University of Groningen Making place through ritual Schulte-Droesch, Lea IMPORTANT NOTE: You are advised to consult the publisher's version (publisher's PDF) if you wish to cite from it. Please check the document version below. Document Version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Publication date: 2016 Link to publication in University of Groningen/UMCG research database Citation for published version (APA): Schulte-Droesch, L. (2016). Making place through ritual: Land, environment and region among the Santal of Central India. University of Groningen. Copyright Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). The publication may also be distributed here under the terms of Article 25fa of the Dutch Copyright Act, indicated by the “Taverne” license. More information can be found on the University of Groningen website: https://www.rug.nl/library/open-access/self-archiving-pure/taverne- amendment. Take-down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Downloaded from the University of Groningen/UMCG research database (Pure): http://www.rug.nl/research/portal. For technical reasons the number of authors shown on this cover page is limited to 10 maximum. Download date: 03-10-2021 Making Place through Ritual © Lea Schulte-Droesch, 2016 ISBN: 978-90-367-8732-1 (electronic version) ISBN: 978-90-367-8733-8 (printed version) Cover layout: Jonas Schulte Cover photo: Santal men are marking the mountain with flags as “seat of a deity” in the context of a mountain ritual. Photo taken by Subhash Hansda. Print: Ipskamp Drukkers Making Place through Ritual Land, Environment and Region among the Santal of Central India PhD thesis to obtain the degree of PhD at the University of Groningen on the authority of the Rector Magnificus Prof. E. Sterken and in accordance with the decision by the College of Deans. This thesis will be defended in public on Thursday 21 April 2016 at 14:30 hours by Lea Schulte-Droesch born on 20 October 1983 in Heilbronn-Neckargartach, Germany Supervisor Prof. C.K.M. von Stuckrad Co-supervisor Dr. P. Berger Assessment committee Prof. R. Hardenberg Prof. Y. B. Kuiper Prof. M. Carrin To Nate and in memory of Chhite Hansda Contents Table of Contents Acknowledgements .................................................................................................... viii Note on Transliteration and Usage ........................................................................ xii List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................. xiii 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Making Place ......................................................................................................... 1 1.2 The Santal in their Social and Regional Context ....................................... 9 1.3 The Santal in Existing Literature ................................................................ 49 1.4 Fieldwork Situation and Methodology ...................................................... 54 1.5 Outline of Chapters .......................................................................................... 71 2. Theoretical Approach ............................................................................................ 73 2.1 Place ...................................................................................................................... 73 2.2 Ritual .................................................................................................................... 87 3. The Connections between Land and Social Structure ............................. 107 3.1 Cornerstones of Santal Social Classification ........................................ 109 3.2 Performing Relatedness through Ritual ............................................... 138 3.3 Conclusion: Spatially Enacting and Transforming the Social ......... 192 4. Perceptions of the Environment ..................................................................... 197 4.1 The Different Ritual Hunts ......................................................................... 198 4.2 Rice Cultivation, the Ancestors and the Importance of Rain .......... 249 4.3 Buru bonga – The Ritual of the Local Mountain God ......................... 258 4.4 Conclusion: Santal Perceptions of the Environment and the Distinction between Forest and Fields ......................................................... 276 5. Fields of Contestation: Region, Politics and Identity ............................... 283 5.1 Flower Festivals, Politics and the Recent Emergence of Regional Sacred Groves (disom jaher) .......................................................... 286 5.2 The Struggle for the “True Tradition”: The All India Sarna Dhorom Movement ............................................................................................................... 316 5.3 The Historical Context Fostering an Increase in Cultural Politics .................................................................................................... 338 5.4 Conclusion: Santal Claims to the Region, to a “Political Place” and to “Nature” ...................................................................................................... 343 vi Contents 6. Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 347 6.1 The Holism of Place ...................................................................................... 347 6.2 Clarifying the Relationship between Place and Ritual ..................... 355 Appendix ..................................................................................................................... 359 References .............................................................................................................. 359 Glossary ................................................................................................................... 383 List of Photos ......................................................................................................... 401 List of Maps ............................................................................................................. 404 Complete Table of Contents .............................................................................. 405 Wetenschappelijke samenvatting .................................................................. 411 Curriculum Vitae .................................................................................................. 419 vii Acknowledgements Acknowledgements This project has been an enriching and challenging journey, which was only possible due to the generous support of numerous people. Although many others helped me on the way to the Santal, my Santal host families, friends and acquaintances deserve to be named first. I am more than grateful for how warmly they received me into their families, how they cared for me in all possible ways and how they opened up their lives to me. Upon my arrival in Jharkhand, Prof. Ganesh Murmu at the Institute for Tribal and Regional Languages in Ranchi, went out of his way to acquaint me with Santal language and culture. Throughout my time in Jharkhand, he always provided me with many contacts, listened to my findings and contextualized them. I cannot thank you enough, Ganesh-ji! In Ranchi I must also extend my gratitude to Dalapati Murmu for his efforts and the many students of the department, who supported me. Dear Shanko, Fatu, Dashmi, Manika and Gite, thank you for the great hours together, for helping me to learn Santali and for taking me to your villages! Minu, you spent the most time with me and made many things possible. I am indebted to you for being there from the very beginning, for accommodating all my strange ideas and behavior, and for enabling my first stay in a Santal village. From my time in Santal villages I can only name a few of the countless people who helped me. First, there was the Baskey family, who welcomed me into their house when I barely knew Santali or Santal ways of good behavior. All of you were incredibly patient and generous! I am grateful to baba, Suresh, Durga, Umesh and Lite for taking care of me and also Nate during our time in their house and for all the rides they gave us. A big thank you also goes to Dinesh, who made it possible for me to attend many rituals. Further, I am very grateful for the wonderful times with my hili in the Baskey house, my Murmu hili and her kids, ayo and didi. Thank you for all the delicious meals you prepared for me! In the Baskey house I met Pitamber for the first time, without whom this work would not be the same. I was extremely lucky to find someone with such good English, who was interested in and so dedicated to our work together. Pitamber, you and Bahamai will remain treasured friends! I hope that one day our sons will become phul. In Pitamber’s village I am further indebted to his family, with whom I shared many happy times. His father went to great lengths to explain and discuss Santal rituals with me, which was immensely helpful. viii Acknowledgements This book is dedicated to the memory of Chhite