Tribals, Dikus and the Vision of a Golden Age
1. Introduction: Birsa Munda and the Tribal Vision
• In 1895, Birsa Munda was seen roaming the forests and
villages of Chottanagpur in Jharkhand.
• People believed he had miraculous powers—he could
cure diseases and multiply crops.
• Birsa declared he was sent by God to save his people
from slavery under the British and dikus (outsiders).
• His followers began to see him as a Bhagwan (God) and
his mission as a path to the Golden Age.
• Birsa belonged to the Munda tribe, but his influence
spread among Santhals, Oraons, and other tribes in the region.
2. Who were the Tribals?
• Tribes were communities with customs and rituals very
different from those of Brahmanical society.
• They did not follow rigid caste divisions.
• People in tribes shared a sense of kinship but there were
economic and social differences among them.
• They depended on:
1. Forest produce
2. Hunting and gathering
3. Shifting cultivation
4. Herding of animals
3. Who were the Dikus?
• Dikus = Outsiders (traders, moneylenders, British
officials, landlords).
• They exploited tribals economically by:
• Buying goods at cheap prices.
• Forcing them into debt.
• Grabbing their land.
• Demanding heavy revenue.
, • Tribal life and freedom were under threat because of the
interference of dikus.
4. How Did Tribal Groups Live?
(a) Hunters and Gatherers
• Many tribal groups were hunter-gatherers.
• They went on collective hunts, gathered forest products,
and sold them in markets.
• Khonds of odissa- collective hunting and divided meal
among themselves, ate fruits and roots of plantes,
cooked from the oil extracted from seeds of sal and
mahua, used medicinal shrubs and herbs, supplied
kusum and palash flowers to colour clothes.
• At times they exchanged goods, some of them did labour
jobs when supplies of forest produce shrank
• At times they needed to buy and sell good, they
depended on moneylenders and traders.
• Example: Baigas of Central India—called themselves
“people of the forests” and saw labour work as beneath their dignity.
(b) Shifting Cultivators
• Some practiced jhum cultivation:
1. Small patches of forest cleared by cutting and burning.
2. Ash from burnt plants fertilised the soil(potash).
3. Seeds scattered by hand.
4. Crops grown and harvested.
5. Land left fallow for years; group moved elsewhere.
• Practiced in North-East India (Assam hills, Manipur, etc.).
(c) Herding Animals
• Example: Van Gujjars (Punjab hills, cattle), Gaddis (kulu,
sheep), Lambadis (Andhra Pradesh, cattle), Bakarwals(kashmir).
• Pastoral life was seasonal—moved for grazing.
(d) Settled Cultivators
1. Introduction: Birsa Munda and the Tribal Vision
• In 1895, Birsa Munda was seen roaming the forests and
villages of Chottanagpur in Jharkhand.
• People believed he had miraculous powers—he could
cure diseases and multiply crops.
• Birsa declared he was sent by God to save his people
from slavery under the British and dikus (outsiders).
• His followers began to see him as a Bhagwan (God) and
his mission as a path to the Golden Age.
• Birsa belonged to the Munda tribe, but his influence
spread among Santhals, Oraons, and other tribes in the region.
2. Who were the Tribals?
• Tribes were communities with customs and rituals very
different from those of Brahmanical society.
• They did not follow rigid caste divisions.
• People in tribes shared a sense of kinship but there were
economic and social differences among them.
• They depended on:
1. Forest produce
2. Hunting and gathering
3. Shifting cultivation
4. Herding of animals
3. Who were the Dikus?
• Dikus = Outsiders (traders, moneylenders, British
officials, landlords).
• They exploited tribals economically by:
• Buying goods at cheap prices.
• Forcing them into debt.
• Grabbing their land.
• Demanding heavy revenue.
, • Tribal life and freedom were under threat because of the
interference of dikus.
4. How Did Tribal Groups Live?
(a) Hunters and Gatherers
• Many tribal groups were hunter-gatherers.
• They went on collective hunts, gathered forest products,
and sold them in markets.
• Khonds of odissa- collective hunting and divided meal
among themselves, ate fruits and roots of plantes,
cooked from the oil extracted from seeds of sal and
mahua, used medicinal shrubs and herbs, supplied
kusum and palash flowers to colour clothes.
• At times they exchanged goods, some of them did labour
jobs when supplies of forest produce shrank
• At times they needed to buy and sell good, they
depended on moneylenders and traders.
• Example: Baigas of Central India—called themselves
“people of the forests” and saw labour work as beneath their dignity.
(b) Shifting Cultivators
• Some practiced jhum cultivation:
1. Small patches of forest cleared by cutting and burning.
2. Ash from burnt plants fertilised the soil(potash).
3. Seeds scattered by hand.
4. Crops grown and harvested.
5. Land left fallow for years; group moved elsewhere.
• Practiced in North-East India (Assam hills, Manipur, etc.).
(c) Herding Animals
• Example: Van Gujjars (Punjab hills, cattle), Gaddis (kulu,
sheep), Lambadis (Andhra Pradesh, cattle), Bakarwals(kashmir).
• Pastoral life was seasonal—moved for grazing.
(d) Settled Cultivators
