128 THE LATE REV, P. DEHON ON 



Dharmes said, " Yes, to-day I have found them. Here they are." He unfolded his dhoti 

 and showed them to his wife, who at once cleaned and washed them and took them inside. 

 On that day Sita gave a good dinner to Dharmes and prepared arwa rice with rahar da/. 

 Then, the bhaya bhayin (first man and woman) asked Dharmes, " Grandfather, what work 

 are we going to do ?" He told them to go and cut wood to burn on the ground and pre- 

 pare it for cultivation. At that time there was nothing like day and night, there was day 

 the whole time. 



When Dharmes went to inspect their work, he found that they had been very busy 

 and had cut great heaps of wood. Then Dharmes, seeing the different heaps, asked them, 

 " What day's work does this represent ? On what day did you cut that ?" and so on. They 

 always answered, "To-day, to-day." Dharmes saw that this would not do and made day 

 and night. From that time when night came they used to go home, where Dharmes gave 

 them something to eat. At night they slept with the trunk of a tree between them, the 

 man on one side and the woman on the other. After some days Dharmes went again to 

 inspect their work, and seeing the different heaps of wood asked them, " What day's is 

 this?" They answered, " To-day's." And that, " What day's is it r" They answered, 

 "Yesterday's." Hearing this Dharmes said : " Now it is all right." Thenhesaid: "To- 

 day I have made a wonderful discovery for my grandchildren. I found it with the greatest 

 difficulty." Then he gave them hanria or rice-beer to drink and told them how to 

 prepare it. When they came home that evening they enquired of Dharmes : 

 " Grandfather, now how are we going to sleep." He told them. "Put a screen of 

 bamboo between you and sleep, the man on one side and the woman on the other." For 

 several nights they did so, but once they put aside the screen and slept together. The 

 next morning they went to Dharmes and told him, " O grandfather, to-night we slept 

 together." Dharmes told them, " It is all right ; you did very well." From that time 

 man began to multiply. They went again to cut wood and prepare the ground for cul- 

 tivation. When everything was ready, the rainy season came, and they went to Dharmes 

 and said to him, " Grandfather, what are we going to sow." Dharmes gave them some seeds 

 in a gourd. They went and sowed them, and as they were sowing, the seeds were in- 

 creasing so that they were able to sow all their fields. But as the crops were growing, 

 the rats, grasshoppers and lizards began to destroy them. Seeing this they were 

 discouraged and were wondering what to do. Then Dharmes came and told them how- 

 to do the Palkhansna with the different lines made of the white flour of the yeast, the 

 red mud of their hearths and pounded charcoal. They did so, removed the spell, and 



got good crops. 



Genesis of the Bhuts or Devils. 



The world devastated by fire looked like copper. The 12 brothers Asurs and the 

 13 brothers Lodhas were busy at their furnaces smelting iron. The smoke ascending 

 to heaven was so thick and suffocating that Ansraj Pankraj Bhagwan's horse {viz., God's 

 horse), got sick and could not eat his corn or drink water. God sent Kerketa Jhagru (a 

 bird resembling the hedge sparrow) and the king crow Mahru to the 12 brothers 

 Asurs and 13 brothers Lodhas to carry his message to them. The Kerketa went first and 

 told them, " O brothers Asurs and Lodhas, keep your furnaces going during the day 



