Religious Beliefs and Practices Among The Kora Tribes Of West Bengal: An Ethnographic Study

Animism is a common phenomenon among the tribes. Therefore, the religious beliefs and its performances among the tribes consist of their life cycle rites, communal rites and worship practices along with their ancestral worship practices followed by their different totem and taboos. The tribes in India have been influenced by certain traditions of the communities around them. Major neighboring community in all the areas has always been Hindus. As a result from the very period there have been several points of contact between the Hindus of the area and tribal communities living within it. The nature and extent of contact the pattern of mutual participation and characteristics of revitalization movements have been different in different parts of India. In this paper, an attempt has been made to discuss the religious beliefs and practices among the Kora tribes in West Bengal.