Oraons: Religion, Customs and Environment

Author(s): VIRGINIUS XAXA

Source: India International Centre Quarterly , SPRING-SUMMER 1992, Vol. 19, No. 1/2,
INDIGENOUS VISION: PEOPLES OF INDIA ATTITUDES TO THE ENVIRONMENT (SPRING-
SUMMER 1992), pp. 101-110
Published by: India International Centre

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 VIRGINIUS X A X A

Oraons: Religion, Customs and E

has always been reciprocal. Both the environment and

human society have a profound influence on each other.

The interaction
religion that it between human beings and environment
In tribal societies, culture is so inextricably linked with
is difficult to differentiate between them.
I have attempted to understand the interplay between religion and
environment in one of the major tribal groups of the country viz. the
Oraons. My aim will be to show how the Oraon's orientation to the
environment is shaped by their religious beliefs and customs. The
interaction varies not only between cultures but also within society.
Different groups of people within a society differ from one another
in their interaction with the environment. Among the Oraons, such
groups are marked not so much by differences of income as by their
conversion to Christianity. I shall therefore touch upon the issue of
their interaction with the environment under these circumstances.

The Oraons call themselves Kurux (Kurukh). As a group and by

their language, they are identified as belonging to the Dravidian
group along with the Telugus, Tamils, Kannads, etc. However unlike
these groups, the Oraons have remained "undeveloped" in that they
have no script and literature of their own.
The Oraons are the fourth largest tribal group in India after the
Bhils, Gonds and Santhals. They inhabit the territory comprising the
adjoining districts of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa which
constitute the segment of the proposed Jharkhand state by tribal
leadership. The Oraons have been living in this territory for centuries
and hence consider it their homeland. Since the second half of the
nineteenth century, there has been a continuous movement of the
Oraons looking for work elsewhere especially in the eastern part of
India. As a result the Oraons are today found in states like West
Bengal, Assam, Tripura and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

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102 / VIRGINIUS XAXA

With respect to their migration and settlement in Chotanagpur,

the dominant view is that they may possibly have migrated from
Konkan in South India through the western coast and Narmada river
to Rohtasgarh in Shahabad District of Bihar from where they
eventually moved to the present habitat. Scholars like E. Dalton, P.
Dehon, and S.C. Roy hold such a view. A native scholar however
traces the migration of the Oraons from the Indus valley where they
lived for many centuries. Due to the forwarding march of the
Aryans, the Oraons moved eastward until they reached Rohtasgarh.1
Whatever the place of their origin, the fact remains that they lived in
Rohtasgarh around 800 bc. With the fall of Rohtasgarh they fled
south following the local river until they reached Chotanagpur.
Social life of the Oraons is inextricably linked with nature. All
their activities ranging from the least to the most eventful amply
demonstrate this. However, it is the most eventful ones which
highlight the relation between the environment and the Oraons. In
the process, not only do their activities assume a community character
but they also acquire a ritual form. This eventually crystallises into a
'belief system'.
The Oraons believe in the existence of spiritual beings as also in
the hierarchy of these beings. To an Oraon, Dharmes is the supreme
spiritual being. He is followed by (pachbalar) ancestors and then the
spirits. Dharmes is the creator and sustainer of man and the universe
as well as of ancestors and spirits. He is referred to as Biri Belas or the
Sun King. The Sun here is conceived only as a symbol, not a
personification of nature. Next in the order of hierarchy are ancestors
who as forefathers are concerned with the welfare of the living. In
return, the living members discharge their filial duty towards them
by offering food and sacrifices on various occasions. Spirits come
next in importance. They are mysterious beings who operate at the
supernatural realm of reality. Spirits are basically of nature and
therefore act as guardians of nature. Seen in this role they have to be
placated by offerings and sacrifices lest they destroy crops, forests,
vegetation and other natural resources. Spirits are a creation of God.
They are good or bad in so far as people maintain relations with them
as enjoined by God.
In the Oraon story of creation the world was covered with
water. It is out of clay obtained from under the water and with the
help of the earthworm of kilkila bird, that God furnished the earth.
Men and animals were made out of this clay and were provided with

