A ''gotul'' is a
tribal youth dormitory in form of a spacious
hut surrounded by earthen or wooden walls. It is an integral part of
Gond and
Muria tribal life in regions of
Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh (; ) is a landlocked States and union territories of India, state in Central India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the List ...
and the neighboring areas in
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...
,
Maharashtra
Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...
and
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
in
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. It is a place for youths, an independent and autonomous "children's republic" as described by
Verrier Elwin. The ''gotul'' is central to social and religious life in Gond society. According to Gond legend, Lingo, the supreme deity, created the first ''gotul''.
[.]
History and function
Lingo, the supreme deity and the heroic ancestor of the tribe, was the founder of the first ''gotul'', and is at the centre of the ''gotuls culture. It has an elder facilitator with young, unmarried boys and girls as its members. Girl members of the ''gotul'' are called ''motiaris'', while boy members are called ''cheliks''; their leaders are called the ''belosa'' and ''siredar'' respectively. The members are taught lessons of cleanliness, discipline, and hard work. They are taught to take pride in their appearance and to respect themselves and their elders. They are also taught the idea of
public service
A public service or service of general (economic) interest is any service intended to address the needs of aggregate members of a community, whether provided directly by a public sector agency, via public financing available to private busin ...
.
Gotul system of marriage
The ''gotuls social sanction makes it one of the most important social institution in Madia society—no major social activity could happen without participation of ''gotul'' members. The boys act as
acolytes at festivals, the girls as
bridesmaid
Bridesmaids are members of the bride's party at some Western traditional wedding ceremonies. A bridesmaid is typically a young woman and often the bride's close friend or relative. She attends to the bride on the day of a wedding or marriage ce ...
s at weddings. This participation continues until death ceremonies in the society. With boys telling stories, asking riddles, reporting daily affairs, planning expeditions and allotment of duties, the ''gotul'' is a place embedded in and nurtured by the larger socio-religious landscape of the Gond society—a sacred place where no wrongs can be committed.
The
Madia Gond ''gotuls'' are different from the Bastar ''gotuls'' in that boys and girls return to their homes to sleep.
[.]
Verrier Elwin stated: "The message of the gotul—that youth must be served, that freedom and happiness are more to be treasured than any material gain, that friendliness and sympathy, hospitality and unity are of the first importance, and above all that human love—and its physical expression—is beautiful, clean and precious, is typically Indian."
References
{{reflist
External links
Ghotul Dance
Culture of Chhattisgarh