As the outside world knows less about their customs and traditions, the Adivasis hardly get credit for their managerial skills. Their acumen in managing events, however, can be seen at the famous Nagoba jatara, a religious event of the Buigoita branch of Mesram clan of Raj Gonds and Pardhans currently under way at Keslapur village in Indervelli mandal of Adilabad district.
The holy event is spread over the entire period of the Poos or Pushya month mostly falling in January. Though the laity participates in the festival only during the last 10 days, the initial days are marked by skilful preparations for the fair by community leaders.
The preparations seem to be a laid back affair, yet the community does not miss a deadline in its progression towards the main events of the fair. The 22 categories of families of Mesran clan perform specific tasks customarily apportioned to them with clock work precision.
At least one Mesram clan member from respective villages arrives at the old Nagoba temple at Keslapur to sight the amavasya moon, the Adivasis call it chandra darshan, which heralds the preparations for the jatara. The congregation decides the dates on which the key ceremonies and programmes would be held during the course of the next 30 days.
After placing order for the sacred pots with the Guggilla family potters of Sirikonda, a group of Raj Gonds and Pardhans set out for fetching the holy water from the Godavari, covering about 200 km barefoot. As decided in the initial meeting, individual Mesram families in the respective villages prepare food for the group all along the route, mostly passing through forest. The most important event which tests the management skills of the aboriginal people is their travel to Keslapur in bullock cart caravans “The round trip can involve even 15 days and the tribal families need to carry sufficient food and fodder,” pointed out Mesram Dada Rao, the Pardhan elder.
They stay for at least five nights under the sacred banyan tree located close to Keslapur and a stone’s throw away from the temple of the serpent god. “Every family stays at the same place which had been allotted to it since it first came here which, in many cases, may even date centuries back,” Dada Rao observed, as he pointed out how the community deals with the matter of accommodating a few hundred families under one tree.
The stay under the tree involves making decisions on key issues facing the community. The decisions are arrived at through consensus facilitated under the guidance of Pardhan elders.
