Rice is the principal and often the only food of the great mass of the Indian population. Dhayna the Sanskrit name of paddy, means the supporter or nourisher of mankind. It is regarded as the emblem of wealth or fortune. On a thursday in the month of Pausha (December, January) after the new paddy has been reaped, a rattan-made grain measure called rek in Bengali, is filled with new paddy, pieces of gold, silver and copper coins, and some shells called cauries, and worshipped as the representative of the goddess of fortuue. This apparatus is preserved in a clean earthen pot and brought out for worship on one thursday in each of the following Hindu months, namely, Chaitra, Sravana, and Kartika. Such is the form of the domestic goddess of wealth of an agricultural people living chiefly on rice.1

The three principal classes of rice are Salt or that reaped in the cold season, Vrihi or that ripening in the rainy season, and Shashtika or that grown in the hot weather in low lands. This last is reaped within sixty days of its sowing. The varieties of each of these three classes of rice are numerous and confounding. Rakta sali popularly known as Daudkhάni is the variety of rice that is considered superior to all others and suited for use by sick persons. The preparations of rice used in sick diet and described in Sanskrit medical works are as follows:-

Yavάgu or powdered rice boiled with water for the use of the sick and convalescent. It is made of three strengths, namely, with nine, eleven and nineteen parts of water, called respectively Vilepi, Peyά and Manda. Sometimes, instead of water, a decoction of medicinal herbs is used in preparing yavάgu.

Thus for example if it is ordered to give the patient yavagu made with ginger and long pepper, the process adopted in preparing it is as follows. Take of dry ginger and long pepper, one tola each, boil in four seers of water till reduced to two and strain. Now take nine, eleven or nineteen parts of this strained decoction and one part of powdered rice for making yavagu of the strength ordered.

Lάjά, (Vern. Khai), is paddy fried in a sand bath. The husks open out and the rice swells into a light spongy body. It is considered a light article of diet suited to invalids and dyspeptics.

Bhrishta tandula, (Vern. Muri) is rice fried in a sand bath. This is also a light preparation of rice and is given to sick persons as a substitute for boiled rice. It is also much used by the poorer classes for tiffin and early breakfast.

Prithukά, (Vern. Churά). To prepare this, paddy is mois_ tened and lightly fried. It is then flattened and husked. This preparation of rice is given with curdled milk (dadhi) in dysentry. It is well washed and softened in water or boiled before use.

Pάyasa is a preparation of rice with nine parts of milk.

Tandulάmbu is water in which unboiled rice has been steeped. This sort of rice-water is sometimes prescribed as a vehicle for some powders and confections.

The products of the acetous fermentation of rice and other grains have been already described in the introduction.