Abstract

An Ethnographical Approch of the links between water and the Oral Traditions of ‘Ramakatha’, evolved around the Radh region in West Bengal can bring out a wide range of significant cultural evolutions in a varied sphere of social practices and conventions of this region.

The Oral Traditions, forming quite a significant part of Folklore have always been found as important agents of cultural evolution, usually marked by the written materials or the ‘frozen’ variety of Folklore, that have always formed an important part of this branch of knowledge.   

I, in this paper would look into the oral traditions,related both to the Ramayana and water in the form of anecdotes, riddles, poems and songs from the Radh region. It portrays an analysis of historical representation of data through the collection of a vast amount of folklore from this region. These not only help to ascertain a reflection of a rich tradition transmitted through generations, but also help portray the cognitive representation of socio-cultural and religious developments through history which serve as important contexts for their origination. Their survival itself is a testimony to this, a testimony conveyed, communicated and transferred through time. It led to a euphoric exploration of a venerable tradition that is partly lost in oblivion under the pressures of modern civilization.

Paper:

The Ethnographical links between the Ramayana and the Ramakatha has been quite an interesting study for last few decades and in this pursuit I would like to add the perspective of water as it has always been a matter of common interest. The importance of water of varied kinds were asserted both in the Ramayana and in the anecdotes, riddles, poems and songs from the Radh region developed and evolved through ages with specific relations with the Ramayana and are usually known as Ramakatha. The verbose referring to a custom that talks about a continuous tradition of survival of ethnic identity amidst changing socio-cultural and religious contexts that  have nevertheless resulted in the accumulation of a colossal amount of information and mention may be made of the attempts of Lal Behari Dey, Dakkhinaranjan Mitra Majumdar, Dinesh Chandra Sen, William McCulloch, Rabindranath Tagore and others. However, mostly all of these data were limited in nature with the exclusion of further scrutiny of contexts, causes and implications. Nevertheless, it is also significant to mention that each and every of these attempts also provided a rich source of study for future reference works and researches, acting as the mainstay, strength and support for various studies of varied disciplines including, folk culture, linguistics, sociology, philosophy and literature. Most of these data collected from the Radh, over the last century, are generally in the form of fables, folklore, poems and riddles. At closer observation, they can be further divided between eastern and western Bengal, with the former constituting a significant section of the erstwhile eastern Bengal or most parts of the country of Bangladesh and the latter was formed of prominent parts of modern western Bengal, including the erstwhile Jangalmahal - constituting parts of modern Jharkhand and parts of Orissa and also the present region of study—the Radh region. Geophysical constituents made the two regions differ in nature, flora and fauna with the former being more fertile and well-drained, fed by both perennial and non-perennial rivers and the latter forming sections of a more arid region of the Chhotanagpur plateau. Difference in landscapes naturally evoke an image of diverse habitation, however interestingly enough, the folklore in the form of fables, riddles and poems, contained a continuous strain, which spoke of the proximity of the regions and also the remarkable possibilities of their traveling from one region to another.

With a history of varied religious influences, including Jainism, Tantric Buddhism, Vaisnavism, Saivism, Saktaism, Brahmanism, Islam and finally Christianity, the region under study experienced various changes in thought processes, political scenarios and cultural affiliations. As the larger representation portrayed motley of heterogeneous and diverse socio-cultural elements, it is also important to mention about the minor depiction in the form of ethnic identities. This was prominent through the importance of folk divinities and deities and local ruling authorities, which helped to strengthen the native history to a great extent. The present paper focuses on this character and distinctiveness of the region, which helped to shape the regional socio-cultural and religious ethos. The paper looks into a brief history of the region which influenced the local religious belief structure and in turn also influenced the local lore and fables that exist today as a mode of continuous human communication between existing societies and religions. Amidst this, ecology occupies a significant pivotal role, aiding the diachronic development of thought processes down the path of history. 

The significance of folklore of the region also lies in its tradition, which speaks of a parallel belief structure alongside the mainstream - so-called Brahminical religious belief system in the region - which has oft been repeated in the writings of historians and linguists like Niharranjan Ray, Suniti K. Chattopadhyay and others. The lore is helpful in not only understanding the settlement patterns, migrations and change of habitation, reflection of day-to-day activities and anxieties concerning livelihood, but also reflects a story of continuous struggle for acceptance within a framework of society, which, historically speaking, has been dominated by sections of higher caste with the ‘vratyas’ (the marginalized people) occupying a secondary role down the path of regional history. The region under study Archaeological records provide vital information pertaining to settlement pattern of the region in relation to the local inhabitants from the very early times, however, it is not until the Historical/Late Historical periods, that information pertaining to religious as well as developing economic activities are available. However, the origin of fables and lore is difficult to measure nevertheless, and cannot be studied with historical references till later times.

