240 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



moko, a little spider whicli is looked for on the grave, and is re- 

 garded as the relic of the heart. Sometimes the ceremony is de- 

 layed for several years ; and if sickness occurs in the family in 

 the mean time, it is considered an infliction on account of the 

 neglect. The grave having been cleared up, rice is scattered over 

 it, and clothing and jewelry are laid upon it. The family then 

 squat around it, stretch out their hands, and invite the m5k6- 

 m6k5 to come, and delay not ; all the relatives are there waiting 

 for it. A piece of clothing is lifted up, and a spider is discov- 

 ered under it — they are running all around, for that matter, by 

 the dozen. It is not caught at once, but is invited to come 

 upon the outstretched hand. Now it is discovered that it has 

 six legs, and can not be the m6k6moko spider, for that should 

 have only four legs ; no, it is the right one, after all, for two of 

 the supposed legs are only hairs. When the genuine m5k6m5k6 

 is found and identified, it is put into a bamboo cane and brought 

 to the dela (bridge), a kind of gathering-place of the dead, where 

 a stone is planted for each deceased person, before which pot- 

 sherds are set to represent a plate and a flask. A kind of festival 

 is held here, after which the m6k5m5k6 sj^ider is set free close 

 to the ancestral image, which it is supposed to enter. An egg is 

 offered by each person present, and the family are counted over 

 before the image, and prosperity is invoked for each one, as well 

 as for their herds and fields. If a crack appears in the image, 

 which is of wood, they say that the mdkOmokd has escaped from 

 it, and a new image must be made and instituted with a repe- 

 tition of the ceremonies. 



The religion of the Nihas consists really of the worship of 

 demons and of ancestors, while there are two beings who are 

 neither, to one of whom the highest power is ascribed, and whoso 

 name is invoked in oaths ; but they are worshiped only in an 

 indefinite sort of a way. 



Their psychology is very peculiar. Besides the spirit shelia, 

 whose transmission to posterity in noble families has been de- 

 scribed, they speak of the breath or soul, noso, which has a kind 

 of pre-existence — not in a personal form, but as a part of the 

 general soul-stock, from which each person's portion is weighed 

 out or cut off from a line — each one being asked at birth how 

 much of it he will have. Upon his answer, and his consequent 

 allotment, will depend the length of life that he will enjoy. The 

 immortal part, hecJioe z'imata — a spirit distinct from the sheha — 

 is regarded as a mere shadow, having a hypothetical continued 

 existence. 



A peculiar central position, and a multitude of functions, are 

 ascribed to the heart. It is the seat of thought, understanding, 

 and feeling ; and a remnant of it comes out from the grave after 



