from the same village; the original rule of exogamy being
perhaps thus exemplified. The proposal for a match is made by the
boy's father, who first offers a cup of liquor to the girl's father
in the bazar, and subsequently explains his errand. If the girl's
father, after consulting with his family, disapproves of the match,
he returns an equal quantity of liquor to the boy's father in token
of his decision. The girl is usually consulted, and asked if she
would like to marry her suitor, but not much regard is had to her
opinion. If she dislikes him, however, she usually runs away from him
after a short interlude of married life. If a girl becomes pregnant
with a caste-fellow before marriage, he is required to take her,
and give to the family the presents which he would make to them on
a regular marriage. The man can subsequently be properly married to
some other woman, but the girl cannot be married at all. If a girl
is seduced by a man outside the caste, she is made over to him. It
is essential for a man to be properly married at least once, and an
old bachelor will sometimes go through the form of being wedded to
his maternal uncle's daughter, even though she may be an infant. If
no proposal for marriage is made for a girl, she is sometimes handed
over informally to any man who likes to take her, and who is willing
to give as much for her as the parents would receive for a regular
marriage. A short time before the wedding, the boy's father sends a
considerable quantity of rice to the girl's father, and on the day
before he sends a calf, a pot of liquor, fifteen annas worth of copper
coin, and a new cloth. The bridegroom's expenses are about Rs. 50,
and the bride's about Rs. 10.

4. Marriage dance

At weddings the tribe have a dance called Surcha, for which the men
wear a particular dress consisting of a long coat, a turban and two
or three scarves thrown loosely over the shoulders. Strings of little
bells are tied about the feet, and garlands of beads round the neck;
sometimes men and women dance separately, and sometimes both sexes
together in a long line or a circle. Music is provided by bamboo
flutes, drums and an iron instrument something like a flute. As they
dance, songs are sung in the form of question and answer between the
lines of men and women, usually of a somewhat indecent character. The
following short specimen may be given:--

_Man_. If you are willing to go with me we will both follow the
officer's elephant. If I go back without you my heart can have no rest.

_Woman_. Who dare take me away from my husband while the Company
is reigning. My husband will beat me and who will pay him the
compensation?

_Man_. You had better make up your mind to go with me. I will ask the
Treasurer for some money and pay it to your husband as compensation.

_Woman_. Very well, I will make ready some food, and will run away
with you in the next bright fortnight.

These dialogues often, it is said, lead to quarrels between husband and
wife, as the husband cannot rebuke his wife in the assembly. Sometimes
the women fall in love with men in the dance, and afterwards run away
with them.

5. Nuptial ceremony

The marriage takes place at the boy's house, where two marriage-sheds
are made. It is noticeable that the bride on going to the bridegroom's
house to be married is accompanied only by her female relatives,
no man of her family being allowed to be with her. This is probably
a reminiscence of the old custom of marriage by capture, as in
former times she was carried off by force, the opposition of her
male relatives having been quelled. In memory of this the men still
do not countenance the wedding procession by their presence. The
bridal couple are made to sit down together on a mat, and from three
to seven pots of cold water are poured over them. About a week after
the wedding the couple go to a market with their friends, and after
walking round it they all sit down and drink liquor.

6. Widow-marriage and divorce

The remarriage of widows is permitted, and a widow is practically
compelled to marry her late husband's younger brother, if he has
one. If she persistently refuses to do so, in spite of the strongest
pressure, her parents turn her out of their house. In order to be
married the woman goes to the man's house with some friends; they
sit together on the ground, and the friends apply the _tika_ or sign
by touching their foreheads with dry rice. A man can divorce his
wife if she is of bad character, or if she is supposed to be under
an unfavourable star, or if her children die in infancy. A divorced
woman can marry again as if she were a widow.

