Sacramento daily record-union., 1888-09-01
MAGIC.
THE BLACK ART PR4CTICED IN
INDIA.
A Hindoo Gives Some Explanations
and Illustrations of Witch
craft and Sorcery.
The London Standard. I

4
| The London Standard
There is scarcely village in Eastern
and Southern India that does not posses
its witch, to whom terrible powers are at
tributed by the popular mind The
witches, they say, can suck the blood o
healthy children; and the anxious mother
directly she sees the witch approach, take;
| up her child and mutters some charm tc
save the dear one from being sucked tc
death. Of course, the best antidote to the
occult influence of the dreaded hags is the
gift of few copper coins or some sort Of
aims. But there are other means employed
to eounteract their malignity- They are
detected by salt being placed on their
heads, which causes them to turn round
and mutter incoherent syllables. Some
times the trembling mother spits on the
head of her child, or gently bites his little
finger, in order to render him witch-proof.
No woman of the lower orders who lives
in village
INFESTED BY A WITCH
Would venture to leave her honse with
her child until she had made herself and
her child safe by putting certain mark on
his forehead. There are various modes of
treatment for persons supposed to be under
the influence of, witch. The forehead of
child suffering from illness brought on
by witch's curse is sometimes marked
with burnt turmeric. Often the mother.
muttering some spells, sprinkles water
over her child and Tubs its forehead over
with burnt wicks of earthen lamps fed with
mustard OIL Sometimes branches of par
ticular trees are waved over the patent.
who is made to chew the leaves of plum
trees. But should these simple remedies
fail, as they often do, to produce any effect
on the bewitched child, what would hap
pen then to the poor sufferer? There is
no need to be in despair in this matter I;
for, as the dock grows side by side with the
nettle, so in India there lives close by the
witch the sorcerer, the practitioner of the
black art, who is always called in when
the simple remedies fail Like the witches.
the sorcerers are believed to possess great
occult powers; but, unlike the former.
they often use their skill for benefcent
purposes.
THE COMMON soRCERERs
In India are people of very low caste, or
no caste at all, belonging mainly to the
aboriginal races who are still outside the
pale of Hindooism. Their treatment,
though often violent, does not in modern
times result in death, as it did in some
authenticated cases which happened years
ago. The sorcerer, taking his place in front
of his patient, with flowers in his hand aud
lamp and incense burning before him
gives burnt turmeric and charmed mustard
seed to the bewitched person to SMELL and
dashes cold water with violence upon his
face. Sometimes the treatment of the pa.
| tient at the hands of a sorcerer vicariously
tOrtures the witch. Thus it is said that in
| one instance, upon the sorcerer squeezing
the juice of certain plant into the eyes
of bewitched child, the witch imme.
diately complained of pain in the eyes
which she lost, and the child was cured.
THE MOST FORMIDABLE.
BY far the most formidable magic pow
ers are, however, attributed to a class o
Brahmins, who are par excellence the pro
fessors of the black art in India. The
Brahmin sorcerers are versed IN the prac
tice of the spells and charms which, with
the accompanying rites, are described il
the Sanskrit books, called tantrds. The
keynote of these is struck in a well-knowr
couplet, which, done into English, run,
thus: The whole world is in the powe,
of the gods, and the gods are in the power
of magic; magic is in the power of the
Brahmins, and therefore the Brahmin is
himself the god" 1t must not be forgot.
ten, however, that in spite of this oraculal
deliverance, and the systematization of the
magical spells and charms in several San
skirt treatises and their commentaries, the
Brahmins themselves acquired the black
art from the wild aboriginal races of India
OF the six modes in which the Brahmir
sorcerer can influence his neighbors, foul
are malignant, one is doubtful, and one
only is beneficial.
THE FOUR MALIGNANT OPERATIONS
Are the causing of death, the destruction
of property or mental capacity, the stop
page OF physical or mental action, and tn,
causing of feuds between friends. The ar
of bringing an individual completely uu
der the control of the expert is the neu
tral operation. The only branch of whit,
magic discu sed is the power of relievin,
sufferer from disease or the hostile i'll
| fluences of the stars and other heavenl,
bodies. a severe and prolonged probation
must be undergone before man is consid
cred competent to commence the practic
of the magical art. He must go through
a course of recitation of cabalistic words
consisting of unintelligible Sanskrit roots
and of repetition of the name of tn
Deity to be conquered about a million
times. Special hours are assigned for tn
performance, special postures OF the body
special diet, and specially appointe'
space beyond which the pro6ationer is no
allowed to go until the process of initia
tion is finished. OF course all this ha
to be accompanied with handsome offer
ings to the deities and the Brahmins, an,
substantial feasts to the latter. OF the sil
magical arts, the one most frequently prac
ticed in India in modern times is that c
the neutral "subjugation." Certain ingre
dients are prescribed for this operation.
small piece of the frontal bone of mar
the fruit OF the poisonous plant dhaturs
camphor and honey are to be taken i
, proper proportions and well mixed tc
gether, and the forehead is to be painte
with the compound before the wearer ma
bring under his influence and control tn
mind of any person whom he fears Q
loves.
OTHER SoSTRUMs,
Similar to the ingredients in the wltche
cauldron in g Macbeth increasing in con
plexity and gruesomeness as the highe
departments of the black art are reached
are to be found in the Sanskrit treatlses.
Now to give some examples of the prao
, tice of the dreaded art in India of tn
present day: A few days ago the fathe
, of Government official in the neighbol
, hood of Calcutta suffered from malignar
fever, which increased so rapidly that b
suspected the evil influence of some of til
5 inmates of his family. He therefore ser
for an exorcist, who, on arriving, told tn
sufferer that the culprit was young maj
living at the time in his house, and unde
great obligations to him. The patien
J greatly astonished to hear of such bas
ingratitude, at first declined to believe th
accusation. The youth, however, at one
, confessed his guilt, stating that he had {
one time learned certain incantatior