1917.] North Indian Agricultural Ceremonies. 33 



influence of malignant spirits and from the evil eye of the " eye- 

 biters." Thereafter he places in a basket three [Note that 

 three is a sacred number] handfuls of rain as the perquisite of 

 the village-priest who kindles the fire at the lloli festival. He 

 also puts aside a small quantity thereof for the beggars of the 

 village. [This is similar to the custom of distributing the ang- 

 ounga described supra]. Subsequently to this, he throws some 

 grains over the cloth, and. filling up a basket with grains. 

 pours back the same over the heap. He then makes an 

 obeisance towards the north — apparently the abode of the 

 deities — and mumbles a prayer, thereby breaking the taboo 

 against speaking which is strictly observed throughout the per- 

 formance of the aforementioned rites. The cloth is thereafter 

 removed from off the pile of cleaned grains; and the whoh 

 ceremony is thus brought to a close. 1 



The Chank (liw) is performed with a good deal of varia- 

 tion in the Upper Doab and Delhi Division. After the cere- 

 monies preliminary to the stacking up of the harvested crops 

 have been performed, and after the heap has been raised to the 

 height of about a foot, a person takes his stand with his face 



pointing northwards, takes hold of a winnowing-basket with 



his right hand and, in his left, puts a handful of grain. Then 

 ho circumambulates the heap, beginning from the south, going 

 round from west to east and onwards to the south again, and, 

 at the same time, presses the basket against the lower portion 

 of the heap. This circumambulation is usually made thrice. 

 But if the heap is very high, so many as five or even six circuits 

 are made. When the stack of the harvested crops attains a 

 height of about three feet, the hands of the circumambulator 

 are changed, the winnowing-basket being taken in the left 

 hand, and the grains in the right. Then the circuit of the 

 stack is again made thrice, this time in the direction contrary 

 to that of the first occasion, that is to say, commencing from 



east to west. While the circuit are being made the circum- 

 ambulator presses the winnowing-basket against the bottom of 

 the heap. When the stack is raised to the height of about five 

 feet, the hands are again changed for the second time; and the 

 - me ceremony of circumambulation round the heap is made 

 thrice as on the first and second occasions with this much 

 difference only, viz. that this time the winnowing-fan is pressed 



against the top of the heap. 



In some place- however, the ceremony of Chank is not 

 performed until after the whole of the harvested crops has been 



stacked up into a complete heap which, as usual, i- circum- 

 ambulated thrice successively in the aforementioned order, that 



is to sav, the first circuit being made from west to east, the 



l Op. c#., pp. 385-6. 