 The oral traditions collected from the region can mainly be divided into two major segments. With varied regions across the nation offering their intrinsic ways of life, the culture of India reverberates with a multitude echo of customs and traditions- preserved in the various vernacular languages of the nation. Thus, is woven the art of storytelling within the cultural mosaic of the nation. With various recent publications highlighting important and significant aspects of folktales from across the nation, they also help to keep an age-old tradition alive- the messages conveyed through the art of storytelling. Significantly, it should also be mentioned here that the practice of storytelling in India can primarily be divided into two broad categories. In further explaining this, one can refer to the help from the akam (meaning inside) and puram (meaning outside) traditions of Tamil literature- where the akam tradition signifies the stories retold within the household and the puram tradition signifies those recited and narrated outside the household and in various public places. Almost all oral traditions all across India occupies these two patterns. Thus, there is an element of the stories which is famous and handed down through generations within households, while on the other hand, there is a section of stories, which are famous for being retold in public places. This latter is often retold with the help of various props, e.g. the patachitra traditions of West Bengal or shadow puppetry using leather puppets as part of the tradition of Kerala- Tholpavakoothu or even the Bhopa storytelling tradition in front of a tapestry in Rajasthan. In all of these instances, the stories are represented through oral epics- depicting the characters of the stories and these often function as a portable temple. The characters can be historical incidents or stories from mythologies as well- and mostly refer to the victory stories and ballads of local princes and kings as well as local deities who act as the protector of various villages and alongside the wide range of people telling stories with the help of props, it is also important to mention about the large number of storytellers across the nation- whose profession was specifically to tell stories. Thus, mention may be made of the kathaks of Bengal- whose recitations used to be referred to as kathakatha. As the tradition of kathaks is almost a dying art, some specialised narrators are still seen thronging the banks of the ghats of Beneras. Often well-travelled people, there storytellers used to be paid for their services and thus, were often also hired by zamindars or local kings and ministers on auspicious occasions or even otherwise- to tell stories of mythological characters as well as various incidents which they have encountered in the various lands that they have visited.  

 The other aspect of storytelling speaks of narration within interiors or home and other areas where the listener and narrator are directly displaced away from a public gathering and hearing. This form of storytelling in India occupies the narration and subsequent passing of the tradition to the following generations. In this procedure, the stories are handed down from predecessors in the form of parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts. Mostly retold for the amusement of young children, the ideas and themes of the stories often include fictitious characters from mythology or otherwise. The stories are shorter in comparison to the other ones which are recited to a wider public. The use of language, repertoire, pitch and body expressions changes from the former as well- to suit the likes of a young child. Thus, as stories from Panchatantra, Jataka tales or the Puranas are repeated, quite like the former process of storytelling in public places, they also weave various stories from local oral tradition or simple stories woven with fictitious and imaginary characters by the narrators. Important work has been contributed towards understanding folklore and its various channels of expression by certain dignitaries in Bengal over the last one hundred years in India, including Gurusaday Dutta, Rabindranath Tagore, Abanindranath Tagore, Dineshchandra Sen, Dhakkhinaranjan Mitra Majumdar, amidst others, the last four decades have also witnessed various other folklorists across the nation contributing substantially towards the understanding of folklore and storytelling in India, e.g. Devendra Satyarthi, Durga Bhagwat, Krishna Dev Upadhyaya, Prafulla Dutta Goswami, Kunja Bihari Dash, Ashutosh Bhattacharya and many others. And to this was added the work of several recent Indian scholars as well, including- M. D. Muthukumaraswamy, Vivek Rai, Jawaharlal Handoo, Birendranath Dutta, P. C. Pattanaik, B. Reddy, Sadhana Naithani, P Subachary, Molly Kaushal, Shyam Sundar Mahapatra, Dr Bhabagrahi Mishra, Jyotindra Jain and others.

           To begin the discussion on the oral traditions of 'Ramkatha' in Radh Bengal as a cultural link with the Ramayana, I would like to refer to a comment of M. Winternitz, present in his quite a celebrated essay, "The Popular Epics and the Puranas, the genuine and the spurious in the Ramayana", published in A History of Indian Literature. Vol I, Section II. "The only explanation for the great differences between the receptions is the fact that the text if the epic was for a long period only handed down by oral transmission. It is conceivable that the order of the verses became dislocated in the memory of the rhapsodists, that the wording must often have suffered considerable changes, and that the singers of different regions made different additions and extensions respectively". Along with various versions of the Ramayana in various regional languages we can trace various oral traditions too. We are quite familier with the Ramayana by Kritvivasa, written in the 15th century in Radh Bengal. Just as a paralal to this written rendering, I would like to refer to a few oral traditions of this region, e.g. vratakatha, riddle, folk song and yatra. In this context I would like to refer to a comment by Rabindranath, made in his essay, "Ramayana" published in Prachin Sahitya, "The mass has not only learnt lessons from Ramayana, they have derived pleasure out of it. They have not only worshipped it, but have also placed it in their hearts. Its not only a scripture for them, but is an epic in its true sense."