7. Religion and festivals

The Parjas worship the class of divinities of the hills and forests
usually revered among primitive tribes, as well as Danteshwari,
the tutelary goddess of Bastar. On the day that sowing begins they
offer a fowl to the field, first placing some grains of rice before
it. If the fowl eats the rice they prognosticate a good harvest,
and if not the reverse. A few members of the tribe belong to the
Ramanandi sect, and on this account a little extra attention is paid
to them. If such a one is invited to a feast he is given a wooden
seat, while others sit on the ground. It is said that a few years
ago a man became a Kabirpanthi, but he subsequently went blind and
his son died, and since this event the sect is absolutely without
adherents. Most villages have a Sirha or man who is possessed by
the deity, and his advice is taken in religious matters, such as
the detection of witches. Another official is called Medha Gantia or
'The Counter of posts.' He appoints the days for weddings, calculating
them by counting on his fingers, and also fixes auspicious days for
the construction of a house or for the commencement of sowing. It is
probable that in former times he kept count of the days by numbering
posts or trees. When rain is wanted the people fix a piece of wood
into the ground, calling it Bhimsen Deo or King of the Clouds. They
pour water over it and pray to it, asking for rain. Every year, after
the crops are harvested, they worship the rivers or streams in the
village. A snake, a jackal, a hare and a dog wagging its ears are
unlucky objects to see when starting on a journey, and also a dust
devil blowing along in front. They do not kill wild dogs, because
they say that tigers avoid the forests where these reside, and some
of them hold that a tiger on meeting a wild dog climbs a tree to get
out of his way. Wednesday and Thursday are lucky days for starting on
a journey, and the operations of sowing, reaping and threshing should
be commenced and completed on one of these days. When a man intends
to build a house he places a number of sets of three grains of rice,
one resting on the other two, on the ground in different places. Each
set is covered by a leaf-cup with some earth to hold it down. Next
morning the grains are inspected, and if the top one has fallen down
the site is considered to be lucky, as indicating that the earth is
wishful to bear the burden of a house in this place. A house should
face to the east or west, and not to the north or south. Similarly,
the roads leading out of the village should run east or west from
the starting-point. The principal festivals of the Parjas are the
Hareli [423] or feast of the new vegetation in July, the Nawakhani
[424] or feast of the new rice crop in August or September, and the
Am Nawakhani or that of the new mango crop in April or May. At the
feasts the new season's crop should be eaten, but if no fresh rice has
ripened, they touch some of the old grain with a blade of a growing
rice-plant, and consider that it has become the new crop. On these
occasions ancestors are worshipped by members of the family only
inside the house, and offerings of the new crops are made to them.

8. Disposal of the dead

The dead are invariably buried, the corpse being laid in the ground
with head to the east and feet to the west. This is probably the most
primitive burial, it being supposed that the region of the dead is
towards the west, as the setting sun disappears in that direction. The
corpse is therefore laid in the grave with the feet to the west ready
to start on its journey. Members of the tribe who have imbibed Hindu
ideas now occasionally lay the corpse with the head to the north in
the direction of the Ganges. Rice-gruel, water and a tooth-stick
are placed on the grave nightly for some days after death. As an
interesting parallel instance, near home, of the belief that the
soul starts on a long journey after death, the following passage
may be quoted from Mr. Gomme's Folklore: "Among the superstitions
of Lancashire is one which tells us of a lingering belief in a long
journey after death, when food is necessary to support the soul. A
man having died of apoplexy at a public dinner near Manchester,
one of the company was heard to remark, 'Well, poor Joe, God rest
his soul! He has at least gone to his long rest wi' a belly full o'
good meat, and that's some consolation!' And perhaps a still more
remarkable instance is that of the woman buried in Curton Church,
near Rochester, who directed by her will that the coffin was to have
a lock and key, the key being placed in her dead hand, so that she
might be able to release herself at pleasure." [425]

After the burial a dead fish is brought on a leaf-plate to the
mourners, who touch it, and are partly purified. The meaning of this
rite, if there be any, is not known. After the period of mourning,
which varies from three to nine days, is over, the mourners and their
relatives must attend the next weekly bazar, and there offer liquor
and sweets in the name of the dead man, who upon this becomes ranked
among the ancestors.