Widow remarriage is permitted in some places, and forbidden in others. There may be intermarriage between the flesh-eating and vegetarian sections. But a girl who belongs to a flesh-eating family, and marries into a vegetarian family, must abstain from meat, and may not touch any vessel or food in her husband's family till she has reached puberty. Before settling the marriage of a girl, some village goddess, or Chaudeswari, is consulted, and the omens are watched. A lizard chirping on the right is a good omen, and on the left bad. Sometimes, red and white flowers, wrapped up in green leaves, are thrown in front of the idol, and the omen considered good or bad according to the flower which a boy or girl picks up. At the marriage ceremony which commences with distribution of pan-supari (betel) and Vigneswara worship, the bride is presented with a new cloth, and sits on a three-legged stool or cloth-roller (dhonige). The maternal uncle puts round her neck a bondhu (strings of unbleached cotton) dipped in turmeric. The ceremonies are carried out according to the Puranic ritual, except by those who consider themselves to be Devanga Brahmans. On the first day the milk post is set up being made of Odina Wodier in the Tamil, and Mimusops hexandra in the Telugu country. Various rites are performed, which include tonsure, upanayanam (wearing the sacred thread), padapuja (washing the feet), Kasiyatra (mock pilgrimage to Benares), dharadhattam (giving away the bride), and mangalyadharanam (tying the marriage badge, or bottu). The proceedings conclude with pot searching. A pap-bowl and ring are put into a pot. If the bride picks out the bowl, her first-born will be a girl, and if the bridegroom gets hold of the ring, it will be a boy. On the fifth day, a square design is made on the floor with coloured rice grains. Between the contracting couple and the square a row of lights is placed. Four pots are set, one at each corner of the square, and eight pots arranged along each side thereof. On the square itself, two pots representing Siva and Uma, are placed, with a row of seedling pots near them. A thread is wound nine times round the pots representing the god and goddess, and tied above to the pandal. After the pots have been worshipped, the thread is cut, and worn, with the sacred thread, for three months. This ceremony is called Nagavali. When a girl reaches puberty, a twig of Alangium Lamarckii is placed in the menstrual hut to keep off devils. The dead are generally buried in a sitting posture. Before the grave is filled in, a string is tied to the kudumi (hair knot) of the corpse, and, by its means, the head is brought near the surface. Over it a lingam is set up, and worshipped daily throughout the death ceremonies.