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Religious Syncretism among the Meiteis of Manipur, India

Author Affiliations

  • 1Department of Anthropology, North Eastern Hill University Shillong-793022, Meghalaya, INDIA

Int. Res. J. Social Sci., Volume 4, Issue (8), Pages 21-26, August,14 (2015)

Abstract

In this digital age today we see our world as a global village. Indeed, the world has become a global village with the advancement of transport and communication, science and technology and in many other domains as well. In this present era of interculturalism and transculturation syncretism is a prevailing event. Religious syncretism is one of the most interesting events in a country like India where various different ethnic groups with their own culture, tradition, religion, language and different origin live together as a nation of ‘unity with diversity’. The present study deals with religious syncretism among the Meitei peoples of Manipur, a north-eastern state of Indian union. The state is the meeting point between the east and west, i.e. south-east Asia and south Asia in terms of culture. Anthropological field work has been conducted to collect primary data for this study using interview (structured and non-structured), observation, case study methods etc. From this study it was ascertained that religious syncretism of traditional primordial religion and Hinduism among these people gave rise to a new and unique essence to their culture. Present day Hinduism of this population exhibits aesthetic cultural products of religious syncretism.

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