Religious Conversion and Cultural Conflict

RELIGIOUS CONVERSION AND CULTURAL CONFLICT *

 

Andhra University, Waltair

India is a land of various cultures and its fundamental strength lies in the unity amidst the diversity of her regional cultures. Since independence our attempt has been to bring about a political and socio-cultural integration of all the cultural areas into the main stream of the Indian society retaining, at the same time, the distinctive features of each culture. Accordingly we have abolished the British policy of ‘exclusion’ of the tribal areas fromthe main land and we have been endeavouring to help the tribals to improve their levels of living and also develop their cultures in accordance with their own genius. While we appear to have been succeeding in the first endeavour, we seem to have largely failed in the latter.

For a long time the tribal cultures have been undergoing considerable change under the impact of the Hindu culture of the main land. Anthropologists have pointed out various problems and handicaps which the tribals have been facing as a consequence of undirected and uncontrolled cultural contacts. Such contacts were reported to have resulted in some sort of a cultural drift among the tribals and that drift was said to be, more often than not, against the continuity and ethos of the culture of the tribes.

It is important to point out that the religion and culture of the tribes are not much different fromthe religion and culture of the Hindus as practised in the villages. At least this is true in the case of the religion of the tribes in Andhra Pradesh. In fact it is a matter for further investigation to discover how much of the religion of the villagers in the plains, who are Dravidians, is derived from the pre-Dravidian–or perhaps also Dravidian–tribals inhabiting the hilly areas. According to the linguists the Khonds, the Konda Doras and the Gadabas of Andhra Pradesh belong to Proto-Kui division of the central Dravidian linguistic group. The point, therefore, is that when we apprehend that the impact of even the plains Hindus is likely to bring about a major drift and conflict in the cultural ethos and integration of the tribes, is it desirable to allow the Christian missionaries to propagate their religion which is fundamentally opposed to the pagan religion? It is true that in a secular state the government is neutral in its attitude towards the religious practices and beliefs of its citizens. But purely from the point of view of culture and its continuity, religious conversion, which is a sort of a directed change, with a specific motive of bringing about a major deviation in the cultural values of a society, appears to be far from desirable. It is true that Christianity has brought about certain desirable changes among the converts, but it has also brought about a sort of cultural conflict and disintegration in the social systems of the tribes as a whole. How these processes are at work is briefly explained below with special reference to the Samanta tribe.

The Samanta tribe, popularly known as the Khonds, is partly agricultural and partly food-gathering. It inhabits the agency areas of Visakhapatnam and Srikakulam districts of Andhra Pradesh and the adjacent districts of Orissa State. In Andhra, the tribe speaks Kuvi language which belongs to the Proto-Kui division of the central Dravidian linguistic group. The Samantas believe in spirits and re-birth, besides entertaining various superstitions. The Samanta pantheon consists of various gods and goddesses. This tribe observes a number of rites of passage. The core of all the rituals is essentially one and the same. Almost at every rite and ritual a fowl or a goat or a cow is sacrificed and the blood is spilled on the offerings made to the spirits with the belief that the spilling of the blood would ensure the blessings of the spirits. The institution of shamanism or priesthood is also developed by this tribe. Thus essentially the religion of this tribe is in conflict with the monotheistic Christian religion.

The Canadian Baptist Mission has been carrying on its proselytising activities since 1930 among the tribals of the agency areas in the Visakhapatnam and Srikakulam districts. It has also built a church in Sunkarametta, a road-side village in the Araku Valley. In Ganguddi, a Samanta village one mile from Sunkarametta, all the families but two have been converted to Christianity. It is said that the present Havnta (Village headman) and his brothers were the first to convert to Christianity, and later others followed them. To any observer this village gives the impression that the villagers are better off economically, educationally, and also socially, than the un-converted Samantas living in other villages. Obviously the credit for this goes to the Mission which has been constantly educating these people. According to the officials of the Araku Multi-purpose Block, this is a model village, which has responded to the developmental activities in all spheres very favourably. With the influence of the mission and its activities the influence of the traditional pagan religion has come down very much. These converts do not practise most of have the old customs and do not sacrifice any animal to the spirits. These changes naturally helped the converts to minimise unproductive expenditure and improve their economic conditions in every possible manner.

So far so good. But as the converts are still in a minority and they have to come into contact with the non-converts for various purposes, some cultural clashes do take place. When a convert brings a girl in marriage from the non-converts, the former is bound to pay bride-price, and also observe all the other traditional practices whether he likes them or not. On the other hand, when it is a problem of giving the daughter of the convert to a non-convert, the former presses the latter to get converted to Christianity. A few years ago it so happened that one non-convert Besu was forced to give divorce to his Christian wife who eloped with him. The divorce actually took place at the instance of the Pastor on the plea that Besu had already three wives and it was contrary to Christian principle to marry a man with more than one wife. One more case of cultural conflict. A few years ago, the daughter of one Joseph, a convert, eloped with a man of a lower caste. Since Christianity does not object to inter-tribal or inter-caste marriages, Joseph and other Christians did not oppose the marriage. But the non-converts belonging to the neighbouring villages threatened Joseph and his villagers that should they refuse to go through a purification ceremony and arrange a feast to the tribe as per the traditional customs, the converts would not thereafter be allowed to maintain marital relations with the non-converts. For fear of severing relations, Joseph had to agree to outcaste his daughter, undergo a purification ceremony and treat the tribals to a feast.

Apart from the above said conflicting trends, there is one very important point to note regarding the mental outlook of the converts. When these were put a few questions with regard to their past culture, they repeatedly said that the Samantas in the olden days and the non-converts of today were barbarous and that the traditional customs of the tribe were a matter of utter shame for them. By adopting this attitude these converts now disown their past culture and treat the non-converts as uncivilised. Therefore the real problem is that, even though it is desirable to abandon undesirable and harmful practices, is it any way desirable and healthy to develop among the converts such an attitude as germinates hatred towards one’s own past culture and one’s own brethren? Because of such an attitude, the folk-lore, folk-arts and crafts of the tribe, are likely to become extinct in course of time. Is it not then against our avowed principle of maintaining the individuality of each culture and developing each group according to its own genius?

Commenting on this unfortunate trend, Rev. Dr. A. C. Bouquet, an authority on Comparative Study of Religions, writes: “Religion of even the crudest kind is an attempt on man’s part to integrate his life around the Sacred, as he himself conceives it. It should therefore be treated with respect. Even if he progresses, in course of time, from a crude to a more spiritual belief or practice, care should be taken to see that he does not come to feel ashamed of his past...Whatever changes may inevitably come, these should not be allowed to impoverish his life, or destroy its art, its music, or any folk-crafts it may possess.” **

In a recent article on the Todas one writer voiced the same concern. He writes: “The missionaries have done yeoman’s service as far as the converts are concerned, in terms of health, education and economic prosperity...(but) the greatest damage that the missionaries have done from the cultural point of view is that they have split up that one name ‘The Todas’….Now the converts and the Todas are two different entities with different social and economic problems”.***

In view of these circumstances it appears essential to review our present approach to the tribal problems and evolve a comprehensive social policy keeping it in line with the basic objectives of Democracy, Secularism and the maintenance and protection of the individuality of each cultural group.

* This paper is based on the research conducted by the author under the auspices of the Cultural Research Institute, Andhra University, 1959-61.
** From his foreword to ‘The Samantas’ by K. Ranga Rao (unpublished)–prepared under the Cultural Research Institute, Andhra University, 1959-l96l.
*** A. Gopalakrishna: “Approach to Toda problem” in Social Welfare May, 1964.