How would you react if told that the local deities we worship are to be put to ‘public trial’ for ‘failing’ in their divine duties! Blasphemy, right!
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Not in the remote areas of Dhamtari district in the tribal Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, where per ancient tradition even local deities are ‘held accountable’, and ‘punishment’ handed out to them, if they are ‘judged’ to have ‘failed’ in their divine duties or neglected responsibilities.
According to a report in The Vocal News (https://thevocalnews.com/), this practice, deeply rooted in the region’s tribal culture, has been observed for centuries and continues to draw crowds every year during the rainy season.
The venue for the annual ritual, held in the month of Bhadrapada (Bhado), is the Bhanga Rao Mai temple in Kursighat Borai. It’s a site revered as a ‘divine court’ where deities from various regions, including Bastar, Odisha, and Sihawa gather for the ‘day of judgment’. The ‘chief judge’ in this court is Bhanga Rao Mai, who ‘decides’ the fate of other deities perceived to have neglected their responsibilities, resulting in hardships or misfortunes faced by the villagers.
The ‘accused’ deities are represented by the village priests and elders, who argue on their behalf. If found ‘guilty’, a symbolic ‘punishment’ is handed out to the deity, often involving rituals like animal sacrifice.
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During the ‘trial’, the ‘accused’ deities are symbolically placed in a dock, and the village elders, including the Sirha (tribal priest), Pujari, Gayta, and Majhi, present evidence and arguments.
Meanwhile a related NDTV report adds that the Bastar region, where tribals account for 70 per cent of the population, is steeped in myth and folklore. The tribes – Gond, Maria, Bhatra, Halba and Dhurwa – practice many traditions that are unheard of outside the region and form a key part of Bastar’s heritage.
The report further says that the divine ‘trial’ is part of a three-day festival in which villagers are the complainants. The complaints range from a failed harvest to a lingering illness and can include anything for which prayers were not answered. People from around 240 villages gather to see the deities on trial. A feast is arranged for them.
Behind the festival, which is a symbol of India’s diversity, is an idea that even Gods are accountable to the people, the NDTV report explains.
