The ritual began with a thunderous roll of leather drums, its clamor echoing through the entire village. Women dressed in colorful saris broke into an Indigenous folk dance, tapping and moving their feet to its galloping rhythm. At the climax, 12 worshippers — proudly practicing a faith not officially recognized by the government — emerged from a mud house and marched toward a sacred grove believed to be the home of the village goddess. Led by the village chieftain Gasia Maranda, they carried religious totems — among them an earthen pitcher, a bow and arrow, winnowing fan and a sacrificial axe. Maranda and others in Guduta, a remote tribal village in India’s eastern Odisha state that rests in a seemingly endless forest landscape, are “Adivasis,” or Indigenous tribespeople, who adhere to Sarna Dharma. It is a belief system that shares common threads with the world’s many ancient nature-worshipping religions. On that day inside the grove, worshippers displayed their reverence for the natural world, making circles around a Sal plant and three sacred stones, one each for the malevolent spirits they believe need pleased. They knelt as Maranda smeared the stones with vermillion paste, bowed to the sacred plant and laid down fresh leaves covered in a cow dung paste. “Our Gods are everywhere. We see more in nature than others,” said Maranda, as he led the men back to their homes. But the government does not legally acknowledge their faith — a fact that is increasingly becoming a rallying point for change for some of the 5 million or so Indigenous tribespeople in the country who follow Sarna Dharma. They say formal recognition would help preserve their culture and history in the wake of the slow erosion of Indigenous tribespeople’s rights in India. Citizens are only allowed to align themselves with one of India’s six officially recognized religions — Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Jainism and Sikhism. While they can select the “Others” category, many nature worshippers have felt compelled by the country’s religious affiliation system to associate with one of the six named faiths. Tribal groups have held protests in support of giving Sarna Dharma official religion status in the run-up to the upcoming national census, which has citizens state their religious affiliation. The protests have gained momentum after the recent election of Droupadi Murmu, the first tribal woman to serve as India’s president, raising hopes that her historic win will bring attention to the needs of the country’s Indigenous population, which is about 110 million people as per the national census. They are scattered across various states and fragmented into hundreds of clans, with different legends, languages and words for their gods — many, but not all follow Sarna Dharma. Read: Various religions coexist in harmony in China: diplomat Salkhan Murmu, a former lawmaker and community activist who also adheres to Sarna Dharma, is at the center of the protests pushing for government recognition of his religion. His sit-in demonstrations in several Indian states have drawn crowds of thousands. At a recent protest in Ranchi, the capital of eastern Jharkhand state, men and women sat cross-legged on a highway blocking traffic as Murmu spoke from a nearby stage. Dressed in a traditional cotton tunic and trousers, Murmu explained how anxieties over losing their religious identity and culture are driving the demand for formal recognition. “This is a fight for our identity,” Murmu told the crowd, who held their fists in the air and shouted: “Victory to Sarna Dharma.” Thunderous applause washed over the venue. Murmu is also taking his religion recognition campaign beyond city centers and into remote tribal villages. His message: If Sarna Dharma disappears, one of the country’s last links to its early inhabitants goes with it. It is a convincing argument evidenced by the increasing number of tribal members rallying behind Murmu, who are helping fuel the slow morphing of the campaign into a social movement. “If our religion will not get recognized by the government, I think we will wither away,” said Murmu, as a group of villagers huddled around him in Odisha’s Angarpada village. “The moment we get into any other religion by force, by pressure or by gratification we will lose our entire history, our way of life.” Murmu’s efforts are just the latest push for official recognition. In 2011, a government agency for Indigenous tribespeople asked the federal government to include Sarna Dharma as a separate religion code in that year’s census. In 2020, the Jharkhand state, where tribespeople make up nearly 27% of the population, passed a resolution with a similar objective. The federal government did not respond to either request. One argument for granting Sarna Dharma official recognition is the sheer number of nature worshippers in India, said Karma Oraon, an anthropologist who taught at Ranchi University and has studied the lives of Indigenous tribes for decades. The 2011 national census shows Sarna Dharma adherents in India outnumber Jains, who are officially the country’s sixth largest faith group. Hindus are No. 1, making up nearly 80% of the 1.4 billion people in India. Read: Leaked data shows China's Uighurs detained due to religion More than half — a number close to 4.9 million — of those who selected the “Others” religion option in the 2011 national census further identified as Sarna Dharma adherents. Comparably, India’s Jain population is slightly more than 4.5 million people.   “Our population is more than the recorded believers who follow Jainism. Why can’t then our faith be recognized as a separate religion?” Oraon said. Decades ago, there were more options for Indigenous tribespeople. The census, started in 1871 under British rule, once allowed for the selection of “Animists,” “Aboriginal,” and “Tribes.” The categories were removed in 1951 when the first census in independent India was conducted. Some hope giving Sarna Dharma official status could stem the various existential threats to the faith. The natural environment is integrally linked to worshippers’ identity, but fast-disappearing ancient forests and encroachment by mining companies has led many to leave tribal villages, creating a generational disconnect among followers, Oraon said. Plus, many from younger generations are abandoning their centuries-old religious customs for urban life. “We are going through an identity crisis,” said Oraon. His concerns have heightened after Hindu nationalist groups, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party, have sought to bring nature worshippers into the Hindu fold. They are motivated by potential electoral gains but also want to bolster their agenda of transforming a secular India into a distinctly Hindu state. These efforts stem from a long-held belief that India’s Indigenous tribespeople are originally Hindus, but adherents of Sarna Dharma say their faith is different from monotheistic and polytheistic ones. Sarna Dharma has no temples and scriptures. Its adherents don’t believe in heaven or hell and don’t have images of gods and goddesses. Unlike Hinduism, there is no caste system nor rebirth belief. “Tribespeople might share some cultural ties with Hindus, but we have not assimilated into their religion,” said Oraon. The gradual embrace of Hindu and Christian values by some Indigenous tribal groups has exacerbated his concerns. Read: India gets its first tribal President In the late 19th century, many tribespeople in Jharkhand, Odisha and other states renounced nature worship — some voluntarily and others coaxed by money, food and free education — and converted to Christianity. Hindu and Muslim groups also encouraged conversion, further chipping away at nature worshipper numbers. In some cases, the conversions were resisted, said Bandhan Tigga, a religious leader of Sarna Dharma. When Hindu groups showed up, some tribespeople sacrificed cows, a holy animal for Hindus. They also slaughtered pigs, considered unclean in Islam, when Muslim missionaries arrived. “In each case, the women smeared either pig or cow fat on their foreheads so that no Hindu or Muslim man could marry them,” said Tigga, wearing a white and red striped cotton towel around his neck, a design that also makes up for the Sarna Dharma flag fluttering atop his house in Murma, a village in Jharkhand. Most Christian missionaries are met with resistance these days, but conversions can still happen, said Tigga, who travels to remote parts of eastern India to persuade converts to return to their ancient faith. For Sukhram Munda, a man in his late 80s, much is already gone. He is the great-grandson of Birsa Munda, a 19th-century charismatic Indigenous leader who led his forest-bound community in revolt against British colonialists. Munda’s legend grew after his death and bronze statues of him appeared in almost every tribal village in the state. Soon, a man who worshipped nature was worshipped by his own people. But Munda’s religion barely survived the onslaught of conversions in his ancestral Ulihatu village in Jharkhand. Half of his descendants converted to Christianity, Sukhram said. Now, the first thing visitors to Ulihatu see is a church, a large white building that stands out against the green of the surrounding forests. “This used to be the village where we worshipped nature,” said Sukhram. “Now half of the people don’t even remember the religion their ancestors followed.”

