Question

A short note on Addivassies

Answer 1

Adivasis is the collective name used for the many indigenous peoples of India. The term Adivasi derives from the Hindi word ‘adi' which means of earliest times or from the beginning and ‘vasi' meaning inhabitant or resident. For Adivasis, land is not merely a source of livelihood, it is also an integral part of their culture, identity and existence. And their removal from the forests is responsible for their marginalization. Once they get shifted to towns and cities they land up with small jobs. Unable to match all due cultural difference, they automatically get categorized as the marginalized and so their rights need to be protected.Adivasis practise a range of tribal religions that are different from Islam, Hinduism and Christianity. 

These often involve the worship of ancestors, village and nature spirits like – ‘mountain-spirits’, ‘river-spirits’, ‘animal-spirits’, etc. The village spirits are often worshipped at specific sacred groves within the village boundary while the ancestral ones are usually worshipped at home.In addition, Adivasis have always been influenced by different surrounding religions like Shakta, Buddhist, Vaishnav, Bhakti and Christianity.