shooting lessons: old school.

[shooter]

another shikar tale from the past.
have had a chance to meet people who learned this way, their prowess vary from above average to legendary. but certainly very entertaining.

a few steps are also same as in the western world.

first stage observer. accompany children to shikaar. lessons in gun safety instilled. basics of shikaar learned.

gun bearer. allowed to carry guns but cant fire. taught never to point etc etc. muscles get used to carrying guns. you are also allowed to retrieve game at this point. this can be fun especially when shooting 'hariyal' green pigeon. when shot in mid flight, children are encoureged to catch it by being told 'if it hits the ground, it will lose '1 paav' (250 g) of meat/weight. encourages children to focus on moving bird/ bird in flight.

during this stage children are also allowed to 'spot' game and rewarded (eg firing a shot etc) if successful. this helps them in recognising the habitat for diff game and getting used to spotting game. this autromatically teaches them patience and virtues of being silent during shikaar.

first shooting lessons. may be just firing at a stationary target just to get used to the gun.

learning 'flying shots'- start with dhanantar/dhanesh (hornbill) excellent target for a beginner as it has low speed. good to practice crossers and to develop ones swing.

then move on to partridge which is more or less like DTL.

gradually move on to faster birds like water fowl in which goose is the last. (exception maybe coomb duck/nakta) nakta is very difficult to kill. you have to aim for the head and head only.

shikra/baaz is the last stage. it belongs to kite family and stays almost stationary in mid air as it scouts for prey. if you can shoot it in mid air with a rifle, youre competent enough to shoot tiger without a machan.

last but certainly not the least is not mandatory training for a shikari but it helps separate legendary shots from very good ones. this involves shooting a dragonfly in flight with an airgun (not when stationary). as you are aware a dragonfly's flight it very irregular and unpredictable and it is almost impossible to do it.

some other exercises have been lost as these are tales i have gathered verbally and some bits have been forgotten both by the narrators and by myself.
If someone here can remember some other stages, kindly reply.

[prashantsingh]

These are very old stories . I am sure some old time Shikaris would be able to correlate with them , or add to them.
In parts of "Hindi" speaking Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh there were certain words "Shikaris" would AVOID before going for a hunt . These words were simply considered "unauspicious".
One of those words was "Kh"
I went on my first shoot with the elders as a small kid.
We were going for Rabbits that evening.
I (being the youngest) was unaware of this.
After scouting around for a few minutes, I shouted "Are yahaan to ek bhi KHargosh (rabbit) nahi hai".
Everyone in the Jeep gave me a dirty look and the oldest one shouted "Ho gaya satyanash".
Believe me guys . We did not see a single rabbit that night.
The Next evening I was left behind and the oldies came back with a decent bag.
What do you call a khargosh .....when you see him in the wild ? I questioned.
"Patwari" was the "CODE" . I was told.

When I was a little older and had won a little trust (of the elders) I was again taken for a "Patwari" shoot . A block had been booked in one of the ranges near Dehradun by a family member. Interestingly when the first rabbit was shot , one of the hunters jumped down and went running to the "first Kill". He pulled out the scut (rabbit's tail) and threw the animal high up in the air.
I asked one of the guys sitting next to me why they did that.
"As an offering to the Shikar Gods" Was the answer.
Till then I had never heard of a Shikar God. I still don't know if one exists.
Anyways ...... That day we came back with more than we had expected, which included a fine Cheetal Stag.

P.S.
In India we don't have wild rabbits.We only have Hare.
Khargosh is a generalized term used for both.

----------------------------------------End of the old story-------------------------------

-----------------------------------------Now for the New Story------------------------------------------

When I finally hunted in Africa , there was this interesting thing I was told. I asked my Professional Hunter if they followed any tradition after one got his "First Kill". He said Yes. He also added that most people "Specially our guests from the U.S. skip them ". (Interestingly half the clients are Americans).
I told my Hunter that I was a very "superstitious" fellow and would like to follow the local tradition.
Accordingly they smeared my face with the animals blood and gave me a small piece of "meat" (Don't ask me which part) to eat (raw).
I did the needful and had a great hunt.

On my last day I asked my professional hunter if the Americans who "did not follow the customs ....still have a Good Hunt".
"Most of them Do". Was the answer.
I was wondering if I had been taken for a ride.......But all said and done I have no regrets

[shooter]

There is a list of superstitions both good and bad omens.
Since there were no responses to the post, i didnt follow up and list them. Many of them are local/regional but in short, usually the good omens in general life are bad for shikaar and the bad ones are good for shikaar.

