Kotharian Lightning

From the folklore of Dhanwar

(Note: In Hinduism, Vidya is a word that describes transcendent knowledge that leads to Brahman, the ultimate reality. Amongst the tribes of India, where this story comes from, it is used to describe a form of white magic, especially protection spells, often practised by magicians known as Gunia. Opposing this force is the Pap-Vidya, the spells of destruction and black magic. Pap-Vidya is often associated with witches and the forces they consort with.)

Dhangar Guru and Jangha Dewar were brothers. They were born in Mutni Andhiyar Kothi, and with them were born twelve carloads of Vidya and thirteen cartloads of Pap-Vidya. The brothers put the bullock-carts on the road and set out for Garh Lahari. As they reached the boundary of that place they put up their yellow, black, and red tent. They spread their bedding inside, covered themselves with their blankets and lay down to sleep. They said to their disciples, ‘If anyone comes here, do not laugh or talk with them. For this place is full of witches who will turn you into birds unless you are very careful.

When the witches of Garh Lahari saw the tent they said, “Let us go and see who are these people camping by our lake.” So twelve witches went to see. They found the disciples sitting round the tent and were very excited about them. They said to one another, “These are very handsome men. They are clean and straight as constables. Let us laugh and talk with them and persuade them to come home with us. The women did their best, but the disciples would not speak a word and sat aloof and silent. At last the witches got very angry; they threw black and yellow rice over the disciples and by their science turned them into birds and made them fly half-way up the sky. They seized the thirteen carts full of Pap-Vidya and dragged them back to their own houses. By their science they set fire to the tent. The Guru awoke and saw the tent on fire and no disciples and the thirteen carts missing.

They were very disturbed in mind and looked to and fro and up and down. By their science they put out the fire. Then they looked up and saw the twelve disciples flying round and round in the sky. Dhangar Guru picked up a little dust with the toes of his left foot, took it in his hand and blew it towards the twelve disciples, whereupon they came down to earth and turned into men again.

The Guru called the witches of that place and talked sweetly to them. “You have down well,” he said. “But bring back twelve of our carts, for I have to go to many villages, giving a little here and a little there.” The witches agreed and they brought twelve of the carts back but kept the thirteenth. The Guru struck his tent and moved on to Chipligarh.

As they went along the party passed a village on the road. A man had died there and the villagers were burning his corpse outside the village by the road side. The two Guru brothers saw this and said, “If we can save this man by our science, we must do so.” They walked round the pyre seven times and seven times clapped their hands in the name of their science. Then a man was born from the pyre; he was a leper, the first leper, with hands and feet decayed. He looked like a man whose whole body has been burnt with fire.

The party moved on and in every village they gave a little of the knowledge of evil to the women and of the knowledge of good to the men, and so made their way to Chipligarh. Here the Guru fell ill. As he was about to die, he said to his disciples, “I am going to die. When I am dead do not burn or bury my body, but cut my flesh up and cook it and everyone of you should eat a little.” When the Guru died, the disciples cut up his flesh and put it in a pot to boil.

At that time a sadhu came by and asked them what they were doing. They said, “Today our Guru has died and we are cooking his flesh.” But the sadhu said, “This is a great sin. Do not eat your Guru’s flesh, but throw it into the river.” The disciples did as the sadhu said and carried the flesh in the pots to the river and threw them in. The pots floated far down the river, to where the Agaria went to wash their clothes and bathe. Here seven Agaria sisters were bathing. They got hold of the pots and took them to the river bank. “Here is good cooked meat,” they said, and the eldest picked out a little piece of flesh and ate it. It tasted very good and she told the others and they all ate it. That night Pap-Vidya came to them in a dream. They learned everything in their dreams and became witches. They themselves made disciples. Their names were – Pankin with a giggling flirting vagina, Patharin with oil-smooth vagina, Sonarin with the vagina full of flying sparks, Kalarin with hair-covered vagina, Chamarin with the vagina like a sickle, Ahirin with the vagina smoothed with ghee, Gondin with muddy vagina. These were the witches.

Source:

Chapter 21, Myths of Middle India, Verrier Elwin, 1949