Dharmathakur
Encyclopedia
Dharmathakur is a Hindu
god worshipped by villagers in the traditional Rarh region
in the present day India
n state
of West Bengal
as one of their special village gods (gram devata
). He is represented by a shapeless stone daubed with vermillion and is normally placed under a tree or placed in the open, but sometimes enshrined in a temple. The worship takes place in the months of Baisakh
, Jaistha
and Asarh
on the day of full moon and sometimes on the last day of Bhadro
.Dharmathakur is worshipped mainly by castes Bauri
, Bagdi
, Hari
, Dom
etc.
, Varuna
, Vishnu
, Yama
, Shiva
and even with Buddhism
. Fundamentally, it all started with the magical beliefs related to harvesting in the primitive days and thereafter layers of Aryan
Hindu and Buddhist beliefs transformed it in many ways at different places and has now become too complex to trace its roots properly.
Suniti Kumar Chatterji
says, “Dharma who is however described as the supreme deity, creator and ordainer of the Universe, superior even to Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva and at times identified with them, and he has nothing of the abstractions of Buddhist Dharma about him.” He has further opined that the songs and dances linked with Gajan of Dharma is clearly non-Aryan in origin. It could be Dravidian
or Tibeto-Chinese
.
Sukumar Sen says that Dharmathkur has come down with the so-called lower category of common people. They formed a majority at one point of time and had no right to Brahminical learning. Brahmins who started migrating to Bengal
in large numbers during the Gupta
period were mostly not the original inhabitants of Bengal and as such had no links with Dharmathakur. He was not a personal-god but a community-god worshipped by many at a time. He was worshipped by large groups of non-Brahmins such as Haris, Doms and Chandalas.
It is notable that very important patrons of his worship were Brahmins and that they wrote most of the scriptures dedicated to his worship. These include works Dharma Purana of Mayura Bhatt, the Dharma Mangala of Mayura Bhatta, Manik Ganguly, Ghanarama, Sahadeva Chakravarty, and Ruparama. Perhaps the Ghanarama festival, in which modern-day adherents worship Dharmathakur is named after the Brahmin Ghanarama Chakravarti.
– an animal on which the deity rides. Horse is the bahan of Dharmathakur. However, in some cases the elephant is also used as a bahan. In the Rarh region where Dharmathakur is worshipped there is no end to the symbolic use of terracotta and wooden horses. Symbolic sacrifice of horses for fulfillment of wishes is common for many village gods and goddesses, but an assembly of terracotta horses of various shapes and sizes representing sacrifice on wish fulfillment is perhaps peculiar to Dharmathakur. It is a possibility that the horse symboloises links with the Sun-god.
or Dharma’s gajan. Shiva’s gajan and Dharmer gajan are similar. The horse is essential in Dharma’s gajan but it is not so in Shiva’s gajan. The sannyasis (hermits) of gajan are called bhakta of bhaktia. They observe certain rituals which are similar to those observed on a person’s death. There is certain amount of confusion regarding the interpretation of the rituals as gajan is supposed to celebrate the marriage of Dharmathakur with Mukti.Mitra, Dr. Amalendu, pp. 165-169The skull dance is part of Gajan. This is believed to be of non-Aryan origin.
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
god worshipped by villagers in the traditional Rarh region
Rarh region
Rarh region of West Bengal is the region that lies between the Western plateau and high lands and the Ganges Delta...
in the present day India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n state
States and territories of India
India is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on.-List of states and territories:...
of West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
as one of their special village gods (gram devata
Gramadevata
A gramadevata is a Sanskrit term for the presiding deity in Hindu villages, towns and cities.Examples:* Kasba Ganapati is the gramadevata of the city of Pune.* Nookalamma is the Gramadevata of Anakapalle city....
). He is represented by a shapeless stone daubed with vermillion and is normally placed under a tree or placed in the open, but sometimes enshrined in a temple. The worship takes place in the months of Baisakh
Boishakh
Boishakh is the first month in the Bangla Calendar used in Bangladesh and parts of India.Baisakh is also the first month in the Nepali calendar which uses the Bikram Sambat. It is the 2nd month in Hindu calendars following Shalivahana Shaka.The name of the month is derived from the position of...
, Jaistha
Joishtho
Joishtho is the second month of the Bangla Calendar....
and Asarh
Asharh
Ashaŗh is the third month of the Bangla Calendar. It is the first of the two months that comprise the monsoon season....
on the day of full moon and sometimes on the last day of Bhadro
Bhadro
Bhadro is the fifth month in the Bangla Calendar.Bhadro marks the beginning of the Autumn season. According to the modified calendar developed by the Bangla Academy, the month of Bhadro has 31 days. Bhadro spans from mid August to mid September in the Gregorian Calendar....
.Dharmathakur is worshipped mainly by castes Bauri
Bauris
The Bauris are people of aboriginal origin, belonging to a caste, low in the caste system in India, found in large numbers in Bankura, Birbhum and other districts in the western fringe of the Indian state of West Bengal....
, Bagdi
Bagdi (caste)
The Bagdis are indigenous people descended from people with Dravidian links found in the Indian state of West Bengal and Bangladesh. The Bagdis are populous in Bankura, Birbhum and other districts in the western fringe of West Bengal...
, Hari
Haris (caste)
The Haris are people of indigenous origin found in large numbers in Birbhum, Bankura and other districts in the western fringe of the Indian state of West Bengal....
