Tradition at the Crossroads: Sacrificial Rituals and Fragile Heritage in the Deori Community of Assam

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-533-1_14How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Deori tribe; sacrificial rituals; intangible cultural heritage; cultural preservation; digitization; indigenous reform; Assam

Abstract

The Deori tribe, an indigenous Tibeto-Burman community in Assam, Northeast India, sustains a fragile cultural heritage through sacrificial rituals performed during Ebaku Bisu, dedicated to deities like Kundi Gira-Girasi or Kundi mama. This study historicizes these rituals, tracing their socio-religious origins and roles in fostering kinship and community cohesion, while critically re-examining their representations in colonial ethnographies and Assamese historical narratives. Drawing on ethnographic interviews and archival analysis, it explores challenges to these traditions, including ethical concerns over animal sacrifice, gender exclusion, and economic pressures, amplified by modern discourses on animal rights and environmental sustainability. The paper argues for adaptive preservation strategies, such as symbolic ritual alternatives and digitization of oral histories and performances, to safeguard Deori heritage while addressing contemporary imperatives. By situating these practices within global debates on indigenous cultural continuity, the study advocates for community-led reforms and digital archiving to ensure the resilience of Deori traditions.

Copyright

© 2025 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Puspa Deori
AU  - Susmita Hazarika
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/12/31
TI  - Tradition at the Crossroads: Sacrificial Rituals and Fragile Heritage in the Deori Community of Assam
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Smart Systems and Social Management (ICSSSM-2 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 200
EP  - 210
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-533-1_14
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-533-1_14
ID  - Deori2025
ER  -