ORIGIN OF THE CULT OF MOTHER-GODDESS IN BENGAL :-

The
of

Cult of Mother-Goddess is associated with the Cult

fertility.

Fertility

vegetation and crops.

is related to

production

of

world.

Thus,

natural

It is also said to be the pre-condition for

the growth of human species as well as animals.

mother

of

Woman,

being the

children has ever represented fertility all over

pr1mitive

fertility

religious

the

and motherhood were made equivalent

belief.

people to invoke the spirit of

It was but natural

fertility through

for

in

primitive

mother.

Mother

was universally believed since the earliest

period

was thus exalted to the position of a goddess.

It

of human history that women cause the fruits to multiply, because

they

know

planted

how to produce children;

that whatsoever is sowh

or

by a pregnant women grows and increase as the foetus

in

her womb;

that a sterile woman is injurious to the garden and

barren
of

woman makes the fields barren.

Simultaneously,

the Cult

Mother-Goddess was universally recognised all over the

world

since primitive times.

We

have

to diagnose exactly at which stage

of

history the Cult of Mother-Goddess might have originated.

Morgan th1nks that
of mankind,
The

''savagery preceded barbarism in all

human

L.

H.

the tribes

as barbarism is known to have preceded civilization.

history of human race is one in source,

one in

experience,

-:
..:..

one

in pY" ogY" ess. "

man

1 i f e,

only

by

The view that in the earliest peY"iod of

lived as a
an

food-gathey-er

anthropological study

(~~y~g~y)

of

the

his

is supported

existing

not

pY"imitive

societies but also by an aY"chaeological study of the Palaeolithic

people
and

whose tools indicate the stage of

archaeology combine together to show that the stage of food-

pYoduction at the subsistence level

the

Ant ~w op:.l :gy

hunting.

Neolithic

age,

and

(~~~~~~iffi)

so also the

stage

synchronises with
of

suYplus

pY"oduction

CiYili~iiQQ)

with the Chalcolithic age.

reasonably

assumed

at

production,

the

stage

of

fe-rtility and,

It may be

subsistence

when man's technology of agricultuYe was

the spi-rit ,:,f

fir-st

that

for that matter,

food-

level

primitive,

mother-goddess was

invoked.

The study of the pY"e and pY"oto-history of Eastern India

would

reveal

stages

of

natural

foy-

that

geneY"al

the people inhabiting

evolution of

mankind.

there
It

witnessed
was,

the Eastern Indian people to develop

the

the

there f cr e,
Cult

of

MotheY"-Goddess at the stage of the beginning of agriculture.

The earliest inhabitants of Eastern India, according to

3
the anthropologists' view,
were the Negritos.
They seem to have
been

connected

with the Palaeolithic tools which are

Stray finds of such tools may be

mainly fy-om Chotanagpur Plateau.

traced in the districts of West Bengal,

The

fiYst F'alaeolithic tool

(a

collected

hand-e~r;e,

adjacent to Chotanagpur.
made of quartzite)

in

as reported by V.

Bengal,

Dist.

village Kunkuna,
some

( 1865),

Hooghly.

of

south-west

t he

was collected from

In the same year,

from

tools (Hand-axes)

Palaeolithic

miles

Ball

he discovered

Gopinathpur,

B i h a r i nat h h i 1 1 i n

the

t f ' .

eleven
of

di s t r i ct

Krisnaswamy

Bankura.

discovered a number of Palaeolithic sites

in the districts of Purulia and Bankura.

8Ltddi h 1

Hat i kheda,

Bhanr ar f1 i
work

systematic
Midnapur

The Calcutta University team carried out a

E1.,

districts.

are

Paresnath, Kajalkura,

Ambikanagar,

Chi ada,

on

The explored sites

the sites mainly in

There

BankLIY a

Purulia,

are 48 artefact specimens

collection including choppers,

handaxes,

cleavers,

in

and
their

scrapers etc.

A. f:::. (:ihosh
types'.

observes that the

The

investigators
The

explored

Stone Age and Middle Stone Age

Bar kola
Amgora,

(Bankurc:\),
Barabhum,

to

finer

also reported a number of caves

rock-shelters.
Early

West

range from cruder

~tools

Bengal

Di

Y"

ec t ol' ate

(Bi rbhum),

Jibdharpur

and

of
implements

from

B.::rnkati

(8Ltl'dwan),
6
Jargo (Purulia), and Deulpota (24 Parganas).

These archaeological discoveries of the Early Stone Age

in

Bengal seem to suggest that at this stage the people of

area

Ltsed

(a) to hunt in forests (with quartzite

this

implements),

(b) to fish in the riveYs, and

(c) to live on fy-uits and natural
?
vegetables.
At this stage,
the people might have nurtuYed
the
belief
all

in animism or the belief in the existence of

animate and inanimate objects of the world.

vital role in their religious belief.

spirits

Magic played

in
a

The

Negritos

of

Early Stone Age seem

supplanted

by

the

Proto-Australoids

represented

by

the

contemporary

Santals,

referred to as
stage

Males

Mundas,
~Ni

sadas'

of savagery,

Neolithic tools,

and

or

have

been

Austrics,

aboriginal
8
Malpahariyas.

in the Vedic te:,;ts.

tribes
They

like
are

the
:ften

They had passed the

reached the stage of producing

food,

using

manufacturing potteries and ignitting fire.

The Neolothic tools and implements,

cult1vation,

have

rivers

AJay,

like

to

used in the act of

been mainly collected from the valley of

Damodar,

Kasai,

Rupnarayan,

the

Suvarnay-ekha,

Sanjay and Burhabalanga,

the

Chotanagpur

having their oY"igin in the highlands of

10
plateau.
The rivel"
valley provided
the

Neolithic

people

congenial

for agriculture.

lay

of

Bengalwith the fey-tile

lands

that

The otheY" Neolithic culture

in the northern part of West

Bengal,

that

is,

were

centy-es

Darjeeling

dis:.tY"ict.

Most

of

the

Neolithic

sites

of

Bengal

have

been

11

discovered

during

and after the sixties of this century.

Th~

western sites are Nadiha,

Bhimgarh
(Burdwan),
Bamal,
Deulbash
12
13
14
(Mi dnapLtY)
Chiada (Bankura)
Kukutia
, HarinaY"ayanpuy <24
15

Payganas)
(MidnapuY

16

(finds :f some Ying-st:ones)

, Qyganda
17
Y"ing-stones found neal" a temple)
Neolithic stoneKhunkYakheopi

celts

weY"e found under a tY"ee neay the woYshipping place of

the
18
village Bon Asuria,
in the valley of the Damodar CBankuya)
A

numbeY"

of Neolithic specimens like poundeY,

ring-sto::ones,

celts

19

were found from Begridihi,

Mi dnapur

implements

from a cultivated

were

collected

Some Neolithic tools and

f1eld

of

Potanda

20
(8irbhum)

Dhan ko( a,

named Chand('",
bearing
21
area

localities

Different

Tarapheni

Bisinda and Bankjora are the

Neolith-

Stone-celts and ring stones were found in

sites.
The

(8ankura)

of Susunia region

Midnapore

district

Valley

Neolithic

sites

Sondhapara,

MLtY anscl e,

ThakuranpahaY"i,

Valgaon,

Neolithic

are reported to yield Eayly,

sites

are

The

Dumur g:nda.

these
in

the

Chi rudanga,

PuY"ulia

district

Middle

and

Late

22
Stone

Age

tools

and

also Neolithic

(8uYdwan) and Jhinaipuy

DhuliapahaY

tools

(BiYbhum)

an~

implements

are

two

Neolith-

pY odLtc i ng sit ec::-,

prominent

Neolithic centre in

(Dinajpur dist.).

