Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1884-05-22
A CEYLON DEMON DANCE.
SERPENT wORSHTP AND DEMON
OLoGY IN THE ORIENT.
A Curious Performance in the Dark
ness Of Col mbO JungIe-The
EmbOd m ent Of SupeFsGiGlOn.


breeze whispered through the palms, the
air was laden with the breath Of CHINA
mon, fircflies flashed amid the flowers,
nothing was audible but rhythmic muir
murings of myriad tiny creatures in
their slumber. Surely it is all an en-
chanted dream. Presently, from the
picture in the "Arabian Nights" where
/ last saw him, the turbaned and long
sltirted magician will step out, clasp his
hands and all will disappear-these
pleasant gentlemen, the palms and the
tireflies-all | shall rub my eyes, per-
ceive the London fog. then turn over to
try and doze again. Not SO! The dream
is destined TO deepen its enchantment, to
grow wild My host has somehow
learned how fond / am of demons and
DEVILS how many years | have given to
the study of especially to the rich,
diabolic fauna of Ceylon-and has re-
solved that for once / shall have
enough Of them. The wild people
called devil-dancers are not now
found in or near Colombo English man
ners and customs having frightened them
into the interior, where they can only be
surprised now and then, as " Passion
Play performers may be in the Tyrolese
villages. My host, with considerate
hospitality which find characteristic of
his race, had invoked the aid of the chief
Buddhist of Ceylon-thc priest of Adams
Peak-and 10 here were some twenty or
more dark bronze figures from the hills
come to perform their weird orgies be-
fore the door.
The first sign of what was coming was
flare of torches approaching from vari-
Gus quarters irregularly, held by lpenT
nearly naked Then there was 4 loud
beating of tom-toms-druQ5 of long,
hollow wood, at each end of which is a
skin beaten with the hand alonV Pres
emily man began to drawl outta wild,
wailing chant, with which another and
then another Joined. These were words,
but the gentlemen present who knew the
languages of this region could not make
out their sense, and one of them thought
the singers themselves did not know.
BY this time a considerable crowd of
people had gathered about the outer col
umn of 'he portico and the flaring of
the torches upon their shining black
bodies and eager faces made scene of
wondrous picturesqueness.
Presently there was something distinct
diabolical in the notes, which, in COM
ination with the silent throng of nearly
baked people, their white eyes lighting
up their dusky faces along with the livid
torches, caused strange sensations to shoot
through ones nerves. A deafening sue
cession of tomtom thumps accompanied
the entrance before us of the serpent king
(Naga Rajah). His mask-face and crown
together represented every terrible and
beautiful curve and contortion of the
cobra. Serpents coiled out of the corners
of his many-toothed mouth and about his
huge protruding eyes; they made the pen
dants of his ears and FIVE blended cobra
hoods and heads rose into a canopy for
bis crown. With him was his prime min
ster, who also had an ingeniously horri-
bic decoration of serpents, three monster
hoods rising above his head and three
Smaller ones being erect over his forehead.
With them was third parsonage, crowned
with five cobras. The three faces were
blood red, google eyed, dusky, the forms
dressed in red, with touches of green, be-
heath which patches of dark skin were
occasionally revealed as they threw them
elves about in sinuous ecstasies. Though
10 word was uttered the theme of their
6ance was evidently the serpent, and do
bot doubt that we were looking upon an
ncient rite of serpent worship, or what
called such, my own opinion being that
bropitiation of dreaded object is not
worship worth ship. They coiled,
Swined, twisted and wrung their necks
long as to make one uneasy.
recognized an interesting legendary
ersonage in fiery figure that followed
e Nagas already described. They called
Inn Kalu Cumara, the Black Prince, but
bnc present seemed to know his legend
9th which | met some years ago IN the
Asiatic society's journal The manager
the show told me, through a gentle
IN kindly interpreting for me. that this
Ence lived on q mountain. surrounded
she-devils. / asked him if it were
true thar women attributed to him all
eir ailments. and he promptly assured
that such was the fact The early le-
nd. which would thus seem TO have
PRIV died out. was that this prince was
be beautiful and great; race OF fe-
e warriors (Amazons) besieged hls |
gdom. but on seeing him, they all !
ii love with him. Each Amazon /
q to Appropriate him, and IN their
apetition he was torn to pieces. lie |
( became a demon, and ever since !
been avenging himself on
sex in the way stated. The |