“‘It is not earth that I switch,
But the heart of So-and-so.’(Bukan-nya aku mĕnyembat tanah,
Aku mĕnyembat hati Si Anu).“Then bury it in the middle of a path where your victim is sure to step over it
(supaya buleh di-langkah-nya), and he will certainly become distraught. The
only taboo in connection with it is that you should let no one share your
sleeping-mat.” The soul-receptacle in this case is the lump of earth taken from
the centre of the victim’s footprint. It is said to actually “become (the victim’s)
soul,” but no doubt this is merely figurative, though it completely proves the
identification of the soul with its receptacle in the Malay mind. The object of the
birching is not self-evident, but may be intended to dispel evil influences, and so
purify it for the incoming soul.
Another way of obtaining the required result is to scrape off some of the wood of
the floor from the place where your intended victim has been sitting. Having
secured this, take some of the soil from his or her footprint and mix them both
together with wax from a deserted bees’ comb, moulding the figure into his or
her likeness. Fumigate it with incense, and “beckon” to the soul by waving a
cloth (lambei sĕmangat) every night for three nights successively, reciting this
charm:—
“‘OM!’ shout it again and again!
Stupid and dazed
Be the heart of Somebody,
Thinking of me.
If you do not think of me,
The forty-four angels shall curse you.”