THE BHOTIAS OF ALMORA AND BRITISH GARHWAL. 117 



people of Gunji worship the goddess Namti, who corresponds to Debt, and definite rules exist 

 as to the quantity of the offerings, e.g., every four men must provide one sheep, but if the 

 group is less than four, then every two men must provide one goat. The inhabitants of 

 Chhangru have their own deity. This village is just across the border in Nepal, and is 

 therefore politically Nepalese, though physically it should be British, together with the 

 village of Tinkar, as these two villages are cut off from Nepal on all sides by impassable 

 glaciers. The deity Madeu watches over the safety of Chhangru and holds the place of a 

 village watchman in the popular estimation. At a time of drought or excessive rain, the 

 inhabitants of Garbyang turn to Kungr, and offer him wet flour, or dry flour, on his sai- 

 ihan, according as they desire the rain to stop or come on. 



But the most potent deity of all in the estimation of the people of Garbyang, Budhi 

 and Chhangru is Namjung, the name being taken from a mountain on which can be dis- 

 tinctly seen two stone figures from a great distance : the mountain is called Sunpatti 

 Shoka. The figures are sitting, and the story is that a shoka went to carry off a girl to be 

 his wife, but to avoid matrimony the damsel hid herself and was frozen to death. He 

 searched for her and eventually met the same fate. This deity is principally worshipped' 

 for the prosperity of the eldest son at the barani or barai ceremony described above. 



The men of patti Chaudans place their faith in Shyangse as the most powerful god, 

 and hold an annual festival shyantung in his honour. No particular date is set apart for this 

 festival, but it generally takes place in Asanj or Kartik (end of September or beginning 

 of October). Goats and sheep are not sacrificed at the saithan, but at the homes of the 

 villagers. 



In patti Darma the noble group of the Panchachuli mountains dominates the minds 

 of the inhabitants, but they are known locally as Miyula, and the goddess on the summit 

 bears the same name. The mountains in this part of Bhot are particularly awe-inspiring, 

 and the only pass Neo Dhura leading to Tibet is so dangerous on account of glaciers, 

 that all traders fasten a long pole across their bodies to preserve them if they fall into 

 the crevasses when they journey across these forbidding heights. It is not surprising, 

 therefore, to find that Chan is worshipped for mountain-sickness, when a man faints from 

 the rarified air, and the offering takes the form of covering a goat with red earth, and 

 either killing it or letting it loose to wander at will in the mountains : undoubtedly there 

 is implicit faith in the efficacy of this offering. 



There is a dual deity Kibang Bangchim who is both male and female, the one name 

 signifying the former and the other the latter. The god is usually represented by two 

 stones, and worship takes place between the two. 



Apparently there is only one deity Nungtang who is worshipped solely by women 

 among these Bhotias of pargana Darma, and the worship takes the form of offering 

 sticks with streamers one inch broad and a foot long attached to them. It is a very 

 pretty ceremony and is supposed to be of special avail for sore eyes, or when a patient 

 is suffering from the evil influence of a god. 



Domras or Dumras — The low-caste Bhotias are composed of blacksmiths {lohar), 

 drum-beaters {hurkisa, from hurka a drum), dholi, from dhol a drum, carpenters (odh), 

 basket-makers (baje/as), tailors and shoe-makers (bhoo/s) and others. They only intermarry 



