Assamese Vaishnavism
Vishnu worship was established in Assam by the 7th century,
and by the middle of the 15th century it was already eclipsing
Shaivism and Tantric Shakti-worship. Its distinctive Assamese
form was developed by Srimanta Sankardeva, a poet, playwright,
musician, composer, and theologian, who opposed ritual and
image worship, and rejected all other Hindu gods in favour
of simple devotion to Vishnu, whom he saw as all-encompassing
and formless.
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Sattra
The main institution
of Assamese Vaishnavism is the 'Sattra', the first
founded by Sankardeva at his birthplace, Bardowa,
15-km northwest of Nargaon, although this has now
been destroyed by the ever-changing course of the
Brahmaputra. The Sattra is not only a temple, but
also a monastery, school and centre for the arts,
including poetry, folk music, literature, sculpture
and dance, often in combination.
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Sattras consist of a prayer hall open on all sides and supported
by pillars, surrounded by living quarters for devotees,
and ghats for bathing. The 'Namghar' has three parts: a
roofed gate, the main body of the hall, and a closed shrine,
which may be a separate building, in which case it is called
the "Manikot". Although "idol worship"
is avoided, Vaishnavites are not as strict about this as,
say Muslims: images of Vishnu’s avatars often decorate
the Sattra, though they are never prayed to.
Islam
The entry of Islam as a religion to Assam came through
neighbouring Bengal, which already had Muslim rulers a few
decades after the Mughal dynasty was established in India
and today it's an important religion over here. Islamic
shrines of the State include Poa-Mecca of Hajo (Poa-meaning
one- fourth) and the Ajan Pir Dargah near Sibsagar among
others.
Buddhism
Buddhism on the other hand first came down from Bhutan
in the north and then from Myanmar in the east. In fact,
the Haygriba Madhav temple of Hajo is simultaneously a place
of worship for both Hindus and Buddhists alike.
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