Bhootha Aradhane

Bhootha Aradhane literally means devil worship. Widely practiced in the coastal regions of Karnataka, the festival is a great mix of folk beliefs, awesome spectacle and ritualistic magic to ward away the evil through a worship of the devil himself. Karnataka's Bhootha Aradhane is widely popular because of its unique spectacle and strange aura. The folk origins of the ritual is clear and is carried on undisturbed as they were in the ancient times.

Bhootha Aradhane of Karnataka involves much visual splendor. Typically, it involves a procession in which idols are carried with great pomp. The idols are painted in a traditional manner and are meant to represent the bhootas or the devils. A curious scary feel is consciously imported in the demeanor of the idols. All throughout the procession, drums are beaten and firecrackers are burnt as the big crowd carry the idols towards a raised platform placed at a distance where the final rites of the procession take place.

The procession of Bhootha Aradhane in Karnataka reaches a climax when the procession reaches the podium amidst great cheer made by the beating drums and the firecrackers. The idols are reverentially placed on the podium. Then a dancer, something resembling a shaman climbs on the podium. He carries swords and bells worn around him and he begins a dance as he imitates the devil. Gradually he gets into a state of trance. This is when he takes on the role of a soothsayer and starts prophesying, apparently with the help of the devil that temporarily possesses him. In his possessed state, he often settles quarrels within the community and also extends promises of prosperity and fertility to the community when pleased and ways of propitiation when not.