Explained: What Is Sarnaism And Why Tribals Are Seeking Religious Status For Sarna?

Two tribal activists have threatened to self-immolate on November 15, if Prime Minister Narendra Modi doesn't accord religion status to Sarna during his visit to Jharkhand.

Modi is scheduled to visit Ulihatu, the birth place of tribal icon Birsa Munda, in Khunti district of the state on his birth anniversary on November 15, which is observed as 'Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas' and also the Jharkhand Foundation day.

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What is Sarna religion

Sarna is a religious faith predominantly followed by indigenous communities in the Chota Nagpur Plateau region across states like Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, and Chhattisgarh. It holds the distinction of being India's largest tribal religion.

Despite this, Sarna or Sarnaism is not officially recognised as a religion.

What are Sarana religious practices

Believers of Sarna are nature worshippers and they worship ¡°Jal (water), Jungle (forest), Zameen (land)¡±. They pray to the trees and hills while believing in protecting the forest areas.

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Sarna does not practice idol worship, nor do they adhere to the concept of the Varna system and they regard themselves as belonging to a distinct religious group.

How many people follow Saran?

In the 2011 census, over 50 lakhs tribal people had mentioned their religion as ¡®Sarna¡¯, although it was not a code.

In 2020, the Jharkhand assembly had passed a resolution demanding the Sarna dharma code to be included in the census.

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Why Sarna dharma code?

Earlier this week, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren said that the decision to recognise the Sarna religious code for tribals was pending with the Centre.

He said the code was necessary to identify that the tribals are different from the followers of other religions, besides to ensure the protection of their constitutional rights.

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In a letter to the PM in September, he had sought the recognition of the 'Sarna' code for tribals in order to safeguard their religious existence and constitutional rights and claimed that their population in the region has declined to 26 per cent from 38 per cent in the last eight decades.

Why religion status matter for Saran

According to 'Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan' (ASA) president Salkhan Murmu, religious recogntion of Sarna is necessary to protect their identity and heritage.

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He pointed out that the majority of the states in India were formed on linguistic basis to preserve their cultures, identities and languages but Santhali, despite being recongnised under the 8th schedule of the Constitution in 2003, was not made the official language of Jharkhand till date though it was carved out of Bihar after a long tribal movement for statehood.

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