NortheYn

After examining the

Bengal

is

B~~garh-findings

24
K.G.Goswamy
:elts

found

Tamluk
of N.
/

commented
by

"it may be ccmpared with the Neolithic

.-.e
..::......J

John Mar-shall

in his

e~';:avaticn

at

Bhita"

produced a stratified collection of Neoliths as a

Despande's excavation in this area.

Sunga terracottas,

from

Neoliths,

copper coins and other antiquities were found

fr-om this site.

of Burdwan,

Apart

r-esult

a renowned Chalcolithic site

yielded some polished celts which have beenassigned

to the Neolithic period.

Apart from these sites, the villages of
26
27
28
29
Di har
, Palashdanga
, Batikar
and Kot asLtr
are reported
to
have yielded Neolithic tools and implements.

The

artefacts of the Neolithic period seem to

suggest

that the people's pr-ocess of cultivation was primitive in nature.

The

means

of

production,

being
5

stone

tools,

the

pYimitive

sedentary

food-producing society had to remain dependent on

fertility of the soil

upon

the

mercy
that

fertility,

for

which the people were forced to

of an unseen power of

the

Nature,

the

depend

spirit

of

was raised in course of time to the status of a

divinity.
The
the

early material culture of Bengal

The word

linguistic data.

b~fig!~

is

supported

derived from the

by

Austric

30

family

stands for the plough that was the

of languages

main

the production of
31
The words
the rice-cultivation is attributed to the Austrics
for cultivation.

tool

for banana, brinjal,

On linguistic grounds,

gourd,

betel-leaf, coconut, turmeric,

are of Austric origin. Karpasa (cotton),

nut etc.

(Pattavastra)

Karpa~a

The

are Austric words

Pi~

betel-

(Jute) and

word

(Seesaw),
is

very closely associated with the agriculturist people,

33
The Austric-speaking
also derived from the Munda dialect

people,

it

may

be reasonably assumed,

were familiar with

primitive tools for cultivation and agricultural products.

the

It has

been suggested that the Austrics belonged to the Neolithic age of

which remains have been found in different parts of Bengal.

It
authors
valley

is

generally

held that the

of the Chalcwlithic culture.

of

the

river

Ajay

chalcolithic site in Bengal.

(Burdwan)

Dravidians

were

P~ndu-r~iir-dhibi,
. .
...
.

is

the

most

the

in the

important

The excavation launched by the West

88ngal Directorate of Archaeology (1362 - 1965) revealed for

first

time

in

'= i vi 1 i ;;:: at 1 on ,

The

the

thos.c::-

t,:,

:.utT:p-:<rc:d.. 'l0

period

IV

.n 1 l l en 1 um B. C.
number

Beng<:tl

the

rnat~:::-rial
11-1

evidence
culture

CE:>ntral

India,

of

Paj.::~sthan

1s assigned to the latter

The

e.-~

proto--historic

of which

the

. ,l .=>

surprisingly
34
and MahaYastra

half

of

the

second

.:ttion yielded various antiquities and a

of tarracottas from various cultural periods of the site.

The types of wares found at

P~Q~u-rjir-~hibi

provide a

valuable

evidence of human settlement in Bengal in the Chalcolithic age.

The
are

Bharatpur

other main Chalcolithic sites in 81..1rdwan

and Baneswardanga.

distl"'ict

Bharatpur is situated on

the

northern bank of the river Damodar near Panagarh Rly. Stn. Period
I of the site has been assigned to the Chalcolithic period,

is about the middle of the second millennium B.C.

the

iron-age

Baneswardanga

(Period

I I I is assigned to the

situated

in

the village

of

district) near the Brahmani Yiver, where three

have been revealed.

Among these three,

that

and others

Gupta

teo
36

Period)

Barabelun

<Burdwan

c~~:cupational

sites

the lowest two belong to

37

the Chalcolithic peYiod

The

Chalcolithic site at Mahisadal in district Birbhum

teo c. 800 B.C.)

1300 B.C.
is distinguished as Period I (from c.
38
and as PeYiod II (c.
750 B.C. )
The most significant findings
in

this site are a numbeY of terracottas which comprise a

small

39

phallus

assigned to Period I

(!i6g~)-worship

peric,d.

The

in

Bengal

Thus

th~

antiquit}

can be tYaced back to a

of
very

Chalcolithic sites in Birbhum district are

Phallus
early
Nanur,

Haraipur, and Bahiri. Nanur is situated on the east of Mahisadal.

7

Regard1ng

its antiquities it has been remarked :

been

occupation

1n

including mediae\tal
Regarding

K.

cul tLtre A.
was

Proto-historic
40
to moder-r-1 times."
the

culture

Meditarreanean
Ancient

found

of

this

kind

behind

has

East

evidences

it

of

Chalcolithic

cult

of

the

and by

We must now realise that

once

extended

from

the

and that the whole of

this

ccmmon

the
41
heritage".

from Early Stone Age to Iron

in different parts of Bengal,

inhabitants

historical

and of a mother-goddess;

to the Ganges Valley,

Arr::haeological

the

characterized by matriarchy and a

power of nature,

ear-ly

of

had

"The Chalcclithic culture

great development of the arts of design.

an

through

characteristics

Coomaraswamy r:rbserves :

everywhere

productive

from

"The site

Age,

seem to indicate

that

as
the

this coun.try passed through the three stages

of

social evolution and at the third stage developed a belief in the

Cult of Mother-Goddess.

Modern anthropologists suggest,

study

of contemporary simple societies,

social

formation.

lived

in

~band

ag ric u 1 t u r e,

they

gradually

They

sor:iety'.
were

lived in a

adopted

At the next

more

dependent

~tribal

intensive

and

nomadic way of life was forsaken

stage
on

society'.
extensive

the

the people

of

primitive

domestication
The tribal

The

of

scu: i ety

agriculture.

for sedentary life.

their

distinct stages in

At the stage of hunting and fishing,

animals.

on the basis of

The
tribal

organisation
~tribal

came under the authority of a powerful

chiefdom'

s:": i et y

in

society

in Bengal

was

replaced

ultimately

by

chief.

The

state--based

which

the institutions of family

the private
and
42
property were 1ecognised
However, the existence of the tribal
is vouchsafed by the Vedic,

references to the tribes like the Pundras,

Epic and

Va~qas,

13 -

18)

Purinic

Suhmas, Ridhas

refers

to

PuQ~ras

Assuming that the

lived

in

Ncrth Bengal

means

Va~oa~

and the e?:pression

it

and Maoadhas,

~S!Q9.~:::!.29.2!ib..b.

is quite clear that

the

really

Bengal

was

outside the fold of Aryan culture even in the Later Vedic period.
The

state

things was not very different even in

the Si:tt ra
44
prescribes a penance
for

of

43

period.
those

who

visit,

among

other-

countr-ies,

Pundr- a

representing North and East Bengal respectively.

