Part 28

Sedan.--A synonym of Devanga. At times of census, Seda Dasi has been returned by Devanga dancing-girls in the Madura district. The following legend of Savadamma, the goddess of the weaver caste in Coimbatore, is narrated by Bishop Whitehead. [157] "Once upon a time, when there was fierce conflict between the men and the rakshasas, the men, who were getting defeated, applied for help to the god Siva, who sent his wife Parvati as an avatar or incarnation into the world to help them. The avatar enabled them to defeat the rakshasas, and, as the weaver caste were in the forefront of the battle, she became the goddess of the weavers, and was known in consequence as Savadamman, a corruption of Sedar Amman, Sedan being a title of the weavers. It is said that her original home was in the north of India, near the Himalayas."

Segidi.--The Segidis are a Telugu caste of toddy sellers and distillers of arrack, who are found mainly in Ganjam and Vizagapatam.

For the purposes of the Madras Abkari Act, toddy means fermented or unfermented juice drawn from a cocoanut, palmyra, date, or any other kind of palm-tree. It is laid down, in the Madras Excise Manual, that "unfermented toddy is not subject to any taxation, but it must be drawn in pots freshly coated internally with lime. Lime is prescribed as the substance with which the interior of pots or other receptacles in which sweet toddy is drawn should be coated, as it checks the fermentation of the toddy coming in contact with it; but this effect cannot be secured unless the internal lime coating of the toddy pot or vessel is thorough, and is renewed every time that the pot is emptied of its contents." It is noted by Bishop Caldwell [158] that "it is the unfermented juice of the palmyra (and other palms) which is used as food. When allowed to ferment, which it will do before midday, if left to itself, it is changed into a sweet intoxicating drink called kal or toddy." Pietro Della Valle records [159] that he stayed on board till nightfall, "entertaining with conversation and drinking tari, a liquor which is drawn from the cocoanut trees, of a whitish colour, a little turbid, and of a somewhat rough taste, though with a blending in sweetness, and not unpalatable, something like one of our vini piccanti. It will also intoxicate, like wine, if drunk over freely." Writing in 1673, Fryer [160] describes the Natives as "singing and roaring all night long; being drunk with toddy, the wine of the Cocoe."

Arrack is a spirituous liquor distilled from the fermented sap of various palms. In some parts of the Madras Presidency, arrack vendors consider it unlucky to set their measures upside down. Some time ago, the Excise Commissioner informs me, the Excise department had some aluminium measures made for measuring arrack in liquor shops. It was found that the arrack corroded the aluminium, and the measures soon leaked. The shopkeepers were told to turn their measures upside down, in order that they might drain. This they refused to do, as it would bring bad luck to their shop. New measures with round bottoms were evolved, which would not stand up. But the shopkeepers began to use rings of india-rubber from soda-water bottles, to make them stand. An endeavour has since been made to induce them to keep their measures inverted by hanging them on pegs, so that they will drain without being turned upside down. The case illustrates well how important a knowledge of the superstitions of the people is in the administration of their affairs.

The Segidis do not draw the liquor from the palm-tree themselves, but purchase it from the toddy-drawing castes, the Yatas and Gamallas.

They have a caste headman, called Kulampedda, who settles disputes with the assistance of a council. Like other Telugu castes, they have intiperulu or house names, which are strictly exogamous. Girls are married either before or after puberty. The custom of menarikam is practiced, in accordance with which a man marries his maternal aunt's daughter. A Brahman officiates at marriages, except the remarriage of widows. When a widow is remarried, the caste-men assemble, and the Kulampedda ties the sathamanam (marriage badge) on the bride's neck.

The dead are usually cremated, and the washerman of the village assists the chief mourner in igniting the pyre. A Satani conducts the funeral ceremonies.

The Segidis worship various village deities, and perantalammas, or women who killed themselves during their husbands' lives or on their death.

The more well-to-do members of the caste take the title Anna.

Sekkan (oil-man).--A synonym of Vaniyan.

