Pando ceremonies
Chhatti
Chhatti is what they call the ceremony that is performed when a baby boy or girl is born and the baby’s umbilical cord falls off. About ten or fifteen days after that, the baby’s Chhatti ceremony is done. In this ceremony, a barber is called to cut the baby’s hair. A lady is called to bathe the baby. She looks after and takes care of the child. On the same day, a washerman is also called, and people from the entire village have one piece of clothing washed. On that day, food is prepared for the whole village, and everyone is fed and given drinks.
Death
Funeral
When a man dies in the village, all the living members of his family are called to take part in the ritual of burial. When everyone has gathered, the dead body is placed on a cot turned upside down. After that, they go to funeral, in the burial ground where their ancestors are buried. There, a pit is dug to bury the body, and inside that pit there is a post. Before burying the dead, the child of the household are made to pass from one side of the corpse to the other. In front of the pit, the thumbs of the dead person’s hands and feet are broken. After that, the funeral is done. After the funeral, the women and the men go separately to bathe.
Das karam
Three days later, all the family members gather again. On that day as well, women and men go separately to bathe. After everyone has gathered, they begin the rituals by performing worship according to their customs. Flour is scattered from the courtyard of the house up to the corners of the home, and then the (worship) is started. The village head and the head of the household perform the rituals. After that, they bring the soul inside the house.
Then the doors of the house are closed for the entire night, so that it can be known whether the soul goes out of the house and comes back in or not. On that same day, biser is eaten. From the day the death occurs until the day biser is eaten, no one eats vegetables cooked with oil or turmeric.
Latti khochai
This is done at the time when the senior members from the boy’s side go to the girl’s house to ask for her hand in marriage. At that time, they also take a stick with them and place it on the roof of the girl’s house. They spend the night there. If during that night they receive any sign from the forest, then the marriage is considered confirmed.
Phaldai
When the girl and all the people on her side agree, the boy and everyone from his side take jaggery and beaten rice (gud–chivda) to the girl’s house, and together they perform all the customary rituals. When the people from the girl’s house come, they bring all the items for the girl’s adornment. On the same day, things that are brought, the girl wears them. That day, arrangements for food and drink are made for everyone.
Gathri
When all the rituals from both the boy’s and the girl’s sides are completed, the elders go to fix a date for the wedding. They decide on which day the tel-mandwa ceremony will take place and on which day the wedding procession (baraat) will arrive. After that, the wedding ceremonies begin.
Wedding
On the first day of the wedding, the boy or the girl fasts the whole day. Their sisters-in-law (bhabhi) also observe the fast with them. In the evening, all the people from their house and the village gather, perform worship to their local deity (Dev Dhami), and give them oil to drink. After giving the oil, the fast is broken and they eat some food. The next day, the mandap (wedding canopy/venue) is set up. On that day, the boys from the village go to the hills to cut madwa and bring it to set up the mandap at the house. The village Baiga (priest/ritual specialist) performs worship and completes all the customs. After that, the boy plants it in the courtyard. Then celebrations with singing, dancing, and feasting begin. On the third day, the baraat (wedding procession) takes place. When the baraat arrives, the boy and girl perform the wedding rituals (pheras), and the marriage is solemnized.