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 Oraons: Religion and Customs / 103

food according to their needs. After some time, God found the world
infested with undesirable elements as a result of human excrement,
according to one story. Another story holds that the world was
enveloped in a foul smell emanating from the corpse of a man-eating
beast. God therefore rained fire day and night with a view to
destroying this infection and purifying the earth. He had instructed
the monkey to beat on a drum when half of the world had been
destroyed. Busy eating tela fruits, the monkey forgot to do so. The
result was that the whole world was destroyed. Two human beings
(ibhaiya-bahin) however escaped the conflagration as they had hidden
themselves in a crab hole. After the world was destroyed, no offerings
were made to Dharmes who became sad. At this juncture, his consort
told him about the bhaiya-bahin (brother-sister). He went looking for
them and eventually spotted them with the help of his dogs. God
brought them home and looked after them. He taught them the art of
plough cultivation and gave them seeds to sow. He also asked them
to perform the ceremony of dandakatta (destroying the effect of the
evil eye and tongue) to ensure abundance of crops and increase of
cattle and progeny.
The place of environment is also most vividly expressed in a
story of creation of spirits which is linked with the 12 Asur brothers
and 13 Lodha brothers who daily smelted iron. As a result, the whole
world was scorched. There was no vegetation left, not even grass for
the horses of Dharmes. Messages were sent to the Asurs and Lodhars
to stop smelting during the night but they did not listen. Eventually
God himself approached them in disguise but they still did not
concede. Hence he destroyed their iron industry through his divine
power. They in turn pleaded with him till he took pity on them. God
made an offering of himself so that their iron may be restored. He
entered their furnace telling them to work on their bellows for seven
days and nights and to sprinkle water on the furnace with the help
of mango leaves. When the furnace was opened Dharmes came out
laden with gold. The two sets of brothers entered the furnace hoping
to collect gold but instead they were trapped. Dharmes then told their
women to bring water in black earthen jars and to sprinkle it with
sindur twigs on the furnace. On opening the doors, they found the
charred bones and ashes of their dead husbands. When Dharmes
started to leave, the women threw themselves at his feet requesting
him to show them the way to live. He turned them all into spirits
saying men will now make offerings and sacrifices to them.

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104 / VIRGINIUS XAXA

Environmental features have a place of importance not only in

the story of creation but also in their day to day religious beliefs and
practices. To an Oraon, space is filled with spiritual beings. There are
two types of space—cosmic and physical space. It is only Dharmes
who lives in cosmic space viz. merxa (sky). As against this, other spirits
are believed to dwell in specific parts of the land. These parts
comprise hills and hillocks, dense trees and vegetation, water
resources such as rivers, tanks, wells, etc. The ancestor spirits, for
example, are believed to reside in kundi (a pool of water or a stream
marked by a long stone slab) of bhuinhari village, i.e. a village
founded by ancestors. In Kundi, the bones of all the dead members of
the clan are deposited. The spirits of ancestors also reside in their
founder home. The khunt spirits are those who inhabited the forest
before it was brought under settlement by the founders of the village.
A plot of land is generally kept fallow in their honour. In contrast to
the ancestor spirits who dwell in a limited place, other spirits are
scattered over the various parts of the village. The village tutelary
spirits are located in different areas within the village boundaries—
a pond, a grove of bamboos, ravine, etc. They are named according
to their location.

Among these numerous spirits, some of them are more

important. The spirit of the progenitor of the tribe is chala pachcho
(lady of sacred grove). She inhabits the sacred grove or cluster of sal
trees and is regarded as the spirit of the Oraon village. Other
important spirits are Darha, Chandi, Baranda, etc. Darha though the
most dreaded of all village spirits is regarded as guardian of the
village. Chandi is the spirit of war and hunting, and assists in hunting
expeditions. He is represented by rounded stones. Baranda is a
household spirit and is the guardian of each Oraon household. He
keeps a watch over the threshing floor when the harvest is gathered.
Then there is a mischievous spirit called Churael which is the spirit of
a woman who died in pregnancy or childbirth and is believed to
dwell near river banks.
The Oraons order their ritual, music and dance on nature's
signal, i.e. on the blossoming plants and trees, on the position of the
moon, on the cycle of seasons, etc. For example, Khaddi/Sarhul, one of
the most important festivals of the Oraons is celebrated when sal
trees are in full blossom and branches of white flowers dominate the
rural landscape. In this festival, a symbolic marriage of Dharmes
(symbolised by the sun) with khekhel (earth) is enacted. The ritual is

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 Oraons: Religion and Customs / 105

performed with a view to ensure fertility of the mother earth.

