54 



SPELLS OR CHARMS 



or destruction by discord; 6, Mar ana or causing death; 7, Tamba- 

 naya or power of imprisoning; and 8, Paysana or power of curing 

 diseases. To each of these acts are assigned certain seasons, days, 

 and hours, in which alone anything relative to it can be performed 

 with any hopes of success. Thus, Wibaysana must be performed 

 during the eight hours elapsing between 6 p. m. and 2 a. m. at 

 night, during the season called Wasanta; Otchatana, during the 

 ten days intervening between the 10th and 20th day of the season 

 called Gunhana; Mar an a. in the season Wassana, from the 20th 

 day of the month, which commences that season, to the- 10th day 

 of the next month ; Aakarsana, during the season Sasat; Stambana, 

 from the 10th to the 20th day of the season Jlaymanfa; Mohan a, 

 from the 20th day of the month, which commences the season 

 Sisira, to the 10th of that which closes it; and Paysana and Tam- 

 bana, during every part of the year.* 



It is believed that there are, or at least there were, in this Is- 

 land 240,000 different charms or spells of every kind, belonging 

 to the art of Necromancy. An old legend says, that once upon a 

 time, long before the landing of king Wijeyo upon these Coasts, 

 one of the kings of this Island, wishing to marry from a royal 

 family, proceeded to Ayodhia pura (Oude) and being introduced to 

 the royal family of that country on the continent, was permitted to 

 select for his queen one out of the seven daughters of the king. 

 Upon this, being anxious to ascertain what their accomplishments 

 were, he asked each of them, what she was most skilled in. One 

 replied that she was skilled in the magical arts of sickening 

 and killing people by means of Hooniyan charms; another 

 replied, that she could bring immediate death on any one by 

 means of Pilli charms ; a third said that she could injure men 



* Although there is not much difference of seasons in this Island, yet Sin- 

 ghalese writers have divided the year into six seasons, viz, 1. Wasanta which 

 corresponds to April and May ; 2, Gimhana (hot] which, corresponds to 

 June and July ; 3, Wassana [rainy] to August and September ; 4 Sarat [dry] 

 to October and November ; 5, Uaymanta [dewyj to December and January ; 

 and 6, Sisira [cool] to February and March. 



