H.

P NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, SHIMLA

Assignment
SOCIOLOGY

Submitted To
Mr. AMIT CHATURVEDI
Assistant Professor of Sociology

Submitted By
Surya Dev Singh Bhandari
Roll no. – 48
BA.LLB. (HONS.) –I SEMESTER
 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Every project big or small is successful largely due to the effort of a

number of wonderful people who have always given their valuable
advice or lent a helping hand. I sincerely appreciate the inspiration;
support and guidance of all those people who have been instrumental
in making this project a success.

I, Surya Dev Singh Bhandari, the student of H.P. National Law

University (Shimla), am extremely grateful to H.P. National Law
University (Shimla) for the confidence bestowed in me and entrusting
my assignment of Sociology.

At this juncture I feel deeply honored in expressing my sincere

thanks to Honble. Vice Chancellor, Prof.(Dr) S.C. Raina, for making the
resources available at right time and providing valuable insights
leading to the successful completion of my assignment.

I also extend my gratitude to my Project Guide, Mr. Amit Chaturvedi,

Assistant Professor of Sociology, who assisted me in compiling the
project.

I would also like to thank all the faculty members of H.P. National Law
University (Shimla) for their critical advice and guidance without
which this project would not have been possible.

Last but not the least I place a deep sense of gratitude to my family
members and my friends who have been constant source of
inspiration during the preparation of this project work.

DATE – February 15, 2017 NAME – Surya Dev Singh

Bhandari
 INDEX
 Preface
 Mythology
 History
 Rituals
 Beliefs
 Architecture and relation with sociology
 Karl Marx, Durkheim, Max Weber on religion
 Conclusion
 Religious Institute 1
(Sociology of religion)

ANANT BALUNAG MANDIR, (LAKSHMAN)

BANJAR

Preface:

Amidst the dense cover of mountains lies the temple of Lord Balunag, located in
Himachal Pradesh, Distt. Kullu, Tehsil Banjar, village Tandi (Balo).

The place, I visited, was not the same I had visited 2 years back. I met the village
GUR and a horticulturist Mr. Dip Chand Thakur (distant relative) who lived near the
temple. They became my sources of the temple. Further I had a long discussion with
the gur about the Hindu identity and his views on a variety of topics.

AT A GLANCE

Devta Name/Local Anant Balu Naag / Laxman (brother of Lord Ram)

Name/Vedic Name

Type (Rishi, Nag, etc) Naag

Powering Divinity (Jogini) Bahu Jogni, Shikari Mata

Associated Devtas Chienu Narayan Chethar, Devi Panchali Pujali,Varun Devta Sheelah
Chalahan

Annual Fair (attended by Chech Mela, Fairs are held in Ashad (June/July)Shravan
which other deity) (July/August) Diwali are main festivals.Varun Devta (Jahal)
completes the Mela.

Dussehra articipation/Place Kullu

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MYTHOLOGY
According to Dev Bhartha, in the beginning of this universe, in the country of Sati
(Himalayan Mountain) there lived a demon named Pouni Dauint. He was always
troubling Devtas. Anant Balu Nag who lived in nether world came and killed the
demon in just two and half seconds. After that, he made his residence on a ‘Kandhe’
(mountain) and created a water pond there. From there Balu Naag moved to a very
holy and divine place called Balon passing through Himsoo, Maansarovar, Bharmour,
Pingalasar, Winglasar, Sheshdhara, Kamrooah, Shikaree, Jogipathar, Deo Kandha,
Balkhol Khoohan and Khanethi. It is said that in this region at Tandi there lived
Mehta family. Devta appeared in the form of a hermit and expressed his desire to have
food. Mehta’s wife through called her husband who was going to fetch wood from the
forest. Hermit had food and stayed there for the night. Early morning, Mehta saw that
there was plenty of wood in his courtyard and the hermit was disappeared. Mehta then
heard a voice: ‘I am very pleased with your hospitality and want to live here
only.’Devta transformed into a Pindi and ordered Mehta to build his temple at Baalo.

Brief history and genesis of temple.

HISTORY

In 16th century Raja Jagat Chand of Kullu gave the possession of the temple to the
Thakur of Banjar and till today the temple is in their possession current protector of
the lord is Thakur Bhoj Chand (Maternal Uncle) .All the arrangements for the stay of
the devtas in Kullu have to be done by him. In accordance to the rituals the devta also
stay at his house in Kullu during his visit for the deshehra.

“Balo ko sabh dekte hai” (Lord Anant Balunag sees everything)

Etymology

Name of the deity Lord Anant Balunag

Anant (endless):- Signifies the timeless existence of Lord. He has existed before the
start of the universe and will live after its end. He was not created or destroyed rather
has always existed.
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Balu: - The name comes from the name of the village of Lord Balunag.

