Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 3 of 7Thurston, Edgar
History
Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 3 of 7
Thurston, Edgar
Caste -- India, South; Ethnology -- India, South; India, South -- Social life and customs; Tribes -- India, South
On their return, the Kapus refused
to hand over charge to them, and it was decided that whoever should
go to Nagalokam (the abode of snakes), and bring back Naga Malligai
(jasmine from snake-land), should be considered the rightful owner of
the temple. The Jangams, who were skilled in the art of transformation,
leaving their mortal frames, went in search of the flower in the
guise of spirits. Taking advantage of this, the Kapus burnt the
bodies of the Jangams, and, when the spirits returned, there were no
bodies for them to enter. Thereon the god of the temple became angry,
and transformed the Jangams into crows, which attacked the Kapus,
who fled to the country of Oraganti Pratapa Rudra. As this King was
a Sakti worshipper, the crows ceased to harass the Kapus, who settled
down as cultivators. Of the produce of the land, nine-tenths were to
be given to the King, and the Kapus were to keep a tithe. At this time
the wife of Belthi Reddi was pregnant, and she asked her sons what they
would give to the son who was about to be born. They all promised to
give him half their earnings. The child grew into a learned man and
poet, and one day carried water to the field where his brothers were
at work. The vessel containing the water was only a small one, and
there was not enough water for all. But he prayed to Sarasvati, with
whose aid the vessel was always filled up. Towards evening, the grain
collected during the day was heaped together, with a view to setting
apart the share for the King. But a dispute arose among the brothers,
and it was decided that only a tithe should be given to him. The King,
being annoyed with the Kapus for not giving him his proper share,
waited for an opportunity to bring disgrace on Belthi Reddi, and
sought the assistance of a Jangam, who managed to become the servant
of Belthi Reddi's wife. After some time, he picked up her kamma when
it fell off while she was asleep, and handed it over to Pratapa Rudra,
who caused it to be proclaimed that he had secured the ornament as
a preliminary to securing the person of its owner. The eldest son of
Belthi Reddi, however, recovered the kamma in a fight with the King,
during which he carried his youngest brother on his back. From him the
Kammas are descended. The Velamas are descended from the sons who ran
away, and the Kapus from those who would neither fight nor run away.
Pollution at the first menstrual ceremony lasts, I am informed, for
sixteen days. Every day, both morning and evening, a dose of gingelly
(Sesamum) oil is administered to the girl, and, if it produces much
purging, she is treated with buffalo ghi (clarified butter). On
alternate days water is poured over her head, and from the neck
downwards. The cloth which she wears, whether new or old, becomes
the property of the washerwoman. On the first day the meals consist
of milk and dhal (Cajanus indicus), but on subsequent days cakes,
etc., are allowed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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