Jharkhand celebrates Sarhul, state’s biggest tribal festival

A large number of people sporting traditional dresses thronged the streets and marched in processions in different parts of Jharkhand on Friday to celebrate Sarhul, the states biggest tribal festival.Governor CP Radhakrishnan and Chief Minister Hemant Soren greeted the citizens of the state on the occasion and participated in rituals of the festival in Ranchi.

A large number of people sporting traditional dresses thronged the streets and marched in processions in different parts of Jharkhand on Friday to celebrate Sarhul, the state's biggest tribal festival.

Governor CP Radhakrishnan and Chief Minister Hemant Soren greeted the citizens of the state on the occasion and participated in rituals of the festival in Ranchi. Soren visited 'Sarna Sthal', a place of worship, at the Tribal Hostel Campus and Siram Toli in Ranchi and offered his prayers to the Sal tree. Speaking at Siram Toli, he said, "Tribals are worshipers of nature. The existence of Jal, Jungle, Jamin (water, forest and land) decides the existence of tribal. It is high time to think about how to strike a balance between nature and development." He announced that his government has decided to conserve all Sarna, Masna and other religious places of tribal worship - new or old. The chief minister also said that the Tribal Hostel will be renovated soon.

The Jharkhand governor, while addressing the people at the 'Sarhul Puja Mahotsav' organised by the department of tribal and regional languages, Ranchi University, said, "Sarhul is not just a festival, but a unique example of the unbreakable relationship between human life and nature. Sarhul gives the message that human does not have any existence without nature." The three-day festival begins on the third day of the month Chaitra. People of various tribes such as Oraon, Munda and Ho pay obeisance to the Sal tree and thank mother nature for providing shelter, livelihood and food to them.

Sarhul, also called the spring festival, started with rituals in the morning, followed by a forecast of rains during the upcoming rainy season by 'pahans' (priests) based on traditional practices.

As per the tradition, two earthen pitchers filled with water are placed under a sal tree and kept overnight at the Sarna Sthal. The priest after reviewing traditional methods of prediction announced that Jharkhand would get normal rainfall this year and harvest will be good.

The priest said, "We observe the water level kept in two pitchers overnight. If the level reduces by the morning, it means there will be less rainfall. If the water level remains unchanged, it means there will be good rainfall." In 2022, the priest had predicted normal rainfall and the state received near-normal rainfall with an overall rainfall deficit of 20 per cent. A deviation of 19 per cent rainfall, either surplus or deficit, is considered to be normal by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

However, the state's overall rainfall deficit was at 49 per cent in the first two months of the monsoon the previous year, which caused drought in 226 blocks out of 260 blocks. Later in the day, men and women in traditional attires participated in religious processions in different parts of the state. A march was also taken out in Ranchi, which culminated at Siram Toli where rituals were held in the evening.

The first Sarhul procession was organised from Ranchi's Karam Toli by students and tribal leaders in 1961.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)