The holy Eid-e-Miladunnabi, marking the day of birth and passing away of Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) was observed across the country on Sunday with due religious solemnity. On this day in 570, the 12th of Rabiul Awal of the Hijri calendar, Muhammad (pbuh) was born in Makkah with divine blessings and messages of peace for mankind. He also passed away on the same day. President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have issued separate messages greeting the people of the country and the Muslims across the world on the eve. Read: Eid-e-Miladunnabi on Sunday The President in his message said the Prophet's teachings in religious and worldly life are for all mankind to follow. ”May the life and philosophy of the Prophet (PBUH) enlighten all our lives, may it guide our journeys,” he said. Prime Minister Sheikh Hsaina said, “I believe that peace, justice and welfare of the world can be ensured only through following the unique lifestyle of the Prophet (PBUH), his universal teachings and Sunnah in today's conflict-stricken world with the Coronavirus pandemic.” She urged all to follow the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The day was a public holiday. Different government and non-government organisations, including the Islamic Foundation (IF), have chalked out elaborate programmes to mark the day. The Islamic Foundation’s a fortnight-long special programme marking the day, includes delivering sermons on the life and works of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) after Maghrib and Isha prayers every day, recitation from the holy Quran, singing of Islamic songs, recitation of poems and organising seminars jointly with Bangladesh Betar. Bangladesh Television (BTV) and Bangladesh Radio will broadcast special programmes highlighting the importance of the day.