, Dom
Doms
The Doms are a Bengali Hindu caste found in large numbers in Birbhum, Bankura and other districts in the western fringe of the Indian state of West Bengal...
etc.
Origins
Dharmathakur has been linked with many gods such as Sun-god SuryaSurya
Surya Suraya or Phra Athit is the chief solar deity in Hinduism, one of the Adityas, son of Kasyapa and one of his wives, Aditi; of Indra; or of Dyaus Pitar . The term Surya also refers to the Sun, in general. Surya has hair and arms of gold...
, Varuna
Varuna
In Vedic religion, Varuna is a god of the sky, of water and of the celestial ocean, as well as a god of law and of the underworld...
, Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
, Yama
Yama
Yama , also known as Yamarāja in India and Nepal, Shinje in Tibet, Yanluowang or simply Yan in China, Yeomla Daewang in South Korea and Enma Dai-Ō in Japan, is the lord of death, in Hinduism and then adopted into Buddhism and then further into Chinese mythology and Japanese mythology. First...
, Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
and even with Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
. Fundamentally, it all started with the magical beliefs related to harvesting in the primitive days and thereafter layers of Aryan
Aryan race
The Aryan race is a concept historically influential in Western culture in the period of the late 19th century and early 20th century. It derives from the idea that the original speakers of the Indo-European languages and their descendants up to the present day constitute a distinctive race or...
Hindu and Buddhist beliefs transformed it in many ways at different places and has now become too complex to trace its roots properly.
Suniti Kumar Chatterji
Suniti Kumar Chatterji
Suniti Kumar Chatterji was an Indian linguist, educationist and litterateur. He was born on 26 November 1890 at Shibpur in Howrah...
says, “Dharma who is however described as the supreme deity, creator and ordainer of the Universe, superior even to Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva and at times identified with them, and he has nothing of the abstractions of Buddhist Dharma about him.” He has further opined that the songs and dances linked with Gajan of Dharma is clearly non-Aryan in origin. It could be Dravidian
Dravidian peoples
Dravidian peoples is a term used to refer to the diverse groups of people who natively speak languages belonging to the Dravidian language family. Populations of speakers of around 220 million are found mostly in Southern India. Other Dravidian people are found in parts of central India, Sri Lanka,...
or Tibeto-Chinese
Sino-Tibetan languages
The Sino-Tibetan languages are a language family comprising, at least, the Chinese and the Tibeto-Burman languages, including some 250 languages of East Asia, Southeast Asia and parts of South Asia. They are second only to the Indo-European languages in terms of the number of native speakers...
.
Sukumar Sen says that Dharmathkur has come down with the so-called lower category of common people. They formed a majority at one point of time and had no right to Brahminical learning. Brahmins who started migrating to Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
in large numbers during the Gupta
Gupta Empire
The Gupta Empire was an ancient Indian empire which existed approximately from 320 to 550 CE and covered much of the Indian Subcontinent. Founded by Maharaja Sri-Gupta, the dynasty was the model of a classical civilization. The peace and prosperity created under leadership of Guptas enabled the...
period were mostly not the original inhabitants of Bengal and as such had no links with Dharmathakur. He was not a personal-god but a community-god worshipped by many at a time. He was worshipped by large groups of non-Brahmins such as Haris, Doms and Chandalas.
It is notable that very important patrons of his worship were Brahmins and that they wrote most of the scriptures dedicated to his worship. These include works Dharma Purana of Mayura Bhatt, the Dharma Mangala of Mayura Bhatta, Manik Ganguly, Ghanarama, Sahadeva Chakravarty, and Ruparama. Perhaps the Ghanarama festival, in which modern-day adherents worship Dharmathakur is named after the Brahmin Ghanarama Chakravarti.
Bahan
Hindu gods and goddesses have bahansVahana
Vāhana denotes the being, typically an animal or mythical entity, a particular deva is said to use as a vehicle. In this capacity, the vāhana is often called the deity's mount. Upon the partnership between the deva and his vāhana is woven much iconography and mythology...
– an animal on which the deity rides. Horse is the bahan of Dharmathakur. However, in some cases the elephant is also used as a bahan. In the Rarh region where Dharmathakur is worshipped there is no end to the symbolic use of terracotta and wooden horses. Symbolic sacrifice of horses for fulfillment of wishes is common for many village gods and goddesses, but an assembly of terracotta horses of various shapes and sizes representing sacrifice on wish fulfillment is perhaps peculiar to Dharmathakur. It is a possibility that the horse symboloises links with the Sun-god.
Gajan
The festival associated with Dharmathakur is called Dharmer gajanGajan (festival)
Gajan is a Hindu festival celebrated mostly in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is associated with such deities as Shiva, Neel and Dharmathakur.-Etymology:...
or Dharma’s gajan. Shiva’s gajan and Dharmer gajan are similar. The horse is essential in Dharma’s gajan but it is not so in Shiva’s gajan. The sannyasis (hermits) of gajan are called bhakta of bhaktia. They observe certain rituals which are similar to those observed on a person’s death. There is certain amount of confusion regarding the interpretation of the rituals as gajan is supposed to celebrate the marriage of Dharmathakur with Mukti.Mitra, Dr. Amalendu, pp. 165-169The skull dance is part of Gajan. This is believed to be of non-Aryan origin.