FIG. 36.—MIDJKUDR AND MONGUDRVAN DIVINING AT A FUNERAL.
The only occasion on which I saw the process of divining was at a funeral. The buffalo which was to be killed had been caught at some distance from the place appointed for its slaughter. The animal was unusually refractory and at length lay down and all the natural efforts of the Todas failed to make it move. Midjkudr and Mongudrvan were then called upon to discover the cause of the obstinacy of the buffalo. Mongudrvan first began to dance slowly to and fro, away from and towards the buffalo. He had [[253]]taken off his cloak and was only wearing the tadrp. As I already knew the man, I was able to observe that his general appearance was unaltered and that he did not appear to be in any abnormal mental condition. He was soon joined by Midjkudr, who danced up and down much more wildly ([Fig. 36]). His general appearance was very different to that usually presented by a Toda man. His hair seemed to stand out from his head, although it shook with each of his violent movements; his eyes were abnormally bright and his face gave every appearance of great mental excitement. I had not previously known the man, but when he came to see me a few days later I could hardly believe that the quiet, self-possessed man whom I saw before me was the same individual whom I had seen dancing at the funeral. It was obvious that he had been in a distinctly abnormal condition of frenzy during the divining process. After dancing for a time Midjkudr began to utter broken sentences in a loud and almost chanting voice, while Mongudrvan [[254]]remained silent throughout. After Midjkudr had in these sentences given the reason for the obstinacy of the buffalo, and had prescribed what was to be done, he took a red cloth and dancing more violently than ever waved the cloth before the buffalo and pushed against the body of the animal. Then after the people had dragged the buffalo a little way, it rose and went quietly to the place where it was to be killed.
I had much difficulty in finding out exactly what Midjkudr had said. When he came to see me a few days later he stated that he did not know at the time what he was saying, and that his only knowledge was derived from those who had heard him, and I am inclined to believe that he was speaking the truth. His appearance during the divining was remarkably different from that of ordinary days, and strongly suggested a semi-hypnotic state, during which he might well have had no knowledge, or only a very vague knowledge, of anything he said.[2] In his ordinary condition he professed to be ignorant of Malayalam, the language which he was said to use in his frenzied condition.
My ignorance of Malayalam, and the obvious difficulties of the investigation, make me hesitate before expressing any decided opinion as to the real nature of Midjkudr’s condition when divining, but I have a very strong leaning towards the idea that the man was in a genuinely abnormal condition, allied to the hypnotic state, and I am disposed to accept the statement of the Todas that he was speaking in a language of which he had only a very vague knowledge when in a normal condition. It is, of course, quite possible that the abnormal appearance of Midjkudr was merely due to the exercise of dancing and to mental excitement, and that he knew perfectly well what he was doing and saying. I can but record my impression that there was something more, and I only commit myself to this extent in regard to the special occasion on which I saw Midjkudr divining; even if I saw a genuine hypnotic or semi-hypnotic phenomenon, it does not follow that all Midjkudr’s performances are wholly, or even partly, [[255]]of this nature, and still less does it follow that the performances of all the teuol are of this kind. Nothing struck me more than the contrast between the frenzied condition of Midjkudr and the calm, ordinary demeanour of Mongudrvan, his fellow diviner.
In the case I have described the necessity for the intervention of the diviner arose out of the funeral proceedings, but it appears to be not uncommon for divination to be practised during funerals. Both Mr. Walhouse and Mr. Thurston have seen the process of divining going on at funerals. In Mr. Thurston’s case he notes that the diviners talked in Malayalam, and offered an explanation of a gigantic figure which had suddenly appeared and as suddenly disappeared some time previously.
Sorcery
I met with greater difficulties in discovering the methods of sorcery than in any other branch of my work. It was quite certain that there were men called piliutpol (sorcery praying people), or pilikòren, who had the reputation of possessing magical powers, comprised together under the title piliutvichi or piliutiti. I was able to obtain the names of these people from several sources, but when I approached any one of them on the subject he professed total ignorance and usually suggested that I should apply to some other man, who, he said, was a real piliutpol. Occasionally someone would give me a fragment of information, but would impress on me carefully that he had heard it from somebody else and did not know whether it was true or false.
One or two men, who were certainly not sorcerers, told me that they hoped that I should succeed in finding out the methods and would tell them, for they said that the Todas who had no magical powers were always trying to find out the methods of the sorcerers and were never successful.