Citizenship Amendment Act saw protests in Meghalaya, Mizoram and Manipur from this January and the protests shifted to Assam when Parliament took it up again and the fire has spread all the way to New Delhi at this time.
Why are people protesting? People in the Northwest fear that CAB will lead to lakhs of Hindus from Bangladesh swamping indigenous communities, burdening resources and threatening their language, culture and tradition. While all of us are concerned about the culture and traditions of India and many of us will also agree with the protestors on some of the effects on the demographics, why would the Northwest or the rest of the Tribal areas in India not take on similar protests against the rampant conversion to Christianity that has already happened or currently happening right under their noses today?
Recently, I was listening to one of the Naga converts who had fallen victim to the seeming allure of Christianity, proudly claim how Christianity saved the Nagas from their indigenous regressive headhunting culture and tradition, putting them on the only path to salvation, i.e., Christianity. The Northeast has faced a systematic onslaught of a well-funded strategic conversion mission for over one hundred years now, with devastating consequences. Local tribes have been brainwashed to thinking that they have been worshipping false Gods and only through accepting Christ as their savior they have a chance at escaping hell and be free from bondage. This deep fear instilled in them has propelled them to surrender their ancient culture, their identities, belief systems, and their Gods in exchange for deliverance.
In October 1871, Supongmeren from Molungkimong village was baptized at Sibsagar and intiated into the American Baptist Church. He became the ”sepoy” evangelist, helping the American Baptist Missionary E.W. Clark realize his mission in Nagaland. Clark’s lifetime efforts did not bear fruits till the 1950s when it reached a critical strength that annihilated the Naga tribal religions, establishing Christianity as the default majority religion in the region –
The trend is similar in Manipur, one of the last states that was holding fort for the Tribals –
The rapid growth of Christianity is like a cancer- With the critical strength of Christianity obtained in Manipur, it is all set for the tumble towards Jesus in the coming decade destroying yet another diverse culture in one fell swoop.
The story is the same in the Andaman and Nicobar Isles. Here is a chart showing the trend of how Christianity is ruthlessly eliminating the native religious traditions in the Nicobar islands –
There are 110 million tribals in India, distributed in 18 states. In some areas such as the Northeast, they form the majority. In others, they are found in pockets known as Scheduled Areas.
The Americas, Australia and Europe, all had tribes belonging to various belief systems when the Christian world so called ‘discovered’ them. When we compare the treatment of indigenous populations in the Americas, Africa and Oceania, that were either wiped out or terrorized to follow Christianity by European colonialists, India has treated its tribes with respect from time immemorial. India has always valued a true living culturally diverse ecosystem, which has translated into the live and let live ethos of the Indian mindset. However, indigenous tribal life, culture and religious practices are under the most severe danger of extinction now than ever before because of the large-scale systematic proselytization efforts reaching a peak in the subcontinent currently.
The northeast and the Andaman Tribes living in isolation from the Mainland were easy targets in the past. What is now surprising is the success of the Christian campaign among mainland tribal populations. In 1991, 300,000 among Santhals of Orissa identified themselves as Christians. Among the Munda people and Oraons of Bihar, about 25 % of the population are Christian. Among the Kharia people of Bihar (population about 130,000), about 60 % are Christians. Read about the proselytization activities by Pastor Dinesh among the Bhil tribes of Rajasthan, who were proud generals and soldiers in the army of Maharana Pratap, as defenders of Indian culture and traditions during the Mughal invasion of Rajasthan.
https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2012/July/Christian-Chorus-Rising-Among-Tribal-Hindus
CBN claims 300,000 converts among the Bhils. Similar stories are floating about other tribes like Meenas of Rajasthan, Chenchus of Andhra and so on.
Christianity is the single largest threat to tribal culture and religions in India. The tribals themselves and the rest of India, in their colonized stupor have failed to identify this elephant in the room. The grim situation reminds me of the story of the two frogs I read a long time ago. The one that was dropped into a boiling pot of water escaped death with one mighty leap in a flash. The other frog that was dropped into a pot with room temperature water, died in a few hours unaware of what hit him when the pot was heated steadily. The current Indian Government and the previous ones have done very little in acknowledging and curbing this serious threat to Indian culture. India needs an anti-conversion law at the centre that prohibits all conversion to Christianity. This alone can save the one and only culture and religious group that has stood the test of time against Abrahamic interventions.
Coming back to the migrant Hindu population from Bangladesh, it is important to realize that Hindus as a civilization have preserved linguistic, cultural and religious diversity of host populations. In fact, a positive and inclusive effect is seen in the case of such migrant populations all over India. The Saurashtrians of Madurai have preserved their culture and language over a 1000-year migratory pattern. They have not forced their way of life on anyone around them. The same is true with the Hebbar Iyengars of Karnataka who still speak in Tamil even after 1000 years of migration from Tamil Nadu. There are several such examples of synergistic living between host groups and migrants in India. The Syrian Christians themselves would be another case study on this subject. Their lifestyle and religion were only altered when the proselytizing Portuguese showed up in Kerala.
The small population of indigenous tribes left in the Northeast and the Assamese majority must understand where the real threat is coming from. I would urge the indigenous brothers and sisters there to consider real facts from history and fight the real battle against the mushrooming conversion activities of the Church instead of going after a handful of poor Hindus who were persecuted in their homeland. Where do they have any precedence for the Hindus altering any culture? Why would they be blind to how Christianity has already hurt them to a point of no-return for much of the Northwest? Will the Modi Govt and the Northwest wake up to this offense on our tribal population before it’s all over and at least save the few left from proselytization? This would be yeomen service that our generation can do to the world in general, in preserving the diversity that the humankind has already lost in places like Mayan South America and Hellenistic Greece.
