THE BHOTIAS OF ALMORA AND BRITISH GARHWAL. 101 



Bhot, and the first is a most sacred mountain near the Mansarowar Lake and is revered 

 by Buddhists and Hindus alike, and is commonly known as the abode of Shiva. The annual 

 adoration takes place at Pandukeshar iu Garhwal Bhot, and the ceremonies are specially 

 interesting as they afford an instance of the religious fervour, or ecstacy, which seizes 

 the devotee and makes him act as though goaded by a mania. An iron tripod, janti, 

 is made red-hot in a furious fire, which is zealously fed by the crowd. The men who 

 are particularly favoured by the manifestation of the gods are Duryals of one 

 family, living in Pandukeshar. At the present time Gobind Sing is the favourite of 

 Nanda Devi, Dharma of Kailas, Mehrban Sing of Kumer, and Debu of Ghantakarn. 

 Only the gods Kailas and the bell-god manifest themselves ; when the religious excite- 

 ment is at its highest the two favourites of these gods suddenly rush down to the river and 

 bathe, and dripping with water they rush towards the scorching fire. The crowd with 

 cries of, " Behold the god !" rub butter on the hands of the one who is devoted to the 

 bell-god, and he immediately raises the red-hot tripod and inverts it over his head and 

 puts it back, while the other leaps into the flames and leaps out again. This is the 

 description of an eyewitness. 



The deity Acheri is worshipped everywhere and is called Nungtang in Pargana 

 Darma. When anyone has sore eyes, or a lingering illness, the goddess has to be ap- 

 peased and her influence (dos) removed, and this is effected in one of two ways. Either 

 a brass dish {thali) is put on an earthen pitcher (ghurra) and is beaten until the affected 

 person begins in a frenzy to dance, and indicates what particular sacrifice will find 

 favour with the deity; or a dooly is made with sticks and cloth, and is worshipped with 

 cakes (puris) and lights, after which it is carried to some lonely spot and left, the hope be- 

 ing that the malevolent influence is left with it. 



The Jethoras worship Balchan and Runiya, and the Milamwals resort to Sain when 

 a sheep or goat is lost, and the deity leads the worshipper in his search for the straying 

 animal. When bears are doing much harm to the sheep and goats, or when an animal 

 is sick, goatherds whether in pargana Darma, or Johar or Garhwal make supplication to 

 the brothers Sidhuwa Bidhuwa. It is also interesting to note how particular deities go out 

 of fashion ; for instance, Bir Singh and Jammu Danu are no longer worshipped as they were 

 heretofore. 



Apart from the above deities, the Bhotias who are partially Hinduized worship all 

 the gods of Hinduism. Devi and Nanda Devi are particular favourites everywhere. As 

 many as two hundred and fifty goats will be sacrified to Devi at one time, as well as many 

 buffaloes. The Bhotia Rajputs eat the flesh of the goats themselves, but Dumra Bhotias 

 eat the flesh of the buffaloes. 



Food. — The Rawats of Johar are more Hinduized in some ways than the Jethoras, 

 Tolchas, and Marchas, for they know of Gotra, Sakha or Pravara, whereas the latter do not. 

 The question of taking food with certain persons and not with others, which is of absorbing 

 importance to the ordinary Hindu, is treated in some respects very seriously ; for instance, 

 the Rajputs do not eat with Bhotia Dumras, and in other respects very lightly, in that 

 they are quite willing to eat with cow-killing Tibetans. Bhotias do not care, as a rule, to 

 partake of the Tibetans' food, solely because the latter are abominably filthy in their 



