Grannies’ tales, superstition, peculiar beliefs and practices are part and parcel of India’s culture and no less prevalent among the tribes.
One such hair-raising tribal tale is that of the Palta Bagha (tiger in Odia). The Kondhs, mostly in Odisha’s Kandhamal district, talk of this ‘black magic’ practice in hushed whispers – when a person appears in the dreams of his foe in the shape of a tiger or a cat. The Palta Bagha usually intends to hurt or destroy the dreamer and/or his family because of an overdue debt, theft or a land dispute.
“The person who is poised to inflict punishment takes the form of Palta Bagha and walks backward in the dream,” Cyriel Nayak, president of Bondas Overall Network Development Action Society, an NGO in Mohana, Malkangiri, tells theindiantribal.com.
“The tribal tale has it that the ominous dream portends death of a family member, mostly a child. Or it may foretell some other harm of massive proportions,” adds Nayak, who has extensively toured tribal areas of Kandhamal, Rayagada, Koraput and Malkangiri.
The general practice in case of a Palta Bagha ‘curse’ is to settle the dispute at a neutral site designated by the village elders. Usually the site is selected in the middle of the two villages, where the seniors congregate along with their large entourages.
Traditionally-attired crowds gather at the spot armed with weapons. Singers and dancers move to the music of instruments such as Deka and Kanjara and a martial atmosphere prevails.
However, the elders hear out both sides of the argument and resolve the issue peacefully.
According to Nayak of Bondas, the belief of Palta Bagha is nearly extinct now. The tribal tale appears in a much-diluted form in some tribal pockets, he points out.
