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adviser knows, he may question the proposed solutions. Second, throughout the course of the consultation a number of trick questions (involving false problems or nonexistent persons) are put to the consultant to see how he or she will respond. If the consultant is wrong on these, it is thought that he or she could also be wrong on the real questions. As a final test, the consultant is asked to indicate what other consultants have suggested about the problem (see below). |
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The ultimate proof of the veracity of a given consultation, however, is defined in terms of whether or not the situation is ameliorated after the advice of the consultant has been accepted and carried out. A local saying reinforces this idea: "One thanks the blacksmith in front of him, but one thanks the consultant behind" (2:45). This saying, which is frequently repeated in the final phases of the consultation, refers to the fact that when one purchases something from a blacksmith, one can immediately evaluate the workmanship and praise the maker at this time. For the consultant, however, one must wait until after the advice has been followed ("behind" here meaning "following''). If the advice proves correct, i.e., if the treatment works and the person who is ill recovers, it is then that one will thank the consultant for his or her advice. As one person noted, "The consultant is thanked afterwards and not to his face. So I should now thank him and say that things have worked out" (6:217). In the words of another, "One accepts the peace of mind of the consultant, but one does not accept the advice of the consultant immediately. If the consultants really told me the truth then I should see my son go out today for a walk" (9:94). |
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The problem of consultants sometimes giving incorrect advice is also generally acknowledged. Not only do certain proposed solutions not alleviate the problem; many times, because of a lack of resources, some families are not able to do what the consultants have suggested and yet the person still recovers. In this light, it is interesting that consultants as a group are frequently called liars, a name which is seen in part to be based on their potential for stating falsities and making mistakes. More important, however, the consultants' identity as liars, as "persons who see only the surface of things," according to the Litammali literal translation of the term, is decidedly pejorative. This term acknowledges the problem posed by consultants who are not able to view the situation deeply enough or who are not able to get at the essential knowledge necessary for finding a solution (11:508). The term liar is also used formally by the consultants themselves. As one consultant explained, |
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The reason one ridicules consultants by calling them liars is that we do not consult with one person but with many people and we get certain lies in the process. Also, in the past after some consultations when the advice was followed, it did not work. Thus we ridicule the consultants saying they tricked us. (11:508) |
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The term liar is also employed by consultants during the funerals of other consultants. Thus when a consultant dies, other consultants gather at his house and at a predetermined time walk around the house ringing a bell and singing, "It |
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