Sembadavan.--The Sembadavans are the fishermen of the Tamil country, who carry on their calling in freshwater tanks (ponds), lakes and rivers, and never in the sea. Some of them are ferrymen, and the name has been derived from sem (good), padavan (boatmen). A legend runs to the effect that the goddess Ankalamman, whom they worship with offerings of sheep, pigs, fowls, rice, etc., was a Sembadava girl, of whom Siva became enamoured, and Sembadavan is accordingly derived from Sambu (Siva) or a corruption of Sivan padavan (Siva's boatmen). Some members of the caste in the Telugu country returned themselves, at the census, 1901, as Sambuni Reddi or Kapu. According to another legend, the name is derived from sembu padavor or copper boatmen. Parvatha Raja, disguised as a boatman, when sailing in a copper boat, threw out his net to catch fish. Four Vedas were transformed into nets, with which to catch the rakshasas, who assumed the form of fishes. Within the nets a rishi was also caught, and, getting angry, asked the boatman concerning his pedigree. On learning it, he cursed him, and ordained that his descendants should earn their living by fishing. Hence the Sembadavans call themselves Parvatha Rajavamsam. Yet another legend states that the founder of the caste, while worshipping God, was tried thus. God caused a large fish to appear in the water near the spot at which he was worshipping. Forgetting all about his prayers, he stopped to catch the fish, and was cursed with the occupation of catching fish for ever. According to yet another account of the origin of the Sembadavans, Siva was much pleased with their ancestors' devotion to him when they lived upon the sea-shore by catching a few fish with difficulty, and in recognition of their piety furnished them with a net, and directed various other castes to become fish-eaters, so that the Sembadavar might live comfortably.

Of the Sembadavans of the North Arcot district, Mr. H. A. Stuart writes [161] that they "act as boatmen and fishers. They have little opportunity of exercising the former profession, but during heavy freshes in big rivers they ferry people from bank to bank in round leather-covered basket coracles, which they push along, swimming or wading by the side, or assist the timid to ford by holding their hands. At such times they make considerable hauls. During the rest of the year they subsist by fishing in the tanks."

"The Sembadavans of the South Arcot district," Mr. Francis writes, [162] "are fresh-water fishermen and boatmen. Both their occupations being of a restricted character, they have now in some cases taken to agriculture, weaving, and the hawking of salted sea-fish, but almost all of them are poor. They make their own nets, and, when they have to walk any distance for any purpose, they often spin the thread as they go along. Their domestic priests are Panchangi Brahmans, and these tie the tali at weddings, and perform the purificatory ceremonies on the sixteenth day after deaths."

The Sembadavans consider themselves to be superior to Pattanavans, who are sea-fishermen. They usually take the title Nattan, Kavandan, Maniyakkaran, Paguththar, or Pillai. Some have assumed the title Guha Vellala, to connect themselves with Guha, who rowed the boat of Rama to Ceylon. At the census, 1901, Savalakkaran (q.v.) was returned as a sub-caste. Savalalai or saval thadi is the flattened paddle for rowing boats. A large number call themselves Pujari, (priest), and wear the lingam enclosed in a silver casket or pink cloth, and the sacred thread. It is the pujari who officiates at the temple services to village deities. At Malayanur, in the South Arcot district, all the Sembadavans call themselves pujari, and seem to belong to a single sept called Mukkali (three-legged).

Most of the Sembadavans call themselves Saivites, but a few, e.g., at Kuppam in North Arcot, and other places, say that they are Vaishnavites, and belong to Vishnu gotram. Even among those who claimed to be Vaishnavites, a few were seen with a sandal paste (Saivite) mark on the forehead. Their explanation was that they were returning from the fields, where they had eaten their food. This they must not do without wearing a religious emblem, and they had not with them the mirror, red powder, water, etc., necessary for making the Vaishnavite namam mark. They asserted that they never take a girl in marriage from Saivite families without burning her tongue with a piece of gold, and purifying her by punyavachanam.