Nag:-Signifies that the devta was not a rishi rather a warrior

GUR (Priest)

Presently the gur by the name of Thakur Arjun Singh lives in the temple complex,
performing the daily chores of the temple. (The term is locally used)

Q I asked him that why he decided to be a gur?

A He replied with clear happiness that he entered the

fold when he was a 2 years ago. He further added that it
was the will of divine that he became a gur. He
belonged to the Thakur clan just like a priest he has to
sacrifice everything that connects him to the material
world.

Image 1 Lord Balu Nag*

I have included my conversation with him where ever necessary.

RITUALS

A ritual "is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, and objects, performed
in a sequestered place, and performed according to set sequence." Oxford
dictionary

Particular objects become sacral symbols through a process of consecration which

effectively creates the sacred by setting it apart from the profane. E.g. armed forces in
any country teach the official ways of folding, saluting and raising the flag, thus
emphasizing that the flag should never be treated as just a piece of cloth.

The various interruptions in the flow of secular time are ignited at this place. Various
Kathas, Purans, festive celebrations are all carried out at this place. For example, there
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will be a Shiv Puran in the month of April, which would be funded jointly by the
villagers and other small native organizations.

After noting down the various rituals performed at the temple I realized not every
ritual is performed daily all of them are done at specific time depending on the
periodic movement of sun and moon. All of them can be categories into 3 types
depending upon time gap between their performances.

I SHORT TERM rituals (performed daily)

Every morning the worship starts with the offering of a coconut which is then thrown
in four directions then the gur recites the daily prayers followed by an arti which
needs to have pure cow’s ghee same prayer are performed in the evening.

Q Why can not the daily prayers be done every 15 days or more?

A Every day one has to prayer to the god to thank him for our life’s joy and
opportunities he provides. He also mentioned Vedas that there is a mention one
should be always chanting the name of god.

II MEDIUM TERM (performed every six months)

E.g. Cherwal Devta puja

Celebrated on the first Bhadon (middle of august) This continues for a month Farmers
don’t harvest their crop till the last day when the gur performs a puja and Krahi,
chuni, halwa is provided to the devta and only then the atta can be grined.

Q When questioned regarding the celebration of some fairs once every year

A Gur replied that the god has created world and the brahmand (universe in an order
where everything has its own specific time. Just like flowers can not blossom before
spring crops cannot be harvested before prayers to the god.

III LONG TERM (performed every 4 years)

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Devtas visit to haridwar (Sanan)

Every four years the devta is taken on foot crossing high passes and valleys to
haridwar. So that he could be bathed in Ganga jal. The whole journey takes about 3
months.

Deoli (every 100 -120 years)

Devta is shifted to the house of the thakur during the renovation of his temple Deodar
wood is changed and new carvings are done.

Gur; Just like human have to bath themselves so does goddess just like humans have
to repair their house so is the requirement with goddess temples he further added that
we all contain some part of god within us he is param atma and we are naïve atmas
trying to find the meaning of life

(Hindu gods resembles human in many ways)

The rituals may be also differentiated on

the basis of the obedience:-

COMPULSORY

During every marriage the father of the

groom has to offer a goat for sacrifice
following the bali ceremony the meat of

Image 2 View of the temple (not the primary temple)*#

the goat is given as a prashad and after the completion of the marriage couple has to
visit the devta for his blessings

Devta being a nag (protector of Krishna and Ram) is worshiped by the kashatriya’s
and the gur has to be a thakur not a bhramin

Particular fingers (usually anamika) have to be used will performing puja, offering
ghee, applying tilak etc
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BELIEFS

An acceptance that something exists or is true, especially one without proof.( Oxford
Dictionary)

1 Women cannot enter the temple during the menstruation cycle

2 People have a strong belief that western (angrazi dava) should only be used after a
visit to the gur.( The belief show the fact that the people of god fearing every major
step is only take after the permission and support of the devta. (Presence ofresistance
to western ideas)

3 Trees are not cut is the region in the vicinity of the temple as the devta is the
protector of the forest.

4 Back must never be shown to the devta: - Showing back is seen as symbol of
disrespect (This fact shows the multi faced character of Hinduism one side god is
present in every anu and on the other showing back one side is considered
disrespectful.)

