Abstract
In this chapter, we study the health and well-being practices prevalent among the Rabhas of Assam, an Indigenous community of forest dwellers who share a symbiotic relationship with their forest ecosystem, and view themselves as guardians of the forest. Resources drawn from the forest are used for healing, generally in rituals carried out by Healers, known as Ojha. The healing processes integrate spirituality with medical practice, as suggested by narratives from the field. Moreover, the forest has a social role in promoting well-being and health. However, with colonization, both forest-based ethnomedicine and healing practices are in decline. The ancient holistic view of the forest is gradually being replaced by the modern medical gaze. The ensuing alienation of the Rabhas of Assam from their environment is thus compromising the resilience and health of this community. This chapter explores the traditional knowledge systems and healing practices of the forest-dwelling Rabhas, their present-day erosion, and the need for protective policies and interventions.
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Notes
- 1.
Hamzar are folk songs in the Rabha dialect sung at the time of shifting cultivation, that is, during tilling of the land and burning the forest. The etymological root of the term hamzar lies in two words: ha means earth and mazar means middle of the forest.
- 2.
The Imperial Forest Department was established in 1864. Subsequently, three Indian Forest Acts of 1865, 1894 and 1927 curtailed century-old customary use rights of local communities. Such governance continued even after independence in 1947 and, only in 2006, with the passing of the Schedule Tribe and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, recognized the rights of any community to protect, regenerate, conserve, or manage forest resources, which it has been traditionally protecting and conserving for sustainable use.
- 3.
Abrus precatorius and Ricinus communis are other ethnomedicines used as birth control.
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Sarma, C. (2022). Healing Practices and Rituals of the Forest-Dwelling Rabha Community in Assam, India. In: Danto, D., Zangeneh, M. (eds) Indigenous Knowledge and Mental Health. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-71346-1_4
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