(i3abha
vanquished
both

t~e

A.D.200)
Sea,

Pundras and VaAqas,

45
VaAcas and the Paundr-as.

indicates,

kshatriyas'.

The

the

Pundras

~iD~=EitL

in ancient Bengal.

. Buddhism

are

referred

to

Kr~~a

as

Epic

that

Kar-Qa

defeated

the expansion of AryAvarta upto the

political conquests,
Jainism,

and

'vanga

The 13r eat

gives us to under-stand

the Suhmas,

al thcugh

Aryandom

Par- van)

and

Eastern
~degraded

locates the eastern frontier

It was through admixture of

of

blood,

r-eligious missionaries' attempt at preaching

and

Br~hma~ism,

and abcve

a11,

trade

and

commercial
gradually
the

that

contacts,

the
~~!D

absorbed in Aryan

tribes

in

tribal

people

of

based society.

Eastern India began to live

Bengal

were

Howeve.,-,

that

sedentary

confirmed from the nomenclatures of their respective

or

J~D~Q~~

was

Pu~~ravardhana,

such as

Vanga,

life

settlements

Suhma and F.:adha.

It

most probably at this tribal stage that Bengal witnessed the

beginning of agricultural operations requiring the invocation

the

is

spirit

phallic

of

fertility

that invoked by the

symbols,

Brahmanical

anthrcpomcrphic

Later,

female.

influence

the

symbols

images

cf

Puranic

worship

of

bi69

were
I

Siva

worship

of

the

under

the

tt-ansformed
and

of

'

~;akti

into

(Mother-

Goddess) .

The

(Male-generative

organ),

conical-shaped

stone,
and that of ~~t~t~ is attributed
to
the
46
Austric
people.
It has been shown on linguistic grounds by J.
47
F'r zyl usk i
that
the bifig worship
was
known
in
primitive
society.
organ,

The

primitive

while the word

hoe is designed to resemble

b~Og~l~

(Plough)

the

male-

is closely associated with

48
bing~.

It may be incidentally mentioned that the central object

I

of

worship

is a phallic

emblem.

The first historical evidence of bibg~-worship in Bengal

is found

from

Birbhum1

the

in the Saiva temples of Bengal

Chalcolithic

site

at

Mahisadal

(district

4'3

assigned

to

productivity
generation

c. 1300- c.800 B.C.

as

Howe/e.,-,

manifested in the male and

the
female

principle

of

symbols

of

appears to have been upheld by the primitive

10

people.

The

productivity was sought

for

in respect of both

agricultural

crops and 0griculturist population.

The

prevalence

of

bi6g~

the

implies

worship

the

predominance of the patriarchy in the family and the society.

the

background of the predominance of the worship of the

symbol one may reasonably trace the tradition of the

society

1n

which mother held the most honourable

3fter the institution of patriarchal

family had

In

female

matriarchal
status.

Even

originated,

the

un1que position of mother remained in tact.

The
f1gurines,

distribution

wide

unearthed

the

of

terracotta

from different places of

female

Bengal,

may

be

reasonably considered as an evidence in support of the prevalence

of

the Cult of Mother-goddess in ancient Bengal.

As it has been

50
observed
represent

"most

~t~~~~~~ii,

by

females

with

of

the

heavy and bulging

human

hips

figLlrines

and

prominent

rounded

breasts,

marked.

They seem to be associated with the primitive conception

of

a mother

from

or

Tamluk,

1'1ahast han,

been

with the navel and abdomen

fertility-goddess".
Ber ac hamp<..'l,

of

all

of

the fertility-goddess,

assigned to a remote antiquity.

Gitagram,
them

The

are found

sequence.
early

mEdiaeval

bearing

continued
as

11

is

revealed

above,
of

terracottas as
stratigraphic

to be an important sit0
it

the

terracottas

from differnt cultural phases in a

B~~garh

found

Bangarh,

as described

Bangarh help us in fixing the chronology of Bengal

they

clearly

The terracotta images

Har i nar ayanpur,

Chadraketugarh,

characteristics
have

sometimes

by

till
the

the
stone

inscriptions

of

the

reign of Kamboja King

associated antiquities of the

P~la

period (c.

Nayap~la,

and

the

10th century A.D.>

The fertility-cult may also be traced in such figurines

51

"''s

~Yaksi':lLF'ancacCl~'

Stella Kramrisch identified the figurine

I:"-
J4

as that of Apsari

PancacGd~

who emerged at the time of churning

Johnston, however, thinks

we are dealing with the Cult of Mother-Goddess,

which we know as

wide-spread

over the Near-East and indeed over most of the

known

world

India

from

at this time and which seems to have prevailed

in
53
Pokharna
The exploration
at
time
immemorial".

situated
district)

in

the

southern bank of the

unearthed

river

then

(Bankura

Damodc:-~r

a number of ancient relics which include

rare terracotta Mother-goddess assigned to a very early date. The

symbolically

accentuated

form

the

of

Mother-goddess

bearing

decorations of the ears of corns seems to be of deep significance

54
in the context of the prevalent cults of ancient Bengal
Apart

from

the

terracotta female figurings,

take

motherly

attributes

shown

already referred to,

in

the

we should also

into account the figurines of child-bearing Mother-goddess.

Three

such Images in the collection of the !illlYL

~ygym

may

be

referred to in this connection :

i )

female
standing

Seated

figurine

from

headless and suckling a baby

female

figurine

legs collected from the same site

.-,

.
1L

(~QL

ZZZ 9i tbg

(~Q~

with a child on
1~

Ichhapur,

her

Qf

e:dended

ibg

~ffig);

ii i )

An

interesting

suckling

babies

91 ib

(~Q~ ~1~

and archaic

number

of

female

executed on a
55

figurine

pot

found

with

two

fr-om

Cont ai

of

F'r-otc-

~ill)

ter-r-acotta female

figur-im:-

hi stor i =
('Vi snupur,

images

Bankur-a)

are

remain

unpublished as yet.

with heavy breasts,

Some of

while two standing

these

images

ar-e

found bearing child on their laps and one,

seated,

broken legs,

these images have been

is found suckling a baby. All

from

different

ancient culture

headless with

centres

in

Bankura

district.
56

Serpent was also conceived as a source of

Cprobably

due

Serpent-worship
from

to

its

power of

multiplying

~~gioi

of

it s

f ami 1 y )

was prevalent in ancient Bengal as it is evident

few terracotta images representing the

Images of

generation

Snake-deity.

are found from Candr-aKetugarh.

The fiYst has

Two
a

long neck and tapeYing hood,

showing two circular eyes,

and the
57
body rests on two stumpy legs
According to A.K.Coomaraswamy,
such

figuYes indicating splayed hips

form

of Mother-Goddess.

