Bhopal is a city of tribal communities preserving culture and tradition in practicing their rituals. Several monuments, mosques and buildings were developed to promote its culture.
Bhopal city is geographically located along two lakes, the Upper and Lower lake and surrounded by hills, which make it attractive to tourists. Most of the spots are of religious importance. Numerous temples and mosques exist that showcase their religious beliefs. In fact the biggest mosque in India, Taj ul Masajid, is found here. Dams and lakes are cultivated for irrigation and constant water supply. Structures signify archaeological influences of the past dynasties. The city has some of the best attractive tourist spots.
Sadar Manzil is located near Shaukat Mahal. It is a brick red building that served as Hall of Public Audience in the ancient times. It features an elegant garden surrounding the place. It is now being used as the main office of Municipal Corporation. It was historically built by the great leader Nawab Shahjahan Begum. It was built in 1898 A.D.
Gauhar Mahal is a building built in 1816 by the Nawabs of Bhopal led by Kadasa Begum. It is a mixture of Hindu and Mugal architecture located behind Shaukat Mahal. Fairs and festivals are organized in this place like the Sawan Festival.
Mahavirgiri is the highest point in Bhopal. It features a temple and can be reached by the ropeway or driving up. The ropeway takes 5 minutes to reach the top.
Kolar Dam is a major dam located 35 km from Bhopal. It is 45 meters high and situated across Kolar River. It stores up to 270 Mcm of water. It serves as the irrigation source of Bhopal City.
Shahpura Lake is the third largest in the city. It features a small park, thella wallas across fast foods. According to some tourists, the lake color changes depending on weather and temperature. It turns to deep green or sometimes brown. Within the area is a small mountain with decorated bungalows and a footpath. It also serves as a habitat for crater and migratory birds.
Despite the threats of modernization the tribal community in Bhopal remained intact. Tribes include Gonds, Kols, Bhils, Murias, Baigas, Korkus, Kamaras, Marias and Oraons. Gonds are considered to be the largest tribe. They have preserved to live a primitive life during the last century. This tribe practices the ceremony of eating wild orchids. They also preserved legends, foklore and mythology thru their riddles, songs and practices. Some of the tribes are discussed below.
The Kols tribe is the Rama devotees particularly Nag and Narsingha. They are a group of dark colored people that are natives of Garhwal. The main sources of survival are hunting and food cultivation. One of their strong beliefs is that women must do the dancing as compared to other tribes that say it’s a taboo.
Bhills tribe is known as the skilled archers. Most of them are devotees of Mata and Mahadev. The ancient tribe men wear a piece of loincloths while women are in tattered saris. The more modern Bhils practice unique ways during birth, marriage and death.
Murias tribe is inhabitants of the Bastar District. The main sources of livelihood are farming, hunting and animal care. They are known for their various dances like Har Endanna, Chhat-Dadar and Karsana. The members of the community also practice tattooing. They are devotees of nature Gods like Mati Deo and Bhima Devi.
Baigas tribe is inhabitants of Mandla and Balaghat District. The main sources of livelihood are basket making, cultivation specifically practiced shifting cultivation. They live by using the natural resources. This tribe is believed to be the least affect tribe when it comes to modernization. They practice body tattooing particularly in winter to summer seasons. Some tattoo artists are women members of the tribe. They are also known for their dance form called Dashera.
By: David H. Urmann
Posts Tagged ‘Religious Beliefs’
Bhopal City of Tribal Community
December 25th, 2009Cross-cultural Personal Relationships
November 26th, 2009Marrying even within your own culture can be a challenging experience. Once you get past the wedding day and the romance you are left with the everyday task of loving somebody who is not like you. Differences can be a source of inspiration or conflict.
But what are the challenges of marry into another culture?
A desire to understand another’s culture will not prevent conflict. You have your own cultural beliefs that you bring to a relationship and you will in the first instance use that framework to judge a person or situation. However it is important to gather as much information about your partner’s culture as you can. For example their rituals, their religious beliefs, the role of extended family in your partner’s life and how much autonomy does your partner have in making decisions for their life. People in the West have a great deal of independence from their extended families. Those in the East value close family relationships. This will impact on your relationship.
Do not assume your partner is going to change with gentle persuasion from you. This is probably a mistake people make generally in relationships. People need to be accepted for themselves and if you need to change somebody to ensure you can have a relationship with them, it begs the question why choose the person in the first place. That’s not to say that change will not occur as you spend more time getting to know someone and what they want in the relationship. Trying to change someone’s cultural tendencies will create more unnecessary conflict.
There are many situations that arise in life that call for us to draw on ‘common-sense’ ways to deal with them. That common-sense is made up of our past experience, our habits, our value systems and our taken for granted ways of how to react to things that happen in our life even small things. Remember you and your partner do not possess the same common-sense view of the world. In some situations like how to eat food correctly or what to do in a temple, choosing the ‘when in Rome’ approach can save a lot of unnecessary conflict. But there are some things that are not so easy to solve by using this approach especially if they call into question fundamental values and beliefs. Again just because you choose to live in your partner’s country does not mean you have to compromise who you are.
The answer to all of the above conundrums and potential areas of conflict is to communicate. Be prepared to talk about issues in your relationship particularly in the ‘getting to know you stage’. Then make a commitment to communicate throughout your relationship. Never make assumptions, particularly in a cross-cultural relationship.
Discuss issues like how much free time is normal in a relationship. Discuss your finances and whether both of you are going to work. How will you raise children? Where are you going to live and will there be the enough job opportunities for whoever is going to work. Communication is the secret to avoiding unnecessary conflict and to resolving conflict should it arise. Some cultures are more adept at direct communication than others. Nevertheless without some degree of commitment to discussing issues being made, your chances of a successful relationship become less and less.
One practical way a couple can find out if they want to enter into a cross-cultural marriage is for either partner to seek a fiancée visa. A period of time in your partner’s country will allow you the space to really get to know your partner and their culture and will provide sufficient information for you to choose whether you want to marry your partner. Bringing your partner from the Philippines on a fiancée visa to the USA? Check out the relevant websites for information on the completion of the K1 visa application form.
By: Duane Beadle
