Adilabad (Telangana) : Nagoba Jatara, one of the biggest tribal festivals in the world, began with a bang at Keslapur village in Adilabad District's Indravelli Mandal. Amidst the drum beats in the thick of midnight, the huge tribal festival marked the beginning of the traditional worship by Mesaram clan. The five-day Mahakratu began with the anointing of the deity with Ganga water placed on a banyan tree brought on foot from Kalamadugu in the Jannaram mandal of Manchiryala district.
As per the tribesmen, the Mesaram clansfolks from different parts of the country rested under the shade of the banyan tree. It became a custom for the daughters-in-law of the Mesaram clan to get dressed in white clothes and pay obeisance to the goddess and also take the blessings of the elders. District Collector Rahul Raj, MLC Dande Vitthal, MLAs Vedma Bojju, Aniljadav, and Utnoor ITDA PO performed special pooja to Goddess Kashbhu as representatives of the government.
All the rituals of the tribals in India are closely related. The worship of the Panchabhuthas (elements of nature) continues to be their custom. No matter how many changes have come in modern times, the tribals continue their traditions coming down from many generations even today. Nagoba Jatara stands as a testimony to that.
The Adivasi rituals that take place at every step of the fair reflect tribal way of life. The Nagoba Jatara held by Mesaram Vamsi is special not only for the Adivasis but also for the non-Adivasis. Less than 400 tribals live in Keslapur. But during the fair, lakhs of tribals from other states including Mesaram clans arrive here for the fetival. The government has also recognized this fair as a national festival, which is next only to the famous Sammakka-Saralammala tribal fair in Telangana.
The rules and regulations followed a week before the Nagoba fair show tribal unity. Many modern trends are changing tribal lifestyle but they continue to preserve their roots. For example, all the people of Mesaram living anywhere in the state and the country come to the fair on bullock carts. Nagoba Jatara has many such special features.
A week before the start of the fair, all the people of Mesram take initiation. Dressed in white clothes, they gather at the village temple in Keslapur, carry the pooja kalash and set out on foot for 150 kilometers to fetch the waters of the Godavari river. During this journey, they will stay only in the outskirts of the village. They reach the Godavari in the suburbs of Kalamadugu village of Manchiryala district and collect the holy water. Before reaching Keslapur with this water, one day worship is done to Goddess Indrai in Indravelli.
After reaching Keslapur with the Godavari water in a brass vessel, all the Mesram clans together put it on a banyan tree. There everyone rests under the shade of the banyan tree for 3 days. On the day when the crescent moon of the month of Pushyami appears, the Mesaram clansmen anoint the Nagoba deity with water brought from the Godavari. The temple is also purified. The Pooja program is performed with the traditional instruments of tribals. Also, clay pots made by the potters of Sirikonda are used in these rituals.
Soil anthill is made with the water brought in the pots. During the special pooja, sprouts and milk in a copper cup are placed on a mound covered with white cloth. It is still believed that the snake-god would come and drink the milk.
According to a popular story related to Nagoba Jatara, seven brothers from the Mesaram family came to their uncle's house in Keslapur. His daughter Indra Devi thinks that they are all coming to kill her father because she did not help them when they were in trouble. With that anger, she turned into a tiger and killed 6 of the 7 brothers. The last one, Nagendra, begged Indradevi to let him live and become the Nagoba of Keslapur. The Mesaram family strongly believes that Nagendra (snake god) saved the last of their family. Thus Nagoba became a part of the daily lives of the Mesaram clans.
The way of life of the Mesaram clansmen involves a rule that no one should be a burden to others. The necessary fodder for the bulls should also be procured by whoever owns it. Even though Mesaram clans come in thousands for the fair, they all cook on 22 stoves in Keslapur. Even those stoves cannot be placed anywhere. There is a rule that cooking should be done inside the compound set up in the temple premises.
Daughters-in-law of Mesaram clans have special recognition in the Nagoba fair. The newly married brides of these clans are brought to Nagoba in Keslapur and met under the patronage of the Patels of the Mesaram clan. They enter the temple dressed in white and take the blessings of elders. That's when they are called the daughters-in-law of the Mesaram family. In addition, before Nagoba Pujas, the Mesaram clan fill the mound in the temple premises with mud. If the soil is trodden with the feet of the squirrels and made soft, the daughters will make a mound with this soil and prepare the rice. Then gifts are given to the grooms. They believe that family's health as the birth rate will increase.
In Keslapur Jatara, special offerings to Nagoba are cooked together under the shade of the banyan tree. They have a rule that an offering should be made to the goddess with the crops grown in the rice field. After the fair, while going to their hometowns, it continues to be a custom to buy cooking utensils and agricultural implements for the whole year at the fair. The durbar held on the occasion of the Nagoba fair has a special feature. Less than 8 decades ago, remote villages did not have any facilities. In such a time, Prof. Hyman Dorf went to Adilabad district to study the conditions of the area under Nizam's rule. Then his attention fell on the Keslapur fair. After that, the rulers decided to find out the problems there. So in 1946, the first Praja Durbar was held. After the independence of the country, the Durbar was held under the chairmanship of the District Collector when the tribals pour out their problems.
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