President Abdul Hamid on Wednesday asked everyone to be vigilant so that no individual or group can use religion to mislead people to pursue their interests. He said this while exchanging greetings with Hindu leaders and distinguished personalities at Bangabhaban in Dhaka Wednesday on the occasion of Durga Puja. "Apart from a few minor incidents and some disruptions due to an unexpected power blackout yesterday, as far as I know, Durga Puja is being celebrated in a very festive manner this year," he said. "We must celebrate Durga Puja, but at the same time, we must also remember that our neighbours, friends and relatives should not be deprived of the joy of this festival," he added. Read: Bijoya Dashami: Durga Puja ends with immersion of goddess Nearly 50 distinguished persons, including Hindu religious leaders, members of the Hindu Religion Welfare Trust, representatives of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, Dhaka Mahanagar Sarbojonin Puja Committee and people from various professions, joined the Bangabhaban programme.

Local Government and Rural Development (LGRD) Minister Md Tajul Islam on Saturday urged the people of all religious faiths to remain united to stop any conspiracy against the country."If people of all religions including Muslims and Hindus remain united, no one will be able to halt the development spree of the country, no matter how many conspiracies the anti-liberation forces make against the country," he said. Read: Police were always in favour of AL no who stayed in power: Land MinisterThe minister made these remarks while addressing a discussion and cultural function marking the central Janmashtami celebration-2022 arranged by Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad and Mahanagar Sarbajanin Puja Committee at Dhakeshwari National Temple Saturday afternoon.Once people of some religions including Hindus used to live in insecurity in Bangladesh. But after coming to power, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ensured the safety of people of all religions, including Hindus, Christians and Buddhists. "Now people can practice their respective religion freely".The government is determined to ensure the rights of the people of all religions, added the minister."A vested quarter is trying to make Bangladesh into Sri Lanka. He called upon the people of the country to remain alert against these conspirators."

Alleging that a BNP-Jamaat-Shibir faction is spreading propaganda through social media from abroad, Education Minister Dipu Moni claimed that nothing new on religion was included in or dropped from the textbooks. Dipu Moni made the remarks while answering to the questions of journalists after distributing cheques from the prime minister’s rehabilitation fund among the river-erosion-affected families in 2021-2022 fiscal year at Chandpur sadar upazila parishad auditorium on Saturday.  “People who want to confuse religious people are now trying to fish in troubled water ahead of the national election. They want to destabilize the country. That’s why they (BNP-Jamaat-Shibir) are confusing people by spreading a video of wrong information of  a lawmaker,” she said. Also read: Education Minister embarrassed by assault on Rajshahi college principal “There is no scope to take direct legal action against them. In this case, people will have to be conscious and responsible,” she added. Additional deputy commissioner Imtiaz Hossain, additional police superintendent Sudipta Roy were among others present. Dipu Moni, later, inaugurated a weeklong tree plantation fair at Hasan Ali Govt High School ground Also read: SSC, equivalent exams to begin on September 15: Dipu Moni

Prime Minister’s ICT Affairs Adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy has urged all to remain vigilant against the conspiracies by the extremists and peddlers of religion geared towards destroying cultural ethos of the country."Be enlightened in the ideals of sacrifice to build together safe and prosperous Bangladesh for the future generations," he said while greeting people of the country on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.Only then, Joy added, the joy of Eid will fill the heart of every Bengali."Wishing a happy Eid to all of you," he said, mentioning that "May the essence of peace and love preached by Islam be conveyed to every citizen of the country." Read: Celebrate Eid adhering to Covid-safety protocols: President HamidJoy while sharing the Eid greetings through his verified Facebook account said, "May peace and equality be at the core of the festival of harmony following thirty days of fasting during the Ramadan."With all his earnestness, Joy said, "I do request all of you - be peaceful, prudent and rational."

