96 The District of Lddiana. [No. 2, 



purity and cleanliness, truthfulness, benevolence, consciousness of the 

 Deity's presence, compassion, abstinence from covetousness, abstinence 

 from perjury. Particular stress is laid on truthfulness, and it will, I 

 think, be admitted that as a class, the Kukas are remarkable in this 

 respect. On initiation, a sentence or " mantra" is whispered into the 

 ear of the convert, which he is told to repeat constantly to himself, but 

 never to divulge. The Kukas have frequent religious meetings. 

 They sit round a large fire, one reads the granth, and others repeat 

 favourite slokas. This continues till many work themselves into a 

 state of great excitement, and it is, I presume, from the cries they then 

 utter, that the name Kukah or " Howler" has been given. Many of 

 the common slokas or sayings among the Kiikas have an iconoclastic 

 purport. Thus — 



Pahila maro Pir Bannoi 

 Phir maro Sultana 

 " First destroy Pir Bannoi 

 " Then destroy Sultana." 



Pir Bannoi is a saint, whose shrine is in the state of Patiala, 

 while the Sultan referred to, is the famed Sakki Sarwar, whose 

 shrine is in the district of Dera Ghazi Khan. Kukas may be recog- 

 nised by the unusual whiteness and cleanliness of their garments, 

 and by a very large and prominent turban. They often carry a small 

 club or hatchet, and also a small blunt knife. There is a proverb 

 applied to Sikhs generally that they have four /is — Karad, Kes, Kanga, 

 Kachh, viz. a knife, long hair, a comb, and short-drawers. The total 

 number of Kukas has been estimated at 60,000. Converts are chiefly 

 made among Jats, Tirkhans, Chumars and Mazbis, besides a few Mu- 

 hammadans. Ram Sing has appointed from twenty to thirty apostles 

 under the title of Subahs. Of these, Sahib Sing is the chief, and he, 

 it is supposed, will succeed Ram Sing. For a time, Ram Sing was 

 kept under surveillance by Government, and this rather added to his 

 eclat. For two years past, he has been at liberty to go where he 

 chooses. He has attended the great Sikh festivals, but has been 

 rejected by the orthodox guardians of the temple. On the occasion 

 of his visit to Anandpiir Makkowal in 1867, a riot was with difficulty 

 avoided. During the last twelve months there has been an undoubted 

 diminution of enthusiasm and deterioration of morals among the new 