The Sembadavans at Chidambaram are all Saivites, and point out with pride their connection with the temple. It appears that, on a particular day, they are deputed to carry the idol in procession through the streets, and their services are paid for with a modest fee and a ball of cooked rice for each person. Some respect is shown to them by the temple authorities, as the goddess, when being carried in procession, is detained for some time in their quarters, and they make presents of female cloths to the idol.

The Sembadavans have exogamous septs, named after various heroes, etc. The office of Nattan or Nattamaikkaran (headman) is confined to a particular sept, and is hereditary. In some places he is assisted by officers called Sangathikkar or Sangathipillai, through whom, at a council, the headman should be addressed. At their council meetings, representatives of the seven nadus (villages), into which the Sembadavans of various localities are divided, are present. At Malayanur these nadus are replaced by seven exogamous septs, viz., Devar, Seppiliyan, Ethinayakan, Sangili, Mayakundali, Pattam, and Panikkan. If a man under trial pleads not guilty to the charge brought against him, he has to bear the expenses of the members of council. Sometimes, as a punishment, a man is made to carry a basket of rubbish, with tamarind twigs as the emblem of flogging, and a knife to denote cutting of the tongue. Women are said to be punished by having to carry a basket of rubbish and a broom round the village.

Sembadavans who are ferrymen by profession do special worship to Ganga, the goddess of water, to whom pongal (rice) and goats are offered. It is believed that their immunity from death by drowning, caused by the upsetting of their leather coracles, is due to the protection of the goddess.

The ceremonial when a girl reaches puberty corresponds to that of various other Tamil castes. Meat is forbidden, but eggs are allowed to be eaten. To ward off devils twigs of Vitex Negundo, margosa (Melia Azadirachta), and Eugenia Jambolana are stuck in the roof. Sometimes a piece of iron is given to the girl to keep. During the marriage ceremonies, a branch of Erythrina indica is cut, and tied, with sprays of the pipal (Ficus religiosa) and a piece of a green bamboo culm, to one of the twelve posts, which support the marriage pandal (booth). A number of sumangalis (married women) bring sand, and spread it on the floor near the marriage dais, with pots, two of which are filled with water, over it. The bride and bridegroom go through a ceremony called sige kazhippu, with the object of warding off the evil eye, which consists in pouring a few drops of milk on their foreheads from a fig or betel leaf. To their foreheads are tied small gold or silver plates, called pattam, of which the most conspicuous are those tied by the maternal uncles. The plate for the bridegroom is V-shaped like a namam, and that for the bride like a pipal leaf. The bride and bridegroom go through a mock ceremony representative of domestic life, and pot-searching. Seven rings are dropped into a pot. If the girl picks up three of these, her first-born will be a girl. If the bridegroom picks up five, it will be a boy. Married women go in procession to an ant-hill, and bring to the marriage booth a basket-load of the earth, which they heap up round the posts. Offerings of balls of rice, cooked vegetables, etc., are then made. After the wrist-threads (kankanam) have been removed, the bride and bridegroom go to a tank, and go through a mock ploughing ceremony. In some places, the purohits give the bridegroom a sacred thread, which is finally thrown into a tank or well.

By some Sembadavans a ceremony, called muthugunir kuththal (pouring water on the back) is performed in the seventh month of pregnancy. The woman stands on the marriage dais, and red-coloured water, and lights are waved. Bending down, she places her hands on two big pots, and milk is poured over her back from a betel leaf by all her relations.

The Vaishnava Sembadavans burn, and the Saivites bury their dead in a sitting posture. Fire is carried to the burial-ground by the barber. In cases of burial the face is covered over by a cloth, in which a slit is made, so that the top of the head and a portion of the forehead are exposed. A figure representing Ganesa is made on the head with ashes. All present throw sacred ashes, and a pie (copper coin) into the grave, which is then filled in. While this is being done, a bamboo stick is placed upright on the head of the corpse. On the surface of the filled-in grave an oblong space is cleared, with the bamboo in the centre. The bamboo is then removed, and water poured through the hole left by it, and a lingam made, and placed over the opening.

