Minas:The Militant Defenders

The militant defenders
The Minas are not just Rajasthan’s largest tribal groups- they are also the most widely spread. In the north, they inhabit the Jaipur-Sikar belt of Shekhawati, continuing into Alwar district in the southwest; the Minas settlements mix with the Bhils of Bundi-Kota-Jhalawar.

The Minas, who are proto-dravidians, were the original inhabitants of the pre-historic Indus valley civilization. They battled with the Aryans and despite their expulsion from their earlier settlements, remained a powerful militant group. The Vedas mention them as the enemies of the Aryans and the Mahabharata records their glory in the kingdom of Matsyaraj. It was the Kachhawaha clan of Rajputs who finally dispersed their power, relegating them to forest and hill hide outs in the Aravalis.

Attires
The dresses of Minas are casual and practical. The men wear loincloth around the waist; sometimes a waistcoat and a long fabric tied loosely on the head like a turban. The women wear a long flared skirt with many gathers called Ghagra; a minimal blouse called Kurti or Kanchali and large squarish scarf called Odhani that drapes back after covering the head. In the presence of men this is pulled down to cover the face by a Ghunghat. Only the prosperous among them wear gold and silver ornaments further beautified with ivory and pearls.

Lifestyle and social customs
Their forest dwellings called Mewas comprise a cluster of huts called pal. Each Pal constitutes an endogamous group. But should a Mina marry outside his tribe, his children do not get the desired status. Mina marriages are usually performed at an early age and the ceremony performed around the fire is not very different from the Hindu rituals.

Divorce among the Minas is not uncommon or complicated. Symbolic of the separation, the man simply tears off a piece from the fabric that he is wearing and offers it to his wife. The woman moves away carrying two pitchers of water on her head. Whoever helps her unload the pitchers becomes her new husband.

The normal Mina wealth is measured in cattle- cows, buffaloes, sheep and goats. For plowing the fields, oxen and camels are used. Worshipers of the lord Shiva, the Minas have raised many exquisite temples, which represent their highly developed skill of stone carving.

Mina tribals earn their living by staging dramas

Beside the other deities of the Hindu pantheon- Krishna, Ram and Hanuman, the Minas worship Sheetla Mata, goddess of small pox. An annual fair held in March at Chaksu, near Jaipur, honors the goddess, where thousands of Mina tribal men and women gathers to worship this dreaded goddess even though small pox is now eradicated.

The Minas also celebrate the festivals of Teej, Gangaur, Dussehra, Holi and Diwali with dance and song, reverence and fanfare as the occasion demands. They also have a tradition of donating grain, clothes, animals and ornaments of silver and gold to the needy.

Bhils | Minas | Lohars | Garasias | Sahariyas