~epYesent

~~giol

the

The second represents a

lady

before an aura of snake-hood beneath a merloned roof.

in the

standing

She,

in all

possibility, represents a Nioini.

from

This image resembles the images

58
Kausambi and Sanchi.
The period IV " of the PiQ~u-

has
Mother-goddess

yielded

a class

of

terracotta

figures with pinhole decorations and

broken-headed
one

having

prominent breasts. The torso is powerfully modelled and is rather

13

5'3

sophisticated

with its sensitivity and volume.

The lower part

possibly a fertility-goddess with splayed hips,

encircled by a symbolic girdle represented by pinholes,
the

layer of ashes upon a

floor of period III,

60
taste and feelings of the age.

Many
associated

reveal

these tarracotta-images of Bengal

of

with

may

other antiquities having ambiguous

wtth the Maurya-~uAga period.

found in

are

the

found

affiliation

But the terracotta images have been

61

referred

to

as

representation.
found

in

ageless

on

grounds

In form and technique,

different places of Bengal,

:J

their

the Mother-goddess images,

differ a little from

the

62
terracotta figurines associated with the Harappan Culture
age-less
appear

terracottas
in

the

which abound in the

Gangetic

di tference
ted1r1ique.

Harappan

Valley in diverse
in

the

simplicity

forms
of

The

sites

also

without

any

expression

and

It mc"Y n.:.:.t be unreasonable to hold that the terracotta

art that had flourished in Western India long ago was handed down
I

through generations to the people of the Maurya-SuAga period.

is

difficult

remarkable

to arrive at any firm

conclusion

of

material

culture.

The

terracotta figurines of Mother-goddess or

the similar use of animal

villages

of

Bengal

in

ritualistic
fertility-cult

use

of

figures

figures produced even today in the

archaic

form

continuity of an age-old tradition.

advent

this

phenomenon of stylistic continuity in the midst of an

advancement

and

regarding

It

of the PuriQic pantheon,

and

style

indicate

It may be held that until the

the people of

Bengal

remained

engaged in worshipping terracotta-figures of Mother-goddess.

14

the

may e :amine the religious. bEliefs and pre:\ctices

lrJe

of

seperate
ld2nt1ties

and

c\l though,

di st i net i VEness,

cu!tural

pol1t1cal

some

The social and

they became Hinduised in course of time.

cc?>.ter,t,

to

privileges were enjoyed by the Hindu landed aristocracy

Munda::,,

t hemsel VE?S rr,or t

successors

of

Has and others were compelled

But as they are

for economic reasons.

<,;~aged

own

deep-rooted culture of their

to

they

never

63
foyget

submissive,
held,
very

E:onomi call y

ancestors.

theiY

obedient

to their masters,

politically

and

as the

character

they

in respect of theiY socio-cultuYal tradition they are

but
much

conservative.

The

survivals

of

their

charactel'istics,

inspite of Hinduisation,
would give us an idea
64
of their ancestral beliefs and practices.

In

Bengal,

the descendents of the Austrics or

Australoids are Santals,

Malpah~riyas

Birbhum,

and

Pun.tlia,

others

Oraons,

Mundas,

living

mainly

Bankura,

Hers, Sabaras,
in

the

Bhumijas,

districts

Burdwan and Midnapur.

landless peasants but the cultivation in West Bengal,

paddy-cultivation

Proto-

They are now

especially

solely depends on the labour of those peoples.

The ,-oots of ::.ome ::f the populaY gods and goddesses in India
be

of

traced in the religious pantheons of the tYibes belonging

both DYavidian and Austric linguistic

15

families.

may
to

The
fertility,

Santals

and

J~her

usually

Burhi,

worship

is ceremoniously married to

represented

as

and the earth,

earth.

ri:::;e

the

It is

Mother

god

of

latter,
quite

s::omet i mes

natural

that

if there is no union between

the

unless the rain from the sky mixes with

the

production becomes impossible,

sky

Boho~,

goddess of vegetation and fertility.

Tfw

the

Sim

It was the e:r;perience of the agriculturist "who has learnt

such a ritual-marriage between a heavenly spirit and

of

GS
There is a legend among them regarding the

spirit of the earth

or1gin

of

their

clan.

It is told that Jher

who is also her brother.

is

the

wife

of

like Manu of Hindu

1'1an i ko is,

They
while Jaher_ is the First Female.
55
Today as goddess of
First Parents of the Santals

mythology the First Male,

are

the

fertility
position
villages,

and
of

of

acquires

vegetation Jiher-Burhi

the chief Mother-goddess of the

she

is

now

an

Santals.

identified with the Hindu

exalted
In

some

goddess

Kill

having all attributes of a Hindu deity.

Similar"

marriage of the chief male god with the

chief

female goddess is prevailing among the Oraons.

festival

tlcid cr

in spring time a ritual marriage of the goddess

Ba~umati

(otherwise known as Kalo-pakkc amcng the

with the great god Dharme (representing Sun)

Dharti
Oracns)

is celebrated.

This

marriage,
and

according to them,
promotes the fertility of the soil
57
the growth of the crops
The Mahalis of Birbhum CSantali-

speaking
community)

artisan class but originally belonging to

also

believe in such

15

divine

agricultural

marriage-union.

Every

year,

an emblemati': martriage of

that of

K~li

M~i,

tfc_oir

chief god Dubai Baba

theo~il"

EaYth godde'c;s,

with

is ,:elebrated on the last

CB
the Bengali month of Caitra (mid-ApYil)
for-m

The

and aspect c,f Si-..;a-Durua is veYy much consistent

above tribal

Bengali
with

the

concepts of god and goddess.

one

of

the

most populaY goddesses

of

rural
6'3

Bengal ,

has

goddess

of

young

its

in the 0Yaon

hunting and waY.

bacheloYs,

hunting

o-rigin

the

This goddess is worshipped

organised

This

goddess

full-moon

on the
is

night

the chief agent

success on individual Oraon in hunting expendition,

avocation

by

while they get themselves pyepaYed for

expedition

spYing-season.

goddess

of the primitive men in food collection

all

annual
in

that

the

bestows

the original
70
stage
Her

attributes and foYms differed in keeping with the characteYistics

of diffeYent stages of socio-cultural development of the
With the growth of agYicultuYe,
has

been

called

Oraons.

some portion of agYicultural work

brought under heY control and in this respect

Dhanik~a

Ca~~I

(goddess

c\rchE:.'type

of

Ca~~I,

she is
71
presiding oveY wealth)

group

goddesses

of

1 ater

pantheon may be found in the Malpahariya belief of three

goddesses.
of
other

Their

in

Baghr-ai and Sinqyai,

1s

charge of tigers

and

are

vegetation.

lions,

designated

as

ar-c:' worshipped togetheY with Dharti-M1i, who

considered to be the elder sister of

deities

sister-

chief goddess is Dharti-Mai,

the fertility of earth and growth of

spirits

Hi ndLt

Biqhr~i

represented by three cylindrical

and Sinqrii.
stones

of

black

72
basaltic rock pYeserved in the sacred grove of the village

17

The

ritual performed during the

a

bea'r'"ing

1 fl

non--Aryan

is
,
SC.tl apar;li 's

l.:ht:

The
l~

prcta[)lj trorrCr'"'.IEd

,,:;:.',le

f.,-,_,111

ritual has also a tribal background and

the

annual '..JO'I"Ship of

Dhad;i--Mai.

se~,;-i

Cr p i n i

The

p.<.rti .. ip:.!.ing in tht:> sc::,:rifir:i.::tl '..Jorks must indulge

,T,t:~,nber~:

t h t~ i r

autumnal

r,clul gene e.

