Fanditha
Introduction
f
a black cat crosses your path, rest assured the day
would turn ugly. If one of your loved ones sneezes
just as you are about to leave on a voyage, you can
expect a journey that is far turbulent than that of
the Titanic
Until recently,
social life in Addu Atoll was steeped in fanditha
- a mixture of folk medicine, charms and black
magic, based on ancient beliefs and superstitions,
with the addition of Arabic Quranic verses.
Fanditha
thrived in these circumstances. Magic was often used
in political intrigue, courtship and marriage rites,
launching new ships, ensuring a good fish catch,
finding guilty parties when a crime (usually theft)
had been committed, and treating the sick.
Fanditha assumed less benign forms when it was
employed to weaken or kill enemies.
In modern
Maldives the practice of fanditha is declining
rapidly, and it is considered a joke by many
educated Maldivians. But respected fanditha men are
still paid large amounts of money by satisfied
clients. A fanditha man from Maathodaa island in
Huvadhu atoll claimed to have earned over Rf 20,000
while practising in Addu atoll during 1994-5.
Examples of fanditha in 20th century southern
Maldives
Addu 1950s
A 500 gm gold
chain had been stolen. The fanditha man gathered the
suspects together and made them sit on the earth. He
made a design with a few lines in the sand, and then
drove a steel nail into the earth. He told the
people that the guilty one would be unable to stand
up. One middle-aged man remained sitting. He
admitted to being an eye-witness to the theft, but
would not say who had done it.
Another time, a
theft had occurred from a house. The fanditha man
brought a red feathered rooster to the house and
tied it up at the front door in sight of all
passersby. He rubbed perfume onto the rooster's
comb. He then told all the potential thieves to walk
up to the rooster and touch it on the comb. He told
them that the rooster would crow loudly when it was
touched by the thief. One by one the people went up
to the rooster, as they walked away the fanditha man
smelt their hands for perfume. The person who did
not touch the rooster was thus identified.
Another testing
method is to hang a cut-throat razor by a human hair
in the doorway. Tell the people to walk under it,
telling them that the culprit will have his throat
cut by the falling razor. Whoever refuses the test
is the guilty one.