At Malayanur a ceremony called mayana or smasana kollai (looting the burning-ground) is performed. The village of Malayanur is famous for its Ankalamman temple, and, during the festival which takes place immediately after the Sivaratri, some thousands of people congregate at the temple, which is near the burning-ground. In front of the stone idol is a large ant-hill, on which two copper idols are placed, and a brass vessel, called korakkudai, is placed at the base of the hill, to receive the various votive offerings. Early in the day, the pujari (a Sembadavan) goes to a tank, and brings a decorated pot, called pungkaragam, to the temple. Offerings are made to a new pot, and, after a sheep has been sacrificed, the pot is filled with water, and carried on the head of the pujari, who shows signs of possession by the deity, through the streets of the village to the temple, dancing wildly, and never touching the pot with his hands. It is believed that the pot remains on the head, without falling, through the influence of the goddess. When the temple is reached, another pujari takes up a framework, to which are tied a head made of rice flour, with three faces coloured white, black and red, representing the head of Brahma which was cut off by Siva, and a pot with three faces on it. The eyes of the flour figure are represented by hen's eggs. The pot is placed beneath the head. Carrying the framework, and accompanied by music, the pujari goes in procession to the burning-ground, and, after offerings of a sheep, arrack, betel and fruits have been made to the head of Brahma, it is thrown away. Close to the spot where corpses are burnt, the pujaris place on the ground five conical heaps (representing Ganesa), made of the ashes of a corpse. To these are offered the various articles brought by those who have made vows, which include cooked pulses, bangles, betel, parts of the human body modelled in rice flour, etc. The offerings are piled up in a heap, which is said to reach ten or twelve feet in height. Soon afterwards, the people assembled fall on the heap, and carry off whatever they can secure. Hundreds of persons are said to become possessed, eat the ashes of the corpses, and bite any human bones, which they may come across. The ashes and earth are much prized, as they are supposed to drive away evil spirits, and secure offspring to barren women. Some persons make a vow that they will disguise themselves as Siva, for which purpose they smear their faces with ashes, put on a cap decorated with feathers of the crow, egret, and peacock, and carry in one hand a brass vessel called Brahma kapalam. Round their waist they tie a number of strings, to which are attached rags and feathers. Instead of the cap, Paraiyans and Valluvans wear a crown. The brass vessel, cap, and strings are said to be kept by the pujari, and hired out for a rupee or two per head. The festival is said to be based on the following legend. Siva and Brahma had the same number of faces. During the swayamvaram, Parvati, the wife of Siva, found it difficult to recognise her husband, so Siva cut off Brahma's head. The head stuck on to Siva's hand, and he could not get rid of it. To get rid of the skull, and throw off the crime of murder, Siva wandered far and wide, and came to the burning-ground at Malayanur, where various bhuthas (devils) were busy eating the remains of corpses. Parvati also arrived there, and failed to recognise Siva. Thereon the skull laughed, and fell to the ground. The bhuthas were so delighted that they put various kinds of herbs into a big vessel, and made of them a sweet liquor, by drinking which Siva was absolved from his crime. For this reason arrack is offered to him at the festival. A very similar rite is carried out at Walajapet. A huge figure, representing the goddess, is made at the burning-ground out of the ashes of burnt bodies mixed with water, the eyes being made of hen's eggs painted black in the centre to represent the pupils. It is covered over with a yellow cloth, and a sweet-smelling powder (kadampam) is sprinkled over it. The following articles, which are required by a married woman, are placed on it:--a comb, pot containing colour-powder, glass bangles, rolls of palm leaf for dilating the ear-lobes, and a string of black beads. Devotees present as offerings limes, plantains, arrack, toddy, sugar-cane, and various kinds of cooked grains, and other eatables. The goddess is taken in procession from her shrine to the burning-ground, and placed in front of the figure. The pujari (fisherman), who wears a special dress for the occasion, walks in front of the idol, carrying in one hand a brass cup representing the skull which Siva carried in his hand, and in the other a piece of human skull bone, which he bites and chews as the procession moves onward. When the burning-ground is reached, he performs puja by breaking a cocoanut, and going round the figure with lighted camphor in his hand. Goats and fowls are sacrificed. A woman, possessed by a devil, seats herself at the feet of the figure, and becomes wild and agitated. The puja completed, the assembled multitude fall on the figure, and carry off whatever they can grab of the articles placed on it, which are believed to possess healing and other virtues. They also smear their bodies with the ashes. The pujari, and some of the devotees, then become possessed, and run about the burning-ground, seizing and gnawing partly burnt bones. Tradition runs to the effect that, in olden times, they used to eat the dead bodies, if they came across any. And the people are so afraid of their doing this that, if a death should occur, the corpse is not taken to the burning-ground till the festival is over. "In some cases," Herbert Spencer writes, [163] "parts of the dead are swallowed by the living, who seek thus to inspire themselves with the good qualities of the dead; and we saw that the dead are supposed to be honoured by this act."