ARCHITECTURE

A brief description

The temple is largely made up of stone (about 15cms wide), and deodar wood. The
roof is made up of stone slabs (Slate). The temple comprises of 5 rooms, the devta’s
idol and his chhadi, his palki, reside in the central and largest room. The idol is
resembles Lord Lakshman (as Balonag means lakshman) and is made up of silver and
the chattra is made up of gold and silver. The wooden sleepers of the wall have not
been changed till date. The daily pooja takes place at 4 am lot people tend to sit down
for it. The first room from the entrance is for the people playing nagade, consisting of
upper caste people known as turi. The 2nd room is for the females. They tend to sit
 7

there at the time of the pooja .However women are allowed to go till the 3rd room. In
the 3rd room men are seated for the pooja. No one is allowed to go beyond that point
except the pujaries and old male members of the village. In the 4th room pujaris
perform their rituals. However none of them are from lower castes. The 5th room is
the resting place of the Devta.

1 Thara (uplifted land):- vastu (Indian philosophy about directions and house
building) the temple in hills are always constructed at hill tops similarly within village
the temple has to be made on an lifted surface. (Idea is that god is a higher being and
should be seated at a higher place can custom is followed between elders and
youngsters)

2 Extensive uses of wood and slate:- Temples are made with the finest available wood
but the important point is that everyone has to make a contribution its may be in
cutting the wood transporting it, carving it and placing it everyone has to make a
contribution.(process strengthens the integration of the society)

3 Height:-No building can be made higher than the temple. The concept is related to
the idea of thara no one can be placed higher than the deity just like the weaker bows
to the stronger humans can sleep at a place higher than god.

Other

1 Time:-Particular time are considered good for the performance of a ritual

Q Time is a neutral entity so why certain functions need to be performed at certain

time?

A Uncle The idea is not of time rather position. Position of the planets time is
declared holy only their movement hence our festivals are not celebrated on the same
date of the Georgian calendar

2 Red color:-The color symbolizes strength, passion, vigor color of the attire of
Goddess Durga. Finally it is also the color of fir symbol of the Agni dev (The answer
was not related to religion rather observation but everyone seemed quite displeased
 8

when I asked could it be replaced by any other color; shows segregation of colors on
the basis of identities e.g. green for Islam)

3 Forest:-The forest is considered as the property of the devta and no one dares to
touch it.

4Space:-The temple is made according to the vastu shastar.

Q What are the significances of directions will making a temple?

A Each direction symbolizes different meanings north is the direction of Lord Shiva
and that of death (Hence dead bodies are placed towards north) along with the
religious significance the temples are made keeping in view the local condition.
(There is no strictness relating to the structures, shape, size, number of idols, being
placed in a temple)

5 Holy spaces: There being no periphery of the temple the idea of holy space is
different for different people. There is a different limit for leather products (outside
the temple) and common man (outside the inner most compound) in the temple.

6 Number of visits daily: - Uncle More than 200 people visit the shrine daily it plays a
very important role in the lives of people. Their every decision is taken under the
approval of the deity. The fact that in such a sparsely populated region every day
roughly 200 people visit the temple shows its social importance.

Relation with the trinity of sociology

EMILE DURKHIEM*

Function (purpose) of the institution or custom in preserving or maintaining society as

a whole. They thus disagreed about the relationship of anxiety to ritual (psychological
view)

Durkheim: Festivals are celebrated to reinforce the idea of oneness within a society.
 9

Just like organs serve a function in the human body every social phenomena has a
function to serve. Time to time various festivals are celebrated in temple (Skodi fair,
Nalwani fair, Dungri fair, Surhi fair ) and people come and rejoice together. The
basic beliefs, ideas and customs are reinforced in a society even the small observation
like blossoming and flowers near the temple strengthens their faith in their idea of god
(collective idea).

Any deviation from the ideal way is checked and the deviator is punished he may be
socially segregated for going against the socially accepted values. Devta himself is
considered as the giver of the punishment.

ANXIETY RELATION

Radcliffe-Brown in contrast, saw ritual as an expression of common interest

symbolically representing a community, and that anxiety was felt only if the ritual
was not performed. George C. Homans sought to resolve these opposing theories by
differentiating between "primary anxieties" felt by people who lack the techniques to
secure results, and "secondary (or displaced) anxiety" felt by those who have not
performed the rites meant to allay primary anxiety correctly. Homans argued that
purification rituals may then be conducted to dispel secondary anxiety.

KARL MARX*

1 Karl Marx saw religion as self alienation of humans according to him religion
consists of ideas and values produced by human beings in the course of their cultural
development, which are mistakenly projected onto divine forces or gods.

The story of devta is just like a brave man. (Historian believe most devta were brave
individuals who with the passage of time were deityfied) Hindu gods also fight,
reproduce and enjoy like humans. (Noticed after hearing a long story from the gur)

2 Humans do not fully understand their own history; tend to attribute long established,
socially created values and norms to the activities of supernatural. INDIA IS A
TIMELESS SOCIETY.
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Unlike the Abrahmic religion Hindus do not give a specific date for an event (boot
phale ki bat hi) initial phrase of many stories. Dates provided in the Vedas are not
logically and historically possible.

