26 
W. H. P. D river —The Koroas. 
[No. 2, 
assistant, and the Dewar is the consulting priest. They also have 
Ojhas, Dains and Motis, i. e ., wizards y witches, and sorcerers, who deal 
with various kinds of spirits, and work on the superstitions of the 
people. The mediumistic powers of such people are supposed to be 
innate. Koroas worship the sun. Once a year in the month of Novem¬ 
ber, the religious-minded Koroa goes out by himself, before dawn, to 
meet the rising sun, and without the assistance of a priest, he offers 
up a sacrifice of a white cock, upon an open field. The priests offer 
their sacrifices under the Sarna of sal trees, which is to be found near 
every village. Darha and Darkin are worshipped in the Sarna, and the 
hinduised Koroas of the plains worship Kali in a temple. A red or 
spotted cock is offered to Darha and a red hen to Darhin, and to these 
are added a little ‘ Handia ’ or native rice beer, which the soul of the 
Koroa loves. There is also a Paht Deota or hill god who eats red cocks. 
On occasions of distress the Baiga offers an oblation of milk to Kali. 
The goodwill of ‘ Arha Burhi ’ (their ancestors) is invoked on any 
occasions of moment. 
Festivals .—At the ‘ Fhagna ’ festival, in March, a * simal ' (cotton 
tree) branch is planted on the east side of the village, straw is tied 
on the top of it, and then set fire to. After drinking and dancing 
round this, the Baiga cuts off the top with a l balua * (battle-axe). He 
then takes and sticks it over his own door, and offers a sacrifice of a 
spotted fowl, and some bread made of rice flour. This festival lasts for 
tw T o days, and they dance the ‘ Tharia ’ and ‘ Jhumta. The ‘ Sarhul 9 
festival, in April, lasts four days, a red cock and hen are sacrificed 
and they dance the Jhumta and Chandrani. Once a year, in the month 
of July, the Pahan sacrifices to Kali a ‘khassi/ goat which the whole 
village subscribes for. At the ‘ Nowa ’ or first crop festival in Septem¬ 
ber, the dances are Chandrani and Desoari, and only a hen is sacrificed 
by the Pahan, but after the harvesting is over, every Koroa household 
offers a thanksgiving sacrifice of a red and white hen to ancestors. 
The ‘ Sohorai ’ or cow festival, in September, lasts four days, and two 
red cocks are the proper sacrifice on this occasion. At the ‘ Dassain,’ 
in October, the Diwan of Khuria sacrifices a * khassi ’ goat. The 
Karma festival, in October, lasts two days. The villagers cut a branch 
of a karam tree, plant it in the middle of the ‘ akkra,’ or dancing- 
ground, and drink and dance round it. At this the Chandrani is the 
proper dance. 
Marriage ceremonies .—Although Koroas do not marry until they are 
grown up, their marriages are often arranged by parents. The would- 
be-husband has always a say in the matter, and in his eyes, working- 
capabilities are the chief beauty in a wife. Koroas are divided into 
