The Land of Fourteen Gods

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Tripura, the erstwhile princely state, nestles in the sub-tropical deciduous forest and sub-montane region of north-eastern India stemming from the splendour of its natural setting and its dazzling heritage. Crisscrossed by six principal hill ranges none punctuating the skies, this land of fourteen gods is buttressed by a number of rivers and rivulets for which the place got its name: tui (water) and pra (near). The verdant expenses and rich forest lands have been the central concern to people down the centuries to enjoy the plethora of delightful attractions in its cavalcade of historic palaces, rock-cut carvings, stone sculptures, Hindu and Buddhist shrines, wildlife sanctuaries and colourful tribal people of immense variability who blend in to the hills and valleys inhabiting the villages that are a tapestry of rich ethnic traditions.

The reality all these reflected duality of mind since many of them do not live in the present. A confiderable population today lives in the past and dream of a future. Possibly influx of heterogenous population may have been mending the values that the people have nurtured so far.

The state with its unique physical landscape and varied human surface forms a tribal mosaic of immense hospitality in the lush green cover sitting in the lap of Bangladesh, a country lying adjacent as a friendly neighbour. With the only attachment of head and neck with adjoining states of Assam and Mizoram it encompasses a host of colourful tribal people who have carved out a special position in the whole of the northeast due to their traditional cultural affiliation and their social commitment in the culturally rooted traditional customs, culture and heritage.

GAUTAM KUMAR BERA (b. 1958), graduated in Science with Honours in Anthropology. passed his Master's degree in Anthropology with specialization in Social and Cultural Anthropology securing First position in First Class, received his Ph.D. Degree in Anthropology, is currently attached to the Directorate of Census Operations under the Office of the Registrar General of India after serving in the Anthropological Survey of India for almost twenty three years. Presently he is conducting his Post Doctoral research on issues related to ethnicity.

CA Associate, Current Anthropology (U.S.A.), Assistant Editor, Journal of the Anthropological Survey of India (Kolkata), Book Review Editor. The Oriental Anthropologist (Allahabad), and Consulting Editor, Contemporary Who's Who, U.S.A. He is the Life Member of the Indian Anthropological Society, Kolkata and the Oriental Institute of Cultural and Social Research, Allahabad.

His important books and edited volumes include A Town in the Rural Milieu, Dimensions of Researches in Indian Anthropology, The Unrest Axle: Ethno- Social Movements in Eastern India, Anthropological Perspectives in Sundarbans, Passage through Aboriginal India: Anthropological Profile of Verrier Elwin, The Wanderlust Anthropologist: Anthropological Profile of Nirmal Kumar Base, The Patriarch Pathfinder: Anthropological Profile of Rai Bahadur Sarat Chandra Roy, In the Lagoons of the Gangetic Delta, Echoes from the Hillocks, and Jhum Cultivation in Tripura. His forthcoming book is on Ethno-Social Movements in Central India.

The idea of preparing a volume on the ethno-cultural profile T of Tripura emerged in my mind ever since I visited this north-eastern state for the first time about one and a half decade ago (1994) for my anthropological fieldwork I made successive visits again in 1996 and 2005 for the continuation of my anthropological fieldwork as a longitudinal study but somehow the idea of a book did not materialize possibly due to lack of competence and lacuna in comprehension ventured it again after a long gap and my efforts crystallized with my posting here in 2007 as tenure of service in the north-east.

The inspiration for the present work comes exclusively from my family since I remained away from them during this entire period alone and from Swapan Chandra Das, a friend from Burdwan district of West Bengal, who chose to settle down at Agartala for his professional commitment He accompanied me on several occasions to visit different places for escalating my ideas. It was the phase of my life when it seemed to me that I have buried myself in a place that attracted me on several other counts among which the important ones are its physical landscape and the varied human surface with tribal mosaic of immense hospitality. The gnawing about insistence on relating knowledge of other cultures to their own set one of the themes of the present work have drawn on a basic tenet in cultural anthropology in assuming that despite differences among the people, there is a base line of shared values, experiences, behaviours, and expectations common to all. It too helped me to correct stereotypes and counter ethnocentrism for the exploration of the major social issues of the day.

Ever since I made up my mind about fifteen years ago to visit this land certain ideas cropped up in my mind. Though apparently these seemed to be erroneous, yet it provided a meaningful way to me Where from are you? Where do you want to go? These were the welcome notes that I received soon after landing at the gateway to the state, the city airport in August 2007.

**Contents and Sample Pages**