The patron goddess of the Thugs is Devi or Kali, the wife of the god Siva, and the deity of destruction. In her name they exercise their profession, and to her they ascribe its origin. Formerly, they believe, Kali co-operated with the Thugs, and assisted them in the disposing of the bodies of their victims by devouring them. But through an indiscretion of one of the fraternity, who, out of curiosity, pried into the proceedings of the goddess, she became displeased, and condemned them in future to bury their vic tims. But though she now refused her future assistance, she presented her worshipers with one of her teeth for a pickaxe, a rib for a knife, and the hem of her lower garment for a noose. Whether on the faith of this legend or otherwise, it is certain that the pickaxe is the instrument which, by all the Thugs, is held in the highest estimation. Its fabrication is superintended with the greatest care, and it is consecrated to its duties under many and minutely regulated ceremonies; and after it has thus been prepared, it is only intrusted to a Thug selected for this dignity on account of his shrewdness, and sobriety. The place where, and the manner in which, it is then deposited are like wise the subject of the strictest rules; and it is submitted to special purifications after each time that it has been used for the preparation of a grave. The pickaxe is, in short, looked upon with the highest reverence by a Thug; it is the symbol of his faith, and the chief object of his superstitions. That these superstitions are gross and numerous may be easily anticipated. The belief in omens, especially, plays a great part in a Thug s career. All his movements are regulated by it, and the learning of the Thugs consists in a thorough acquaintance with them.
To a neglect of the warnings given by omens, or to an imperfect acquaintance with them, the Thugs invariably ascribe a failure of their undertakings, if it happens. When preparing for an expedition the auspices are always solemnly taken; and only if favor able it is carried out. Among the bad omens they count the meeting the corpse of any one belonging to the village, the meeting an oil-vendor, a carpenter, a potter, a dancing master, a lame or blind man, a fakeer with a brown waistband, or a Hindu devotee with long traced hair. To sneeze is a bad thing at setting out on an expedition; to meet a woman with an empty pitcher, or an ass braying from the front, a pair of jackals cross ing the road in front of the gang, to see a wolf cross the path from left to right. On the
other hand, it is a lucky omen to meet a woman with a pitcher full of water, or a pre; nant woman, or to hear an ass braying on the left while halting at a stage, or to see a single jackal passing from right to left, or an antelope from left to right. Superstitions like these—and it is not necessary to give more instances of them—sufficiently show that the Thugs consider their murderous practices as countenanced and regulated by higher powers; and it is for the same reason that after every murder they perform a special solemnity called tapuni. It is celebrated in honor of the terrific Krill, and its principal feature consists in addressing a prayer to the goddess, and in making the prac tical stranglers, those who formed part of the expedition, and committed the murders, partake of gaur, or consecrated sugar, the effect of which is believed to be irresistible. Other ceremonies are, of course, likewise performed on the occasion; but it is from the eating of the gaur that the strength and prosperity of the Thug are supposed necessarily to be derived. Another feast observed by the Thugs throughout India is called Kurhae lairna or Kok. It likewise takes place in honor of Kali, and the requisites for its cele bration aregoats, rice, ghee (butter), spices, and spirits. The superstitions of the Thugs. are all of Hindu origin; but they are adopted also by the Mohammedans, who, while, stout adherents to the tenets of the Koran, yet pay dive honors to the Hindu goddess of This inconsistency they sometimes reconcile by identifying Kan, whose other name is also Bhavfini, with Fatima, the daughter of Mohammed, and wife of Ali, and by saying that Fatima invented the use of the noose to strangle the great demon. Rukutbeejdana.
At various periods steps were taken by the native and English governments to sup press Thuggee—the practice of the Thugs—but it is only since 1831 that energetic. measures were adopted by the British authorities to counteract the evil; and though it has not yet altogether disappeared, it may be safely assumed that it is fast dying out.— For a fuller account of the Thugs the reader is referred to the Illustrations of the History and Practices of the Thugs (by E. Thornton, Lond., 1837)--whence the foregoing outline is taken; to the authentic reports of special cases contained in the same work; and to col. Meadows Taylor's Confessions of a Thug (1840).