Another festival, Kadleta, is observed when paddy grains become
paddy plants. Similarly, Hariari takes place at a time when every field
is green and Khaliani when low land paddy is ready for harvesting.
Even the customs of disposing the dead vary depending on
nature's signal. If a person dies after the new paddy seedlings have
sprouted, then the Oraons follow the practice of burial. When death
takes place after the harvest and before the sprouting of the new
paddy plants, then the body is cremated.2 As against this, some
festivals are observed according to the position of the moon. For
example, Phaggu is a important new year festival of the Oraons. It
takes place in the full lunar months towards the end of February and
beginning of March. Another festival which is observed depending
on the position of the moon is Karam which is generally held on
ekadasi day in the month of Bhado, i.e. 11th day in the month of
August-September. Besides the Phaggu, there are other hunting
festivals such as the Bisu and the Jitthia which take place only in
certain months of the summer season. Not only festivals but even
commencement of marriage, forms of dance and music depend on
the season.3 An Oraon marriage seldom takes place in the summer or
rainy season. Oraon songs evoke not only childhood, youth or past
events but also forests, mountains, rivers, paddy fields, grains,
flowers, etc.
Nature and natural phenomena also occupy a central place in
Oraon rituals, festivals and customs. In the festival of Khaddi/Sarhul,
a cluster of sal trees, which is a sacred grove, act as a place of worship
and cult. Not only the place but even trees standing there assume
importance. Grains used for the purpose of ritual are generally
spread at the foot of the sal tree. Sal flowers are brought to the village
and distributed to each family after rituals have been performed at
the sacred grove. In the festival of Karam, the karam tree assumes a
central place. In this festival, boys and girls go to the forest to collect
karam branches. They dance around the karam tree, three or five times.
Then a boy cuts young karam branches from an unflowered tree.
These are not allowed to fall on the ground while being cut and are
handled with great care. Karam branches are then planted in the
village courtyard. People sit around these branches to hear the story
of karam raja. After the story is told the girls put their flowers at the
foot of the karam branches and dance the whole night. Next day these
branches are immersed in a pond or stream close by. Stories connected

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106 / VIRGINIilS XAXA

with the karam festival indicate a close bond with nature. These
stories speak of punishment being meted out to people treating the
karam branches with disrespect. The punishment continues until the
offender asks pardon and respect due to the branches is restored.
In other festivals too, a tree, plant, flower or a specific place
becomes important. An upland or flat rocky place is generally
selected for the tusgo ceremony. In the kadleta festival, paddy
seedlings are brought to the room where the spirits of ancestors
dwell. In jatra, marriage or burial, trees occupy a very significant
place. Jatras generally take place under large mango groves in the
vicinity of the village. For the purpose of marriage, the Oraons erect
a marwa that entails the planting of nine sal branches in three lines.
The middle branch of the second row differs in its height and is
planted with branches of bamboo, sidha, bhelwa, mango and mahua
trees. The mango branches suggest perpetuity of descendants, the
bamboo symbolises progeny, bhelwa protection and the mahua love
between husband and wife. Sidha on the other hand represents
fertility. Branches of karam and sal also form an integral part of the
custom of burial among the Oraons.
The bonds between the earth and the Oraons are not only
material but also moral and ritual. Land is valuable to Oraons not
only because it provides them livelihood but also because it has been
given to them by their ancestors. Hence it is morally binding to
preserve it and hand it over to their descendants. Hence by sacrifices
and prayers they try to keep up a good relationship with the ancestors
and the earth on which their livelihood depends. In this, the village
priest acts as a mediator. He offers a special sacrifice on behalf of the
people during various festivals such as sarhul, karam, etc.
The sarhul festival has a double significance. It is a thanksgiving
festival to the mother earth and also marks the beginning of
agricultural activities. The earth is ready to be ploughed after the first
showers in March and must be left bare to the sun for a month before
sowing.4 The earth is to be blessed if a good crop is to be harvested.
A mimic marriage of the village priest and his wife takes place
symbolising the marriage of mother earth to the sun. The earth's
blessing is sought by the priest offering a basketful of rice. A
representative of each bhuinhari lineage takes a handful of this
sacrificial rice and carefully preserves it till sowing time when the
rice is mixed with seeds to be sown. It is believed that this would

multiply the total produce. Even at sowing and transplanting, prayers

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 Oraons: Religion and Customs / 107

