Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 2 of 7Thurston, Edgar
History
Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 2 of 7
Thurston, Edgar
Caste -- India, South; Ethnology -- India, South; India, South -- Social life and customs; Tribes -- India, South
The Haddis are worshippers of various Takuranis (village deities),
e.g., Kalumuki, Sathabavuni, and Baidaro. Cremation of the dead is more
common than burial. Food is offered to the deceased on the day after
death, and also on the tenth and eleventh days. Some Haddis proceed,
on the tenth day, to the spot where the corpse was cremated or buried,
and, after making an effigy on the ground, offer food. Towards night,
they proceed to some distance from the house, and place food and fruits
on a cloth spread on the ground. They then call the dead man by his
name, and eagerly wait till some insect settles on the cloth. As soon
as this happens, the cloth is folded up, carried home, and shaken over
the floor close to the spot where the household gods are kept, so that
the insect falls on sand spread on the floor. A light is then placed
on the sanded floor, and covered with a new pot. After some time,
the pot is removed, and the sand examined for any marks which may be
left on it. This ceremony seems to correspond to the jola jola handi
(pierced pot) ceremony of other castes (see Bhondari).
"The Rellis," Mr. H. A. Stuart writes, [156] "are a caste of
gardeners and labourers, found chiefly in the districts of Ganjam
and Vizagapatam. In Telugu the word relli or rellis means grass,
but whether there is any connection between this and the caste name
I cannot say. They generally live at the foot of the hills, and sell
vegetables, mostly of hill production."
For the following note on the Rellis of Vizagapatam, I am indebted
to Mr. C. Hayavadana Rao. The Rellis are also known as Sachchari, and
they further call themselves Sapiri. The caste recognises the custom
of menarikam, by which a man marries his maternal uncle's daughter. A
girl is usually married after puberty. The bride-price is paid sometime
before the day fixed for the marriage. On that day, the bride goes,
with her parents, to the house of the bridegroom. The caste deities
Odda Polamma (commonly known as Sapiri Daivam) and Kanaka Durgalamma
are invoked by the elders, and a pig and sheep are sacrificed to
them. A string of black beads is tied by the bridegroom round the
bride's neck, and a feast is held, at which the sacrificed animals
are eaten, and much liquor is imbibed. On the following morning,
a new cloth, kunkumam (red powder), and a few pieces of turmeric
are placed in a small basket or winnow, and carried in procession,
to the accompaniment of music, through the streets by the bride,
with whom is the bridegroom. The ceremony is repeated on the third
day, when the marriage festivities come to an end. In a note on the
Rellis of Ganjam, Mr. S. P. Rice writes [157] that "the bridegroom,
with the permission of the Village Magistrate, marches straight into
the bride's house, and ties a wedding necklace round her neck. A
gift of seven and a half rupees and a pig to the castemen, and of
five rupees to the bride's father, completes this very primitive
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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