Tribes of Chhattisgarh
Chattisgarh, a state that is at the vanguard of Indian
industries and also a repository of minerals has a diverse cultural legacy.
Chhattisgarh and tribal culture are two tautological terms since a third of the
state's populace is dominated by tribals.
My Project work on MASTERS was on BHATRA TRIBE of Chattisgarh and a detailed project report has been submitted on the aforesaid topic.
The tribes of Chhattisgarh are an
unique race who mainly inhabit the dense forests of Bastar. In fact more than
70% of Bastar's population is composed of tribals who account for 26.76% of
Chhattisgarh's entire tribal populace. The lifestyle of the tribal people is
unique and imbibed with traditional rituals and superstitions. They are a
friendly and jovial lot who are industrious and diligent. Although shrouded in
poverty, they live life to the hilt and love to celebrate every joyous
occasion. Food, drink, music,dance, mirth and merriment add color to their
otherwise simple lives. The tribal women also love to adorn themselves in
ethnic jewelry. One of the Chhattisgarh's eminent tribes are the Gonds or the
Kotoriya tribe. The etymological connotation of their name comes from the
Telegu term "Kond" meaning hills. The Gonds dominate most of
Chhattisgarh's tribal population and primarily depend upon agriculture,
forestry, cottage industries, hunting and fishing for their subsistence. The
talking point of the lifestyle and culture of the Gond tribals is their Ghotul
marriage policy, a one of a kind arrangement for conducting the nuptial
rituals. Another tribe, the Abuj Maria live in isolation in the dense and secluded
enclaves of the forests of Narayanpur Tehsil in Basir. The are a ferocious and
barbaric tribe who believe in primitive customs and are hardly tempted by the
material pleasures of life.
Gonds
Chhattisgarh is a nature lover's paradise. The state provides a glimpse of central India's cultural potpourri and of the prevailing lifestyle. The tribes of Chhattisgarh are mostly a primitive race who faithfully follow all traditional customs and their archetypal age-old ritual. The oldest and most populous tribe of Chhattisagrh are the Gonds.
The Gonds Tribals, who are also recognized as
the Koytorias are widely dispersed throughout the state. However they mainly
predominate the dense forests enclosed in southern Chhattisgarh's Bastar
District that accounts for more than 20% of Chhattisgarh's population. The
three principal sub castes of the aboriginal Gonds are the Dorla, Maria and
Muria races. The etymological significance of the term Gond is derived from the
Telegu connotation"Kond" meaning hill. The tribal economy is
predominantly agrarian. But the poverty stricken people also depend upon
forestry, local cottage industries, hunting and fisheries for their economic
subsistence. Some of the Gond people are however employed in cushy primary
sector jobs as well as other allied industries. The unique and one of a kind
Ghotul marriage tradition of the Gonds is renowned all across the world. They
mainly practice the traditional Hindu customs and marry within the family in
order to preserve the customary completion of the nuptial vows within the
family. Of course some of the romantic daredevils choose to elope with their
beloved. Gond marriages however are not a bed of roses. Remarriage, widow
marriage, divorce and marrying in laws as well as brothers and sisters are a
common affair. Gond society is somewhat matriarchal where the groom has to pay
a substantial dowry top the bride's family to pay his due respects. Gonds
Chhattisgarh is a nature lover's paradise. The state provides a glimpse of central India's cultural potpourri and of the prevailing lifestyle. The tribes of Chhattisgarh are mostly a primitive race who faithfully follow all traditional customs and their archetypal age-old ritual. The oldest and most populous tribe of Chhattisagrh are the Gonds.
Abhuj Maria
It is indeed a marvel to visit Chhattisgarh with its unparalleled natural beauty and diverse tribal cultural legacy. The fascinating tribal culture can be had at a glance by visiting the picture perfect state. Amongst the various tribals residing in Chhattisgarh, the Abhuj Maria race of aborigines deserve special mention. The Abhuj Maria race of tribal people are one of the principal sub castes of the Gond tribals. They live in isolation and inhabit the secluded enclaves of Narayanpur tehsil of Bastar District. The area inhabited by the Abhuj Maria tribals are a dense forest that sprawls across nearly 1500 miles of lush greeery. The Abhuj Maria tribals are very very much feared by mankind. They are a primitive race whose mannerisms are rather ferocious. They savage and barbaric tribesmen are hostile to strangers are sometimes directly shoot them with their arrows. These hill Maria tribals live in the forest enclosure in a world of their own, completely out of the touch with human society. Money and other material pleasures seldom tempt the people of this race. They are hardly effected by the ravages of time and their recluse lifestyle not only keeps them out of touch with modern civilization,it also helps to preserve their archetypal tradition and customs. In fact the Abhuj Maria are one of the few tribes that have many to keep their quintessential culture alive and unaffected by the vestiges of time. The tribal people are scantily clad and simply cover themselves with a loincloth. However they are very fond of traditional ethnic jewelry are adorn themselves with several iron rings strung around their neck. The women love wearing earring and sometimes pierce as many as 14 holes in their ears and hang two rings or studs from them. The Abhuj Maria tribals are more bestial than human in their characteristics. They seldom clean themselves or their garments. Even when drinking water, they don't use the normal human convention of using a vessel or container. Instead they drink straight from the pond replicating an animal.
