The protestant folk religion of Bengal: In the context of the Balahari Sects/ বাংলার প্রতিবাদী লোকোধর্ম : প্রসঙ্গ বলাহাড়ি সম্প্রদায়

Abstract

The middle of the 18th century saw several folk religions to have heaved in sight to a larger extent in different parts of Bengal, and many of them amongst themselves displayed strong flavour of protests or disagreements that arose primarily depending on religious principles in multiple ways. Nihar Ranjan Ray, in his report presented to the National Congress Session in 1975, called attention to, with enough and perceivable pellucidity, these protestant characters he observed in the folk religions of that time. An ideal example of such a folk religion, that distinctively marked it out to be a protestant one, is Balahari, or Balarami, or Balaram Bhaja religious community. This religious sect was given its congregated formation by the Hari community in the region of Meherpur, located in the district of undivided Nadia, under the leadership of Balaram Hari. Later on, present day Nischintapur of Nadia district turned out to be one of the biggest centers of this religious sect. Bankura, Purulia, and Murshidabad as well gradually came under a massive influence of this religious community and their evidently distinctive religious perspectives. Around 1780, Balaram Hari took his holy birth, and he took his last breath around 1850. The Hari community and their distinctive religious perspectives established their erect heads, that patently displayed its religious sway in different geographical locations, fundamentally through opposing Vaishnavism and specifically Brahmin religious culture. That is why, in their religious culture one can easily trace their force of oppositions in several ways, specifically with respect to religious rituals, principles and practices of worship. The Hari community does not allow and accept the use of Dip, Dhup, Dhuna, Tulsi and Tilak and even Gangaajal while maintaining any religious creed and custom. And this essentially unique and rudimentarily unmixed religious perspective provides the Hari community with a separate recognition.