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VI.-Death and its Attendant Ceremonies

among the Oraons

By Rai Bahadur Sarat Chandra Roy, M.A., B.L., M.L.C. (1) At the Deceased's House

When an Oraon dies, a loud chorus of lamentation and wailing is set up by the female relatives of the deceased. The body is taken out into the courtyard of the house by the usual door, with its head to the south and feet to the north. As soon as the body is taken out of the hut, ashes are strewn on the floor and the doors are shut. The doors are not opened again until the party accompanying the funeral procession return from the masān or cremation ground. When the corpse is brought out into the courtyard, it is bathed in cold water. If the body is that of a woman whose husband is living, vermilion mixed in oil is anointed on its forehead and in some places on the parting of the hair of the head by some other woman. In the case of important persons a small leaf-cup with some oil and a wick placed in it and lighted serve as a lamp by the side of the corpse. By the side of this lamp, where such lamp is lighted, and, in other cases, by the side of the corpse, are placed a basket and a small earthen jar. Relatives and fellow-villagers, on hearing the wailings of the bereaved family, hasten to the deceased's house, each carrying some paddy (called bypi) in a small basket (nāchuā) or on a winnowing fan (sup). Arriving there, they go round the empty basket kept by the side of the corpse, and then empty into it the contents of the baskets or winnowing fans in their own hands.

(2) At the Cremation Ground

In the meantime, a few fellow-villagers have constructed a wooden frame (sārhā) made of two long wooden poles and a few crossbars fixed across it. On this bier the corpse is laid on its back, with the head to the north, and is then covered over with a new cloth. Whether the corpse be that of a male or a female, it is only women who must carry it on the bier on their shoulders

or with the hands, to the masin or cremation ground of the village. But a pregnant woman may not take part in carrying the corpse or in any other rite connected with the dead. In many villages the practice of women carrying the corpse is being now given up. Relatives, male and female, and fellow-villagers join the funeral procession. If the deceased was an aged person music generally accompanies the funeral procession. Boiled rice and some oil and copper coin are taken for the deceased to the cremation ground. If the deceased belonged to a well-to-do family, a small strawbundle (tipsi) containing paddy is carried by some man following the corpse, and women also take with them to the cremation ground a few measures of paddy in small baskets and a little oil. At the cremation ground all the paddy, both that in the bundle and that in the baskets, is placed on the ground at the spot over which the head of the corpse is to rest. Female relatives pour oil over the head of the corpse. Usnā1 rice and copper coins are also put into the mouth of the corpse by the women. Rice beer is also dropped into the mouth of the corpse by each relative. Whil putting rice into the mouth of the corpse, the women address the deceased, saying,-"Ondā, onnā, āku emān ämbkāe. Ākku, nighae daharen irkae'. Humi rōg pāp hōārki kālā." "Take, eat. Now you have given us up. Now you have seen your way. Go, taking [with you] all our sickness and sins."

Provisional
Burial

If death has occurred before the setting in of the monsoon rains or the sprouting up new rice plants, the corpse is cremated at once. But if an Oraon dies after the sprouting of the new paddy seedlings of the year in June-July and before the harvest in November, the body is temporarily buried in the masāṇ in the following manner. A pit, north to south in length, is dug. Three long branches of the karanj (Pongamia glabra) tree are each twisted in the form of the letter U and let

Rice which is parboiled before husking is called usnā rice and rice which is not parboiled before husking but only dried in the sun is known as áruă rice. All rice used in funeral rites must be vană and not āruă rice.

down into the pit so that the two ends of each branch stick out along the eastern and western walls of the pit, and the central portion of each branch lies flat on the floor of the pit. Then three sal wood poles are placed crosswise over them with their length from north to south. The corpse is carried three times round this pit, the carriers keeping the pit to their left. Then the corpse is let down into the pit. Copper coins and, in the case of well-to-do persons, even silver coins, are put into the mouth or tied up in a cloth and placed under the head of the corpse. These coins, it is said, are meant for the deceased to buy food with. The nearest relatives first throw each a handful of earth into the grave with his or her left hand, and then others present similarly throw handfuls of earth with their left hands, so as to fill up the grave. Then one or more men take up spades and level the earth thrown into the grave. An earthenware jar (gägri) filled with water is placed over a strawpad (neto) upon the grave at the spot directly over the head of the corpse. Three to th-brushes (kaṛuṛkā or dāntan) made of twigs of the sal (Shorea robusta) tree are put into the jar. These tooth-brushes are known as masņa kaṛuṛka or tooth-brushes of the cremation gourd and are meant for the deceased to brush his or her teeth with. Three perforations are then made on one side of the jar to allow water to flow out. Pounded turmeric diluted in water is then sprinkled all around by way of purification. Then all go to some stream or tank and bathe.