3 Religions such as Christianity (here Hinduism) defer happiness and reward to the
afterlife teaching the resigned acceptance of existing conditions in this life. Attention
is thus diverted from inequality and injustice by the promise of what is to come.

Q Why does not the devta distribute the wealth equally?

A Idea of karma was the answer what one shall do in this life he will reap accordingly
in the next. Lord is supreme he sees everything every soul take rebirth according to its
deeds in this life.

4 Introduction of money as a standard offering

Gur was well passed his seventies his also pointed out the fact that now the temple is
rarely offered ghee, small share of harvest or any services rather now everyone offers
money.

Social relations are replaced by cash relation the gur is not given cloths fruits etc (as a
symbol of respect and obedience rather as a guarantee for his performance of prayers
for their prosperity.) This according to the Marxism view this shows a clear shift from
the age of feudalism to capitalism.

MAX WEBER*

1 Weber on eastern religions; Weber concludes that

they provide insuperable barriers to the development of
industrial capitalism not because they are backward but
simply because they are different.

Q When the gur was asked about his views on the

industrial development

Image 3 Lord Balunag at Kullu*

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A The reply was the fact that the number of believers are decreasing and people have
started worshiping money more than god (lok mandir kam aur banek zayada zata hai)
There was also a mention of the kali yaug. He talked about many things, the nearby
cement factory, the growing up of houses, the availability of an excellent hospital, and
power house for electricity, the department of irrigation, the opening of large shops
and finally the migration of people from villages to cities in search of better jobs. The
last point he spoke with resentment.

2 Weber called Hinduism as another worldly religion for its highest values emphasis
escape from toils of the material world onto a higher plane of spiritual existence. The
religious feelings and motivation produced by Hinduism do not focus on controlling
or shaping the material world. On the contrary, Hinduism sees material reality as a
veil hiding the true concerns to which the man kind should be oriented.

Q When told about Weber view, clear happiness could be seen at the gur’s face

(Kali yaug mei sab moh may ke piche bhagte hai) today everyone is running after
money. True rishi used to do kathor tapasay to gain true knowledge the gur
emphasized that one take’s no land, money or wealth after death rather one only takes
his deeds.

OTHER

Caste barriers

Schedule castes are forbidden even to look at the devta, they cannot enter the temple
and offerings are given on their behalf by the Thakurs. There are no such restrictions
for the ST till they belong to the high caste.

Q What are your views on the courts verdict that any man can enter the temple?

A Even after suppressing his feeling the gur could not hide his displeasure for the
question he strongly felt that the courts should not interfere with the age old tradition.
(Sudhata ka kya ho ga) The present condition of caste distinction is not so patent, but
the ways speak what words fail to express.
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Bakre ki Bali

He told me that some mantras were chanted and water was thrown on goats head and
if it shook’s its head towards right, immediately it’s head was cut with the axe. He
strongly defended the age old tradition he pointed out the in the Veda’s we have
mantras specifically dedicated to performance of bali, he pointed out that will only the
animal is killed but not its soul.

Q There was a recent high court verdict which stopped any Bali of goats?

A The place in which devta was the provider of justice, witness the advent of legal
challenge to devtas activities. Court do not know what they are dealing with he said
nothing more.

At the end he folds her hands and looks towards the shrine, murmuring
‘Jai Devta Anant Balunag’

CONCLUSION

People seem to be at peace with the little knowledge they have about the history of the
temple, their devotion lies in not finding the reasons as to how the place emerged, it
lies in accepting the very existence and supremacy of the devta.

Hinduism is very different from the Abrahmic religion as there is no permanent book
of be followed. Hinduism accepts the possibility of numerous different religious
standpoints and does not draw any clear line between even believers and non
believers. There are more than 750 million Hindus, all living on the Indian
subcontinent. The religion does not give accurate definition for anything; every
person seems to has his own view.

Hinduism to me seems shape shifting (pseudo religion) lower Himachal has temple
like the plain but in upper region there is a physical god who can talk(through gur),
visit place and even show emotions. Still it is a highly interlinked religion Lord
Balunag is (lakshman, balram, serpent protector of Lord Vishnu) every things seem so
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unorganized and scattered (like slum in street corner society) still when looked closely
everything is so close. Smaller place are connected to the whole Hindu identity.

Hindus may not seem conservative or fanatical about their religion but religion
influences their whole day to day activities. Religion cannot be codified or explained
very well just the distinction between holy and profane could be made.

*All the images are taken from the internet

# Small temple as rest house for the devta are constructed on the usual rote devta
takes

*All the views of the sociologist are taken from Anthony Giddens Sociology 7 th
edition page 756 to 768