and citations are offered to the earth. The earth cult thus symbolises
the unity and corporate identity of the whole village. All the lineages
together worship the earth which stands for the common good of the
people who live in that particular locality.
Besides this, obligations towards the environment are shown in
other ways. An important custom of the Oraons is to use flora, fauna
and other natural objects—fish, bird, animals, etc., as totems. Totems
serve primarily as a mark of differentiating people along clan lines.
For example, Toppo takes its name from the bird, Minj from a
particular species of fish, Lakra from tiger, etc. Although the principal
use of totems lies in regulating the marriage, it serves other functions
in that it orients the people towards the environment in a particular
way. Oraons do observe certain taboos with regard to objects of their
totem. They do not eat, harm or destroy them.5 They do not believe
that they have descended from their totems but that these totems
have helped, protected or been of some service to their ancestors.
In addition, there are other taboos the Oraons observe. No man
in the village is permitted to gather new fruits, flowers and edible
roots of the season or plough the field before the marriage ceremony
of the earth.6 Hunting expeditions are not purely entertainment. The
success and failure in hunting expeditions is associated with the
year's crops. Unsuccessful hunting by a village is believed to be the
sign of impending famine. In the wake of successful hunting, dried
meat of any animal killed is mixed with paddy seeds and then sown
in the intended field. The Oraons also follow certain taboos of

hunting. They do not kill or hunt any wild animal or bird during the
months of June and July.7 They believe that the breaking of taboos ca
be harmful to growing paddy crops.
Epidemics, famine, drought, illness, etc. are believed to be
caused by a variety of spirits. The Darha spirit, for example, makes it
displeasure known by harming the village cattle or men. The Chan
will try and jeopardise a hunting expedition. Hence, the Oraon
maintain and sustain the order of nature by making offerings an
sacrifices to a wide range of deities.
The conversion to Christianity brought a change in the world
view and life style of the Oraon converts. The change was howeve
of an uneven character. In the initial phase, converts observed beliefs
and practices imbued with Christian as well as traditional religio
elements. This was so because conversion was not supported b
adequate religious instruction and training. Although they attende

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Drawing by Ved Nayar

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 Oraons: Religion and Customs / 10S

prayers and religious services, they did not fully understand the
implications of their new faith. They continued the practice of
indigenous spirit worship and the observance of various traditional
religious rituals and festivals secretly or openly. Their orientation to
the environment thus did not undergo any change. The converts of
the second and later generations acquired a better understanding of
Christian tradition.

With this, there came about a marked change in tribal faith

regarding supernatural beings. They began to believe in a single
benevolent God who in many respects was similar to Dharmes. The
shift in faith led them to view their role in relation to nature as

masters of the earth and the creatures living therein. Their task was
therefore to use the earth and its resources to create a better and

happier world to live in. This reflected a marked departure from their
traditional attitude towards nature.

In view of this, the earlier religious practices and customs such

as phaggu, sarhul, karam, etc., which were associated with various
phases of economic activities were given up. This may give the
impression that the converts show no apparent concern for the
environment. Despite this, they continue to maintain their harmonious
interaction with the environment as their day to day life is intimately
integrated with nature and its resources. It is against this background
that the process of indigenisation of Christian rites and rituals have
been taking place in recent years. That is, the Christian elements
fulfilling the indigenous needs are increasingly reflected in today's
Christian life and practice. Thus all traditional Oraon festivals are
celebrated by converts in almost the same way and manner as non
converts but with a Christian understanding! The interaction with
nature and environment by converts is not only maintained in their
day to day life but also expressed in collective forms as had been the
practice in the past.

References

1. Archer, W.G., The Blue Grove, George Allen & Unwin Ltd., London, 1940.
2. Archer, W.G., The Dove and Leopard, Orient Longman Ltd., Madras, 1948.
3. Dalton, E.T., Descriptive Ethnology of Bengal, Govt, of Bengal Press, Calcutta,
1872.

4. Dhan, R.O., These are my Tribesmen—The Oraons, GEL Church, Ranchi, 1967.
5. Kujur, A.A., The Oraon Habitat—A Study in Cultural Geography, The

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110 / VIRGINIUS XAXA

Daughters of St. Anne, Ranchi, 1989.

6. Roy, S.C., Oraon Religion and Customs, Calcutta, 1972, (Reprinted).
7. Sahay, K.M., Under the Shadow of the Cross, Institute of Social Research and
Applied Anthropology, Calcutta, 1976.
8. Tirkey, Boniface, Oraon Symbols, M.Th. Dissertation, Vidya Jyoti, Delhi, 1980.
9. Tirkey, Boniface, The Smiling Oraon, Navjyoti Niketan, Patna, 1989.
10. Vidyarthi, L.P., Ajit K. Singh, The Bio-Cultural Profiles of Tribal Bihar, Punthi
Pustak, Calcutta, 1986.

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