User:Haoreima/Meitei religion revivalism movement
Religious cultural movement of reviving ancient Meitei faith / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Meitei religion revivalism movement, also known as the Sanamahi movement, is a religious movement of the revivalism of traditional Meitei religion (officially called Sanamahism) in Meitei society. Basically, it is the practice of giving more priority to the Meitei deities described as "traditional" and "indigenous" over or in place of deities affiliated to other faiths, particularly Hindu deities.[1][2][3]
Native name | Meitei: Meitei Laining Hingatlakpa |
---|---|
English name | Revivalism of Sanamahism |
Time | 20th[lower-alpha 1]-21st centuries |
Location | Manipur and other Northeast Indian states |
Also known as | Sanamahi movement |
Type | religious movement |
Theme | revivalism |
The movement spread the awareness of the Meitei identity among the Meiteis. It was formally pioneered by a Meitei philosopher from Cachar named Naoriya Phullo in 1930, with the establishment of a socio-politico-religious group named Apokpa Marup.[4][5][6][7]
Most Meitei religion revivalists were born and brought up in families following Vaishnavite Hinduism.[2][8][5] So, their religious conversions and cultural transformations are considered "personal" as well as "social".[2] This revivalism movement has been continuously growing since its inception in the early 20th century, especially after the 1970s.[9][2]
The revivalists of the Meitei religion often had struggles with other religious communities, most notably the Meitei Brahmins.[10][1] Unfortunately, the exploitative practices of some Hindu priests (Brahmins) brought hostility towards themselves by other groups of people. The movement was compelled to stand against the over-enthusiastic Brahmins for "atrocious imposition of the Hindu precepts".[6]
For several centuries, the Meitei ethnicity was predominant in Manipur, but due to immigration of people of various communities from different regions of the Indian subcontinent, Manipur's demographics change the Meiteis and other indigenous communities into minorities. This is one of the factors that enlightened a sense of urgency to revivalism to the Meitei people.[1]
The "Apokpa Marup", a spearheading religious association, initiated the revivalism movement of the Meitei religion, which was the begining of the "Sanamahi Movement", named after the Meitei deity, Sanamahi. This organization aimed to renounce Hinduism and revive traditional Meitei religion, culture and language, to bring unity between the already Hinduised Meitei people and the then animistic hilly tribal people.[11]