A History of Assam c3.2

c3.2

Their religion indeed has more than a local importance, as in it is probably to be found the clue to the strange Tāntrik developments, both of Hinduism and of Buddhism. The temple of Kāmākhyā at Gauhāti is one of the most sacred shrines of the Sākta Hindus, and the whole country is famed in Hindu traditions as a land of magic and witchcraft. The old tribal beliefs are gradually being abandoned; and the way in which Hindu priests established their influence over non-Aryan chiefs and gradually drew them within their fold is repeatedly exemplified in the pages of Assam History. The various methods of conversion enumerated by Sir Alfred Lyall and Mr. Risley have all been adopted there at one time or another.