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gods, sacrifices and illness |
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Informant: Dobashi of Tamlu, NIAN-PONG |
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Earth god: Ga-shi (who made the earth) |
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Sky god: Kha-gang (Ha-gang) made the sky. He made men too. They make for Ha-gang a genna - they put a small basket on top of the roof. In this basket is a share of a chicken they have killed, wrapped in its skin - for Ha-gang. They eat outside the house the meat of the chicken with rice. It must be cooked outside the house. It is cooked and eaten at midnight. The sacrificer sleeps that night in the morung. (10) If they can't finish the food they feed the morung boys. If these can't eat it either it is thrown away. It can't be taken to his house. |
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[If a house or a tree is struck by lightning it is done by a stone axe and the next day is genna.] |
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The chickens are killed by men of a special clan (Noklang) - they don't kill animals for other gennas. |
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When a man is ill, they take a chicken and carry it to the field of the sick man and kill it and take an omen of the intestines. If it doesn't cure the sick man, they take a pig and chicken and kill it also on the fields. If this doesn't cure him either, they take a dog and a chicken, then one goat and one chicken. They invoke at this Gashi: "You got hold of the man, so let him free. Every year we go cutting the jungle for making fields. Why did you catch me? Let me free". (12) Also the sacrifice for Ha-gang - on the roof - is done for sickness. |
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If a man is ill, first of all a pig is killed in his house, then they go with a chicken to all the places where a man has been lately, then they kill the chicken. Then they take some ginger and bamboo leaves and make an omen by which they see from where the illness came. (13) If they see that it comes from the sky, they first put the shell of an egg into a small basket and put it at a tree which was struck by lightning - for Ha-gang - if this does not help, they make the ceremony with the chicken on the roof. They say: "You got hold of me, I am giving you food, so let me free". |
