2. Birsa was born in the mid – 1870s.
The son of a poor father, he grew up around the forests of Bohonda, grazing
sheep, playing the flute, and dancing in the local akhara.
Forced by poverty, his father had to move from place to place looking for
work.
As an adolescent, Birsa heard tales of the Munda uprisings of the past and
saw the sirdars (leaders) of the community urging the people to revolt.
They talked of a golden age when the Mundas have been free of the
oppression of the Dikus, and said there would be a time when the ancestral
right of the community would be restored.
BIRSA MUNDA
3. They saw themselves as the descendants of the
original settlers of the region, fighting for their land
(Mulk Ki Larai), reminding people for the need to win
back their kingdom.
Birsa went to the local missionary school, and listened
to the sermons of missionaries.
There too he heard it said that it was possible for the
Mundas to attain the Kingdom of Heaven, and regain
their lost rights.
MULK KI LARAI
4. Birsa Munda's slogan threatening the British Raj—Abua raj ste
jana, maharani raj tundu jana ("Let the kingdom of the queen be
ended and our kingdom be established")is remembered today in
areas of Jharkhand, Odisha, Bihar, West Bengal, and Madhya
Pradesh.
The British colonial system intensified the transformation of the
tribal agrarian system into a feudal state.
TRIBAL MOVEMENT
5. Birsa's claim to be a messenger of God and the
founder of a new religion sounded preposterous to the
missionaries.
There were also within his sect converts from
Christianity, mostly Sardars.
His simple system of the offering was directed
against the church which levied a tax.
NEW RELIGION
6. He is commemorated in the names of the following institutions and organizations:
• Birsa Agricultural University
• Birsa Institute of Technology
• Birsa College, Khunti
• Birsa Institute of Technology Sindri
• Sidho Kanho Birsa University
• Birsa Munda Athletics Stadium
• Birsa Munda Airport
• Birsa Munda Central Jail
• Birsa Seva Dal, a controversial defunct organization
• Birsa Munda Tribal University
COMMEMERATION
8. His birth anniversary, which falls on 15 November,
is still celebrated by tribal people as far away
as Mysore and Kodagu districts in Karnataka.
The official celebration takes place at his samadhi
sthal (mausoleum) in the Kokar neighborhood
of Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand.
IN POPULAR CULTURE
