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| KEDU
FESTIVAL |
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| Celebrated In
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Tribal Districts of Ganjam & Koraput. |
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| Celebrated by
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Kondha of Phulbani |
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| Kedu is the most important festival of the
'Kondhs' of Phulbani, where they are largely concentrated. They are also found
in certain areas of the districts of Ganjam and Koraput. The festival is held
in different villages in different years. The place and date of the festival
are decided years ahead. |
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| This festival was well known for
the human sacrifice 'Meria' which was totally stopped during the British rule
in India. However to guard the religious sentiments of the tribals this has
been substituted now by buffalo-sacrifice. |
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Main Ritual
This festival continues for five days and different
rituals are prescribed for each day. The sacrifices are made on the third and
the fourth days in a most cruel manner. The animal is tethered in the place of
worship. |
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| Men and women get drunk, dance in frantic mood
and then kill the animal by cutting its limbs piece by piece. Then they carry
the blood and a piece of meat and bury it in the field where they produce
turmeric. They believe that this would yield them a good crop of turmeric as
red as the blood of the animal. Through this festival they propitiate the
Mother Earth. |
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