In

unless slangs are used, the earth would not yield

In some sonqs even the terms conveying the sense

~~~

\/a g

the ft.:>rnalc organ of generation, are used.

i n a. ,

found

It has been

other savages also,

among

assc"::iated with religious r-ituals,

'..Jt;t..~never-

they demand mar-e c or n

73

from the field and mor-e child fr-om the women

1'1ost

of these tribes ar-e worshippers

sp i r it of snake,
The

~Mauci

Den'

Manasa,

Snake-spirit called Neru-Nidu and

the

this :onnection,

we may mention that the Dravidian

peoples of the SDuth India have a goddess

a snake-deity.
74
._'\rld the Varas.
is

the

owe

heY

origin

~Ma~c~mm~'

Mauci.
speaking

by name, who

Manasa is the presiding deity of the

Goddess f=::al i,
to

deity

is a corrupt form of the term Manasa,

is the Sanskritized form of the aboriginal tdrm

In

the

as they we'r'"e dwellers in jungle and hill-areas.

Malpahariya's

named

of

Mahalis

the most popular deity of Bengal,

to some of the

belief. Her tribal progeritors are

18

tribal

L~lQ=E~LLQ

people's

seems

religious

of the Oraons,

L~lQ

i~b~ll

li!..

~~~

of the Malpahariyas, L~ll ~~i of the Mahalis and ~1=

the Voras.

of

goddess

and

she is the spirit

the wife of the

~sat-ti'

The

Si '-a.

title of

relevant to the soil.

hand'
r.:'

~t=ti

K~li

In Santali language

~it=ti:

~hen

corns

can fill

K~li

thus

~sat-ti',

stands for an

with

prosperity.

from an early date without an

economy of trade and commerce,

dependent

interruption

of

the socio-economic milieu

religious belief ==nnected with it remained cften unchanged.

,
The
Ea::.;tern

t h t?

wide

India

r-eligious
by

The

agricultural

And as the people of this area are mainly

land-economy

nd-

the hands 0f the cultivator

and endow every house-holder

pr-oduction.

adva~~ed

appeased,

~~:::i

means

is called

Mother-goddess

E~nd

the consort of

a noble woman who fills up the hand

~ith

is generally attributed

attributed to Kli has also a meaning

and is usually used for

be: ause she,

is

It

known Hindu goddess,

the well

------ '

Earth--

hill-spirit

interesting to note that the goddess

the title

of

~: 0

was

beliefs.
r as

as t h f"

popularity of the concept of

in keeping with
The

P~h~r

r;) r:r cJ

the

deot~

r ai n

Siva-Sakti

background

of

(spirit of hill)

in

tribal

is adored

According to them the

god

is

supposed to look after the agricultural activities of the people.

They maintain the ide2 that the Himalayas,
in

India,

1~

the

abode of the god,

the greatest mountain

where he lives

with

~ Pahar

a' is identified with Hindu god Siva

- - - ---deot
- ---

Wotd

~si'

in Santali

~plr::U(;Ihing'

means

language.

and

~va'

his

75

means the source cr

The

origin

Thus the word

~siva'

stands for the

source

of

ploughing.

Siva in popular belief of Bengal is related

1 '3

with

the

of plough cultivation and his

o-rigin

~~aha'fta'

'lll:unt)

'76
also is an inevitable part of plough-cultivation.

Bengali ballads
poor

cultivator
but

Mahi-:;;amar-dinT,

god Siva has been portrayed as a

and his consort Durg~ is

simple

house-wife of

C:andi

not
farmer

wh.::.

is

This peculiar element in

of the great goddess i:;; undoubtedly

concept

In rnedi aeval

L~~y~)

in str-uggling with poverty.

habituated
the

'

(~i~~Y~Q~

bull

Bengal's

own.

This element might not be traced in the aspects of the goddess as

For- this

given
to their ancestors,

1ndebted

err

~aborigir1es'

~tribal

the

Bengalees

inhabita~ts

the original

are

known

as

pc:!ople'.

F.
the

Canda,

as Ady~t Sakti

Devi

'the

F'.

mot her

of

on:e remarked :

"the Sakta concf2ption of

~thE.' primordial energy'

the universe'

also very

and

pr-obably

Jagadamba,
arose

in

77

society
ag211n

..JhE'rE
poir1t.~d

matriarchal: or mother-kin
(Ut

!:hc:tt dn

ovf~r-whelming

was

p,.evalent"

majority c.. f

the

He
higher

caste

Hindus of Bengal -- the BrahmaQas ,

the Kiyasthas and the
,
Vaidyas
are Saktas.
But
the Cult
is
almost
universally
recognised

among the lower castes

Baur i,

Dom,

Much i,

T anti,

Hc:tcJ i ,

Yugi

and others) and

the

Munda,

Oraon,

Malpahariya, Mahali,

Kora

tribal

peoples (Santal,

etc.),

who constitute the major

ThEo> univ'ersa1

(Bagdi,

part of the population in Bengal.

rt?cognition of the l'ul"l of Mothey-goddess in Bengal

seems to suggest that the social

indigeneous growth.

20

structure was favourable for

its

In a matrian:hal society "mother-right is considered as

a

highly

complex

condition in which a good

i nvol '/eJ,

e.. g. ,

descent,

of

number

kinship,

social

nher it anc e,

78
symptoms

of

can hardly be traced in any period of the history

of

ctuthority,

succession,
matriarchy

man' i age

Those

etc. "

But there might have been female domination in

7'3
the first
According to D. D. Kosambi,
society in early times.
society.

Bengali

of Indian civilisation is

stage

Matriarchal

~classless

to

be

marked

Society' which is characterized

the

by

emergence of primitive matriarchal cults and fertility rites.

thinks

that the

~food-gathering

producing tribal society'

out

society

belonged to the first

the food-gathering

abo:ve,

tribal society' and

as

He

the

stage.

As pointed

followed by food-producing tribal

In that

had its existence in prehistoric Bengal.

case,

the probability of female domination cannot be ruled out.

In
animals

primitive Society agriculture and domestication

;night

agY icul ture

have been the main occupations of

developed

pastoral stage,

considerably

without

the

any

of

people.If
intervening

mother-right-elements might be supposed to

have

80
been

the

guiding

evidence
a.ncient

to

<.:::uitable

show

We have

that theYe was a period when

the

hardly

an

people

in

Bengal adopted domestication of animals as their primary

oc cup at ion
Bengal

forces of the society

and

fOl'"

living.

monsoon
for

F:at her,

rain seem to

agricultural

the fertile alluvial

have

been

production

than

It may,

21

therefore,

SCi

ccrlsidered
for

of
more

large-scale

be assumed that the

infrastructut~

Bengal was favourable for the growth of

111

SCC

r-1

al t hoLtgh

i et y,

the

symptoms

of

81

:natriarchy

to h<::<.ve been :onspicu<iOIUS by theilr absence

appE~ar

It

scholar-s

is

underdeveloped
create

matriarchal

Indian

population

natur-al
necessar-y
It

is

ext r- c\Vagant

most

methods

it was

but

have

been

would

to impose upon the society the supr-emacy of the

argued

to

If by far- the lar-gest

society.

were pr-edominantly agr-icultur-al,

the

that

tendency

economy had a natur-al

agricultural

the

that

that the initial stage

of

male.

agricultural

created

the mater-ial conditions for the social supr-emacy of

female,

as agr-iculture was claimed to be the discovery of women.

