The nature of white and black magic in Sri Lanka
By Amal HEWAVISSENTI
Most often, we find that magic provides a readymade and infinitely
adaptable topic for discussion. In the simplest analysis, magic is the
power to use supernatural forces to make impossible things happen such
as making people disappear or controlling events in nature. In the
popular tradition people count much on the use of magic to combat any
adverse power or to create potentially dangerous impact on people.
Generally magic is readily distinguishable from what we call miracle as
magic seems to employ the occult power to apparently influence the
course of events.
Usually a magician in Sri Lanka is a man who pretends to have power
to influence a course of event by occult control of nature and spirits.
It is almost inevitable that people do not necessarily expect relief and
protection from religion but instead they rely totally on magic in
whatever form for security from danger and distress. However, it is
possible to draw a distinct line between magic and religion which is
primarily oriented towards giving spiritual happiness and consolation
for man rather than giving instant relief to man's problems. He is
probably justifiable to say that magic has gained influence over aired
levels of society where science has not taken root and inspired people.
How it affects
It is true that most Sri Lankans are caught up in ceremonies of
yantras and mantras in various stages of life from birth to death for
complete reassurance of safety. In short magic centers round natural
phenomena that are chancy or dangerous and that fall beyond the
boundaries of ordinary man's understanding. It is the continuation of a
tradition of people who were vague in scientific outlook and who tried
to find a passable explanation for their ill-luck. They were simply
unable to explain the cause for diseases, illnesses, barrenness of women
or domestic accident or a failure of a good harvest when their
neighbours had a very successful one. They were really aware of the
consolation and the healing effect in the belief of Karma but the belief
alone did not seem to give solution to their immediate practical
problems. The best and easiest approach to cope with their misfortune
seemed to be the practice of magic which was believed to put and end to
civil spirits, jealousy of men or wrath of gods. The effect of it
whether white or black spreads through and through the realms of
extraordinary. For rural Sri Lankans, the natural phenomena with
untraceable signs and sound were a mystery and within this mystery does
the power of magic flourish.
White magic
White magic (intended for the welfare of people) encourages the use
of spells which are expressed in the form of wishes, prayers, oaths,
interjection and simple formulae. The magician (Kattadiya) employs play
on words and onomatopoeic phrases in spells to heighten their effect and
produce a sense of confidence in the person for whom they are meant.
Moreover, he takes particular care to pronounce the words on precise
intonation because any mistake in the flow of spell is believed to bode
ill for him and the client. A spell which carries undertones of a myth
is noticeable by its vocabulary of esoteric words (such as Sanskrit) and
sounds with redoubled strength aimed chiefly at achieving desired
results and impressing the person in trouble. The words in a spell
typically lack logical meaning (Om namo.... om breem...! eswahuh ... and
the like). White magic is usually exploited both in secret and in public
to guarantee success increase of wealth or increase of production. White
magic is mostly a form of "Shanthikarma".
For women, an array of rites (generalised) are performed at each
crucial stage of their life namely puberty, marriage and pregnancy and
vows are made to the gods of Devales with the promise of making lavish
offerings on fulfilment of the vow. A women during pregnancy is
exclusively blessed with the chanting of pirith and she is specially,
exposed to the chanting of Angulimala piritha when she is close to
delivery. At the same time, eating flesh or fried food, and being
exposed to outdoor life remain something of a taboo (killa) for a girl
at puberty until she is ceremonially bathed and purified in strong
protection against evil spirits. It is interesting to observe that since
more recent times, businessmen and politicians in particular have been
exploiting certain forms of magical rites (pujas) to rack up resounding
success in their business undertakings and political life.
A popular magical device that is believed to guard the wearer against
all evil influence is "Sura" or "Yantra" (a kind of amulet which
contains oil charmed with pirith or mantras). The ideal example for this
is "Henaraja Yantra". Furthermore, a 'mantra' (a form of incantation)
with widespread use in magical rituals, is simply meant for curing
sicknesses and forcing demons or 'prethas' out. A kattadiya believes
that a mantra is infused with charmed words with peculiar power and
includes proper names of gods and demons who are implored to help and
avoid harm. A mantra which encapsulates symbolic expressions with
haunting rhythm, is often chanted in a low voice as it is intended, by
no means, to be heard or understood by others.
The Edura's actions such as sprinkling water to wish for rain or
cutting 'Alu puhul' (ash pumpkin) or knots to reverse the effects 'kodivina'
are interesting to the viewer but awe-inspiring to the believer.