Sembunadu.--The name, meaning the Pandya country, of a sub-division of Maravan.

Semmadi.--A Telugu form of Sembadavan.

Semman.--The Semmans are described, in the Madras Census Report, 1891, as "an insignificant caste of Tamil leather-workers, found only in the districts of Madura and Tinnevelly (and in the Pudukottai State). Though they have returned tailor and lime-burner as their occupations, the original occupation was undoubtedly leather-work. In the Tamil dictionaries Semman is explained as a leather-worker, and a few of them, living in out-of-the way villages, have returned shoe-making as their occupation. The Semmans are, in fact, a sub-division of the Paraiyans, and they must have been the original leather-workers of the Tamil tribes. The immigrant Chakkiliyans have, however, now taken their place." The Semmans are described, in the Madura Manual, as burning and selling lime for building purposes. In the Census Report, 1901, the caste is said to have "two hypergamous sub-divisions, Tondaman and Tolmestri, and men of the former take wives from the latter, but men of the latter may not marry girls of the former."

Girls are married after puberty, and divorce and remarriage are freely allowed. As the caste is a polluting one, the members thereof are not allowed to use village wells, or enter caste Hindu temples. The caste title is Mestri.

Sem Puli (red tiger).--A section of Kallan.

Senaikkudaiyan.--The Senaikkudaiyans are betel vine (Piper Betel) cultivators and betel leaf sellers, who are found in large numbers in the Tinnevelly district, and to a smaller extent in other parts of the Tamil country. The original name of the caste is said to have been Elai (leaf) Vaniyan, for which the more high-sounding Senaikkudaiyan (owner of an army) or Senaittalavan (chief of an army) has been substituted. They also called themselves Kodikkal Pillaimar, or Pillaimars who cultivate betel gardens, and have adopted the title Pillai. The titles Muppan and Chetti are also borne by members of the caste.

It is recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, that "the priests of the Senaikkudaiyans are Vellalas, and occasionally Brahmans. They do not wear the sacred thread. They burn their dead, and perform annual sraddhas (memorial services). In 1891, following the Tanjore Manual, they were wrongly classed with Vaniyans or oil-mongers, but they are superior to these in social position, and are even said to rank above Nattukottai Chettis. Yet it is stated that, in Tanjore, Paraiyans will not enter the Senaikkudaiyans' houses to carry away dead cattle, and ordinary barbers will not serve them, and food prepared by them will not be accepted even by barbers or washermen. Somewhat similar anomalies occur in the case of the Kammalas, and the explanation may be that these two castes belonged to the old left-hand faction, while the Pariyans, and the barbers and washermen belonged to the right-hand. Paraiyans similarly will not eat in the houses of Beri Chettis, who were of the left-hand faction."

Senapati.--A title, denoting commander-in-chief, said to be sold to Khoduras, and also occurring as a title of other Oriya castes, e.g., Kurumo and Ronguni. Among the Rongunis, the title is practically an exogamous sept. Senapati is further a name for Sales (Telugu weavers), the headman among whom is called Pedda (big) Senapati. The headman of the Salapu weavers, who do not intermarry with the Sales, is also styled Senapati. It is also a title of the Raja of Sandur.

Sendalai (red-headed man).--Returned as a sub-division of Konga Vellalas at times of census.