      While discussing'Ramkatha' in Radh Bengal the most powerful oral tradition, that comes to my mind is definitely  'Kathakatha'. It had specific sociocultural impacts but the entire tradition is so miserably missing In the last decade of the 20th Century that I failed to trace a single example of it. Hence, I am going to discuss the 'Vratakathas' which are called 'charas' (rhymes) too. In this context Rabindranath's projection of Ramayana as poetry of household order is quite significant. He comments, "The main feature of the Ramayana is its emphasis on the domestic world. The ultimate elevation of the sacred bond between a father and a son, among brothers, within conjugal relationships, within the relationship between the ruler and the ruled and so on are portrayed with utmost perfection". Hence the Ramayana enters into the common paradigm of domestic expectations quite thoroughly.

        The chara of the 'Bhaduli' vrata in the western part of the Radh unfolds another dimention of the inclusion of the Ramayana within the domestic world of the Radh, " Sagar! Sagar! Vandi, tomar songe sandhi./ Rama asen Lakshmana asen, ar asen Nal/ Tai dekhe theme thakben samudrer jal." (O! Sea! I worship you, I want your friendship/ Rama comes, Lakshmana comes and comes Nal/ Hence the sea will remain static.) This vrata is primarily for the family of the business community, who have to travel accross the sea. Goddess Bhaduli is related to the month 'Bhadra' and is the goddess of rain. This vrata requires a pot hole, symbolizing the sea, in the courtyeard of the house. Beside it six circles are drawn, placing three on each side. They symbolize six other seas. A couple of Parallal lines reprehenting a latge river having thirteen heads get connected to that hole. Then the lady, performing the vrata, sprinkles water on this drawing and the hole while uttering this chara. Nal, here is the son of God Visvakarma, the skilled maker of the universe as he helped Rama to construct a bridge accross the sea for easy passage of Rama and his army to Lanka. This vrata aims at the safe passage of near and dear ones, trvelling accross the seas.  In this vrata the Ramayana is used as an iconic example of exerting control over the usually uncontrolable aspects of nature. It does also bring out Animatisms, quite an integral component of any form of paganism. In 'Sundarakanda' of the Ramayana by Kritwivas we find Rama worshiping the sea as can be found in 'yudhakanda' of the Ramayana by Valmiki.

In Ramakathar Prak Itihas (1977) by Acharya Sukumar Sen we find Sita as the daughter of Dasagriba (Ravana), who abandons Sita as an evangelist foretells that she will be responsible for the fall of her paternal dynesty. Then she was found by Valmiki, who nurtures her and later on when Rama and Lakshamana came to the Ashrama of Valmiky, Sita falls in love with both and gets married with both in due course. In this context “Bharatbarsher Itihasher Dhara”by Rabindranath is quite significant. He has presented the actual meaning of Sita as plough- line. She was found by king Janaka at the edge of his plough and the end of her life was by entering into the Earth. Hence, she is a symbol of agriculture and is quite significantly rescued by Rama from the Rakshas (Demons), who were mere hunter- gatherers. Rama thus saved agrarian civilization from the forest- dwelling hunters.

             The next riddle bears the common belief that Kush was not born of Sita but was a doll of kusha, made and alleviated by Valmiki, who asked Sita to nurture him as her own son and a brother of Lab. This issue can hardly be traced in any written version of the Ramayana, but there are various folk references of it,”Sita gaiche sinan koirte/ Sitar chila nai ghate/ Kusher chila Benai muni/ Rakhyeche Sitar ghate./ Sinai asye sudhae Sita/ e chila to ke bote?/ Lao ma Sita, lao ma Sita/ Tumari Lab –kush bote.” (Sita went off for bathing/ Sita’s was not there in the bathing ghat/ Hermit Benai has kept a doll of a very young boy, made of fiber on the ghat/ After her bath Sita asks, who is this boy?/ Accept the boy as your son, Accept him as your son. ). It’s a Bhadu song and bears a common folk- motif, ‘man made from grass’ (Motif Index of Folk-Literature by Smith Thompson).

            ‘Ramakatha’related to water in the Radh is thus a strong contestant of ‘Shivakatha’ and ‘Krishnakatha’. It is really fascinating as the number of worshippers of Shiva and Krishna are several times, if compared to those of Rama and it has been possible for the varied influences of the various forms of the Ramayanaand the integral links with an eternally significant socio-cultural component, water.

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