“Bomman thatha told me that our gods live in stones, big rocks and trees. We won’t cut aal maram (Ficus religiosa) because gods will be in that tree. Even the water in the area around the tree should be used neatly and not destroyed. In our community our god Ajji (grandmother) lives in Ellamalai mountain. She is also called Thrithri Eributham. […] Before fishing or taking tubers, we will pray to god and only then we will take it.” – Wildlife conservationist Ramesh in “Bomman thatha and his forest”, a conversation with his grandfather on “bonding between adivasi people and the forest” (At the Edge of Existence, 29 October 2014)
https://cultureandconservation.wordpress.com/2014/10/29/bomman-thatha-and-his-forest/
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=8262
“[I]t is some of the basic values and ideology imbibed in the traditional tribal socio-cultural milieus that should have been emulated and promoted amongst the non-tribal mainstream, not, as has been going on, the other way round.” – Arup Maharatna (Professor, Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Pune), in Who Is Civilised?’: In Praise of Tribal … Read more
PAPPU VENUGOPALA RAO The focus was on music history, its religious aspects and some unique technical nuances. […] Kota Drums: The first lecture was by Prof. Richard Wolf of the Harvard University. Richard worked on ‘Of God and Death: Music in Ritual and Everyday Life. A Musical Ethnography of the Kotas of South India’ for … Read more
The word “tribe” itself, in fact, has always been a contentious term. Due to the lack of an adequate term, indigenous people chose to adopt it to identify their place in the world. The narrative is changing today. […] Tribes are people with a functional social order, culture, customs, cosmology and metaphysics. They must be … Read more
TABLE OF CONTENTS GUEST EDITORIAL GENERAL EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS 11 HARALD TAMBS-LYCHE COMMENT ONWILL INDIA HAVE TO LIVE WITH CASTE FOR ALL TIME TO COME? ARTICLES 14 HARALD TAMBS-LYCHEDOMINATION BY HEGEMONY, OR FORCE COUNTERED BY RESISTANCE? THE INDIAN CASTE ORDER BETWEEN SCOTT AND GRAMSCI 31 SANJUKTA DAS GUPTAFROM REBELLION TO LITIGATION: CHOTANAGPUR TENANCY … Read more
As demands for a Sarna religious code in Census 2021 grow in Jharkhand, RSS-backed outfits are busy trying to convince the tribal people that they are Hindus. Abhinay Lakshman reports on the efforts of Sarna outfits to resist Hindu organisations and Christian missionaries alike, and define their identity through their religion. […] “Christian missionaries first … Read more