If a person is accused of committing a crime by someone, but claims innocence, an independent witness is required to establish the truth. Sometimes, a human witness may not be available because the crime might have been committed without a third party present. In the modern age, science has developed many means to help ascertain the truth. Fingerprints on a murder weapon, DNA on the victim’s body or footage from a CCTV camera may be relied upon to prove the innocence or guilt of the accused. In the olden days, such means were not available. If the crime was serious and a judgment needed to be made, but no witnesses were present, it was common to invoke the divine. This practice occurred in the ancient and medieval periods, for example in Europe, and continues in pockets of isolated and less developed communities. Sometimes, a person suspected of wrongdoing but not put on trial would voluntarily choose to undergo divine ordeals to clear their name.
In India, too, divine ordeals were an accepted practice. If a person refused to undergo divine ordeals, it was believed that they were implicitly confessing to the wrongdoing and would receive the punishment prescribed for their crime, while avoiding the harsher penalties or even death that could result from failing the ordeal. The Puranas describe several types of divine ordeals.
The ordeals were conducted in a prominent location such as the hall of justice, the royal gate, the temple gate or a road crossing. The first type of ordeal is the dhata or tula. In this, a balance is constructed from wood while chanting Vedic mantras. The accused sits on one side of the balance and is carefully weighed against bricks, stones and clay.
Once the weights are equal, the accused gets down and prays to Tula, the goddess of balance and daughter of Lord Brahma. He then sits on the balance again. If he is lighter than before, it is believed that the goddess has removed the burden of guilt, and he is pronounced innocent. If he is heavier, he is considered guilty. In the fire ordeal, seven circles are drawn according to prescribed measurements.
Seven leaves of the Asvattha tree are tied to the accused’s hands. He then picks up an iron ball that has been heated in the fire. He slowly crosses all the circles and then drops the ball on the ground. Upon removing the leaves from his hands, if they are found uninjured, he is considered innocent. In the phala (ploughshare) ordeal, the accused licks a heated ploughshare with his tongue three times and is deemed innocent if his tongue is not burnt.
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