However, it has not escaped our notice that Sri Lankan white magic has
planted itself on Buddhist backdrop. Quite typically the Shanthikarma
ritual opens with invocations to gods for protection of the family
specially females from evil spirits, natural calamities and evil eye and
evil mouth (eswaha and katawaha) from enemies. Popular tradition has is
that wrath of gods or demons can bring illness and epidemics and so
people fall back on devil dancing, bali dancing or Devol dancing to
counteract the effects of evil forces and black magic. We see that
amulets, 'yantras' and talismans inspire better levels of confidence in
the wearer and offer apparently ensured 'protection' against evil. The
simplest offering for Buddha, Bo tree or a deity in a Devale, is the
puja which calls for flowers. The offerings are made by kattadiyas, bali
eduras or yak dessas (sorcerer). The "mal bulath thatuwa' (flower and
betel tray) can be rightly interpreted as a quasi" Devale in which
Maheshwari is believed to sit in the center and Saraswathi, Angulimala,
Ganeshwara and Mahikantha are believed to be on four corners in
Katharagama Devale, the kapurala offers the tray of offerings which
consist of betel, coconut and fruits, on behalf of the offerer and
returns the tray to the whole family for consumption.
This is purely white magic in Sri Lanka. Sometimes we see people
realising animals in captivity (buying a cow from a butcher) on
fulfilment of a certain vow made to a god in Devale premises. The
undercurrent of this rite is satisfying the psychological attitudes of a
believing person. This trend is a positive one.
Black aspect of magic
The common black magic practices have absolutely complex and secret
acts or rites performed in cemeteries in the dead of night. Both the
Kattadiya and the client are well aware to the fact that once their
rites happen to misfire in the cemetery, spirits will take their toll in
pitch darkness. However, kodivina (sorcery) is by far the most ruinous
and deadly type of magic which basically calls for the general tendency
to harm and even kill a target person or a family. Most rich or
successful men are bedevilled by the oddest maniacal impression that
black magic might be exploited by their neighbours or relations out of
jealousy and they are unusually concerned about having yantras buried
around their houses. This is to cancel out the effect of 'katawaha'
(evil mouth) and 'eswaha' (evil eye). Some people are strongly gripped
by the idea of occult principle by which a kattadiya is able to cause
barrenness in women, miscarriages, accidents, illness and domestic
failures. It is really pathetic to note that when a person fails in all
attempts to regain his previous success, he begins to foster their idea
that his (second) child, for example, is born with magical potency to
thwart his success (apala) and tent to maltreat the helpless child.
If a woman who is believed to have "eswaha' or "katawaha" happens to
note the success of someone and say how successful he is or if she were
to damn another's happiness with a faint praise, she is beginning to
harm him with her "hidden magic". Belief in 'eswaha' and 'katawaha' is
seen to be firmly rooted in Sri Lankan society. It is obvious that the
incidence of black magic is widespread where feelings of hatred, anger
and jealousy are at work undermining social relationships. Sorcery is
high in certain corners of society which lack any modern sense of
justice to settle disputes or come to a compromise. Sri Lankan people
are aware of the forms of black magic such as 'kodivina', 'bandana', 'anavina',
or 'pilliya' and kattadiyas exploit their mystical power or magic
mantras to give life those forms of black magic. Midnight and the
moments of sunrise and sunset are best suited for magic while the sun,
moon, planets and the position of stars are all taken in to
consideration in magic operations. Only the kattadiya and the client
have the understanding of the magic operation in which charms are buried
in the premises of clients's enemy or spirits (pilliya) are directed
together with curses to carryout the destructive orders of the kattadiya.
Sometimes we see a lover overwhelmed by passion falls back on
magicians, support to bewitch a girl who does not reciprocate his love.
"Rodi dehena" is such a magic device in operation in public.
As kattadiyas (sorcerers) practise in secret, they are often
consulted in secret though everybody in the village knows them. But the
officially recognised magician is the Devale kapurala and people throng
to obtain blessings, to fulfill vows, to curse wrongdoers or to ask for
protection.
In the climax of a magic ritual, a kattadiya is transported to
another world and people stand in open mouthed wonderment when he is
carried, by his assistants, away to the middle of the jungle. Often
these magic rituals are seen to be performed in the depth of jungles, in
cemeteries in secret recesses of a house, or in shadowy corners with
indistinct words and muttered spells.
With a few notable exceptions, public opinion creates a magician who
in turn believes that he has obtained his extraordinary power from
planets, stars or agents of nature.
In Sri Lanka, a person may get publicity as a magician by a "dream
revelation" or by tradition by which he gets ancestral practice of
magic. Sometimes a dead relation or a god may appear in a dream and
suggest forms of sorcery. Pricked by the needle of curiosity, people
begin to visit him and leave him as strong believers of his 'wonderful
practices'. |