Home
» Rajasthan Custom & Tradition
Birth, marriage and death are inextricably woven in the pattern
of folk customs and tradition. The cultural cycle commences at
conception, passes through birth and marriage, and continues even
after death.The folks consider barrenness as a great misfortune
for a family. Propitiations are made to gods, treatments taken
from wizards, talismans worn round necks, ants fed daily and many
other devices employed to have a child. Once the pregnancy is
established, all precautions are taken to protect the prospective
mother from evil influences.
Charms are fastened round the neck and waist and a knife put
under her pillow at night to avert the evil eye. She is not
allowed to go for near mahua, khakra or khejara tree where
spirits are believed to reside.It is customary that the daughter
returns to her parents well in time for her first delivery.
Festivities start and women assemble to sing songs specially
meant for such an occasion, some describing the changing behavior
and liking of a pregnant woman
When the birth pangs begin, the woman is given some butter oil to
drink to help facilitate the delivery. A cow dung cake is kept
burning constantly, into which drops of butter-oil and some
incense is cast from time to time and offerings are made to gods
to ensure a safe and easy child-birth. Promises are made and vows
taken that if the child is safely born parents will take the
infant to the deity in due course and offer obeisance in person
by shaving off the hair on head the baby. If the birth pains are
excessive or unbearable, sorcerer’s help is resorted to.
Many women, to checkmate such an eventuality, start to wear
charms prescribed by wizards as soon as they realize that the
pregnancy has occurred.
When the child is born, the naval cord is cut with a scythe and
the child rubbed with wheat flour and given a bath. The cord and
the placenta are buried carefully by the new father’s
sister to prevent their coming in the possession of any animal,
evil spirit or magician. The birth of the child is announced by
midwife, the nayan-wife of the family barber or by a senior
relatives and close friends and ties strings of mango leaves at
their doors and with the help of cow dung or red earth draws a
swastika, a symbolic representation of Sun, as a sign of good
wishes and good news on the occasion
The woman is given a partial bath after the delivery. A regular
bath is given on the sixth or seventh day when she is dressed
ceremoniously and is brought out from the delivery room by the
younger brother of the husband to worship the Sun. the baby,
anointed with oil and lamp-black put on the eye-line and a red or
blue string tied round its waist, is brought out along with her.
Both are then taken in a procession to the village well for
worship called jalwa.
Although the birth of a son is the most welcome event, a daughter
in the family is also considered essential. Parents who are not
blessed with a daughter to offer in marriage feel themselves
unfortunate, as kanyadan- bestowing of daughter is one of the
samskaras- religious obligations prescribed by the tradition
without which one’s life is not considered complete.
Children are named usually after gods and goddesses. The tribal
folks name their children after the genius presiding over the
days on which they are born.
