Luguburu: Ritual, Pilgrimage and Quest for Identity Among the Santals

Bandyopadhyay, Sumahan

doi:10.1177/0972558x19835384

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 5 publications

(10 reference statements)

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“…This event brings together Santals from different areas to show solidarity and celebrate their identity. According to Bandyopadhyay (2019), Luguburu is not an actual physical pilgrimage but a reaffirmation of the Santal identity. Acharya and Kshatriya (2016) also observe that the modern-day Santals redefine their identity through Ol-Chiki (language script to write Santal's language invented by a Santal Pandit Raghunath Murmu in 1925) and Sarna Dharam (one of Santals' religions) movements.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A study of Santals as children of nature in the light of Santal folktales

Hembrom

2022

RJAH

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South Asian nations are home to the Santal tribe. Even though they are dispersed over several nations, most of the Santal are found in India and Bangladesh. The Santal people describe themselves largely as natural beings. This assertion has found support from some scholars who have analysed the Santal rituals and festivals. However, very few studies have tried to define the identity of the Santals from a literary perspective. Therefore, by examining their folktales, this article aims to demonstrate the idea that the Santal are children of nature. The study was guided by The National Folklore Theory, Cultural Functional Theory, and Theory of Reality. The qualitative research was based on a textual analysis of 27 Santal folktales. The rationale of this paper is that Santal folktales serve as a repository of knowledge about their customs, cultures and identities. From the study findings, it is clear that the Santals live in and through nature. They have such intimate relations with nature as one would have with a parent or sibling. They emulate the simplicity of nature in their lifestyle. Even the spirits they worship and revere are thought to reside in nature. Therefore, the Santal are born from nature and exist in mutually beneficial and shared spaces with other creatures in nature.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A study of Santals as children of nature in the light of Santal folktales

Hembrom

2022

RJAH

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“…Even with their spatial spread and participation in several political units, Santhals possess an intense sense of solidarity. The search for a grand tradition of their own to unify all Santhali people has existed for a long time and has only accelerated in the recent years (Bandopadhyay, 2019). A revivalist tradition to idealise a glorious past and ethnic practices have become commonplace to stand out and unite with standard behavioural norms against a barrage of cultural impositions of Christianisation and Sanskritisation (Bhowmick and Jana, 2004).…”

Section: Unifying Santhalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Territorial identity and boundary negotiations among Santhals

Dutta

Sinha

2022

Environment and Planning C: Politics and Space

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Santhals are the third-largest tribal community in India with a population of nearly 6.5 million. They are by far the largest tribal community in the Chhotanagpur region. However, despite inhabiting a contiguous geographical region, three state boundaries cut across them splintering their homeland. The present study, conducted via in-depth interviews of the region’s tribal intellectuals, is an attempt to synthesise the narratives of territoriality within the Santhal tribe, juxtaposing it with the political boundaries of the region. The lack of territorial unity is even more distressing when contrasted with the glory of Santhal Pargana, an autonomous region that they won for themselves in the colonial past. Coupled with their strong sense of cultural affinity, this has instilled a sense of territorial identity among Santhals that fails to find expression. Their migration to the Chhotanagpur region is shrouded more in myth than in history, as people have appropriated different regions to represent ‘Champagarh’ or ‘Hihiri-Pipiri’. The Santhal settlements of ‘Damin-i-Koh’ and the subsequent struggles of the Santhal rebellion have reinforced Santhal Pargana as a matter of territorial pride for the community. In independent India, Santhals threw their weight behind the Adivasi identity and Jharkhand movement. To their chagrin, they failed to meet their ideals of a tribal state. In recent years, Santhali identity has undergone a tremendous resurgence; narratives of Santhali unity evoke the golden age ‘Chae-Champa’ and the valour of Sedo-Kanhu. Social practices and literary expressions are being revived to supplement the budding national fervour. Santhali intelligentsia recognise the necessity of political autonomy, and it is perhaps only a matter of time until their cultural assertion finds expression in political struggle.

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Luguburu: Ritual, Pilgrimage and Quest for Identity Among the Santals

Cited by 2 publications

References 5 publications

A study of Santals as children of nature in the light of Santal folktales

A study of Santals as children of nature in the light of Santal folktales

Territorial identity and boundary negotiations among Santhals

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