There is a technique called "totka" (same as in jaadu-tona/tona-totka) which can reverse some of the bad omens.
It is very interesting to see it happen. Contrary to what people think, its no voodoo black magic but quite a hilarious sequence of events.
In every region there are a few places/syllables that cant be named.
'Kh' is certainly one.

I also want to point out that I am not superstitious but interested in all these as a matter of history/heritage/tradition/culture etc.

-- 30 Apr 2010, 11:39 --

Accordingly they smeared my face with the animals blood and gave me a small piece of "meat" (Don't ask me which part) to eat (raw).

My lips are sealed. Cant believe you fell for it.

[prashantsingh]

There is another one on eating Fish.
I m sure many of you must me knowing this one.
The oldies used to say that Fish should not be eaten in those months which do not have an "R" .
That means : May , June , July and August.
Can any one tell me the funda behind it?

[brihacharan]

by prashantsingh » Tue Jun 08, 2010 4:03 pm
> There is another one on eating Fish. I m sure many of you must me knowing this one.
The oldies used to say that Fish should not be eaten in those months which do not have an "R" . That means : May , June , July and August. Can any one tell me the funda behind it?

Hi Prashant,
> Yes there is a reason behind the "R" theory" -
> To the best of my knowledge it's like this:
1. May / June / July & August are monsoon months, when the seas are very rough with under currents. This churns up all the toxic elements in the sea bed. When the fish feed they ingest these and in turn become harmful for human consumption. (Health concern)
2. This reason is purely sociological (concern for human life) - If people continued to eat fish during 'non R months' the fishermen will go out into the seas to catch them. Thus they expose themselves to the violent storms / huge tidal waves & inclement weather - one reason why fishermen don't venture out to the seas during monsoons / protect their lives.
This is the time when the fishermen mend their nets / repair their boats for the on-coming season.
Cheers
brihacharan

[m24]

What I was told was that these four months were the mating season of the fishes, and the period when the fishes lays eggs. If trawling were to happen during these months, even the young ones also would be caught,hence reducing the nos.

I may be wrong, though.

Regards

[brihacharan]

Hi m24,
> You are also right, because certain species do breed during monsoon, especially the larger ones.
> So this makes 3 good reasons why we abstain from eating fish during the "Non R months"!!!
Cheers
Brihacharan

[prashantsingh]

"Spot On" M24 and Brihacharan Sir.
I was expecting your reply Brihacharan Saab.

[shooter]

This actually relates more to shellfish, and in particular oyesters. It is also a western 'superstition' and hence has nothing to do with monsoon. (which is not an english phenomenon).

Please also note that in english these are the hot months (remember shakespeare's MIDsummer nights dream based in August) and fish spoil easy in them.

Till a few decades ago for most indians, monsoons werent in june july etc but in sawan, bhadwa etc.

When the british came, they brought the belief with them about the months of the christian calendar.
However in non coastal parts of india, shellfish isnt a part of staple diet, or even fish for that matter.
A lot of indians extrapolated it to fish in general as majority of Indians werent eating oyesters.

I am presuming prashantsingh heard this from army officers; the indian army is the most vilayati in its culture. Old stories die hard.

Please note monsoon hits india in may only in south india and bengal. In Bihar, eastern UP, its in june and rest of north india in end june/beginning july.

This month without r is known by many people here in the uk but no one actually folllows it a lot as shellfish is commercially farmed now and also the transport is much better.

[xl_target]

There is another one on eating Fish.
I m sure many of you must me knowing this one.
The oldies used to say that Fish should not be eaten in those months which do not have an "R" .
That means : May , June , July and August.
Can any one tell me the funda behind it?

Apparently the state of West Bengal has a special dispensation to take care of this rule.
Most Bongs want fish for at least one meal a day, every day, monsoon or no monsoon.

[prashantsingh]

Apparently the state of West Bengal has a special dispensation to take care of this rule.
Most Bongs want fish for at least one meal a day, every day, monsoon or no monsoon. [/quote]

Very True.
Here is a funny one. I was wondering if I should put it up.
In the olden days hunting blocks were booked, where families would spend their winter breaks. Occassionally the hunt would be disrupted by the "untimely" winter rains. The "nullas"in the terai would fill with water and it was difficult to venture out of the rest house for the shoot. At times the rains would continue for a few days causing much anxiety and waste of time for the shikaris. Apart from cooking the ladies had an important role to play in appeasing "Indra Dev" . The "Totka" was to wear the petticoat / lehanga inside out and walk around the camp in an anti clockwise direction , in the middle of the night.
Hold and behold the next morning you woke up to a bright sunny day.
Men were not allowed to witness the Totka as it would render it "null and void".
Try it guys. It always worked* .


* Conditions apply.
(Surely not valid in South England or Cherapunji or during the monsoons).