Lustration by
Fumigation

After bathing, the funeral party return to the house of the deceased. There, on a part of the courtyard which has been cleaned with cowdung diluted in water, a quantity of grain-husks bas been piled, and on the return of the funeral party, this chaff is set fire to and oil poured on it, so that it emits smoke over which every one of the party places the palms of his or her hands by way of ceremonial purification. Turmeric diluted in oil has been kept ready. And as a further lustral rite, every one rubs a little of this turmeric paste on some part of his or her body, and then goes home. After the harvest, the corpse is exhumed

and burnt in the same manner as in the case of persons dying after the harvest and before the sprouting of new rice plants.

When the death takes place after harvest and before the sprouting of the new rice plants, the body

Cremation

is carried to the masan or cremation ground in the same way as described above. There a pile of wood has been arranged over six small wooden posts planted in two parallel rows of three each running north to south; one row being placed to the east of the other. The corpse is placed on this funeral pile with its head pointing to the south. Every near relative of the deceased puts a couple of pice or more into its mouth. Then some wood is piled over the corpse, and a son of the deceased, or, in his absence, some other near relative waves fire on some straw round the mouth of the corpse, and this fire is then set to the wood. Every one present then places a few pieces of wood over the corpse. It may be noted that relatives, even from other villages, bring with them one or more pieces of wood for this purpose.

(3) Lustration after Cremation

When fire is set to the pyre, the women leave the burning place (masan), and after bathing in some tank or stream (but not in a ḍāri or spring) go first to the house of the deceased where they have to undergo ceremonial purification through fumigation, as described above, and anoint their bodies with a little turmeric made into a paste with oil, and then return home. The men stay at the burning-place till the corpse is reduced to ashes. Then they bathe themselves in a stream or tank (but not in a spring), undergo lustration by fumigation at the deceased's house, and anoint themselves with turmeric paste.

In the case of corpses provisionally buried as described above they are taken out before the kōhabenjā or hāṛbōṛā ceremony to be presently described and cremated, as I have said, in the manner described above, and the other rites as detailed below are then gone through both in their case as in the case of those dying after the harvest and before the sprouting of the new rice plants.

(4) Utur-Khila

On return from the cremation-ground a circular or square pit, about 9 inches deep and 6 inches in diameter, is dug in the courtyard of the house of the deceased. Some fried cotton seeds (bāngur) or, in some villages, fried urid pulse (Phaseolus roxburghii), fried lotni (a species of mustard), lohsinga (slag of iron) and lãoa (a kind of fried rice) are kept in a cup made of three leaves of the jitia pipar (Ficus religiosa) tree, with the stems of the leaves joined together. Some pounded turmeric diluted in water is brought in another leaf-cup. The leaf-cups are placed by the side of the pit.

Then some elder of the village sits on the western side of the pit, with his face to the east, and sacrifices a reddish chicken or a pig, by severing its head with the hands in the case of a chicken or with a ploughshare in the case of a pig, and also severs the beak of the fowl or snout of the pig and drops the blood and throws the beak of the fowl or the snout of the pig into the pit. Then everyone present takes up a little of the contents of the first leaf-cup, waves them round the pit and throws them with the left band into the pit, and then touches with the hands the turmeric diluted in water. While doing this the sacrificer says "Falna (names) gotra-gāḥi pachcho pachchgi khekelkrā radar sinhã sa ngõ nên kể”. "Ancestors of such-and-such (names) clan, who are in the nether world, do ye also take this [deceased] person into your company." Then all the donas or leaf-cups are thrown into the pit. The pit is then filled up with earth. Then bread and three cakes made of rice-flour are prepared. A new earthenware jug is painted on the outside with rice-flour diluted in water, and some rice-beer and halfboiled rice are put into this jar. Then the three rice-flour cakes are perforated and strung into a thread in the form of a garland which is placed at the neck of the jar. The jar is covered at the mouth with the rice-flour bread, and is marked with three vermilion marks. This jar is then wound round with a piece of new cloth. The Dāṇḍā Kāṭṭā or Bhelōāphāṛi ceremony as described before is also performed at the same time.

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