The Food of the Gods in Chhattisgarh

Some Structural Features of Hindu Ritual

Bibliographic Data

ID2234261
AuthorsLawrence A Babb (corresponding author)
Year1970
Volume26
Issue3
Pages287-304
Publication date1970-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSouthwestern Journal of Anthropology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0038-4801 • E-ISSN: 2328-1839
PublisherUniversity of Chicago Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1086/soutjanth.26.3.3629382
OpenAlexW2334233229
LanguageEN
Citations received20
References cited1

Analysis of Chhattisgarhi ritual reveals a common structural core which unifies ostensibly diverse ritual expressions. This structure is grounded in the purity-pollution contrast, especially as it relates to hierarchical distinctions, and ritual is therefore integrated with some of the most pervasive features of Chhattisgarhi social structure. Two elements are combined in ritual sequences: 1) the creation of a zone of purity within which the deity (or deities) may be approached, and 2) a reciprocal transaction in foods. Food is offered to the deity and then retrieved from the altar for consumption by the participants in the ritual. The transaction allows the deity to be paid for divine favors and at the same time establishes a hierarchical opposition between the deity and the worshippers as a group. Differentiation within the congregation is obscured by the wider opposition between divinity and the worshipping group as a whole

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