Skeat at Chodoi in Selangor on the twenty-eighth of January 1897. The particular bunch or sheaf which was to serve as the Mother of the Rice-soul had previously been sought and identified by means of the markings or shape of the ears. From this sheaf an aged sorceress， with much solemnity， cut a little bundle of seven ears， anointed them with oil， tied them round with parti-coloured thread， fumigated them with incense， and having wrapt them in a white cloth deposited them in a little oval-shaped basket. These seven ears were the infant Soul of the Rice and the little basket was its cradle. It was carried home to the farmer's house by another woman， who held up an umbrella to screen the tender infant from the hot rays of the sun. Arrived at the house the Rice-child was welcomed by the women of the family， and laid， cradle and all， on a new sleepingmat with pillows at the head. After that the farmer's wife was instructed to observe certain rules of taboo for three days， the rules being in many respects identical with those which have to be observed for three days after the birth of a real child. Something of the same tender care which is thus bestowed on the newly-born Rice-child is naturally extended also to its parent， the sheaf from whose body it was taken. This sheaf， which remains standing in the field after the Rice-soul has been carried home and put to bed， is treated as a newly-made mother； that is to say， young shoots of trees are pounded together and scattered broadcast every evening for three successive days， and when the three days are up you take the pulp of a coco-nut and what are called goat-flowers， mix them up， eat them with a little sugar， and spit some of the mixture out among the rice. So after a real birth the young shoots of the jack-fruit， the rose-apple， certain kinds of banana， and the thin pulp of young coco-nuts are mixed with dried fish， salt， acid， prawn-condiment， and the like dainties to form a sort of salad， which is administered to mother and child for three successive days. The last sheaf is reaped by the farmer's wife， who carries it back to the house， where it is threshed and mixed with the Rice-soul. The farmer then takes the Rice-soul and its basket and deposits it， together with the product of the last sheaf， in the big circular rice-bin used by the Malays. Some grains from the Rice-soul are mixed with the seed which is to be sown in the following year. In this Rice-mother and Rice-child of the Malay Peninsula we may see the counterpart and in a sense the prototype of the Demeter and Persephone of ancient Greece.
Once more， the European custom of representing the corn-spirit in the double form of bride and bridegroom has its parallel in a ceremony observed at the rice-harvest in Java. Before the reapers begin to cut the rice， the priest or sorcerer picks out a number of ears of rice， which are tied together， smeared with ointment， and adorned with flowers. Thus decked out， the ears are called the padi-pengantèn， that is， the Rice-bride and the Rice-bridegroom； their wedding feast is celebrated， and the cutting of the rice begins immediately afterwards. Later on， when the rice is being got in， a bridal chamber is partitioned off in the barn， and furnished with a new mat， a lamp， and all kinds of toilet articles. Sheaves of rice， to represent the wedding guests， are placed beside the Rice-bride and the Rice-bridegroom. Not till this has been done may the whole harvest be housed in the barn. And for the first forty days after the rice has been housed， no one may enter the barn， for fear of disturbing the newly-wedded pair.
In the islands of Bali and Lombok， when the time of harvest has come， the owner of the field himself makes a beginning by cutting the principal rice with his own hands and binding it into two sheaves， each composed of one hundred and eight stalks with their leaves attached to them. One of the sheaves represents a man and the other a woman， and they are called husband and wife. The male sheaf is wound about with thread so that none of the leaves are visible， whereas the female sheaf has its leaves bent over and tied so as to resemble the roll of a woman's hair. Sometimes， for further distinction， a necklace of rice-straw is tied round the female sheaf. When the rice is brought home from the field， the two sheaves representing the husband and wife are carried by a woman on her head， and are the last of all to be deposited in the barn. There they are laid to rest on a small erection or on a cushion of rice-straw. The whole arrangement， we are informed， has for its object to induce the rice to increase and multiply in the granary， so that the owner may get more out of it than he put in. Hence when the people of Bali bring the two sheaves， the husband and wife， into the barn， they say， Increase ye and multiply without ceasing. When all the rice in the barn has been used up， the two sheaves representing the husband and wife remain in the empty building till they have gradually disappeared or been devoured by mice.
The pinch of hunger sometimes drives individuals to eat up the rice of these two sheaves， but the wretches who do so are viewed with disgust by their fellows and branded as pigs and dogs. Nobody would ever sell these holy sheaves with the rest of their profane brethren.
