Then, still in solemn silence, the calf is let loose. As the last shout “Let all be well” dies away, the performer gives place to another, and again confession is made, and all the people shout “It is a sin”. Thus the whole catalogue is gone through in this impressive way. It is a sin.” In a moment the last word is caught up, and all the people cry “It is a sin.” As they shout, the performer lays his hand upon the calf. Admitting that the deceased has committed them all, the performer cries aloud, - “Stay not their flight to Gods pure feet”.Īs he closes, the whole assembly chants aloud “Stay not their flight.” Again the performer enters into details, and cries, “He killed the crawling snake. By a conventional mode of expression, the sum total of sins a man may do is said to be thirteen hundred. The confession of sins is thrice repeated. There an elder of the tribe, standing at the head of the corpse, recites or chants a long list of sins such as any Badaga may commit, and the people repeat the last word of each line after him. For this purpose the people gather round the corpse and carry it outside of the village. ” Among the Badagas of the Neilgherry Hills in Southern India, when a death has taken place, the sins of the deceased are laid upon a buffalo calf.
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