ot forget the covenant arise oh man). The idea is that
man has fallen into sins of omission and commission (_ka pop, ka lain
ka let_) but that God is nevertheless expected to spare him, and to
accept a substitute for him according to the covenant (_jutang_). By
this covenant God is supposed to have accepted in exchange the
cock as a substitute for man. How the cock came to occupy such an
important position, tradition is vague and self-conflicting. The
fact remains that the covenant of the cock is the foundation of the
Khasi religion. It is of interest to mention that amongst the Ahoms
the tradition is that Khunlung and Khunlai brought down from heaven
the _kai-chan-mung_, [30] or pair of heavenly fowls, and that to
this day the sacrifice of the fowl is considered by the Deodhais,
or priest-soothsayers of the Ahoms, a most important feature of the
ancient Ahom ritual. But amongst the Ahoms there is the difference
that auguries are obtained, not from the entrails, but by examining
the legs of the fowls. The Ahoms are Shans belonging to the Tai branch,
another great division of the Indo-Chinese group of the human race.

The covenant of the cock as thus explained shows the importance of this
sacrifice to the Khasis. The large intestine of a fowl has two pea-like
protuberances, one close to the other. One is symbolically called
_u blei_ or god, and the other is styled _u briew_ or man, they are
connected by a thin membrane. Directly the bird has been disembowelled
the sacrificer throws a few grains of rice on the entrails and then
watches their convulsive movements. If the portion of the entrail
called _u blei_ moves towards that portion which represents man, it
is considered proof positive that the god has heard the prayer of the
sacrificer, but if the movement proceeds in the opposite direction,
then the reverse is the case and the omen is bad. If the entrails are
full and healthy, having no spots (_brai_), or blood marks (_thung_),
and if the membrane between the two protuberances has not been
fractured, these are favourable signs. If the intestines are empty,
wrinkled, or spotted, and the membrane mentioned above is fractured,
these are bad signs. Auguries also are drawn by examining the livers,
the lungs and spleens and gall bladders of pigs, goats and cattle. If
the liver of a pig is healthy and without spot, the augury is good;
if the reverse, it is bad. The spleen must not be unduly distended,
otherwise the omen is u