Myths and Legends of the Andamans
9781465546593
46 pages
Library of Alexandria
Overview
THE Andamanese have a number of stories which are told to the younger people by their elders and relate to the doings of their ancestors in a time long ago. Some of these stories are recorded in the present chapter. A difficulty in the way of giving any clear and readable account of them is the fact that there are many slightly different versions of one and the same legend. To some extent the variations are local, each tribe, and even each portion of a tribe having its own set of legendary stories. Besides these local variations there are also individual variations. Two men of the same tribe may relate what is substantially the same story, yet each chooses his own words and gestures, and to some extent they may even arrange the incidents differently. In the last chapter it was mentioned that there are certain individuals, known as oko-ǰumuin the North Andaman and oko-paiadin the South, who are believed to have special knowledge as to the spirits and as to the magical efficacy of remedies for sickness. It is these oko-ǰumualso who are the authorities on the legendary lore of the Andamanese. In the case of magical remedies there is a certain common stock of beliefs as to the efficacy to be attributed to different substances, such as leaves of different plants, and on the basis of these beliefs the oko-ǰumuelaborates the remedies that he uses in particular cases. Each oko-ǰumu, however, prides himself on being, to some extent, original. An example of this has been already mentioned. When a great storm arose an oko-ǰumuof one of the Northern tribes succeeded in stopping it (in the belief of the natives) by placing a piece of the crushed stem of the Anadendroncreeper under a particular stone in the sea. On a later occasion another storm arose, and the successor of the first-mentioned oko-ǰumuwas appealed to that he might exert his powers. He did not simply imitate his predecessor, but he placed a piece of crushed bark and twigs of the Ficuslacciferain the sea under a different stone. In very much the same way there is a common stock of beliefs as to the events that took place in the time of the ancestors, but each oko-ǰumubuilds up on this basis his own particular set of legends, so that it is rarely that two of them tell the same story in the same way. An oko-ǰumumay obtain for himself a reputation by relating legends of the ancestors in a vivid and amusing way. Such a man would be able to invent new stories by combining together in his own way some of the traditional incidents. The desire on the part of each oko-ǰumuto be original and so to enhance his own reputation is a fertile source of variation in the legends. This lack of traditional form, which is a very important characteristic of the Andamanese mythology, may be compared with their lack of traditional songs. Just as every man composes his own songs, so, within certain limits, every oko-ǰumurelates in his own way the legends of his tribe. But whereas every man is a composer of songs, only a certain number are regarded as having authority to speak on the legends. Underlying the legends of any tribe there are a certain number of beliefs or representations with which every native is familiar. It is on the basis of these that the oko-ǰumuelaborates his own doctrine, if we may call it so, which he hands on to his followers, who in turn may become oko-ǰumuand produce further slight modifications of their own. Thus the legends are continually being changed, though in any one generation the changes introduced are slight, and it would take a long time for important changes in belief to be brought about. There is evidence, however, that a succession of leading men in the A-Pučikwartribe have succeeded in introducing a new doctrine as to the weather, making Bilikthe name of a class of beings instead of the name of a single being, and that this doctrine, while it has not entirely ousted the former beliefs, has yet succeeded in gaining currency not only in the A-Pučikwartribe, but also in theAka-K o l and Oko-J̌uwoitribes. At the present time it is only possible to recover a small part of the many different legends with their variants. The introduction of many new interests into the lives of the natives, through the European settlement and the many changes it has produced, has caused the ancient legends to be neglected. Most of the old oko-ǰumuhave died without leaving any followers to take their place. Many of the legends recorded here are merely what some of the men not specially skilled in legendary lore can remember of the stories told them in former days by oko-ǰumuwho are now dead
