The Evil Eye
Various misfortunes may befall a man if any one says that he is looking very well or is very well dressed. It is also unlucky that any one should look at a man when he is eating. Similarly it is unlucky for anyone to say that a buffalo is giving much milk; she will probably kick her calf or will suffer in some other way soon after.
This kind of misfortune is usually called kanarvaznudr, which was translated, “if looking anxiously.” It is also often known now by the Tamil name konduti or kontushti or evil eye. One of the commonest effects of kanarvaznudr is indigestion. When anyone is suffering from evil effects of this kind, he calls in one of certain people called utkòren, or “praying people,” or, probably more correctly, “saying incantations people.” Piutolvan (10), Keitazvan (15), and a woman, Sinpurs (7), are utkòren of repute. Any one of the male utkòren may be spoken of as an utpol, but I was doubtful whether this name would also be used for a woman.
The utpol rubs the belly of the sick person, holds one corner of his cloak in his left hand, and, putting some salt on the cloak, strokes the salt with a thorn of the plant called [[264]]pathanmul.[7] The thorn and some of the salt are then put into the fire, and the utpol utters the following incantation:—
Pithioteu Ön idith, Teikirzim Tirshtim idith, tan his âv mother kan eye pudrs perish kan eye pudri be destroyed ûmâ; may; tan in father kan pudrs kan pudri ûmâ;
and this formula is repeated, substituting for av or in the names of the following relatives:—an, akkan, nòdrved, mun, mimi, pian, piav.[8] Then follows the same formula repeated, in which the names of various tribes are substituted for those of the relatives, as “mav kan pudrs kan pudri uma”—“Badaga eye perish, may his eye be destroyed.” The people mentioned are mav (Badaga), pedr (Tamil), suti (? chetties), kurub (Kurumbas), erl (Irulas), panin (Panyas).[9] The last clause is möditi kan pudrs kan pudri uma, extending the imprecation to the women of all the people already mentioned. When the incantation is finished, the remainder of the salt is eaten by the sick man.
The Toda utkòren may practise ‘absent treatment.’ If a man wishes to treat a sufferer from the evil eye, and is unable to visit his patient, he puts the salt on the ground and strokes it with the thorn of pathanmul, repeating the above incantation as he strokes. He then sends the salt to the sick man, by whom it is eaten.
The treatment in any case is repeated till it has been done three times.
If it is a buffalo which is suffering from the evil effects of kanarvasnudr, the utkòren use the same method, and the salt is eaten by the buffalo.
In the special case in which the evil is produced by saying that a man is looking well or is well dressed, the utkòren have a different method. They take a piece of the root called kabudri,[10] and a plant called kwagal, and squeeze the juice of [[265]]both into a vessel. An incantation is said, the same as, or similar to, that already given, while the utkòren strokes the sick man with the corner of his cloak. After the incantation the sufferer drinks the juice.