Thus,

mother--r-ight in India was historically connected with

early

agricultural

in all
peculiar-

with which some elements of mother-r-ight have

survived

superseded in the succeeding ages.

Yet

in the life of the Indian people is quite striking.

reason

the

the

violently
tenacity

and that was,

economy,

the

The probable

1s that the majority of them still remain tillers of

the

Among the vast masses of the Indian peasantry male deities

(e~;cept

Siva)

have only a secondary

position.

should be considered favourable for the indigeneous origin of the

Cult of Mother-goddess.
In

this connection mention may be made of some of

hill-tribes

of

North-Eastern

matriarchal

r-elics

speaking

Khasis

L_ynngam

and

of

comprising

others)

and

India

primitive
its
the
"':-::

who
type.

different

are
The

still

retaining

Austr-o-Asiatic

br-anches

Tibeto-Burman

the

(Synteng,

speaking

branches

twelve

comprising

~~prcsentatives

are

the

worth-mentioning

most

of Indian society having recognitio11 of

mother-

82

Those North-Eastern

Right.
tradition
society
castes

h~ve

might
and

~xerted

in India among whom one can trace

to

Haddi,

Kumbara,

the

Mochi,

Khond

few

Domb,

(most of these castes belong

assigning

affairs,
83
follow puberty-rites for girls and worship female-goddess
. Some

of

the

Kurmi,

position

of

social

The castes like Darzi,

lower-stratum of Bengal) maintain a custom cf

significant

Indian

an influence on the Eastern

customs bearing matriarchal traits.

Jogi,

matriarchal

Ehrenfels further points out a number

culture.

living

tribes having a strong

to the maternal

uncle in

social customs prevalent among the

Oraon, Santal

family

tribes

like

Kawar,

and others living in the Chotanagpur Plateau

must have had originated in a matriarchal society,

property inheritance goes through patriarchal
chief
of

argument against the theory of basically patriarchal

Indian society founded on three typical

hypergamy,

VlZ.,

that
to

although their
84
line.
Ehrenfels'

child-marriage and Sati

form

Institutions,

Indian

(burning of widows),

is

these ruthless efforts were made by the patriarchal

establish

members

nlale-superiority in the society where

deliberately

matriarchal

enjoyed independence.

the

But even

female

then

the

culture elements could not be erased altogether

from

th2 lives of the masses.

85
~ccording

done

when garden

with hoe was superseded by field-tillage with

plough,
That

to the sociologists

t~1e

tillage

cattle-drawn

work of agriculture was transferred to the male-folk.

the change-over

in regard to

the power

of

food-producing

~L~i~

was unacceptable to the women-folk is indicated by some

rituals

performed

by them.

Every married woman of

(easternmost

Sylhet-f::achhar

art:[clt:~s

Tht::-

u:::t:>d iri

a c 1 ay-made e:d
sheaths
are

thL~

part

t:.:.;y,

r ed--Uw ead,

~~iirl=

unplou<;~hed

Those

paddy-grains

fallow land,

is strictly forbidden.

plough

vermillion and 108

The fyuits offeyed in

The

Vrata are also collected fyom unploughed lands.

women

modern

of

\,/ra_ta are bYanches and leaves of

of paddy- grains in a small bundle.

collected from some

with

upper-caste

adjacent to Assam) perform a Vrata known as

53nyladesh

or

this

participant

do not take any food prepaYed by paddy or wheat grains and

anything

produ:ed

in

a plought::d land fc,r three

days

farmers do not plough during the three-day period of

entire

ritual

participants

is

perform all

the

Vrata.

The

and

performed without any priest

themselves

and

the required

the

women

rituals.

The

strict prohibition in regard to plough and male-participation may

be explained as an indication of a grudge against the end of

the

female dominance over agrarian economy and the beginning of maledominance

symbol

in society.

The said

~vrata'

may be considered as the

of their grievance against male-dominance.

attitude

of the women Yeflected at the end of

(talc

or

along

with

un fast c-:1ed
86
roadside

story of th0 vow)

f1E!r
t hf:?

alive
Yoke::.,

is suggested when

husband
of

An

aggrieved

the
Sivitrl

returned

Satyav~na

t hf? p 1 oughi ng

she
o:,;en

w,;d t i ng

at

the

The protest is sociologically significant.

Another instance of the remnant of mother-right is also

found in the North-Eastern hill area.

24

The society of the

Dimasa

t(ibe

~,-,::.de-and

t he i r

north Kachhar

of

(Assam)

female--domination.
male ,1nd

s c": i e t y ,

distinct

9Q1~~

inherits

the

is a peculiar admixture of

The Dimasas uphold Hindu religion.

female members of the society

female

The

(line of descent).

lineage of her mother and the

that

both

hc:~ve

In

their-

child

usually

male child

folleows

although they belong to the male

dominated

H-:.r1du society.

The cons;..:_\rvc:\tive Dimasas living in the hill-region

87
However the
are very strict in maint~ining this customary rule

relic of primitive matriarchal society.

Again,

c:t ill

mention

may

be made of some

among the upper caste

cu~.tcms

may

matri local

rec:\sor,c\bly

The

central

(handing
bridegroom by her

Bengalee

be considered as

marraige-sy:::tem.

father or guardian).

marital

custcms

Hindus.

remnants

of

function of

over the

These
ancient
Hindu--

c;,

bride

to

the

But before this function,

the female members of the bride's household snatch the bridegroom

from his Kinsmen,

take him to a place called Qhbi~ui~~li,

the bride is raised up higher than the stature eof the

and

the former's

bridegroom

th~ir

female associates ask at the top

where

voice

The answer

is also given by them shouting L~Q ~~~~ (the bride is

of greater

importance).

This is followed by the rituals of actual

marriage which begins with the bride's offering of garland to the

b(idegtoom.
rituals

The

marriage

is again followed by

sequence

of

known as ~~ci=~h~c in which women of the bride's family

play' the dominc:{nt role.

Here the role of the bride is

25

positive,

tho

whole

mat Y i 1 o:<c al
~roceeded

proc8ss

marr i agt.:?.
by

may

be

considered

as

remainder

That

the positive role of the bride

fur,ctior1s
of
88

the

herself

castes
iiiE

cH'"e

friends

and

some

members

of Bauri

and

caste~s)

Bagdi

lower-

of

the Sabara tribe of

the maternal

occasion of the

child~s

by

st i 11

and

8'3

of

some

of Bengal even 50/60 years ago Cas it has been learnt

prevc:<.iling

the

the custom of

(bride-price) prevalent among

from

r-ole

quite

i::o

marriage~-ceremony

relatives to get married at the house of the bride,

'ffcting

of

Ori~sct,

the

uncle in the ~QQ~e~i~~Q~

rice-eating

on

ritual

for the first time)

active participation of the maternal

a pre-patrlarchal society,

ceremony,

uncles from both

where the women and

the

her

sides

kinsmen

enjoyed a position of superiority.

