In addition to the articles of food which women are forbidden to eat at
all times, there are certain other things which are prohibited during
pregnancy. Neither the woman nor her husband may eat tortoise or
pangolin, [151] indeed she must not even touch a tortoise, and her
husband, though he may touch one, may not bring one into the house or
allow anyone else to do so. The wife may not eat bear’s meat or the
kill of any wild animal, and if her husband eats any of these things he
must sleep apart from her the following night. It is most important
that neither the husband nor the wife should kill a snake during this
time. Were they to do so the expected child would have a tremulous
tongue. Some pregnant women even object to a snake being killed in
their presence. It is also forbidden to an expectant mother to cut her
hair. Any hairs which fall out are carefully collected and twisted into
the hair-band. At the time of delivery the woman lies on her side and
is attended to by an old midwife called Oshangessi (“thrower-away of
afterbirth”). The husband and female relations may remain present. The
household goods are only put outside when delivery is delayed. In cases
of very painful birth the father either makes fire with a fire-stick
and fumigates the woman, or exchanges drinks of hot “rohi madhu” with
her. Occasionally the father spits on his fingers and puts a little of
his saliva on the woman’s stomach. This is regarded as an infallible
remedy in cases of difficult delivery. [152] The Oshangessi, the moment
the child is born, calls it by some name other than that which is to be
its real name, in order that the evil spirits (tsandhramo) who are
listening at the door may be deceived and go away, thinking they are in
possession of the real name, which is not given till six days later in
the case of a boy and five days later in the case of a girl. The name
finally chosen is invariably one which has been borne by a member of
the clan before. The false name having been given, the Oshangessi
washes the child and puts a little boiled rice into its mouth. The
navel string is put into a “chunga” and carefully kept by the parents
in their house. If it were thrown away and eaten by a dog or pig or
otherwise destroyed the child would die. The Oshangessi wraps up the
afterbirth in bits of rag and tsampen (wild lemon) leaves in the case
of a boy and michem leaves in the case of a girl, and putting it in a
little basket hangs it up on a michem tree, a tree with white flowers,
well out of the way of dogs and pigs, who would cause the death or
serious illness of the child if they ate it. There is one such tree on
the outskirts of every “khel” which is used for afterbirths. [153]