Palestinians clashed with Israeli police at the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on Friday as thousands gathered for prayers during the holy month of Ramadan. Medics said more than 150 Palestinians were wounded in the most serious violence at the site in nearly a year. The holy site, which is sacred to Jews and Muslims, has often been the epicenter of Israeli-Palestinian unrest, and tensions were already heightened amid a recent wave of violence. Clashes at the site last year helped spark an 11-day war with Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. The clashes come at a particularly sensitive time. Ramadan this year coincides with Passover, a major weeklong Jewish holiday beginning Friday at sundown, and Christian holy week, which culminates on Easter Sunday. The holidays are expected to bring tens of thousands of faithful into Jerusalem’s Old City, home to major sites sacred to all three religions. Hours after the clashes began, the police said they had put an end to the violence and arrested “hundreds” of suspects. The mosque was re-opened, and some 60,000 people attended the main Friday prayers midday, according to the Waqf, the Islamic endowment that administers the site. Also read: Palestinian killed, 31 injured by Israeli soldiers in WB After prayers, thousands of Palestinians marched around the esplanade, chanting “with our souls, with our blood, we sacrifice for you, Al-Aqsa,” in addition to slogans in support of Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules Gaza. Less than a kilometer (mile) away, thousands of Christians marched in a procession retracing the traditional journey of Jesus to the cross in honor of Good Friday. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was open to visitors, who are returning to the Holy Land in large numbers for the first time since before the pandemic. The violence was confined to the mosque compound. Israeli authorities said that before the unrest broke out they had negotiated with Muslim leaders to try to ensure calm. But the police say Palestinians stockpiled rocks and other objects inside the compound and hurled stones at the Mughrabi Gate, which leads to the Western Wall — a major Jewish holy site — triggering the violence. Palestinian witnesses, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of security concerns, said a small group of Palestinians threw rocks at police, who then entered the compound in force, setting off a wider conflagration. Palestinians view any large deployment of police at Al-Aqsa as a provocation. Palestinians threw rocks and fireworks, and police fired tear gas and stun grenades on the sprawling esplanade surrounding the mosque. Dozens of Palestinians barricaded themselves inside the mosque as they fought Israeli security forces. Israeli police later entered the mosque and arrested people inside. The police rarely enter the building, which is seen by Palestinians as an escalation. The Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said it treated 152 people, many of them wounded by rubber-coated bullets or stun grenades. Video footage showed police beating a photographer for the Waqf with batons before knocking him to ground and kicking him. The Waqf said the photographer, Rami Khatib, suffered a broken hand. There was no immediate comment from police. The Israeli police said three officers were wounded from “massive stone-throwing,” with two evacuated from the scene for treatment. Neighboring Jordan, which has custodianship over the holy site, and the Palestinian Authority issued a joint statement accusing Israel of “a dangerous and condemnable escalation that threatens to explode the situation.” Egypt also condemned the “Israeli raid.” Israel’s public security minister, Omer Barlev, who oversees the police force, said Israel had “no interest” in violence at the holy site but that police were forced to confront “violent elements” who attacked them with stones and metal bars. He said Israel was committed to freedom of worship for Jews and Muslims alike. Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said authorities “are working to calm things on the Temple Mount and throughout Israel. At the same time, we are prepared for any scenario.” The mosque is the third holiest site in Islam. It is built on a hilltop in Jerusalem’s Old City that is the most sacred site for Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount because it was the site of the Jewish temples in antiquity. It has been a major flashpoint for Israeli-Palestinian violence for decades and was the epicenter of the 2000-2005 Palestinian intifada, or uprising. Israel captured east Jerusalem, including the Old City, in the 1967 war and annexed it in a move not recognized internationally. Palestinians want the eastern part of the city to be the capital of a future state including the West Bank and Gaza, which Israel also captured during the war nearly 55 years ago. Tensions have soared in recent weeks following a series of attacks by Palestinians that killed 14 people inside Israel. Israeli troops have carried out a wave of arrests and military operations across the occupied West Bank, setting off clashes with Palestinians. Also read: Palestinians vandalise West Bank shrine as tensions soar At least 25 Palestinians have been killed, according to an Associated Press count. Many had carried out attacks or were involved in the clashes, but an unarmed woman and a lawyer who appears to have been a bystander were also among those killed. Weeks of protests and clashes in and around Al-Aqsa during Ramadan last year helped ignite a fourth Gaza war between Israel and Hamas. This year, Israel has lifted restrictions and taken other steps to try and calm tensions, but the attacks and the military raids are fueling another cycle of unrest. Hamas condemned what it said were “brutal attacks” on worshippers at Al-Aqsa, saying Israel would bear “all the consequences.” Earlier this week, Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza had called on Palestinians to camp out at the Al-Aqsa mosque over the weekend. Palestinians have long feared that Israel plans to take over the site or partition it. Israeli authorities say they are committed to maintaining the status quo, but in recent years large groups of nationalist and religious Jews have regularly visited the site with police escorts. A radical Jewish group recently called on people to bring animals to the site in order to sacrifice them for Passover, offering cash rewards for those who succeeded or even tried. Israeli police work to prevent such activities, but the call was widely circulated by Palestinians on social media, along with calls for Muslims to prevent any sacrifices from taking place. Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, the rabbi of the Western Wall, issued a statement calling on Muslim leaders to act to stop the violence. He also noted that “bringing a sacrifice to the Temple Mount today is in opposition to the decision of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel.”