The custom of sister-marriage may also be considered as

a characteristic of matriarchal society.
Sit~

is represented as the sister as well as wife of

Da~aratha of

: an

not

doubt

the Iksv~ku line.

be later

in date than the

son of

the Kernel of which

Q~~~L~ih~Jit~h~,

leaves

that the story of sister-marriage on the part of Rima

an invention of the author

of

The B~m~~~Q~,

R~ma,

of the Jataka.

sister -man- i age

Magadha,

the

However,

no
was

the practice

SE'ems to have been in vogue at one time

in
'30
ear l y
c f~nt t- e
of
Buddhism
Ac c cr ding
to the

26

Ceylonese

~~b~Y~~~ it was at one time

ChroniclE

:n
We

Bengal

are

and

married his sister Sihasivali.

(referred to as L&la),
-,~0ciJl

Ya~qa

king of

told that Sihavdhu,

practised

tr~dition

in

Rdha

This

was

which can hardly be ruled

out

altogether-.

An
anthropology
that

thE'

on

invest i gat i cn
and

the

basis

t:)

linguistics would leave littls scope of

Motf;~.!r

Cult of

-Goddess had its independent

doubt

origin

in

Pr-eviously some scholars favour-ed the theory

of
'32
R. F'. Canda
tracing the origin of this cult outside Bengal.
itself.

se-=:l"r'- ched

for

the original home of Siktism in a land outside

dominance of the Vedic Aryans and Avestic

Iranians.

the

He has traced

the

home

original

Meditarreanean.

of

S~ktism

in the

countries

bordering

the

His argument is based on the striking resemblance

I

bet ....eer; Indian Saktisrn c.:n thP

hand,

OrlE'

and the Semitic,

Egyptian

and

PhrygiaG conception of Sakti,

on the othc:::r.

Chanda

suggested

that

background
Bengal

the

where

must

originated

matriarchy prevailed.

in

social

He was of opinion

have had a past history of matriarchal

many upper and lower

,

concept of Sakti

soc i

castes of Bengal are hereditarily

E!t

that
y

as

followers

'33

of Saktism

P.

c.

traced the foundation of Siktism in the

;

Sa1nkhya philoscphy.
.,..,ell-established

According to him,

"the basis of Saktism was a

::;yst em of phi 1 osophy 1 ike the

S~Linkhya

in

wh i :h

of

27

Siva

and

')4

As

Sakti"

the

s~~khya

somewhere in Northern
I

of

'

Si vc:~-Sakt i

fr-om

might have been brought in Bengal

favour- of the opinion that

concept
outside.

Sakt i

~:;m

was

Ther-e is least

Pur~~as.

by the authors of the

Pur~~ic

the

India outside Bengal,

Scholars are gener-ally in

developed

system is believed to have

h~:c.t
I

goddess

was

accommodated

Mother-Goddess

is

Pur-~nic

within the

conceived

as

neutr-al,

Cult

i ndependc;nt

is alone able to rescue her devotees fr-om distr-ess.

conceive

her-

of

Sakti.
of

and

Her devotees

one independent and other associated

in two forms,

~ith

male

partner.

The ter-m Sakti

or-iginally

female-energy of a male divinity.

dint

As Sakti

-----'

of the grace of her husband.

assigned by her husband.

are absent

~mother'

given the supreme position,

the

she is glorious

by

She has to perform the duties

The power and grace of the

in her.

denotes

independant

Whereas the Mother-Goddess has been

even greater- than that of the

Great

Gods,

'Sakti'

holds a subordinate and secondary position.

The
devE,lopment of
traced
e 1s

E ,,.., h

to
t: r e ,

Sa~khya

system

thou~~ht,

wherec1S the Cult of Mother--Goddess may be

remote past.

h ci :::

tJ e en

of

philosophy

represents

later

The Chalcolithic culture in India,

u n ill i s t aka b 1 y

.: h a r a c t e r i z e d by i t s.

as~; o c

as

i at i on

with the Cult of Mother-goddess.

According to th2
Purusa

is an inactive and

viewed as the power

S~~khya

philosophy it is presumed that

passive spectator,

in the process of action,

28

while F'rakrti

is

the root cause

of

the creation.
e);pl anat ion
...

( t:.. asc'n ably

It may
hEIS

g i \'en

.::~.n

be held that

upper hand to the

a philosophical
'35
female
pYinciple

SUI:h

t-1Qc:~1n,

to

a supreme position.

But the diffeyence lies in the fact that

Prakrti derives her energy from

Puru~a,

whereas Mother-goddess is

supposed to be one without dependence on any other divine agency.

The

Qg~iQlt~

~igVeda

of the

(X) represents the original

form

of

Mot her --Goddess.

The non--A(yar' character c,f Mother-f3c,dde!:;s may be traced
in some earl}

indigenous texts.

In the

~b~bbi~~i

<Vi.

6)

it is

said that the goddess has her perpetual abode in the Vindhyas and
likes to enjoy spirituous liquor,
(59)

flesh and sacrificial victims.

it has been said

that

the

goddess

is

Barbaras and Pulindas.

In

worshipped

(yQQjit~>

by the Savaras,

305) the goddess is addressed as

or

'
Sav'ara
woman and in the

Kir~ta

woman

:!~r:...b.~ E:!:!.t:..~9-Sl

(28.34) as

.~Elr.l

LLr:..~t!.o.l

or

(belonging to the Mongoloid stock).

Bengal Yemained for

a pretty long time outside the fold

of Aryan culture and was inhabited by the people belonging to the

Austric,

Dr0vidian and Mongoloid culture.

It would be,

therefore,

reasonable to hold that the Cult of Mother-Goddess originated

in

Bengal

of

on the foundat1on of a primitive belief in the spirit

fertility

thc-tt

n~a~:

often invoked by

people living in an agrarian society.

the

non-Atyan

sedentary

1.

Bhattacharya, N.N.,

2.

Morgan,

!ndi~D ~Qth~L gd~~,

6Di~Di Qii~,

L.H.,

Editicn 1'382), Preface,

XXXIII.

J.

~gDY

91

~DY

gi lof!i.!l

H.

B.S. Guha,

1'331;

Pt .

Hutton,

III,

1877 (Recent

! 6 E;, 1'35'3 -- 60, 4'3 - 50.

5.

Ibid.,

I, Pt.

I,

(Ethnographical), 'v'ol.

I,

<Report),

Vol.

1'362,

139.

I I .

187'3'

8.

'3.

& Development

Menghin,

~origin

Cultures'

in ~~Ll~ ~.D

1 '337'

p.

Roy,

N.

311

~~6g~liL

R.,

17 - 20.

Chattopadhyay,

Bhaskar

!j

~,

tbg 6.9.,

Cal.

B.

Ed.

Early

of

F'.

