Bishnoi
The religious community of the Bishnoi mostly lives in the desert Thar in the Indian state of Rajasthan ; there are also members of the religious community in the neighboring states of Gujarat , Haryana , Punjab and Delhi .
history
The Bishnoi are a religious community founded by Guru Jambheshwar (1451–1536) after wars between Hindus and Muslim conquerors . Bishnoi means "twenty-nine" and refers to the 29 ecological and spiritual commandments that Jambheshwar established. These laws prohibit, among other things, the consumption of meat and the felling of trees.
For more than 500 years, the Bishnoi have been able to survive under difficult climatic conditions. They live strictly lacto-vegetarian and also drive all hunters and poachers out of their areas. Abandoned young animals are even breastfed by the Bishnoi women. One of the largest populations of the stag goat antelope was able to stay in the Luni valley in this way .
Around 1730 the Bishnoi in the village of Khejarli in Rajasthan fought against the felling of khejri trees by soldiers of the Maharaja of Marwar . 363 villagers who stood in front of the trees for protection are said to have died. However, the protest was ultimately successful and the Maharaja issued a decree against deforestation. This protest action is considered to be the earliest forerunner of the Chipko movement , in which Indian women have resisted forest destruction since the 1970s.
The former Chief Minister of the Indian state Haryana Bhajan Lal belongs to the Bishnoi. Their living space is now threatened by environmental pollution from the growing industry in India, for example from sewage from the textile industry.
Excerpts from the 29 commandments
- Generous and respectful relationship between woman and man
- Never kill an animal, no matter how small it is
- Never eat meat
- Give sheep and goats shelter to save them from slaughter
- Think before you speak
- Have understanding to forgive
- Do not criticize for no reason
- Have compassion for all that is alive
- Never fell a tree, don't prune a green tree
further reading
- Hans-Jürgen Otte, People who die to save trees and animals (1992)
- Herma Brockmann, Renato Pichler: Trailblazers of Peace. The living philosophies of the Bishnois and Jains. (2001) ISBN 3-909067-02-6
- Love of animals to the death - Documentary by Roberto Lugones, Arte / GEO , May 11, 2013
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ CP Groves, DM Leslie Jr. (2011). Family Bovidae (Hollwo-horned Ruminants). (585-588). In: Wilson, DE, Mittermeier, RA, (Eds.). Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 2: Hooved Mammals. Lynx Edicions, 2009. ISBN 978-84-96553-77-4
- ↑ Felix Gaedtke, Gayatri Parameswaran: The Bishnoi: India's first environmentalists. Deutsche Welle , May 3, 2012
- ↑ Source: Archived copy ( Memento of the original from September 15, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Source: Pathfinder of Peace