The holy Shab-e-Barat, the night of fortune and forgiveness, will be observed in Bangladesh on Friday night with religious fervour. It is observed on the 15th night of the Arabic month of Sha'ban. According to Muslim belief, it is the night when Allah arranges the affairs of the following year. On this night, Allah writes the destinies of all his creations for the coming year by taking into account their past deeds. Muslim devotees will offer special prayers, reciting from the Holy Quran, and also hold religious gatherings seeking divine blessings for the wellbeing of mankind. The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has imposed a ban on the bursting of firecrackers in areas under its jurisdiction in the capital ahead the holy Shab-e-Barat. The ban will come into force from 6pm Friday (March 18) and remain effective till 6am on Saturday (March 19), for ensuring peaceful observation of the holy Shab-e-Barat, the DMP said on Wednesday.  Also read: DMP bans crackers ahead of Shab-e-Barat Bangladesh Television, Bangladesh Betar, and private TV channels and radio stations will air special programmes, highlighting the significance of the night. President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina issued separate messages on the occasion. They urged the Muslim devotees to observe the holy Shab-e-Barat maintaining all Covid-safety protocols amid the pandemic. "Along with mercy and blessings of the Almighty Allah, we will pray for continued progress and welfare of the country and greater unity of the Muslim Ummah on the holy night of Shab-e-Barat," President Hamid said in his message. He urged the affluent to come forward and help the distressed and the poor on the occasion. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister urged all to devote themselves to human welfare and nation-building inspired with the teachings of the holy Shab-e-Barat. Also read: Shab-e-Barat on March 18 Hasina also asked all to establish the spirit of Islam at personal, social and national levels, putting off all kinds of injustice, violence and superstition.

A court in a southern Indian state told students on Thursday not to wear any religious clothing until it delivers a verdict on petitions seeking to overturn a ban on hijabs, headscarves used by Muslim women. The court in Karnataka state is considering petitions filed by students challenging a ban on hijabs that some schools have implemented in recent weeks. “We will pass an order. But till the matter is resolved, no student should insist on wearing religious dress,” the Press Trust of India news agency quoted Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi as saying. The court also directed the state to reopen schools and colleges which the chief minister had shut for three days as protests over the ban escalated earlier this week. The issue grabbed headlines last month when a government-run school in Karnataka's Udupi district barred students wearing hijabs from entering classrooms, triggering protests outside the school gate. More schools in the state followed with similar bans, forcing the state's top court to intervene. The uneasy standoff has raised fears among Muslim students who say they are being deprived of their religious rights in the Hindu-majority nation. On Monday, hundreds of students and parents took to the streets to protest the restriction. READ: 58 girls suspended from college in K’taka for wearing Hijab, holding protest The dispute in Karnataka has set off protests elsewhere in India. A number of demonstrators were detained in the capital, New Delhi, on Thursday, and students and activists have also marched in cities including Hyderabad and Kolkata in recent days. It also captured attention in neighboring Muslim-majority Pakistan. “Depriving Muslim girls of an education is a grave violation of fundamental human rights,” its foreign minister, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, tweeted on Wednesday, calling the situation “absolutely oppressive.” Nobel Peace Prize laureate and education activist Malala Yousafzai also condemned the ban. “Refusing to let girls to go to school in their hijabs is horrifying,” the 24-year-old Pakistani human rights campaigner tweeted. For many Muslim women, the hijab is part of their faith and a way to maintain modesty. It has been a source of controversy for decades in some Western countries, particularly in France, which in 2004 banned them from being worn in public schools. In India, where Muslims make up about 14% of the country’s almost 1.4 billion people, they are not banned or restricted in public places and are a common sight. Some rights activists have voiced concerns that the bans could increase Islamophobia. Violence and hate speech against Muslims have increased under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s governing Hindu nationalist party, which also governs Karnataka state.

Muslims in Bangladesh will observe the holy Shab-e-Barat on the night of March 18 as the Shaban moon was not sighted in the country on Thursday. As the moon was not sighted the holy month of Shaban will begin from March 5 and Shab-e-Barat will be observed on March 18. The decision was taken at a meeting of the National Moon Sighting Committee held at Islamic Foundation’s Baitul Mukarram office in the evening. State Minister of  the Ministry of Religious Affairs Md Faridul Haq Khan presided over the meeting. Also read: Shab-e-Meraj mosque attack: accused held at Dhaka airport The announcement was made after analysing data collected from the district administrations, Islamic Foundation, Bangladesh Meteorological Department, and Space Research and Remote Sensing Institute. Shab-e-Barat is observed on the 15th night of the Arabic month of Shaban. Muslims offer special prayers, recite the Quran, and take part in other religious rituals. Also read: Lailatul Qadr or Shab-e-Qadr observed