INFLICT DISEASE. 



47 



they create and present to the eyes of men, in order to frighten 

 them; that the demons themselves are millions of miles distant 

 from the earth; and that on these occasions of sending forth these 

 spectres, and on every other occasion, whether during demon ce- 

 remonies) or at any other time when they are supposed to be pre- 

 sent, they do not come themselves, but send their dristia, with or 

 without the spectres, according to the circumstance of each case, or 

 merely according to their own whim. By dristia, which means 

 literally " sight," or " look," is meant that, although they are not 

 personally present, yet they have the power of " looking " at 

 what is going on below, and of doing and attending to every thing 

 required of them, as if they were actually present. This opinion 

 however is one, which is confined to the more learned of the de- 

 mon worshippers; the more ignorant believe that the demons 

 themselves are bodily present at these scenes, although they assume 

 some sort of disguise, whenever they choose to make themselves 

 visible to men. 



When a man is frightened by a demon, and has the influence of 

 that demon upon him, it is called Tanicama, which literally means 

 "loneliness" or ^ being alone." Fright is in most cases a ne- 

 cessary agent in bringing down Tanicama on a man; but it is 

 also possible that a person, who has neither been frightened by a 

 demon, nor been ten yards from his own door for five or six months, 

 may also get the Tanicama influence on him. In this case, the ex- 

 planation is, that the demon has taken advantage of some unguard- 

 ed moment in the daily life of the man, as when he has been 

 sitting in the open compound of his house, or when he has hap- 

 pened to go to the back of his house at any of the Yamas, when a 

 demon has happened to be in the vicinity; or when he has eaten 

 roasted fish or eggs, while sitting outside in his Verandah on a 

 Wednesday or Saturday. In this case the man is neither frighten- 

 ed by anything, nor even aware of his danger at the time. 



When Tanicama comes upon a man, he falls sick and even 

 when a man is ill from some other cause, no matter what, he very often 

 gets the Tanicama, especially when the sickness is getting worse 



