AFTERCARE
The first thing after the child was handed over by Dai was to give Azaan by an immediately available male member of either house. As a rule the Azaan was given in the child’s right ear and was followed by Iqamat in the left ear, standing with child facing the direction of Qiblah.
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The child was compulsorily breast fed, commencing with the first day on colostrum, the first breast milk. The new mother was given very light food, like plain khichdi, porridge or sooji milk etc. for the first week, gradually enriching with liver, mutton and chicken soups. One common item was spring chicken soup made by boiling the ingredients in a Bharani (an earthen jar) over low fire for almost a whole day, at the end of which all the meat would have melted and the bones left clean. The recovery medicine once included Coco Brandy and red wine, later on substituted with Dasamoolarishtam and Jeerakarishtam mixed in equal measure as an appetizer. Tonics were prescribed by Unani Hakeems or local Vaidyas .
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The one very special addition of Cutchi tradition was Goondh made with specially obtained clean pearls of Arabic Gum, black cumin seeds, fenugreek, triphala, tippali, allspice (Valmulaku), Khaskhas, cardamom seeds and semolina (Sooji) lightly fried in cow’s ghee. In some editions, cashew nuts, almonds and resins were added.
These special medications continued until the fortieth day after delivery and, for a while, beyond. However, she was not allowed to take potatoes, tapioca, sweet potato, taro, colocasia (Chembu), and certain pulses like rajma, horsegram etc. as they would create flatulence and the child would get stomach ache, as a consequence. Ginger, Garlic and black pepper were included in food preparations for their anti-flatulence and detoxification properties. Seafood was selectively avoided until the fortieth day for the same reason.
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The daily routine from the seventh or tenth day involved light body massage with medicated gingelly oil or mustard oil. The oil was allowed to stay for an hour or so till it got absorbed or dried. On alternate days turmeric paste was applied instead of oil. Thereafter the greasiness was removed by rubbing green gram powder or shikakkai powder and taking bath with water boiled with herbs like certain barks having medicinal properties, known in the local parlour as Nalpamara Patta (Cluster Fig, Peepal, Indian Laurel, Clustered Hiptage = Athi, Ithi, Aal, Arash) and Nochi (Vitex negundo – Chinese chaste tree) capable of relieving body ache, generally suffered in labour and also postpartum. This was known as ‘Ved jo Pani’. Soap of any kind was not used; hair could , however, be washed with lather from soaked Aareetha. The temperature of the water used to be close to boiling point to begin with and gradually reduced to bearable level over a period. After the bath the hair was dried with incense fumes from a Dhoopdani.. The Dai would wrap around the belly a length of cloth to assist in shrinking the postpartum bulges and the loosened skin, and also to regain shape.
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40th Day Bathing
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Post partum a ceremonial bath, in medicated hot water, was taken by the mother, on the 39th day if the child was a boy and 40th day if a girl. At that time no oil or turmeric was applied; she could use any perfumed soap, if so desired. She would wear new clothes provided by her husband for the occasion, apply kajal or surma and perfume, but shall remain veiled until the husband would appear before her and she had seen his face. She could see anyone else only after she had seen the husband’s face. The husband, the mother-in-law and close relatives on both sides shall have to be forewarned and invited for the event. She would kiss the hands of her husband, mother-in-law, father-in-law, her parents, other elderly ladies, elder bothers and sisters, in that order. A Gor was not usually taken, although the Dai, the hajjamon, and dhami’s wife were paid handsomely and gifted with new dresses. A further ritual attached to the occasion was to carry on her head a large plate, a khumcho, filled with a mixture of rice flour and grated coconut fried together and sprinkled with sugar or powdered sakkar, and to distribute fistfuls from it to all those present. Conducting of a moulud, general feast, and poor feeding were usual formalities.