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,īudhuvadhu (Buttadhu) ondhu, Lachchumiya Karu, gooli – Basava, ‘Ayya Madha’ ( or Hethe Nanji – the deceased person’s name) Satha-dhu ondhu saavu, After the first part, when the ‘headman’ lists the sins, the rest join to endorse by loudly saying ‘papa’ (sin).This prayer is repeated three times. Interestingly, in the prayer, one of the sins considered is ‘reclaiming a calf’ involved in this ritual and using it to plough the land. After the ritual, the calf was driven into the forest closer to the village, never to be seen again. It is known that in olden days, a bull calf was garlanded, holy powder smeared on its forehead and the hand of the head was placed on it.
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One of the villagers (earlier it used to be the headman or ‘Gowda’ of the village) then recites a prayer in which the sins of the deceased are transferred on to a bull calf thus purifying the dead. Just before the rituals of ‘akki haakkodhu’ & ‘Ole kattodhu’, the male members gather around the cot on which the body has been placed, the feet facing the east,on three directions with their right palm open and facing the sky, excepting east. They say that the calf very soon disappears, and that it is never heard of “. The idea of this ceremony is, that the sins of the deceased enter the calf, or that the task of his absolution is laid on it. It was then driven away to a great distance, that it might contaminate no one, and it was said that it would never be sold, but looked on as a dedicated sacred animal. Clayton the buffalo calf was led thrice round the bier, and the dead man`s hand was laid on its head.By this act, the calf was supposed to receive all the sins of the deceased. Like the Jewish scapegoat, it may never be used for secular work.Īt a Badaga funeral witnessed by the Rev. Then, still in solemn silence, the calf is let loose.
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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.