Bison Horn Maria
Bison Horn Maria is one of the famous tribal groups of India. Mostly found in Chhattisgarh's Bastar region, they are a major sub-caste of a tribal community called Gond.Apart from the Jagdalpur Tehsil towards the south of the river Indravati in the state of Chhattisgarh, they mainly reside in the district of Garhichiroli in Maharashtra as well as some parts of Madhya Pradesh. Their introvert nature makes them live in isolation in the interiors of dense forest areas of these states.This tribal community of Chhattisgarh derived their name from their unique custom of wearing a distinctive headdress, which resembles the horns of a wild bison. They generally wear that headdress during marriage dances or other ceremonies. This main distinct language spoken by this tribe of Chhattisgarh is Dandami Maria. Some of them even speak mutually unintelligible Gondi dialects, which is an oral language of Dravidian origin.
As per a survey made by the World Evangelization Research Center in the year 2000, the total population of Bison Horn was 10,100. Most the members of this community of Bison Horn follow the traditions and customs of the Hindu religion. Some of them are ethnic religionist though. As per the World Evangelization Research Center's estimation, about 70 % of this tribe is Hindu. Besides worshipping the earth goddess Danteshwari for their retention, Bison Horn Marias worship spirits and non-human objects.Any resource for the religion of Christianity in Dandami Maria language is not available among Bison Horn Maria tribal community. This in turn has made them unaware of this religion. Being followers of the Hindu religion that makes them believe in a super power, this tribe of India believes non-human objects to have spirits. Their religious belief is a combination of Hinduism with animistic beliefs. They worship varied gods. The outskirts of different village are enshrined for the god of that particular clan. Apart from being related to each other, these Clan Gods are supposedly territorial. These Clan Gods are housed on the border of every village so as to protect the village from any external or black magic. Besides this, they even belief in rebirth. This unifying feature makes them check for an identification mark of ancestors in the body of a new born baby to know whose soul has been reincarnated into that baby's body.The spiritual belief of this tribal group includes sorcery or black magic. Legendary and strange stories about their physical and spiritual powers are quite popular. They attribute any illness to be caused by a negative force manipulated by an enemy. Though medicine people are very powerful, still the villages of this tribe remain constantly concerned about black magic and occult forces.
The Bison Horn Maria men have got a distinct hairstyle of long pony tail. Besides that, they carry a tobacco box and a special kind of comb. This comb remains attached to their loincloth. Women of Bison Horn tribal group generally dress in white skirts. They even use varied jewelry for adornment.The bison horn shaped headdress worn by them are nowadays made of cattle horns because of the scarcity of bison horns. Those headdresses are placed on a frame of bamboo and decorated with feathers of peacock or chicken and hanging cowry shell strings. Such a headdress is passed on from one generation to another.
Dhurvaa
The term tribal culture and Dhurvaa are tantamount to one another and go hand in hand. Chhattisgarh is a natural paradise with its divergent topography and medley of cultural extravaganza. Almost a third of the populace consists of tribes of which the Dhurvaa tribe deserves special mention. The Dhurvaas are possibly the most significant indigenous tribe that occupy the domicile of Chhattisgarh's Bastar District. In terms of social hierarchy, the Dhurvaas rank second only after the elite Bhatra tribals. The Dhurvaas are also recognized by the popular nom de plume Parjaas that locally mean the Public. However the tribesmen prefer the nomenclature Dhurvaa that in their native dialect means a local village chieftain. The Dhurvaas are a proud, courageous and highly caste conscious race who only mix with people of an equal social standing. Their society is progressive and broadminded and polygamy is a common and accepted practice. The women, who are responsible for all domestic matters are held in high esteem and thus they are very haughty. The men are generally indolent and except for the routine cultivation and hunting, they don't take much interest in domestic affairs. The Dhurvas depend upon agriculture for their economic subsistence. The tribal people are also talented craftsmen whose expertise is manifested by the exquisite handicrafts that they make out of cane and other forest products. They are highly religious and pious and worship several local cult gods and goddesses. Mirth and merrymaking are an eminent part of all celebrations and no religious celebration is complete without animal sacrifice and coconut is also offered to mollify the deities.
