The Baiga

by Verrier Elwin

ABOUT THE The Baiga tribe is one of the important tribes in Central India. It has a long tradition and least affected by the modern civilisation. It is a treasure of knowledge, a must for all scholars and anthropologists. About The Verrier Elwin (1902-64), was unquestionably the pioneering scholar of India’s tribal peoples, an advisor on tribal affairs to the Government of India. General Introduction The Baiga Livelihood Bewar Cultivation The Life- Stories of Typical Baiga The Social Organization of the Baiga Baiga Jurisprudence The Great Crises : Birth The Development of the sexual Consciousness The great Crises : Marriage The Great Crises : Death The Mythological Background of History and Science The Magician and his Control of the Natural World The Cause and cure of Disease Dreams Dances and Songs Games and Riddles Folk-lore The Future Appendix Glossary Index The Title 'The

550 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Harry Verrier Holman Elwin (29 August 1902 – 22 February 1964) was a British-born Indian anthropologist, ethnologist and tribal activist, who began his career in India as a Christian missionary. He first abandoned the clergy, to work with Mohandas Gandhi and the Indian National Congress, then converted to Hinduism in 1935 after staying in a Gandhian ashram,]
and split with the nationalists over what he felt was an overhasty process of transformation and assimilation for the tribals. Verrier Elwin is best known for his early work with the Baigas and Gonds of Orissa and Madhya Pradesh in central India, and he married a 13 year old member of one of the communities he studied. He later also worked on the tribals of several North East Indian states especially North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) and settled in Shillong, the hill capital of Meghalaya.

In time he became an authority on Indian tribal lifestyle and culture, particularly on the Gondi people. He served as the Deputy Director of the Anthropological Survey of India upon its formation in 1945. Post-independence, he took up Indian citizenship. Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru appointed him as an adviser on tribal affairs for north-eastern India, and later he was Anthropological Adviser to the Government of NEFA (now Arunachal Pradesh. His philosophy towards the north-east was partially responsible in its disconnect from the modern world.

The Government of India awarded him the third highest civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan in 1961. His autobiography, The Tribal World of Verrier Elwin won him the 1965 Sahitya Akademi Award in English Language, given by the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters.

Reviews

[Garima Poonia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The loss of tribal culture in india can be seen in the loss of their traditional mehods of living off the forest, such as bewar, or another form of jhum.

Once, british officer's wife saw a Baiga cutting a tree to clear land so as to grow his crops. She began weeping for the trees. This led to bewar being forbidden. Contrary to evidence, the british government claimed that bewar causes deforestation. In reality, the Baiga always cut and burn in a manner and in an area, that the forest only grows better. Bewar was abolished and it is said that when ploughing was enforced, a Baiga died in every household.

It is a tragedy that sanskritisation is erasing their free culture and spirit by converting them and absorbing them into the caste system. They are the natives of this land, and are a window to the ways in which we can live in harmony not just with each other but also with nature. If we really look at these natives, gender dynamics are retarted today.

I think, if one must learn onething, let it be from the Baiga.