398;

Palaeolithic

by G.G.Maccurdy, Philadelphia,

f f.

pp.

15;

Indian

1 '331 .

4.

Ch.

!o~i

Cal.

Cal.,1971, P.4

U.,

1'388,

!tihi CBeng.),

~Introduction'

1960, pp. 86- 87.

30

p.

Cal.

one.

1356 B.S.,

P.

11.

12.

Ibid,

1'355--SC,

13 .

Ibi d,

l. '3 57--58 .

14.

Ibid,

l 35'3-f,O,

15.

Ibid,

1 '3E,3,

1E..

Ibjd,

1'3G1-G2;

C:hakravorty 1'3G7,

103.

17

I bi d,

1 '3 6 1 -- G2 ;

Ch a k (

t y 1'3 G7 ,

10 3 .

18.

C:ho:d:r<:Jvorty 1'3(.7,

[:;~

1'37":,--7(.:,,

~:i7--5'3

(folr

Darjeeling sites)

G'3.

50

41 --42;

1 '360-61 ,

<01 v C (

68.

104.

" ,-.

.I ~'

20.

Ibid,

1 '364--65,

46.

21 ..

Ibid,

1 '3E..5-GG,

55--5S

"":-:

Ibi d,

1 '3 6 8-6 '3 ,

4 1 -- 4 3.

Ibid,

1 '375--7G,

58 --5'3

~..:_.

._;_.,:_,
-,-

24.

r b i d , 1 :1 4 s , ..,.-.
..:JL.

.-,c-

..;;....J.

Ibid,

26.

M.

L.

-:!
..;._I

S.

ChC:irldlra,

D.

~:::.

2'3.

Ibid,

1'354-55 .

Singh,

:p.cit.,
Cp.c:it.,

1'377,

31-42.

1380,25-27

C:hakia-..orty op.cit.,

31.

31

1'381, 30.

30.

F?.,

c'P

Chattelr jee,

c
.,__,.

Poy,

..:;;.:...

p t= 3 5 ;

34.

cit.,

F.

2'3

27.

p.

,--..-,

N.

k. '

2 5 1 --2 52

Biswas,
2')--30.

Sri vasta . .;a,

Delhi,

lof!L:~,

K.

f:::.

M. '

1'37'3,

Chatterjee,

35.

P.

37.

38.

Agarwal

39.

P. K.

40.

l A E, 1963-64, 60.

102.

p.

op.

cit., pp. 82-83.

g, 1'372-73
ancl

s. ,

Kusumgar,

Chatterjee, op. cit., p.

New York,

1 '365,

Ft

I,

p.

82.

3.

4 .-.
..:...

Sha.,.-m.=t,
~n~i~u~

F:.
ln~i~,

Delhi,

1985, Ch.s I to V.

43.

t!

~.,

45.

t!

~.

4G.

F'oy,

F',

F'

I b i d. ,

4Q

R.

50.

Saraswati,
1 '362,

51.

<:p.::it.,

pp

1 0,

14.

ChatteYjee,

!~L~,

pp.

15

lB.

K.

.&:.:. . )

27-28.

N.F.,

1 '3 2 '3 ,

.-,r.::-

op.

82.

::~4.

PP

Pl.

38-100,

'Indi:m Terracottas',

52.

cit., p.

Fig.

XV,

JlQfj,

Vcl.

38; Stella

VII,

193'3,

~:::Y"amrisd1,

pp.

'39-101.

Ibid.

E.
Vol .

54.

X,

1 '342,

Saraswati,

S.

p.
~:::.,

100.
op.

cit.,

p.

'37.

considered as prototype of goddess

village-deity
infants.

of

$a~~hi,

Bengal who gives and

a ve'f y pcpul a'f

pY"otects

village

56.

BisWclS,

S.S.,

57.

Ibid,

SS.

Cemaraswam;,

op.

cit.,

p.

65,

pl.

\/II.

71--72.

pp.

A. K., op. cit., p. 3

p1

I (b ) ,

Director atE=? of AYr:haeology,

1'3EA,

pl.

op r: i t .

.::l. ,

3'3.

E.<).

G1.

Saraswati,
p.

63.

K., op. cit., pp. 93-94; Stella Kramrisch,

p s:::J

ci t . '

op .

E..2.

s.

Saraswati,

XX I I I.

s.

vJ

cp.cit.,

'

F'.

'33;

Biswas S.S.,

42.

ld~

According to
skill

ld~

t!!d.IJ.i.t:., "the Santal owes nothing of his

in husbandry to the Aryan.

implements of his own,

an

abundant

He has crops of his own,

his own system of cultivation, and

vocabulary of rural

1'365,

F'.

life,

115.

EA.

F.: o y ,

65.

Medda,

~ic~hym,

Ibid.

p.

Ibid,

p.

F.: ,

op .

J.

B. '

Cal.

: i t . ,

pp .

1977, p. 32.

108.

34

not one

Sc why they

11ave a religious F'anthe on of tht::'ir own ?

66.

op.cit.,

word

of

~:;hould

not

E.S.

I b i d.

6:.

Poy,

N.

70.

The

Concept of

5C>.

p.

op. cit.,

F'.,

p.

34.

Pur~Qic-goddess

Ca~~~

is very much simtlar

to the Oraon-cencept of their warrior goddess

of

her popular names in rural Bengal is

is,

Ca~~I,

Jay~ca0~i,

One

that

the giver of victory.

71.

Mi.:>dda, J. B., cp. cit., p.

10'3.

-y.-,

The

concept of

........

C~nd1.

F'ur ani c

'Astam~trka'

and

T~ntric

have close affinity with the tribal

concept

of sister-goddesses or group goddesses.

t-1edda,

J.

74.

Ibid.,

pp. 48,

75.

Ibid.,

pp.

60- 70.

-:-"E..

Ibid.,

pp.

70--71.

77.

Canda,

P.

7E..

~8E,

I I ,

_...

7:J
:

~)I

B., op. cit., p.

P.,

66,

f:::osamb i ,

D.

~itQL~-

~Q~

151.

IQ~Q=6L~~Q

1 '315,

p.

~~.,

148.

851

8~~~,

Rajshahi,

1'316, p.

153.

f f.

Bombay 1975, Pp.

80.

Bhattacharyya,

N.

N.,

op.

81.

Chattop.:~dhyay,

D.

r=.,

b:f!.L~~.i.!,

35

cit.,

17- 52.

pp. 8-3.

Delhi,

195'3,

pp.

232 ff.

f:
"

(1

E:r 1 cJ ,

~~ C1

pp

'

cc,
'-

.=.1

-'II

_..._,.

- ..

.. _

'

_, i.

Cf :.udfl_,,- , ,

J.

'

.L'

lO::J .

r-: .l .:~

J [." _r

~ I

!'

'

I IT

I_

Lt '

1 4 El .... 1 4 'j

~~

t-'

r-;

P,

-,'r'-

[1
1::': i ~ 6

tt

6 .. ' I .3 ( _,

!!

F'
;

.:lp

op

'
I

..
.. l

,_
l

'

pp

-- i t

....-:...

~1"
__

ch.

.)

I~

p.

-: r: -:

....:..,.,_!...:_,