Paragraph on Forest Festival – by Anand

Introduction:

A big portion of the Indian population lives in its Tribes and forests. The tribal life is the best example of how the earlier life of the people used to be before the towns and cities came into being.

It demonstrates how difficult and dangerous the life of man was before the advent of technology and other scientific developments. Apart from that, even the cultural life of the forest people is interesting in its own way. They have different kinds of festivals in tribute of various deities that they worship.

Daily Life and Culture of Forest People:

The forest people have a lifestyle which is unique from the other communities based in villages and cities in many aspects. The men go for hunting so that they could bring back food for their families while the women collect water and herbs from the nearby water body.

They are very ritualistic people and worship different gods and goddesses. When the men come back, the senior tribe leader calls everyone to one spot. He then chants some mantra while the others dance around the fire. They thank the Almighty for the food and then sit down to eat. The men eat first and then the women.

Collection of Food Items for the Festival:

The division of labour for procuring food items was done on the basis of stronger or weaker person. The man always proved to be stronger and was the hunter. The woman depended upon the man for protection. Man collected food and clothing items while the woman was given the task to collect only herbs. Thus, the man used to get home the food which could cater to the needs of a large number of people whereas the women were engaged in collecting other small items.

Celebration of the Festival:

The forest people decorate the tree under which the worshipping idol is placed. The whole communities of people gather beneath the huge tress and stand in concentric circles while the community leader starts chanting the prayers. The fire is lighted in the middle and the men with sticks start beating on the bamboo drums that they hand-crafted.

The whole community dances around the fire while the leader still sings the chants in a louder voice than before. When the chants and prayers end, the people go near the idol of the deity and pay their homage in the form of flowers, food, etc. After the conclusion of the celebration, the people sit down to eat. Food is served by the younger crowd of people. Everyone enjoys the meal and they eat to their heart’s content.

Conclusion:

A forest life is very different from the life led by the people residing in towns and cities. They don’t have the privilege of enjoying the luxuries of life but whatever little they have, they are happy with the same. They lead a very simple and primitive man’s life. In the same way, their festivals are also different from the festivals of the modern man. The tribals are disconnected from the entire world outside. But this does not push them back in celebrating their festivals.