ABSTRACT
Central India (referred to hereafter as “the region”) is one of the most culturally diverse sections of the country. Its recorded history dates back to the time of the Buddha more than twenty-ve hundred years ago. Centrally located, the region is bordered by most of the country’s larger states and provinces. Over the millennia, various dynasties, tribal groups, bands of refugees, and wanderers have come from these bordering lands, as well as from distant places, and settled into the region. Due to this, one can nd there pockets of nearly all the major Indian ethnic and linguistic groups, as well as the religious traditions and movements they brought with them. Not only has the distinctive character of each group exchanged in uences with the existing religious cultures, at the same time they have all been affected by the calm and relaxed nature that tends to pervade the region. With time, there has come to exist a richly interwoven fabric of diverse religious beliefs and practices.
