Bathou Borai, the supreme deity of Bathouism, the indigenous religion of the Bodo people of Assam in northeastern India, worshipped without an image at an altar built around the sijou, a species of Euphorbia planted in the courtyard. Bathouism recognises a wider circle of lesser deities alongside Bathou Borai and is organised around the household and clan rather than a temple priesthood. Bodo organisations have sought official recognition of Bathouism as a distinct religion separate from Hinduism, echoing similar campaigns among other Adivasi communities of India.
Facts
Structure
Structure of the PantheonA supreme creator above a working order of intermediary powers 1 Divine HeadshipA single sovereign god rules the others 1 Succession Between Divine GenerationsOne divine generation; no succession between generations is recorded 1 Organisation
Membership of the PantheonEvery place, clan and lineage adds its own 1 Attestation
Era of AttestationHeld from the beginning in the tradition's own terms; documented in the outside record from the 19th century and codified in writing from the 20th 1 Veneration TodayActively venerated in a living tradition 1 Cult
Principal Cult CentreNo single centre. The bathou altar in the household courtyard, with the sijou plant at its centre, is the place of observance 1 Sources
Primary SourceOral tradition held within Bodo communities, with codifications published by Bathou organisations from the 20th century and published ethnography 1 Connections
Associated With
Assam, Regions Source Encyclopedia of ReligionMircea Eliade (ed.); Lindsay Jones (ed., 2nd ed.)
This source names India directly: "Bodo people of Assam in northeastern India, worshipped without an image at an altar built around the sijou, a species of Euphorbia planted in the courtyard."
Source Encyclopedia of ReligionMircea Eliade (ed.); Lindsay Jones (ed., 2nd ed.)
Sources
1. Encyclopedia of Religion
Mircea Eliade (ed.); Lindsay Jones (ed., 2nd ed.), Macmillan Reference, 2005View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
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